GAME NOTES

CHENEY, Wash. – With the regular season winding down, the Eastern Washington University women's basketball team is prepping to head to Montana for its lone matchups of the season against the Grizzlies and Bobcats.
 
EWU takes on fourth-place Montana on Thursday (Feb. 15) and Montana State on Saturday (Feb. 17). Both can be streamed for free on WatchBigSky.com or Pluto TV.
 
The Eagles (12-12, 7-5) are looking to bounce back from an 85-71 loss at Idaho on Friday (Feb. 9) in its only contest of the week. Eastern forced 19 turnovers and only committed nine themselves, but the Vandals sunk 13 three-pointers and shot over 50 percent from the field. Violet Kapri Morrow led the team with 18 points and seven rebounds, while Delaney Hodgins added 16 points.
 
Morrow (10) and Hodgins (20) are each on double-digit scoring streaks, and Friday's 16 points marked Hodgins' 100th career game scoring in double figures. Hodgins leads the team with 20.6 points per game which is second in the Big Sky. Morrow averages 14.9 points per game, followed by Symone Starks who adds 9.1. Hodgins also leads the way with 7.5 rebounds per contest.
 
As a team, the Eagles rank 17th in the nation with 11.1 steals per game, and 26th with 267 total steals. Starks is responsible for 3.2 of those steals per game, which is 11th in the nation. Her 77 total steals is 12th. Eastern Washington averages 65.2 points per game and 35.2 rebounds per game while shooting 40 percent from the field.
 
INCHING TOWARDS 250: Head women's basketball coach Wendy Schuller, who is in her 17th year at the helm, just celebrated her 500th game at Eastern on Jan. 20. If the Eagles win on Thursday at Montana, it will be win No. 250 for Schuller. Her first victory came on Nov. 23, 2001 against Hartford at the Georgia Tech Classic in Atlanta, picking up a 67-50 victory.
 
ROAD TO 2,000: Delaney Hodgins, Eastern's all-time leading scorer, now has 1,922 career points. The total places her sixth on the Big Sky's all-time list as she looks to become just the fourth player in conference history to surpass 2,000 points. She is just 16 points away from fifth place and 37 away from fourth. The all-time record is 2,296 set by Natalie Doma from Idaho State (2004-08).
 
SENIOR CLASS AWARD: After being named a candidate on Jan. 4, Eastern Washington University forward Delaney Hodgins has been selected as one of just ten women's basketball seniors across Division I to be named a finalist for the Senior CLASS Award. She is the only member of the Big Sky Conference to be selected to the list.
 
From now until March 19, fans can vote for Hodgins at the link below to select her as the winner. Fan votes count for 1/3 of the total and the other 2/3 is determined by NCAA Division I coaches and national media members. VOTE HERE.
 
 HODGINS MAKES NATIONAL SPLASH: Senior Delaney Hodgins ranks in the top-100 in nine national statistical categories: points per game (23^rd, 20.6), field goals made (30^th, 183), total points (35^th, 494), field goal attempts (37^th, 391), blocks (75^th, 41), blocks per game (76^th, 1.71), free throws made (86^th, 95), steals (91^st, 56) and steals per game (91^st, 2.33).
 
SCOUTING THE GRIZZLIES: The Grizzlies are also 12-12 and are 8-5 in Big Sky play, sitting at fourth in the league standings. They are coming off of road losses to Portland State and Sacramento State last weekend, and have dropped three of their last five. They average 61.8 points per game and 39.5 rebounds per game. McKenzie Johnson is the only Griz in double figures with 11.0 points per game. She also ranks 61^st across Division I with 4.9 assists per game.
 
SERIES HISTORY: Eastern trails the all-time series against the Griz 15-64 and are only 4-38 all-time in Missoula. However, the Eagles have claimed six out of the last 10 meetings, including three straight. Last year, EWU completed the season sweep over Montana.
 
SCOUTING THE BOBCATS: Montana State sits right below Eastern in the Big Sky standings in sixth place with a 13-11 overall record and a 7-6 conference record. After winning five in a row, the Bobcats have since lost three straight.
 
They rank eighth in the nation with 9.8 three-pointers per game, and 22^nd in three-point defense, only allowing their opponents to sink 5.7 from behind the arc. MSU has four players that average in double figures and as a team they average 66.4 points per game and 38.1 rebounds per game.
 
SERIES HISTORY: The Eagles are looking for a little bit of revenge against Montana State, as they lost 61-59 in the Big Sky semifinals last season and have dropped their last three meetings. They are 34-40 all-time against the Bobcats, including 13-21 in Bozeman and have won five out of the last 10.
 
ROAD TO RENO: Join the Eagles in postseason action for the 2018 Big Sky Conference Tournament in Reno, Nev. from March 5-10. Women's ticket prices are as follows:
 
Single Session:
Courtside Pricing ($30)
Institution General Admission ($20)
Public Pricing ($20)
*Single game tickets will not be for sale until each game day.
 
All-Session:
Courtside Pricing ($75)
Institution General Admission ($38)
Public Pricing ($41)
 
For more information visit: Reno Events Center, Road to Reno Website, or book your hotel here.
 
UP NEXT: After the road trip, Eastern Washington returns to Cheney for its final home stand of the season as they play host to Weber State on Feb. 22 at 6:05 pm. On Saturday, seniors Delaney Hodgins and Mariah Cunningham will be honored for their decorated four years at Eastern for Senior Day against Idaho State at 2:05 pm.