Horizon League Women's Basketball Release #11

Jan. 14, 2008

Complete Release in PDF Format

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. - Milwaukee junior center Traci Edwards was tabbed Horizon League women's basketball Player of the Week for the first time this season and the sixth time in her career after she helped the Panthers improve to 3-1 in League play. In two games this past week, Edwards averaged. 24.5 points and 9.0 rebounds per game.

Horizon League Player of the Week
Traci Edwards, Milwaukee
Jr. * C * Menasha, Wis.
Junior Traci Edwards earns her first Player of the Week award this season and the sixth of her career. Edwards receives the award after she helped the Panthers to a pair of League wins. For the week, the 6-foot, 2-inch Milwaukee center averaged 24.5 points, 9.0 rebounds, 2.5 steals and 2.0 blocks per game. Edwards opened the week with a 30-point, 12-rebound performance against Youngstown State on Thursday as she set the school record with 37th career double-doubles. On Saturday, the Wisconsin native scored 19 points and pulled down six rebounds to help the Panthers rally from a 13 point deficit and collect a 63-52 win over the Vikings.

Other Top Performances for the Week Ending January 13
Lade Akande, Butler
Jr. * C * Robinson, Ill.
Akande helped the Bulldogs to wins over Loyola and UIC this past week. The BU junior opened the week with a 15 point, nine rebound performance in a 61-50 win over the Ramblers on Thursday. Akande closed the out the week as she tallied 17 points in a 72-57 victory over the Flames on Saturday.

Angel Roque, Cleveland State
So. * G * Mississauga, Ontario
Roque netted a career-high 15 points, going 5-for-8 from three-point range in a 87-61 road loss to Green Bay on Thursday. Her five three-pointers made were a career-high. Roque then came back to post eight points and three steals in Saturday's 63-52 loss at Milwaukee.

Sandi Brown, Detroit
Jr. * G * Toledo, Ohio
Brown opened the week with a 20-point, 10-rebound performance in a 74-58 home win over IPFW on Wednesday to collect her first double-double of the year. On Saturday, Brown fell one rebound shy of notching her second double-double of the season as she scored 21 points and pulled down nine rebounds during a 71-53 loss at home to Wright State.

Heather Golden, Green Bay
Fr. * G * De Pere, Wis.
Golden posted a career-high 13 points on 6-of-8 shooting in 19 minutes to help the Phoenix defeat Cleveland State 87-61 on Thursday. Then, in Green Bay's 85-80 win over Youngstown State, Golden went for 15 points in 22 minutes as a reserve, while adding career and team-highs of five rebounds and four steals.

Maggie McCloskey, Loyola
So. * G * Riverside, Ill.
McCloskey averaged 14.0 ppg and knocked down six three-pointers in two games last week. McCloskey buried four of those treys and finished with a game-high 18 points and no turnovers as Loyola defeated Valparaiso 64-60 on Saturday to earn its first Horizon League win.

Jessie Miller, UIC
So. * G * Apple Valley, Minn.
Miller averaged a team-best 15 points and 7.5 rebounds per game. The guard also totaled a team-best seven assists and tied with team-best with four steals. Miller was 6-of-14 from three-point range and shot 85.7 percent from the line in a 0-2 week.

Aimee Litka, Valparaiso
Jr. * F * South Bend, Ind.
Litka scored a career-high 28 points on 9-of-13 shooting at UIC on Thursday to lead the Crusaders to a 72-63 win. The Indiana native then tallied 17 points going 7-of-11 from the field in a 64-60 loss at Loyola on Saturday. For the week, Litka connected at a 69.2 percent clip (9-of-13) from beyond the arc.

Shey Peddy, Wright State
Fr. * G * Boston, Mass.
In her lone game of the week, Peddy helped the Raiders improve to 2-1 in League play with a 71-53 win at Detroit on Saturday. In the win, Peddy scored 13 points, pulled down six rebounds, dished out four assists and had four steals.

Tiara Scott, Youngstown State
Jr. * F * Denver, Colo.
Scott averaged 20.5 points, 8.0 rebounds per game and shot 68.2 percent from the field. In addition, the Colorado native hit all 11 of her free-throw attempts. Scott began the week with a team-high 22 points on 9-of-12 shooting in a 76-66 loss at Milwaukee on Thursday. Against Green Bay on Saturday, the YSU junior posted her second double-double of the season (19 points and 12 rebounds) in a 85-80 loss at Green Bay.

News From Around the League
Butler
The Bulldogs (12-2, 2-1 Horizon League) improved to 2-1 in League play this past week as they defeated Loyola (61-50) on Thursday and UIC on Saturday (72-57).

Junior forward Tara Miller continues to lead the League with a 3.54 assists-to-turnovers ratio after tying her career-best total with eight at UIC on Jan. 12. Her mark also places her among the best in the NCAA.

Butler continues to be one of the strongest defensive teams in the League, leading the league by allowing just 58.9 points per contest. In fact, only five of the Bulldogs' 14 opponents have scored over 60 points this season, while four have managed 50 or fewer.

Junior guard Candace Jones put together one of her finest games of the season against UIC as she went 5-of-10 from the field and 4-for-4 from beyond the arc to post a season-high 16 points while adding four rebounds and four assists.

After averaging just 58.6 points per game through the first five games of the year, the Bulldogs have turned up the offense in the last nine by averaging 72.3 points per contest, an improvement of 13.7 points.

Butler carries an 11-game home winning streak into its contest against Green Bay on Thursday. The Phoenix, however, owns a 22-game winning streak against the Bulldogs, dating back to the 1998-99 season.

The Bulldogs close out the week with a 2:00 p.m. match up at home against Milwaukee on Saturday.

Cleveland State
The Vikings (8-7, 2-2 Horizon League) went 0-2 this past week with losses to Green Bay (87-61) on Thursday and Milwaukee (63-52) on Saturday.

CSU's loss to Green Bay snapped its five-game winning streak. It was the Vikings longest win streak since 1983-84.

Senior forward Robyn Hoying set career-highs in points (20) and rebounds (10) on against Green Bay. It was her first career double-double and the second by a Viking this season.

Sophomore guard Angel Roque netted a career-high 15 points at Green Bay as she hit a career-best five three-pointers.

Sophomore guard Kailey Klein scored just nine points at Green Bay, which snapped her streak of consecutive games in double figures at 17 games. She has tallied double figures 26 times in her career.

Against Milwaukee, CSU held the lead at halftime (30-22), but was outscored 41-22 in the second half as the Panthers went on to a 63-52 win. It was just the second time this season that the Vikings lost when leading at the half (8-2).

CSU returns to action as it will play host to Detroit at 5:00 p.m. on Thursday. On Saturday, the Vikings welcome Wright State to the Wolstein Center for a 5:00 p.m. tipoff.

Detroit
UDM (3-11, 0-3 Horizon League) split on the week as the Titans took a break from League play to claim a 74-58 win over IPFW on Wednesday to complete a season sweep over the Mastodons. The Titans then fell by a score of 71-53 over visiting Wright State on Saturday.

Four players scored in double figures for UDM against IPFW as junior guard Sandi Brown poured in a game-high 20 points and earned her first career double-double with a game-high 10 boards. Junior guard Zemora Davis collected a career-high 13 points, while freshman guard Gabi Hungerford and senior center Katy Dunlop both came off the bench to add 11 for Detroit.

The Titans held a 19-5 advantage in assists and also edged out the Mastodons in rebounds, 44-38.

Against Wright State Brown paced the Titans with 21 points against the Raiders and also pulled down a game-high nine boards. In addition, senior guard Keashawn Bond pulled down a career-high and game-best 10 rebounds.

The Titans take to the road for the first time since Dec. 21 as they face Cleveland State at 5:00 p.m. on Thursday. UDM will complete its Ohio swing as it takes on Youngstown State at 5:00 p.m. on Saturday.

Green Bay
The Phoenix (12-3, 4-0 Horizon League) downed Cleveland State on Thursday 87-61 and beat Youngstown State 85-80 on Saturday.

Against Cleveland State Green Bay started the game 11-of-13 from the field and finished the game shooting 66.7 percent from the field, good for second-best in team history.

Junior guard Rachel Porath is shooting 60.2 percent from the field to make her the top-ranked guard in that category. Porath's percentage includes a 31-of-64 mark from three-point range. When shooting inside the arc, the Wisconsin native is firing at a 71.0 percent clip.

Green Bay continues to find success from three-point range this season, as the Phoenix is firing an impressive 44.6 percent from downtown, good for second in the NCAA. A trio of Green Bay players are in the top five in the Horizon League in three-point percentage: Kati Harty (1st, .531), Kayla Groh (3rd, .489) and Rachel Porath (5th, .484).

Green Bay travels to Butler at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday and then finishes the week on Saturday against Valparaiso with the tip off scheduled for 2:35 p.m.

Loyola
The Ramblers (3-12, 1-3 Horizon League) split a pair of home League games this past week as they fell 61-50 to Butler on Thursday, but rebounded to defeat Valparaiso on Saturday 64-60.

Sophomore guard Maggie McCloskey is ranked second in the country in three-pointers made per game. McCloskey has knocked down 50 treys in LU's 15 games this season (3.33 3FGM/gm), behind only Robert Morris' Sade Logan.

One of the key contributors in the win over Valpo was sophomore guard Keisha Collins, who found her shooting stroke to the tune of 16 points on 5-of-8 shooting and 4-of-4 from beyond the arc. Collins' four treys doubled her total through LU's first 14 games.

Underclassmen combined to score 62 of Loyola's 64 points in the win over Valpo.

Loyola will travel to crosstown rival UIC at 6:00 p.m. on Saturday in its lone game of the week.

Milwaukee
The Panthers (8-7, 3-1 Horizon League) extended its winning steak to a season-best three games following home wins over Youngstown State (76-66) on Thursday and Cleveland State (63-52) on Saturday.

The Panthers have won four straight games at home after beginning the year 0-4 at home to start the season.

Junior center Traci Edwards set a pair of school records Thursday against Youngstown State as she tallied her fifth career 30-point game, which extended a school record, and pulled down 12 boards for her school-record 37th career double-double. She also hit seven free throws, pushing her career total past the school mark of 390.

Edwards has also pushed her school-record streak of double-digit scoring games to 38 and tallied her school-record tying 38th career game with double-digit rebounds.

The Panthers overcame a 13-point deficit to hand Cleveland State a 63-52 loss Saturday. It was the first time UWM overcame a halftime deficit to win a game this season.

UWM will travel to Valparaiso on Thursday for an 8:00 p.m. with the Crusaders. On Saturday, the Panthers will complete their Indiana swing with a 2:00 p.m. matchup against Butler.

UIC
The Flames (4-11, 0-4 Horizon League) dropped a pair League games at home this past weekend as they fell 73-63 to Valparaiso on Thursday and 72-57 against Butler on Saturday.

In two contests, UIC outrebounded its opponents, 45-43 and picked up seven more blocks (11-4).

Sophomore guard Jessie Miller averaged a team-best 15 points and 7.5 rebounds per game. Miller also led UIC with seven assists and four steals. The guard shot 42.9 percent from three-point land (6-for-14) and 6-for-7 from the line.

Freshman guard Taylor Manley notched a season-high 18 points against Valparaiso on Thursday. Manley drained six treys against the Crusaders.

Freshman forward Shanice Sadler also tabbed a season-best 12 points against Valparaiso. Sadler was 4-for-9 from the field and hit a season-best two treys on the afternoon.

UIC remains at home to host crosstown rival Loyola in its lone game of the week on Saturday, Jan. 19 at 5:00 p.m.

Valparaiso
The Crusaders (7-7, 2-1 Horizon League) split a pair of road League games this past week. Valpo opened the week with a 72-63 win against UIC on Thursday and then finished with a 64-60 loss versus Loyola.

Sophomore guard Whitney Farris scored a career-high 16 points at Loyola after tying her season-high of 11 at UIC on Thursday.

Valpo is shooting 90.2 percent from the line in the final two minutes of games.

Junior guard Launa Hochstetler had 15 assists in two games on the week.

Valpo returns home this week as it will meet Milwaukee on Thursday at 8:05 p.m. and Green Bay on Saturday at 2:35 p.m.

The Crusaders have won 11 games in a row at home, which is tied for the eighth longest streak in the country. Valpo is one of only two League teams with unbeaten records at home (matching Butler 5-0).

In home games this season, the Crusaders have outscored their opponents by an average of 71.0-60.8. In road games, Valpo has been outscored by an average of 75.2-61.1.

Wright State
The Raiders (5-9, 2-1 Horizon League) defeated Detroit 71-53 on the road in their only game of the week.

Four starters scored in double figures and two others had eight or more points. Freshman guard Shey Peddy led Wright State with 13 points, six rebounds and four assists, while senior forward Whitney Lewis and freshman guard LaShawna Thomas each had 12 and sophomore guard Kanisha Ward tallied 11 points.

Sophomore forward Erica Richardson, in her first action since injuring her ankle in late November, had nine points off the bench, while freshman forward Tatianna Hall chipped in with eight points.

The win at Detroit was Wright State's first on an opponent's home court in eight tries this season and was the first since winning at Milwaukee last February 24. The 18-point victory margin was the largest for the Raiders on the road since an 80-53 decision at Loyola on February 24, 2005.

Wright State continues the road swing this week in Northeast Ohio as the Raiders take on Youngstown State at 5:15 p.m. on Thursday and Cleveland State at 5:00 p.m. on Saturday.

Youngstown State
The Penguins (7-8, 2-2 Horizon League) dropped a pair of road games this past week losing to Milwaukee (76-66) on Thursday and to Green Bay on Saturday (85-80).

Senior forward Jessica Schloemp extended her consecutive games-played streak to 88.

YSU has scored at least 70 points in four of its last five games (74 against Akron, 73 against UIC, 70 against Loyola and 80 against Green Bay).

With eight assists against Green Bay, senior guard Lauren Branson became the sixth player in school history to record 400 assists. She now has 402 and needs 46 more to move into fifth place past Colleen Cook (445, 1994-98)

Junior Tiara Scott has made 22 consecutive free throws since Dec. 21, 2007. That total ranks tied for the sixth-longest streak in school history.

The Penguins open the week as they play host to Wright State at 5:15 p.m. on Thursday and Detroit at 4:35 p.m. on Saturday. In home games this season, YSU is 4-1.