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Dec. 14, 2001
EVANSTON, Ill. -
NORTHWESTERN (2-7) vs. Eastern Illinois (1-8)
Date/Time: Sunday, Dec. 16/2 p.m. CST
Site: Lantz Arena (Charleston, Ill.)
Capacity: 5,300
The Wildcats travel to Charleston after winning two of their last four games and giving fifth-ranked Iowa State all it could handle last Saturday afternoon at Welsh-Ryan Arena. The Cyclones were able to hold on for a 71-61 victory.
The 'Cats shot 53 percent (17-of-32) from the floor in the second half and cut a 17-point Iowa State lead down to four with 1:53 remaining, but could get no closer. Iowa State's Lindsey Wilson made all six of her free throws in the final minute to extend the Cyclones lead.
Freshman center Sarah Kwasinski dominated the game for NU following the intermission. She netted 18 of her career- and game-high 26 points on 8-of-11 shooting in the second half. Kwasinski also led all rebounders with 10, including seven on the offensive glass. It was her fourth double-double of the season.
NU is in the home stretch of the non-conference season, as Eastern Illinois and Long Beach State are its final two opponents. The two teams have a combined record of 1-12, and the Wildcats have a 10-2 all-time record against them.
The 'Cats have never lost to the Panthers and own a 4-0 record in Lantz Arena (5,300). The last time NU traveled to Charleston was during the 1989-90 season, and NU came out the 81-69 victor. In fact, in the nine career meetings between the two teams, the Wildcats are 9-0 and have won by an average of 21.4 points, including two wins of more than 40 points. The largest margin of victory was during the 1992-93 season when NU topped EIU, 104-57.
The Wildcats hope to keep the unbeaten streak alive as newcomer Melissa Culver has taken charge of this team. The freshman from Littleton, Colo., is averaging 5.4 assists per game and is on pace to hand out 146 helpers this year. If she can hold that pace it will be the best NU total since 1999, when Megan Chawansky had 152.
One of Culver's favorite targets is classmate Suzanne Morrison, who in the last two games averaged 16.5 points and 9.0 rebounds. She put up a career high 19 points against the University of Denver on Dec. 5.
Top Performer
Freshman center Sarah Kwasinski continues to stand out, as she was one of the Big Ten's "Top Performers" for her play last week. She turned in a career-best performance against fifth-ranked Iowa State, netting 18 of her game-high 26 points on 8-of-11 shooting in the second half. She also led all rebounders with 10, including seven on the offensive glass.
One is the Loneliest Number
Freshman Melissa Culver, for the third time this season, needed just one more assist to find double figures. She currently has 49 helpers this season, a 5.4 average. That average is good enough to rank her third on the Big Ten assist list. Only Penn State's Jess Strom (60-7.50) and Wisconsin's Tamara Moore (55-6.88) rank higher.
"Assist"ing Others
Since her insertion in the starting lineup against DePaul, Melissa Culver has averaged 7.2 assists per game. She is presently on pace to dish out 146 assists this season.
Starting Young
For the last five games, Coach Olkowski has started three true freshmen (Melissa Culver, Sarah Kwasinski, Suzanne Morrison) a junior college transfer (Anya Walker-who sat out last season because of injury) and a returning sophomore (Michelle Zylstra) with one year of collegiate basketball experience.
Quick Studies
There are six newcomers to the 2002 women's basketball squad. This group has made the transition from high school to college (with the exception of Anya Walker-JuCo transfer) and stepped right into the Wildcat lineup. In fact, NU has scored 534 total points this season, and 313 of those have been scored by the newest members of the team. That's 59 percent of the offense.
Double Trouble
Freshmen Sarah Kwasinski and Suzanne Morrison are the only two Wildcats to reach the double-double (points-rebounds) plateau this season. In fact, Kwasinski has reached that plateau four times in her first nine games. That number is good enough to rank her in a third-place tie in the Big Ten statistics. Morrison has just one, and has come within one rebound in two other games.
Board Games
As a team, NU is 8th in the conference in offensive rebounding, averaging 13.22 a game. But, 6-foot-5-inch Sarah Kwasinski is fifth on the conference's individual list pulling down 3.22 caroms a game. Indiana's Jill Chapman leads the league with 4.25 rebounds per game. Not to be outdone, classmate Suzanne Morrison averages 2.4 offensive boards a contest.