Northwestern University Athletics
'Cats Continue Home Stretch
12/1/2008 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Dec. 1, 2008
EVANSTON, Ill. -- Northwestern continues its hosting obligations, welcoming Big East foe Marquette to Welsh-Ryan Arena for an 8 p.m. showdown Tuesday evening. The Big Ten Network is broadcasting the game live. The contest is the third in a series of four games over a six-day span for the 'Cats before taking a 10-day hiatus for finals.
Entering the Game...
• Northwestern (2-4) enters Tuesday's game following 1-1 performance over the weekend at the DoubleTree White Invitational. NU defeated Western Illinois, 71-54, Saturday afternoon before falling to Missouri, 69-63, in the final game Sunday night. Amy Jaeschke led the way with 17.0 points and 9.0 rebounds over the two games and was named the MVP of the Invitational.
• The Golden Eagles (5-2) come to Evanston on a two-game losing streak after winning the first five games of the season. Both of Marquette's losses came over the weekend at the WBCA Classic and were by a combined seven points. MU fell to No. 15 Virginia on Saturday, 76-71, and then gave up an 18-point lead to Utah, losing 79-76. Marquette defeated Gonzaga, 80-77, in its first game of the event.
Scouting the Golden Eagles
The Golden Eagles have been flirting with a Top-25 ranking all season, thanks largely to senior guard Krystal Ellis, who is averaging 16.0 ppg. Angel Robinson and Jessica Pachko join Ellis in double-figures with 12.4 and 10.0 ppg, respectively. Like the Wildcats, MU's starting line up has featured three underclassmen several times this season, including freshman Georgie Jones, who is leading MU in rebounds with 6.3 per outing. As a team, Marquette is outscoring its opponents by 13.4 ppg, thanks to a 45 percent field goal percentage.
The Series against Marquette
Northwestern has won eight out of the 10 meetings between these two teams, including last year's 65-63 victory in Milwaukee. Amy Jaeschke pumped in a then-career-high 21 points in the victory and blocked Krystal Ellis' potential game-winning basket to help NU to victory. Other than last year's meeting, the most recent time the two teams faced each other was in 1997. They also matched up in the second year of women's basketball at Northwestern --1977.
Evaluating the Opposition
During the 2008-09 season, Northwestern faces seven opponents who appeared in last year's NCAA Tournament. They include Kansas State (5 seed), Ohio State (6), Marquette (7), Iowa (9), Minnesota (9), DePaul (10) and Missouri (13). Additionally, eight Northwestern opponents during the 2008-09 season are ranked or receiving votes in either this week's Associated Press or ESPN/USA Today Poll. For the complete rankings, please see page 7 of this release.
Taking the Lead
Sophomore Amy Jaeschke picked up right where she left off last season: topping several Wildcat statistical categories.The 6-5 center is averaging a double-double with 16.3 ppg and rebounding 11.5 rpg--an average that is also the best in the Big Ten. She also leads the 'Cats in field goal percentage (.579 percent) and minutes played (36.0 mpg)--. The center ranks first in the conference in defensive rebounds (8.33) and is second in blocked shots (2.83).
Reed This:
Sophomore guard Meshia Reed shot an outstanding 68.4 percent from the field over the weekend, including 5-of-7 from the free throw line. She is now third on the team, averaging 11.8 ppg and second on the squad with six steals.
The Big Three
Junior Kristin Cartwright and sophomores Amy Jaeschke and Meshia Reed have responded to Joe McKeown's request to step up play. The three have accounted for 67 percent of the squad's scoring (246-of-367 points) and 60 percent of NU's rebounds (123-of-202).
For complete game notes, please click on the link above.
