Preview | Women's Basketball Continues Homestand on Friday against Murray State

CARBONDALE, Ill. - The Southern Illinois University women's basketball team (7-13, 2-8 MVC) will host Murray State on Friday night at 6 p.m. in the 'Mental Health Awareness' game at the Banterra Center.

GAME PROMOTION

The Salukis' game against the Racers will be the 'Mental Health Awareness' game, in partnership with ADEI.
An hour before tip-off, there will be a bounce house in the Charles Helleny Pavilion.

HOW TO WATCH/LISTEN

SIU's game on Friday will also be the Missouri Valley Conference Game of the Week, with Scott Warmann (play-by-play) and Laura Leonard (analyst) on the call.
Larry Larson will be doing the broadcasting duties on NewsRadio WJPF 107.9 FM.

QUICK HITS

Southern Illinois enters the weekend with a 2-8 Missouri Valley Conference record and 7-13 overall record. At home, Southern is 5-7 so far this season.
In its last game, SIU came up short on Saturday, Feb. 3, falling to Missouri State, 62-52. The Salukis were out-scored, 15-7, in the fourth quarter.
Jaidynn Mason led Southern with 21 points, her third 20-point game of the season. Laniah Randle was second on the team with 18 points.
On the year, SIU is eighth in the Valley in scoring offense (66.3) and fourth in scoring defense (67.6).
The Salukis are first in the MVC and are tied for 22nd in the nation in turnovers forced-per-game (20.65).
No team in the conference has allowed fewer three-pointers than SIU at 81. Missouri State is second with 100. Southern is also second in opponent three-point percentage (.290) behind Belmont.
The Salukis are first in the MVC and tied for 43rd in the country in turnover margin (3.95).
SIU leads the Valley and is 10th in the NCAA in steals-per-game (11.8).

LEADING THE SALUKIS

Laniah Randle is third in the MVC in scoring (17.8), second in rebounding (8.9), eighth in field goal percentage (.493), tied for eighth in total blocks (17), and is tied for second in total steals (45). Randle has had nine 20-point games this season. In those games, SIU is 5-4.
Randle is 63rd in the NCAA in scoring, 59th in rebounding, and tied for 25th in offensive rebounds-per-game (3.8). The junior forward has eight double-doubles on the season, which is tied for 45th in the country.
In all of 2022-23, SIU had six total double-doubles. The Salukis have 10 as a team this season. Randle has provided eight of them, while Hughes has the other two.
Jaidynn Mason is second on the team and 11th in the MVC in scoring, averaging 13.1 points to go along with 3.1 rebounds, 3.0 assists, and 2.7 steals-per-game, with the steals average being tied for first in the conference. Mason posted her ninth game with 10+ points on Saturday, and has three games with over 20 points on the year.
Quierra Love is tied for fourth in the MVC and is 96th in the NCAA in steals-per-game (2.10). Love has posted two or more steals in nine games, and has at least four steals in five games. The senior is now eighth all-time in career steals (176) at SIU, and is one away from tying D.D. Plab for seventh in program history.
Love is seventh in the Valley in assists-per-game (3.9), and is 10th in assist/turnover ratio (1.5).
Seairra Hughes is tied for 12th in the MVC in blocks, with 15 on the year. Hughes has had multiple blocks in five games this season.
The Salukis' roster is made up of three seniors, five juniors, one sophomore, and three freshmen. SIU's three seniors are Love, Adrianna Katcher, and Sydney Prochaska.

LOOKING AT MURRAY STATE

Murray State brings an overall record of 13-6 and MVC record of 6-4 into Carbondale for Friday's game. The Racers are 8-1 at home and 5-5 in away games this season.
The Racers have lost back-to-back games, including a 73-54 loss in their last game at Belmont on Friday, Feb. 2. Katelyn Young led the team with 14 points in the loss.
Murray State is first in the Valley in scoring offense, averaging 87.8 points-per-game. This ranks fourth in the nation.
On the other side of the court, Murray State is 11th in scoring defense (76.8).
Young is first on the team and second in the conference in points-per-game (18.7).
Rechelle Turner has a record of 103-95 in her seven seasons as Murray State's head coach.

SERIES HISTORY

The Salukis are 41-7 all-time vs. Murray State, and have lost back-to-back games against the Racers
In their last meeting, the Racers defeated the Salukis, 75-70, on Jan. 26 in Murray, Ky.
Young led Murray State with 27 points in the win, while Mason had a team-high 20 points for SIU.

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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