BLOOMINGTON, Ill. - Returning to the court for the first time in nearly two weeks, the Illinois Wesleyan University women's basketball team will travel to California for a pair of road contests Thursday-Friday, Dec. 29-30. The Titans will matchup with the University of La Verne Thursday evening, Dec. 29, at 7:30 PT before clashing with Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Friday, Dec. 30, at 1 p.m. PT.
IWU looks to bounce back from a College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin loss to Wheaton College, Dec. 17. The Titans trek to California with a 7-4 record (2-2 CCIW). La Verne will put its six-game win streak on the line against the Titans. The Leopards, who have won eight straight if you wipe away an exhibition loss to Division I Utah State University, hold a 9-1 overall mark. CMS is 6-3 on the season and rode a five-game win streak into the holiday season. The Athenas will host Webster University Thursday, Dec. 29, before taking on the Titans one day later.
Fans can tune into the game via live stats or live stream of the game. Links on how to follow along can be found on the women's basketball schedule page of IWUsports.com.
NICE TO MEET YOU: Illinois Wesleyan and Claremont-Mudd-Scripps will square off on the hardwood for the first time ever Friday, Dec. 30.
RACKING UP THE MILES: Illinois Wesleyan's trip to California will take the Titans 1954 miles away from the comforts of the Shirk Center. The one-way mileage tally is by far IWU's longest trip of the year. In fact, Illinois Wesleyan travels a total of 2154 miles roundtrip for its entire CCIW slate.
WHAT A COINCIDENCE: The Titans and Leopards have a limited history, meeting just once prior to Thursday's tilt. In fact, the lone meeting between the two came 13 years ago to the day of this year's bout. Illinois Wesleyan came away with a 54-40 victory over La Verne Dec. 29, 2009. The Green and White used a 20-rebound advantage (51-31) to mount a 14-5 lead in second chance points in a wire-to-wire victory at La Verne. Stacey Arlis led IWU with 12 points, Nikki Preston added 11, and Christina Solari finished with eight points and a team-high 10 rebounds in the win.
PLENTY OF POINTS: Thursday's tilt between Illinois Wesleyan and La Verne will pit two of Division III's top scoring teams against each other. The Titans head into the game ranked 23rd nationally with 813 points scored, while La Verne ranks 30th with 793 points on the year. La Verne's offense is averaging 79.3 points per game, the eighth-highest mark in the nation, while IWU is 35th at 73.9 ppg.
KEYS TO VICTORY: With 11 games complete, IWU has already developed several keys to victory. Illinois Wesleyan is 7-0 when scoring 60+ points, and also boasts a 6-0 mark when limiting opponents to no more than 59 points. Additionally, the Green and White is 7-1 when winning the turnover margin as opposed to 0-3 when finishing with more miscues than its opponent.
THE 52nd YEAR OF IWU WOMEN'S HOOPS: Illinois Wesleyan, now in its 52nd year of women's basketball, has compiled a 698-493 overall record. IWU's .586 all-time win percentage includes a 327-197 CCIW mark.
THE DEAN OF THE CCIW: The 2022-23 season marks the 25th year under the direction of Mia Smith, the longest tenured coach in the CCIW. Smith's 465 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 10 CCIW Championships and made 10 NCAA Tournament appearances. The Titans won the 2012 NCAA Division III Championship following a fourth-place finish in 2011.
TENACIOUS TITAN DEFENSE: The Titans' trademark run-and-jump full-court press has IWU among the best in the country in turnover margin this season. In fact, Illinois Wesleyan is +5.73 in the turnover tally, the best mark in the league. Nationally, the Titans' mark ranks 42nd. The Green and White hold a 5-0 record when forcing 20+ miscues compared to a 2-4 record when opponents have less than 20 turnovers.
ON THE HORIZON: With the non-conference portion of its 2022-23 slate complete, IWU will refocus on CCIW play as the calendar turns to the New Year. The Titans will travel to North Park University Wednesday, Jan. 4, for a 7 p.m. tipoff.
