GREENSBORO, N.C. – UNCG women's basketball is set to play the Western Carolina Catamounts Saturday evening at 4:00 inside Fleming Gymnasium. UNCG enters the contest 10-11 overall, and 1-5 in Southern Conference play. The Catamounts are 5-16 and 0-6 in the SoCon.
Saturday's game will be UNCG's We Back Pat game supporting the Pat Summitt Foundation. The Pat Summitt Foundation is fighting Alzheimer's disease with a comprehensive approach, awarding grants to organizations that provide; research to treat, prevent, cure and ultimately eradicate this disease; educate awareness of Alzheimer's, its onset and treatment; support services to patients, their families and caregivers.
The first 200 fans will receive a complimentary t-shirt, supporting the We Back Pat effort. Fans can donate to The Pat Summitt Foundation using the link above.
There will be live stats and a video stream available for Saturday's game. The video stream will be through the UNCG Sports YouTube page. Kenny Mann will have the play-by-play duties, with D.J. Ellison doing color for the broadcast. Links for each service are located on the UNCG women's basketball schedule page. Fans can get their tickets ahead of time by contacting the UNCG Ticket Office.
In UNCG's last outing, the Spartans played league-leading Chattanooga down to the wire, falling 58-55 in the McKenzie Arena last Saturday. Senior guard Bailey Williams (Harrisonburg, Va./Spotswood) tallied 20 points, going 6-for-9 from behind the arc. Williams' six made 3-pointers are tied for second-most in a single game at UNCG, and tied a McKenzie Arena record for made 3-pointers by an opponent. The Spartans combined for 11 3-pointers in Saturday's action, fourth-best in a single game by a UNCG squad.
The Spartan defense is one of the top in the league, recording nine steals per game in Southern Conference action. UNCG leads the conference with an average of 14.2 offensive rebounds per league game. The Blue and Gold remain in the top half of the league, outscoring opponents by an average of 4.1 points per game. The team shoots 41-percent from the field and holds opponents to 38-percent, second best in the league. With a +4.8 rebounding margin, UNCG is the top rebounding team in the league, and rank 28th in the nation in total rebounds.
Individually, UNCG is led by freshman Nadine Soliman (Cairo, Egypt/Mokattam Language School). Soliman averages 16.7 points per game; ranking third in the league and is the highest per game average of any freshman in the country.
Seniors Shanese Harris (Chesapeake, Va./Western Branch) and Williams upped their game when the SoCon season began. Harris averages 9.8 points off the bench, including a season-high 14 in games against Samford and Chattanooga. Williams has gone for double figures in three of six SoCon games, and is coming off of a game where she matched her season-best of 20 points.
Alexis Pitchford (Orlando, Fla./Winter Park) and Williams serve as facilitators of the Spartan offense. Pitchford has earned a team-high 74 assists, with Williams adding 70. The pair rank fifth and sixth in the league with 3.5 and 3.3 assists per game, respectively.
Western Carolina enters having dropped its last six-straight games. WCU averages 56.5 points per game. The Catamounts shoot 36-percent from the field and allow opponents to shoot 41-percent. Western Carolina ranks in the top half of the league, with 6.8 steals per game.
Sherae Bonner leads the Catamounts with 10.5 points per game. Bonner leads the team with 593 minutes played, averaging 28.2. She shoots 42-percent from the field (81-for-192) and has scored five buckets from distance. Bonner leads the Catamounts with 197 rebounds, averaging 9.4 per game. She has also totaled 34 blocks and 17 steals.
Raziyah Farrington isn't far behind Bonner, scoring an average of 9.6 points per game. Farrington has earned five starts, while playing in all 21 games this season. She average 26.5 minutes per game, shooting 38-percent (69-for-184) from the field. Farrington also leads the Catamounts with 22 made 3-pointers, hitting at a 43-percent mark from behind the arc.
Other key contributors for the Catamounts include Kyia Hough, JonTay Mitchem and Tess Harris. Hough averages 5.4 points per game, leads the team with 56 assists and 34 steals. Harris also averages 5.4 points per game in 13 games. Mitchem scores an average of 5.8 points per game, has added 34 assists and recorded 26 steals on the season.
UNCG and Western Carolina is set to tip off at 4:00 p.m. inside Fleming Gymnasium. First 200 fans will receive a free We Back Pat t-shirt.
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