KALAMAZOO, Mich. – The Western Michigan women's basketball team finishes the week off in familiar territory, hosting the Miami RedHawks on Feb. 5. Tip-off inside University Arena on Saturday afternoon is set for 2 p.m.
 
WHERE TO WATCH
Saturday's matchup between the Broncos and RedHawks will be available for streaming via ESPN+. The link to the stream is listed above, and can also be found HERE.
 
RESEARCHING THE REDHAWKS (6-12, 2-7 MAC)
Miami comes to campus following a 10-point defeat at the hands of Toledo last time they took the court, falling 74-64 to the first-place Rockets. The RedHawks made a late comeback effort, but could not make up for Toledo's previous scoring runs.
Three MU players finished in double digits, led by freshmen guard Ivy Wolf, who finished with 20 points on 8-17 (47.1 percent) shooting, five rebounds, and three assists. Junior guard Peyton Scott added 17 points on 6-18 (33.3 percent) from the field, while grabbing a pair of boards and sinking all four free throw attempts. Sophomore guard Edyn Battle rounded out the double figure efforts for MU, posting 14 points on 5-12 (41.7 percent) from the floor and snatching four rebounds in her time on the court.

On the year, the RedHawks as a collective average 66.8 points on an even 40 percent shooting, while allowing 69.2 PPG for a scoring margin of -2.4. Miami also knocks down 29.1 percent of their looks from three, and 70.7 percent of their free throws for 6.4 made triples and 8.4 made foul shots each game. MU pulls in 38.4 RPG and post a rebounding margin of +0.6 while ranking fifth in the MAC in rebounding offense.

Miami also leads the conference in offensive rebounds per game, grabbing 13.89 of their own misses per outing, while coming in at second in the conference in steals (10.44 per game) and offensive rebound percentage (26.5 percent). Additionally, MU dishes out 14.2 assists per game and post a turnover margin of -0.5 on the season. Peyton Scott has led the Miami offense this season, posting a fifth-ranked 19.0 PPG while tallying 6.1 RPG and shooting at a season percentage of 43.4 percent from the field, which also ranks fifth in the MAC.
 
BREAKING DOWN THE BRONCOS (12-6, 6-3 MAC)
Western Michigan gets set to host Miami following an absolute battle of a road win this past Wednesday at Akron, edging out the Zips 57-53 on their home court. Three different Broncos each posted 16 points in the win, and WMU held Akron to just two second chance points all night, which is a season-low.

Redshirt sophomore forward Taylor Williams posted her sixth double-double performance of the year, pulling in 14 boards in addition to her 16 points, shooting 6-15 from the field (40 percent) and sending back three Akron shot attempts in her 28 game minutes. Redshirt senior forward Reilly Jacobson grabbed six boards to go along with her 16 tallies, and also dished out four assists while swiping four steals. Furthermore, she was a perfect 6-6 from the foul line and locked in to play great defense all game, specifically in the fourth quarter. Sophomore guard Lauren Ross finished up the 16-point scoring, while notching three boards and knocking down all four of her free-throw attempts, including a pair to extend the Bronco lead to three with just 17 seconds left.

As a group, Western Michigan scores 65.2 PPG on 41.1 percent shooting and post a scoring margin of +5.8 on the year. WMU also lead the MAC defensively, limiting opponents to a conference-low 59.4 PPG on a second-ranked 38.5 percent from the field. Furthermore, the Broncos rank third in the MAC in steals per game, getting in passing lanes for 9.67 takeaways each outing.

Western Michigan also shoots 30.7 percent from three-point range, and find the net on 68.7 percent of their free throws for an average of 6.9 threes and 11.3 free throws per game. On the glass, the Broncos pull down 33.9 boards per game while finding open teammates for buckets 12.5 times each contest.

WMU has been fore fronted offensively this season by Lauren Ross, who posts an average of 18.6 PPG on 45.0 percent from the field. Ross ranks seventh in the conference in scoring and fourth in field goal percentage, while still leading all MAC sophomores in both categories. The post combination of Taylor Williams and Reilly Jacobson have been monumental to the team's success as well, each posting their own double-double last time against the RedHawks.
 
ON THE HORIZON
Following Saturday's game against Miami, the Broncos face another quick turnaround, heading to the Empire State for a Monday night matchup with the Buffalo Bulls. Tip-off inside Alumni Arena is set for 7 p.m. and will be available for streaming via ESPN3.

Saturday's home bout with Miami will feature the celebrations of the 50^th anniversary of Title IX and National Girls and Women in Sport Day. Prior to the start of the game, fans will have an opportunity to participate in interactive skills stations featuring other WMU varsity programs. Doors open at 12:30 p.m. with the skills showcase beginning immediately after.

The showcase is free for all fans who purchased a game ticket, and fans are encouraged to wear purple in support of gender equality. All WMU students get into home games free with a valid Bronco ID, and further ticket info can be found at www.wmubroncos.com/tickets, or by calling 1-888-4-WMU-TIX. We look forward to seeing you on Saturday afternoon!

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