EMU Heads to TCU Saturday for WNIT Second Round

Women's Basketball at TCU
Date	Saturday, March 19 \| 7 p.m. (CT)
Venue	Fort Worth, Texas \| Ed and Rae Schollmaier Arena
Game Notes	EMU Notes
Live Stats	Fan Stats
Watch	Live Stream
Listen	WEMU (89.1 FM)
Twitter	@EMUWBB \| @EMUAthletics

FORT WORTH, Texas (EMUEagles.com) -- Following a buzzer-beating victory over Saint Mary's College Thursday, March 17, the Eastern Michigan University women's basketball team remains on the road for the second round of the Women's National Invitation Tournament (WNIT) Saturday, March 19, against Texas Christian University. Game time is slated for 7 p.m. CT at Shollmaier Arena in Fort Worth, Texas.
   Coming off a thrilling 74-73 victory over SMC in its opening game of the WNIT, Eastern Michigan enters the TCU game with a record of 22-11 (10-8 MAC). Meanwhile, the Horned Frogs advanced to second round after defeating UT Rio Grande Valley, 97-73, at home, March 17.
   Fans can catch the game on WEMU (89.1) beginning 10 minutes prior to tipoff with Chad Bush and Greg Steiner on the call.

WINNING ON THE ROAD: With a 74-73 win over St. Mary's, March 17, at McKeon Pavillion, the Eagles were one of eight teams in this season's WNIT to win an opening game on the road. Ball State, Northern Iowa, UT Martin, IUPUI, Bucknell, Virginia, and Wake Forest also registered road wins in the first round.

EMU IN THE POSTSEASON: The Eagles are 6-8 all-time in the postseason after Thursday night's win over St. Mary's. EMU also registered a pair of victories over Drake and Tulsa in last season's run to the WNIT "Sweet 16." The Green and White's run to the round of 16 marked the second time since 2011 that EMU won its first two games in the tournament.

POSTSEASON SUCCESS: With EMU's first round win, the Eagles have recorded postseason wins in each of the past three seasons.

FACING THE HORNED FROGS: Saturday's second-round WNIT clash will pit the Eagles against TCU for the second meeting all-time, and first in the postseason. The Horned Frogs hold a slim 1-0 edge in the series after defeating EMU during the 2008-09 campaign.
   TCU came into the Nov. 28, 2008 matchup at the Caribbean Challenge ranked No. 22/24 and overpowered the Eagles, 71-55. Tavelyn James led Eastern with 17 points and five rebounds while Tara Johnson added a double-double with 10 points and 11 rebounds.

AGAINST THE BIG 12: Eastern Michigan has squared off against Big 12 institutions five times over EMU's 39-year history. Unfortunately for the Eagles, the Irving, Texas based conference holds a 5-0 mark over EMU all-time. The Green and White have tangled with four different Big 12 schools, led by two meetings against Kansas State. Meanwhile, EMU has clashed with Baylor, Oklahoma State, and TCU once.

PLANES, TRAINS, AND AUTOMOBILES: The Eagles' WNIT berth has taken the Green and White from coast to coast since EMU departed for California, March 15. Flying from Detroit to Charlotte, the Eagles then caught a plane to San Francisco before eventually arriving in Moraga, Calif.. With a 74-73 win over the Gaels, the Eagles headed to Texas. After a flight from San Jose, Calif. to Austin, Texas, EMU caught another to Dallas before settling in Fort Worth. Over the four-day span the Eagles will have traveled a whopping 5,434 miles and been in three different time zones.

RECORD WATCH: The 2015-16 season has put the Eagles inside several of the EMU's top-five single-season categories. As a team, the Eagles ranked third in field goals made (873) and three-pointers attempted (656), fourth in points scored (2,364), field goals attempted (2,225), rebounds (1,328), and steals (371). Meanwhile, Janay Morton, Cha Sweeney, and Chanise Baldwin sit inside the top-five on the individual level. Morton is tied third in program history with 90 steals while also ranking 16th with 439 points scored. Sweeney's 598 points scored is the sixth-most in EMU single game laurels while the Toledo, Ohio product also ranks seventh in points per game (18.1) and ninth in assists (141). Baldwin comes in with the sixth-most free throws attempted (167) and rebounds (255), while her 50 blocks ranks fifth all-time.

2 + 2 = HISTORY: Junior Cha Sweeney continues to rewrite the record books and with two more points she can list her name again amongst the all-time greats. The Toledo, Ohio product needs just two more for 600 in a season, a mark that has only been reached five other times in EMU history. Furthermore, with two points she will also tie Ryan Coleman for third all-time in scoring at 1,793.

EAGLES WIN ON A BUZZER BEATER: The final one minute of the March 17 battle between Eastern Michigan and Saint Mary's kept fans on the edge of their seats. After leading by as many as nine in the game, the Eagles trailed by one, 71-70, as the clock approached the one minute mark. Sheyna Deans stepped in and swiped a pass on the defensive end before Cha Sweeney showcased her handles. Sweeney crossed over her defender and split a pair of Gaels in the lane, creating just enough separation to sink a floater to put EMU in front 72-71. A foul setup SMC with the ball under its basket, looking to regain the lead. Off the in bounds, Lauren Nicholson found the hot-handed Devyn Galland on the baseline. With a pair of Eagles in her face, Galland knocked down the baseline jumper giving the home team the one-point edge with 8.4 ticks left on the clock. An initial shot by Sweeney was blocked, but the 5-foot-2 point guard tracked down the rebound providing EMU with another shot at victory. Out of a timeout by Eastern Michigan, Sweeney pulled up at the free throw line but her shot rimmed off. Fortunately for the Green and White, Chanise Baldwin was there to pick up the board and sink the put back with 1.8 seconds left to put EMU ahead, 74-73. A last ditch effort by the Gaels did not fall, allowing EMU to advance to the second round of the WNIT.

FOUL FEST: The Eagles were forced to rely on their bench in Thursday night's 74-73 win over Saint Mary's after both Cha Sweeney and Chanise Baldwin were bench due with four fouls in the third period. The Green and White led by eight when Baldwin headed to the bench at the 6:46 mark and had shrunk to three, 50-47, when Sweeney was called for her fourth foul with 5:14 left in the period. With the duo looking on from the bench, the Eagles closed out the quarter 3-of 12 from the floor while SMC converted 3-of-5 shots over the same stretch giving EMU a 57-54 lead heading into the final stanza.

DIALING IN FROM DISTANCE: The Eagles tied a season-high with 10 made three-pointers in their WNIT first round victory over Saint Mary's, March 17. The double-digit treys marked the most made by EMU since the Eagles converted 10-of-21 versus Northern Illinois, Feb. 20. Janay Morton led the way with five triples, which ties for the second most in postseason program history.

THE EAGLES AGAINST POSTSEASON TEAMS: When examining the brackets for the 2016 NCAA and WNIT tournaments, EMU recognizes 10 teams that it met during the 2015-16 campaign. Out of the NCAA bracket, the Eagles tangled with the University at Buffalo and Kentucky. Out of the WNIT bracket, Eastern played Central Michigan, Akron, Ohio, Ball State, UT Rio Grande Valley, Abilene Christian, Harvard, and Michigan. The Eagles compiled a 6-10 record against those teams.

SURVIVE AND ADVANCE: The winner of the EMU-TCU game will advance to take on either Arkansas State or UTEP in the 'Sweet 16.' That game will take place March 23-25 with time and venue to be determined.

NOW THIS IS MARCH MADNESS: The Green and White has posted a 40-29 record during the month of March over the last 18 years, including an 8-2 mark last season.

CONTINUAL IMPROVEMENT: Each season under Head Coach Tory Verdi the Eagles have taken steps to return to the programs's previous championship form. The 2015-16 squad is no different as the Green and White surpassed 10 Mid-American Conference wins for the second time in four seasons under Verdi. EMU has posted at least 10 victories in MAC play on 10 different occasions. Prior to the 2001-02 season, the Eagles had never won more than nine games in league action.
   Eastern Michigan also has a chance to capture 20 victories for the eighth time in program history with another win in 2015-16. The team had consecutive 20-win seasons from 2003-2006 and again from 2009-11.

NINTH POSTSEASON TRIP FOR EMU: Playing in late March has become a regular tradition for Eastern Michigan, as the Eagles have participated in the postseason nine times in the past 13 years. Prior to the 2003-04 campaign, EMU had never participated in the postseason. However, all that changed when EMU won the 2004 MAC Tournament and earned the automatic bid to the program's first NCAA Tournament.
   The Green and White has since followed it up with appearances in the 2005, 2006, 2010, 2011, 2015 and 2016 WNIT. EMU again returned to the NCAA Tournament in 2012 after winning the MAC Tournament and in 2014 hosted two rounds of the Women's Basketball Invitational (WBI).

MAC IN WNIT PLAY: Eastern Michigan is one of five Mid-American Conference schools participating in the 2015 Postseason WNIT. Including this season, 45 MAC teams have been selected to compete in the tournament, posting a 36-40 record since 1998. Toledo leads the way capturing the 2011 WNIT Championship by knocking off Southern California at Savage Arena in Toledo, Ohio.

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Players Mentioned

Chanise Baldwin

Sheyna Deans

Janay Morton

Cha Sweeney

Eastern Michigan Athletics