The road trip is over and Eastern Washington women's basketball is back at Reese Court this week. Eastern will host Sacramento State on Thursday, Feb. 2 at 6 p.m. Pacific Time. On Saturday, Feb. 4, Portland State comes to Cheney to play, with tipoff at 2 p.m.

The two games this week will be streamed live on ESPN+ and live stats can be seen on GoEags.com. The first 100 students attending Thursday's game will receive a free corn dog.

Saturday's game will be the Eagles' Play4Kay game and highlighting the team's free throw challenge. Fans can pledge to donate for every free throw that the team makes during the month of February by clicking the link HERE.

Tickets can be purchased to both of Eastern's home games this week online through GoEags.com.

Last Time Out
Eastern played Weber State this past Saturday (Jan. 28) in Ogden, with the Wildcats just slipping past the Eagles, 68-75. At halftime, Weber St. had the lead, but Eastern would pull ahead with a 7-0 run from Jaydia Martin. The Eagles led, 52-46 after three quarters. The Wildcats would rally in the fourth quarter by way of an 18-3 stretch that put them ahead for good. There were 15 lead changes and eight ties in the game.

Aaliyah Alexander was the top scorer for Eastern, accounting for 16 points, while Martin scored 12. Jamie Loera added 11 points and Milly Knowles finished with 10.

A Look at the Eagles
Eastern had its five-game winning streak snapped this past weekend in Ogden, but the team is still in a good position with a 6-4 conference record and 13-7 overall.

The Eagles field the second-ranked offense in the Big Sky, averaging 72.0 points per game. The team has a plus-7.3 scoring margin this season that also ranks second in the conference. The team's has steadily improved its shooting, posting a 42.6 percentage his season. With a plus-4.56 turnover margin, Eastern leads the conference and ranks 29^th in the NCAA. The team has a 1.28 assist-to-turnover ratio, ranking first in the Big Sky and 11^th in the nation. The Eagles pride themselves on distributing the ball, averaging 15.6 assists game to lead the Big Sky. The team also leads the conference with a 9.45 per game average.

This season, Jaydia Martin is fourth in the Big Sky with a 16.2 points per game average. She is tied for 16th with 5.1 rebounds per game. Martin is an efficient shooter, ranking sixth in field goal percentage (42.0%), fifth in three-point percentage (38.0%) and seventh in free throw percentage (83.5%). Her 2.5 made three-pointers per game is fourth in the Big Sky and 62^nd in the NCAA. In conference games, Martin has an 18.4 scoring average, holding fourth on the leaderboard.

As the season has progressed, Jamie Loera continues to produce across the board for Eastern. Loera is the team's leading rebounder, averaging 5.9 per game. She averages 10.4 points per game to rank fourth on the team and 23^rd in the conference. The facilitator is Loera's leading role, recording 4.8 assists per game and she holds a 2.1 assist-to-turnover ratio. Both statistics rank second in the conference, while her assist average ranks 52^nd in the NCAA and her ratio is 54^th. Adding on, the graduate transfer is tied for the Big Sky lead with 2.4 steals per game (57^th in the NCAA).

Aaliyah Alexander provides a dangerous scoring option for the Eagles as she averages 11.3 points per game to rank 16^th in the Big Sky and third on the team this season. Since conference games began, Alexander is averaging 13.6 points per game to rank ninth. From behind the arc, Alexander is shooting 34.8 percent and accounting for 1.5 made threes a game, ranking 14^th in the league. 

Scouting the Hornets
Sacramento State is 6-3 in conference games and 15-5 overall this season. The team is on a two-game losing streak after falling on its road trip this past week to Montana (77-81) and Montana State (60-61). The Hornets defense is stingy, allowing opponents 59.2 points per game to rank second on the conference leaderboard. A corner stone of the team's defense is the ability to block shots and they average 3.95 per game. This season, Sac. St. is shooting 45.9 percent from the floor and 37.3 from three-point range, both top marks in the Big Sky.  

The Hornets have the top scorer in the conference on their roster in Kahlaijah Dean. The senior guard is averaging 21.9 points per game. She is second on the leaderboard with a 47.7 shooting percentage. Leading the conference in shooting is Isnelle Natabou and her 64.4 percentage. Natabou is the also the conference rebounding leader with 10.3 points per game. The junior center averages a double-double a game, scoring 15.0 points.

Series History
Eastern hold a 37-22 record against the Hornets all-time, going 16-9 at home, 19-11 on the road and 2-2 in neutral games. The Hornets have won the past three meetings, including earlier this season in Sacramento, 82-74. Jaydia Martin scored 21 points in the game, but Dean put up 31 points and Natabou had 15 rebounds.

Scouting the Vikings
Portland State comes into the week with a 4-5 conference record and 9-10 for the season. The Vikings dropped their past two games to Montana State (52-64) and Montana (56-88). On the defensive end, the Vikings have been effective and allow 61.5 points per game to rank third in the conference. Portland St. is careful with the ball, holding the third-best turnover margin in the Big Sky at plus-0.89. The team ranks second behind Eastern in steals with a 9.21 per game average.

Esmeralda Morales is the main offensive weapon for the Vikings and she leads the team, along with being fifth in the conference, with 16.1 points per game. The sophomore guard is shooting 46.6 percent from three-point range and averages 2.8 made threes per game to sit on top of the conference leaderboard. With 2.4 steals per game, Morales is tied with Loera for the conference lead.  

Series History
In program history, Eastern Washington has a 41-32 record against Portland State, with a 23-9 mark at home, 16-19 on the road and 2-4 at neutral sites. The Eagles defeated the Vikings for the third consecutive time earlier this season (Jan. 5) on the road, 65-56. Jacinta Buckley was the star of the game for Eastern, recording 24 points and grabbing 12 rebounds.

Last Time Out
Eastern Washington will have only one game the following week as they travel down to Moscow, Idaho to play the Vandals on Saturday, Feb. 11 at 1 p.m.