EVANSVILLE, Ind.—The University of Southern Indiana women's basketball team resumes GLVC play against a pair of familiar foes—Bellarmine University Thursday at 4:45 p.m. (CST) in Louisville, Kentucky, and Northern Kentucky University Saturday at noon (CST) in Highland Heights, Kentucky.
USI (10-5, 2-2 GLVC), which is 1-1 against the GLVC's East Division this season, has won 10 of its last 12 games after starting the season with three losses at the Disney Division II Tip-Off Classic.
Since returning from the holiday break, the Screaming Eagles have averaged 92.5 points per game (ppg) and have shot 57.9 percent from the field in two games. The Eagles raised their season scoring average more than three points to 69.5 ppg after averaging 65.9 ppg in their first 13 games of the season.
The Eagles are expecting sophomore forward
Jasmine Baines (Jeffersonville, Indiana) to be ready to play Thursday after being shaken up in USI's 85-79 victory over the University of Alabama-Huntsville. Baines leads the Eagles with 14.2 points and 5.8 rebounds per game and has averaged better than 15 points and six rebounds in USI's last 12 games.
Junior guard
Katie Thiesenhusen (Muskego, Wisconsin), who is coming off a 22-point, six-steal performance against Alabama-Huntsville, is second on the squad with 10.9 ppg and 3.1 assists per game (apg). Freshman point guard
Keisha Collins (South Holland, Illinois), who is averaging a freshman-best and team-leading 15.5 points in USI's first four conference games, leads USI with 3.8 apg and is third on the team with 10.0 ppg. Collins is third in the GLVC with a 1.83 assist-to-turnover ratio.
Another player the Eagles are starting to rely on is senior guard
Tiara Brown (Normal, Illinois). Brown leads the GLVC in three-point field goal percentage (.630) and is averaging 6.1 ppg.
Bellarmine (6-5, 2-1 GLVC), which is coming off a 69-62 setback at Oakland City University, swept the season series with the Eagles in 2004-05 and leads the all-time series with USI, 34-16. The Knights are 9-4 against USI since 2000.
Sophomore guard Angela Smith leads four Knights that are averaging in double figures with 15.0 ppg.
Northern Kentucky (8-3, 2-2 GLVC) has won two straight games, including a 74-55 triumph over Division I Loyola University (Ill.). The Norse lead the all-time series with USI, 30-17, and are 8-6 against the Eagles since 2000 after splitting the season series in 2004-05. USI avenged an 81-55 home loss to the Norse a year ago by beating them, 60-59, at Regents Hall later in the season.
Junior center Karmen Graham leads Northern Kentucky with 15.2 points and 6.2 rebounds per game.
Following the two-game road swing, the Eagles return home to take on Quincy University and Southern Illinois University Edwardsville January 12 and 14, respectively.
