The University of Wisconsin women’s basketball team will take on the Eastern Illinois Panthers tonight in a battle between two teams hoping to get their seasons on track.
The Badgers will be looking for their first home win of the season and to get the opportunity to exact some revenge on an Eastern Illinois program that beat them in their last meeting.
The game will offer both teams a chance to double their seasons’ win total, as the Badgers have fallen to 1-5 after a one-point loss to Ball State last week, and Eastern Illinois has started off their season 1-4.
Eastern Illinois will be led by the play of their upperclassmen centers that average a combined 22.6 points and 12.6 rebounds per game. Senior Brooke Gossett leads the team in scoring with a 13 points per game average, while junior guard Lauren Dailey is the only other Panther to average double digits with her 12.4 points per game. The Panthers will also be counting on the contributions of junior center Allison Collies, who is averaging 9.6 points and 5.2 rebounds per game, to deal with post presence of the Badgers.
The Panthers lone win this season came in their only home game of the season against the Midshipwomen of Navy. Going into the matchup with the Badgers drastically outsized, the Panthers will likely attack the Badgers at their weakest points. UW’s three-point defense has been anything but stellar this season, and as a whole, the team is averaging seven more turnovers than their opponents. With this in mind, Eastern Illinois will likely start two centers and three guards against a Badger lineup that will probably consist of the typical two-guard, two-forward and one-center setup.
Wisconsin will be looking to rebound after their one-point loss to Ball State Dec. 5. Luckily for the Badgers, rebounding has been the one key to their play so far this season. Averaging 6.8 more rebounds than their opponents, the Badgers will be led by the height and tenacity of their starting five.
Behind the play of Emily Ashbaugh, who is averaging 10.3 points and 6.8 rebounds per game, the remaining four Badgers in the starting line-up each add over eight points per game. The most well rounded of those players is sophomore guard Stephanie Rich, who is averaging 9.3 points, 4.0 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 2.2 steals per game.
The play of freshman Ashley Josephson has been the brightest spot in the Badgers’ line-up. The starting point guard is averaging 9.8 points and nearly two assists per game.
“I just want to go out there and play my best,” Josephson said. “I know I can compete at this level; I just want to show people I can.”
Contrasting Josephson’s raw talent is the play of senior leader Kristi Seeger, who has been a big key to the Badgers small successes this season, as she brings her maturity and nearly 10 points per game to the court every night.
The towering presence of the Gebisa sisters will likely provide the Badgers with a more than dominating force down low against a much smaller Panther team. Ebba Gebisa is averaging 8 points and 4.7 rebounds per game, while older sister Lello is averaging 7.5 points and 5 rebounds off the bench.
“I’m really proud of this group,” head coach Jane Albright said. “They really have hung in there and proved they can score very efficiently.”
The Badgers’ 1-5 start to the season may be deceiving in most aspects of the games they have played. Over half of their five losses have come against teams who won their respective divisions last season. These games included a one-point loss, a two-point loss and an overtime loss. Although the Badger women have had a tough time increasing their numbers in the win column, they are definitely a youthful team that will be looking to solidify their identity with a win against Eastern Illinois.
