BLOOMINGTON, Ill. – The Illinois Wesleyan University women's basketball team closes out the calendar year and its non-conference slate in the Pacific Northwest Thursday-Friday, Dec. 30-31. The Titans will travel to George Fox University for a 6 p.m. PT tipoff Thursday, Dec. 30, before battling Pacific University on New Year's Eve.
    Illinois Wesleyan sits at 5-5 overall (3-0 CCIW) after a heartbreaking loss to the University of Chicago, Dec. 18. George Fox welcomes IWU with hopes of improving on its 4-6 record. The Bruins have won two of their last three, including a 79-39 defeat of Nebraska Wesleyan University, Dec. 19. Pacific is riding a three-game win streak and boasts a 7-3 overall mark. The Boxers, who began their win streak with a 69-68 win over George Fox, Dec. 3, most recently toppled Nebraska Wesleyan, 86-48, Dec. 18.
    Fans can tune into the game via live stats or live stream. Links on how to follow along can be found on the women's basketball schedule page of IWUsports.com.

RACKING UP THE MILES: Illinois Wesleyan will travel more than 4,100 miles round trip for its games against George Fox and Pacific, Dec. 30-31. To put that in perspective, the Titans could travel to each of the other eight CCIW schools and back twice in less miles.

BEAVER BOUND: IWU's trek to the state of Oregon is the Green and White's first-ever trip to the Beaver State. Despite having played several opponents from the Pacific Northwest, many of IWU's visits to the west coast have taken place in Washington or California.

IWU VS. THE NWC: The Titans are no strangers to the Northwest Conference, as IWU has played six of the league's nine members. The Green and White are 8-1 against the Hillsboro, Ore.-based conference all-time. IWU is 2-0 against George Fox, Lewis & Clark, and Puget Sound, and 1-0 against Linfield and Pacific Lutheran. IWU's lone loss came in the 2002-03 season to Willamette.
After taking on Pacific on New Year's Eve, Whitman and Whitworth will be the only two NWC institutions IWU has yet to face.

BATTLING THE BRUINS: Illinois Wesleyan and George Fox have squared off twice previously, with both games coming in the NCAA Tournament. The Titans hold the edge in the series, having won both meetings. Most recently, IWU defeated George Fox, 57-48, March 17, 2012 to win the NCAA Division III National Championship.
    Olivia Lett led all scorers with 22 points. The Titans smothered the Bruins defensively, holding George Fox to a 32.1 field goal percentage and just one three-pointer on 16 attempts (6.3 percent) as Illinois Wesleyan handed GFU its only loss of the season. The Green and White won the national title and finished the year 29-5 overall, while George Fox finished with a 33-1 record.

FIRST TIME FOR EVERYTHING: The New Year's Eve tilt between IWU and Pacific will be the first-ever meeting between the two schools.

MAKING THE MOST OF MINUTES: Junior Kelly Carlson has made the most of her minutes coming off the bench in Illinois Wesleyan's past two games in ways that are not always apparent in the box score. The 5-foot-10 forward boasts a team-best +35 plus-minus over IWU's games against North Central and Chicago. Carlson, who has played 38 total minutes over the previous two contests, was +26 in a win over NCC and +9 versus Chicago. Freshman Kate Palmer has the next-best plus-minus over the span at +29 in 52 minutes of play.

WELCOME TO THE 250 CLUB, COACH!: With Illinois Wesleyan's 74-59 win over North Central Wednesday night, Dec. 15, Mia Smith notched the 250th College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin victory of her career. Smith, who holds a 250-90 record in league play, is second all-time in CCIW wins. Former Millikin bench boss Lori Kerans holds the conference record with 295 victories over 32 seasons.

THE 51ST YEAR OF IWU WOMEN'S HOOPS: Illinois Wesleyan, now in its 51st year of women's basketball, has compiled a 676-485 overall record. IWU's .582 all-time win percentage includes a 312-193 CCIW mark.

PROVEN KEYS TO VICTORY: With 10 games complete, Illinois Wesleyan has established keys to victory. Illinois Wesleyan is 5-1 on the year when winning the rebounding battle and 5-3 when committing fewer turnovers than its opposition. When it comes to the scoreboard, IWU's magic number appears to be 70. The Green and White are 5-1 when scoring 70-or-more points, while the Titans boast a 5-3 record when holding opponents to fewer than 70 points.

HELPING HAND: Senior Brooke Lansford has been one of the CCIW's top floor generals this season, as the Titans' starting point guard leads the conference with 4.0 assists per game. She ranked 98th nationally in assist average, while her 40 assists are 70th-most in all of Division III.

DAUNTING DEFENSE: Illinois Wesleyan's best offensive threat this season has proven to be its defense, as the Titans have made a living cashing in on the miscues of their opponents. IWU is forcing a CCIW-best 24.7 turnovers per game, the 26th-most in Division III. The Green and White boasts a turnover margin of +5.1, the third-best in the CCIW, as well as the 48th-highest nationally. Fueled by its daunting run-and-jump full-court press, Illinois Wesleyan is snagging 12.4 steals per game. The clip ranks fourth in the CCIW and 39th across all of Division III.

THE DEAN OF THE CCIW: The 2021-21 season marks the 24th year under the direction of Mia Smith, the longest tenured coach in the CCIW. Smith's 443 wins are the most among active CCIW coaches by more than 150. Additionally, Smith's CCIW wins are the second-most in league history.
    Under the tutelage of Smith, IWU has won eight CCIW Championships and made nine NCAA Tournament appearances. The Titans won the 2012 NCAA Division III Championship following a fourth-place finish in 2011.

ON THE HORIZON: With non-conference play complete, Illinois Wesleyan welcomes in the New Year with a trip to Elmhurst, Jan. 5. Tipoff of the CCIW clash is set for 7 p.m.