KALAMAZOO, Mich – The Western Michigan women's basketball team travels north on Jan. 5 for the first of two rivalry matchups this season with the Chippewas of Central Michigan. Tip-off in Mount Pleasant is set for 7 p.m.

WHERE TO WATCH
Wednesday's matchup between the Broncos and Chippewas will be available for streaming via ESPN3. The link to the stream is listed above, and can also be found HERE.
 
CHECKING OUT THE CHIPPEWAS (3-8, 1-1 MAC)
Central Michigan hosts Western Michigan on Wednesday after collecting their first MAC victory of the season on New Year's Day, conquering Northern Illinois by a final score of 72-68 and snapping their previous five-game losing streak. Despite trailing at halftime 38-27, CMU put together a strong second half to come out with the four-point victory on their home floor.

The Chippewas were led by junior guard Molly Davis, who posted a double-double with a game-high 32 points on 10-22 shooting (45.5 percent), as well as 10 assists and five rebounds. Freshman guard Tiana Timpe added 20 points on 7-17 from the field (41.2 percent), two assists, and a pair of boards. Finishing up the double-figure scoring for CMU was senior forward Jahari Smith, posting a double-double of her own with 11 points on 5-9 shooting (55.6 percent), a whopping 21 rebounds, and five blocks in the contest.

Collectively, Central Michigan scores an average of 57.9 PPG on 36.6 percent shooting. From three-point range, CMU knocks down 26.2 percent of their looks and capitalizes on 74.2 percent of their chances from the charity stripe, averaging 7.0 made three's per game and 8.9 made free throws per outing. Furthermore, Central Michigan dishes out an average of 11.6 APG and possess an assist/turnover ratio of -5.3 on the year.

On the glass, CMU pulls down an average of 36.3 boards each time out, and currently post a margin of -0.3 on the season. Against Northern Illinois, the Chippewas grabbed 40 total boards to NIU's 51. Central Michigan is led offensively by Molly Davis, who averages 18.5 PPG on 39.1 percent from the field and 83.9 percent from the foul line. Jahari Smith has also been big for CMU thus far, averaging a double-double with 11.4 PPG on 63.8 percent shooting and 10.5 rebounds each time out.
 
WHAT TO EXPECT FROM WESTERN MICHIGAN (7-3, 1-0 MAC)
The Broncos enter McGuirk Arena on Wednesday fresh off of their first MAC win of the season, beating the Kent State Golden Flashes on Jan. 1 in dramatic fashion by a final score of 55-51 during a game that featured 10 lead changes and eight ties.

The MAC opener for WMU featured a ninth consecutive double-digit scoring effort from sophomore guard Lauren Ross, who finished with 16 points, eight rebounds, and three assists, including the go-ahead assist to redshirt junior forward Abby Voss with 17 seconds remaining. Ross also closed the game out by sinking a pair of free throws to give Western Michigan a four-point lead with just over two seconds to go.

Redshirt senior forward Reilly Jacobson added 11 points on 4-7 from the field and three rebounds as well, despite battling foul trouble for much of the game. Saturday's 11 points now makes it 10 straight games in double figures for Jacobson. Including her ultimately game-winning three, Abby Voss posted nine points on 4-8 from the field, as well as seven rebounds for WMU. Sophomore guard Megan Wagner added eight points, five rebounds, and three steals, while junior guard Sydney Shafer posted eight points and six rebounds of her own.

As a team, Western Michigan averages 69.5 PPG on 43.2 percent shooting. From beyond the arc, the Broncos capitalize on 28.8 percent of their opportunities, and finds the net on 68.7 percent of their foul line chances for an average of 6.4 made three's per game and 12.3 made free throws each time they take the floor. WMU also averages 13.1 APG and posts an assist/turnover ratio of 0.8 so far this season.

In terms of rebounding, Western Michigan pulls down 34.1 boards per game for a margin thus far of -0.6. On Saturday against Kent State, who leads the conference in rebounding, the Broncos put forth a strong effort, tallying 35 rebounds to KSU's 40, without the help of redshirt sophomore Taylor Williams, who leads the team in rebounding and has posted four double-doubles to this point of the 2021-22 season.

On the offensive end, WMU rallies around Lauren Ross, who averages 20.22 PPG on 50.8 percent shooting. Ross also averages 5.4 RPG, shoots from three at a rate of 35.1 percent, and buries 80.0 percent of her free throw attempts. In addition to these averages, Ross currently sits at fourth in the MAC and 21^st in the nation in scoring. Taylor Williams has been key for the Broncos as well, averaging a near double-double with 13.4 PPG on 44.8 percent from the field, as well as 9.0 RPG and 2.1 takeaways each game.
 
ON THE HORIZON
Following Wednesday's matchup with the Chippewas, Western Michigan returns home to Kalamazoo to host the Toledo Rockets on Saturday, Jan. 8. Tip-off is scheduled for 2 p.m.

Saturday is also Kids' Takeover Day at University Arena, where children from 3^rd-8^th grade can sign up to be a part of game day in various departments including on-court promotions, public address, music, communications, graphic design, and more! Please visit wmubroncos.com/wbbkids for sign-ups and more information.

Also visit wmubroncos.com/tickets for any and all ticket information.

#LetsRide