Northwestern University Athletics
Wildcats Host No. 15/14 DePaul In Thursday Matinee
12/19/2007 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Dec. 19, 2007
Watch the live webcast on NUSports.com.
EVANSTON, Ill. -- Northwestern hosts Chicagoland rival DePaul in a rare matinee Thursday at Welsh-Ryan Arena. Tip is set for noon and admission is free. The Wildcats will be looking to build on their solid performance in Monday night's 65-63 victory at Marquette. Meanwhile, the No. 15/14 Blue Demons enter the contest with an unblemished 9-0 mark, having recently disposed of Northern Illinois 90-58 on Monday night.
On Monday, NU (4-7) welcomed the return of freshman Amy Jaeschke, who sustained a broken left hand in the season opener against Dayton back on Nov. 9. Jaeschke made the most of her comeback, tallying a team- and career-high 21 points on 9-of-15 from the field. Jenny Eckhart and Nadia Bibbs joined Jaeschke in double-figures, recording 13 and 12 points, respectively. Eckhart was also the team's leading rebounder pulling down seven boards on the evening.
The Wildcats enjoyed a good night offensively, shooting 43 percent from the field and 41 percent from beyond the arc. Bibbs and Eckhart each nailed two treys while Erin Dickerson added one. NU took care of the rock; turning the ball over just 13 times while forcing 19 Marquette miscues.
Scouting the Blue Demons
DePaul enters Thursday's game ranked No. 15/14 in the nation and boast a perfect 9-0 mark. The Blue Demons are outscoring their opponents by an average of 24.4 points per outing and out-rebounding them by 10.5 rpg. DePaul has three players who are averaging double digits in Allie Quigley (18.0), Deirdre Naughton (16.0) and Natasha Williams (12.6). Williams leads the squad on the glass, pulling down 9.0 rpg. All of DePaul's probable starters hail from the Land of Lincoln, which, when combined with NU's probables, makes for an all Illinois starting crew.
The Series Against DePaul
Northwestern is hanging on to a 12-11 lead in the all-time series against its intra-city rivals. DePaul has won the past eight contests after Northwestern posted an 8-0 mark to begin the series back in 1975. Last season, DePaul pulled out a 74-66 win on Dec. 13 at McGrath Arena. Northwestern played the ranked Blue Demons down to the wire but in the end, DePaul proved to be too much. Four Wildcats tallied double-figures as A.J. Glasauer had 12, Sara Stutz recorded a team-high 15 while Julie Bielawski and Kristin Cartwright scored 12 and 11, respectively.
Regarding Amy
Freshman Amy Jaeschke made quite an entrance on Monday night in her return to the court since sustaining a broken left hand in the season opener against Dayton back on Nov. 9. The Wilmette, Ill., native contributed a team- and career-high 21 points in the Wildcats' 65-63 victory against Marquette. Jaeschke blocked the Krystal Ellis' running layup with just under 12 seconds remaining, thwarting the Golden Eagles' attempt at the go-ahead basket.
Crashing The Party
The addition of six new faces (four freshmen, two transfers) to the program this season brings added height--something the Wildcats have been short on in the past. So far this season, Northwestern has out-rebounded its opponents on four occasions. Ironically, though, senior guard Nadia Bibbs is the team's leading rebounder, pulling down 7.4 rpg. Center Ellen Jaeschke is second on the team with 5.3 while sophomore Kaitlin McInerney was third on the squad with 5.7 rpg before going down with a torn ACL.
Starting Off On The Right Foot
A solid first-half performance in the 11 games so far this season has been an accurate indicator of an NU victory. The Wildcats are 3-1 when leading at the half.
For complete notes, please click on the PDF above.
