Preview | Women's Basketball Heads South on Saturday to Face North Texas

CARBONDALE, Ill. - The Southern Illinois University women's basketball team (2-4) will be heading down to Denton, Texas, on Saturday to take on North Texas at 2 p.m.

HOW TO WATCH/LISTEN

Southern Illinois' game at North Texas can be watched on ESPN+ at 2 p.m. Sam Kaman and Brian Burton will be on the call.
Larry Larson will have the radio call on NewsRadio WJPF 107.9 FM.

QUICK HITS

Southern Illinois earned its first home win of the season on Monday, Dec. 2, defeating Central Methodist by a final score of 74-38. SIU had 21 assists and forced 31 turnovers in the win.
The 21 assists are the most the Salukis have had in a game since Feb. 15, 2024, at Evansville when they also had 21. Southern's 31 turnovers forced are the most since Nov. 12, 2007, when it forced 34 turnovers vs. Christian Brothers.
Against Central Methodist, the Salukis also had a season-high 54 rebounds and 26 offensive boards. The 54 rebounds are the most for SIU since posting 54 vs. Brescia on Nov. 26, 2016.
SIU is 11th in the Missouri Valley Conference in scoring offense, averaging 60.5 points-per-game. Defensively, Southern is allowing 67.0 points-per-game, which ranks fourth in the Valley.
The Salukis are now fifth in the MVC in rebounding (37.8). In terms of offensive rebounding, SIU is second at 13.8. This is tied for 81st in the NCAA.
The Salukis are in the top half of the MVC in both blocks (fifth, 3.5) and steals (sixth, 8.7).
In the MVC Preseason Poll, Southern was picked to finish 10th out of 12 teams. SIU received a total of 167 points in the poll. Drake was voted to finish first with 566 points and 39 first-place votes.
After Monday's win, Southern sits in ninth place in the MVC and are one of four teams with two wins (Illinois State, Evansville, and Indiana State).
Bradley is in first with a record of 5-2, followed by Murray State who is 4-2.
Kelly Bond-White is in her third season in Carbondale and has a record of 25-43. The lone new faces on the coaching staff are Greg Brown (assistant coach) and Peyton Thevenot (graduate assistant).

LEADING THE SALUKIS

Gift Uchenna posted 23 points, 15 rebounds, three blocks, and two steals against Central Methodist. Uchenna has now posted a double-double in three-straight games and is the only MVC player averaging a double-double on the season (16.0 points and 11.3 rebounds). The junior is ninth in the league in scoring, first in rebounding, and third in blocks-per-game (2.5). In the NCAA, Uchenna is fifth in rebounding, third in offensive rebounds (5.8), and tied for 16th in blocks-per-game.
Isabella Palmqvist is tied for second on the Salukis with 8.0 points-per-game and is 10-of-26 (.385) from deep. Palmqvist is 11th in the Valley in three-point percentage and 15th in three-pointers made, and has posted a three-pointer in five consecutive games.
Since coming off of the bench vs. Louisiana Monroe, Kayla Cooper has started three-straight games and has played at least 29 minutes in back-to-back appearances. Cooper posted season-high's of five assists and four steals in SIU's win over Central Methodist.
Tyranny Brown reached double-figures in scoring for the third time this season on Monday when the senior scored 10 points vs. Central Methodist. Brown reached the 10-point plateau once in 2023-24, which came against North Texas on Nov. 19, 2023, when she scored 13 vs. the Mean Green.
Tkiyah Nelson is now fifth in the Valley in steals-per-game (2.2) after posting 14 steals vs. Central Methodist. Nelson has had a steal in every game and multiple steals in four. The sophomore from St. Louis, Mo., also posted her first career double-double on Monday with 11 points and 10 rebounds.
Alice Curman has made four starts as Southern Illinois' point guard, averaging 6.4 points, 4.6 rebounds, 3.0 assists, and 1.4 steals-per-game. After scoring in single-digits in each of her first three appearances, Curman has now scored 10 points in back-to-back games and has shot 3-of-8 from three during that stretch (was 0-of-7 from deep in first three games).

LOOKING AT NORTH TEXAS

North Texas is 6-2 heading into Saturday's game against the Salukis. UNT is 4-0 at home this season.
In its last game, North Texas defeated Tennessee State, 83-65, on Wednesday, Dec. 4. The 83 points are the second most the Mean Green have scored in 2024-25 (scored 84 vs.Alcorn State, Nov. 4).
UNT's lone losses have been to No. 25 Oregon and New Mexico, both coming on the road.
The Mean Green have three players scoring in double-figures, with Tommisha Lampkin's 15.9 points-per-game leading the way. Desiree Wooten (12.0) and Kyla Deck (11.9) are also averaging double-figures.

SERIES HISTORY

SIU is 0-1 all-time vs. UNT, with the lone meeting taking place last season on Nov. 19, 2023, in Carbondale. North Texas won by a final score of 79-73.

FOLLOW THE SALUKIS
Keep up with all the latest news and information on the Salukis by following the team on Twitter at @SIU_WBasketball, on Instagram at @SIU_WBasketball, and on Facebook at Facebook.com/SalukiAthletics. Fans can also download the "Salukis" Mobile App on the App Store or Google Play Store.

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