BLOOMINGTON, Ill. – The Illinois Wesleyan University women's basketball team will celebrate the careers of Kaia Bowen, Catie Eck, and Brooke Lansford Saturday, Feb. 12, when Wheaton College comes to town for Senior Day. Tipoff of the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin showdown is set for 2 p.m. Senior Day recognitions will take place around 1:45 p.m., while the game will serve as the front end of a twin bill with the IWU men's basketball team.
    Illinois Wesleyan climbed back into a tie for first in the CCIW with a win over North Park University, Feb. 9. The Titans now sit at 14-8 overall and 11-2 in the conference, tied atop the league standings with Millikin with three games left in the regular season. Meanwhile, Wheaton enters the Shirk Center 15-7 overall and 7-6 in the conference standings. The Thunder picked up a tight 68-65 win at Augustana College, Feb. 9.
    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.

THANK YOU SENIORS!: Saturday's contest will serve as Senior Day for Illinois Wesleyan's Kaia Bowen, Catie Eck, and Brooke Lansford. Together, the trio has led the Titans to two NCAA Tournament berths, two CCIW Tournament Championships, and 63 wins on a .708 win percentage.
    Bowen has played in 66 games in her IWU career. She has scored 253 career points, recorded 233 career rebounds, and is credited with 65 steals, 43 assists, and 17 blocks. Bowen earned CCIW Player of the Week honors earlier this season after a career performance in IWU's win over Wheaton, Dec. 11.
    Eck has played in 67 games over her career donning the Green and White. She has scored 353 points, hauled in 149 rebounds, registered 103 steals, 79 assists, and 73 blocks. Her 73 rejections are second-most in IWU history, and just nine behind the school record.
    Lansford, a two-time CCIW Player of the Week selection, has played in 89 games for the Titans. She has scored 744 points, dished out 232 assists, grabbed 182 rebounds, and recorded 113 steals. Lansford's made 131 three-pointers over the course of her career, and currently leads the CCIW in assists per game.

SPENCER SCORES: Freshman Abby Spencer scored the first points of her career in IWU's rout of North Park, Feb. 9. Sophomore Launi Chanthaboury aired out a pass to Spencer in transition, leading the fast break layup for the first bucket of the Oak Park, Ill. native's career. Spencer is the 17th Titan to score this season.

ALL-TIME TILTS WITH THE THUNDER: Saturday's CCIW showdown between Illinois Wesleyan and Wheaton will be the 86th all-time meeting on the hardwood between the two conference foes. The Thunder hold a 55-30 edge in the all-time series and have won six of the past seven regular season clashes.
    The Titans powered past the Thunder 81-62, Dec. 11 in Wheaton. Senior Kaia Bowen paced the Green and White with 19 points, six rebounds, two blocks, two steals, and an assist. Lauren Huber added 17 points and nine rebounds, while Brooke Lansford added 15 points and a team-high four assists. Katelyn Heller contributed 13 points off the bench.

STRINGING IT TOGETHER: Illinois Wesleyan will head into Saturday's clash with Wheaton winners of two in-a-row against the Thunder. It is the first time IWU has won back-to-back games against Wheaton since sweeping the Thunder in the 2013-14 season. The Green and White bested WC, 93-85, in Bloomington, Jan. 18, 2014, before edging the Thunder, 88-84, in Wheaton, Feb. 22, 2014. The Titans finished off the sweep with a 79-66 win in the CCIW Tournament, Feb. 28, 2014.

NO LOVE LOST: In Illinois Wesleyan's 68-49 win at North Park, Jan. 24, the Titans held the Vikings without a three-pointer. NPU finished the game 0-for-11 from beyond the arc, marking the first time IWU has not allowed a triple since holding Rose-Hulman to 0-for-7 from deep Nov. 30, 2016.
    IWU nearly held the Vikings without a three when the two teams met Feb. 9, but Lauren McKnight hit one with 1:51 to play as NPU went 1-for-7 in the game.

TAKING IT UP A NOTCH: Since beginning CCIW play in December, the Titans have taken their play to another level. With 13 conference games under their belts, the Titans lead the conference in scoring (72.6 ppg), scoring margin (+14.2),  three-point field goal percentage (36.3), three-pointers made per game (7.2), offensive rebounds (14.4), turnover margin (+7.54), and blocked shots (4.08 bpg).

THE ROAD AHEAD: With three games left in the regulars season, Illinois Wesleyan finds itself tied atop the CCIW standings at 11-2 along with Millikin. IWU has games against Wheaton, at North Central, and at Augustana remaining, while MU will host North Park and Elmhurst, and head to Wheaton for its regular season finale. The Titans final three opponents have a combined record of 18-23 in league play (35-33 overall), good for a .439 CCIW win percentage (.515 overall). Millikin's remaining opponents hold a CCIW win percentage of .375 (.492 overall).

HOME COOKING: One of the greatest venues in NCAA Division III, the Shirk Center has been home to more than 600 Titan basketball games between both the men and women. In its 26-year history, the women have won 243 of 322 of its home games, good for a .755 win percentage.

PROVEN KEYS TO VICTORY: With 22 games complete, Illinois Wesleyan has established keys to victory. Illinois Wesleyan is 10-1 on the year when winning the rebounding battle. When it comes to the scoreboard, IWU's magic number appears to be 70. The Green and White are 10-1 when scoring 70-or-more points, while the Titans are 1-4 when opponents eclipse 70 points. IWU is also 8-0 when compiling a better shooting percentage than the opposition this season.

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 3.9 assists per game. She also ranks 50th in all of Division III with 86 assists this season.
She notched her 200th career assist in IWU's win at Elmhurst, Jan. 12, and currently sits 19th on IWU's career assist list with 232. She is one behind former teammate Sydney Shanks for 18th.

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 24.27 turnovers per game, the 17th-most in Division III. The Green and White boasts a turnover margin of +7.05, the best in the CCIW, as well as the 17th-highest nationally. Fueled by its daunting run-and-jump full-court press, Illinois Wesleyan is snagging 12.7 steals per game. The clip ranks third in the CCIW and 31st 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 452 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.

THE 51ST YEAR OF IWU WOMEN'S HOOPS: Illinois Wesleyan, now in its 51st year of women's basketball, has compiled a 684-488 overall record. IWU's .584 all-time win percentage includes a 319-194 CCIW mark.

R-N-J BABY: The Titans full-court press has flustered the opposition this season, and North Park was no different. The Green and White forced 29 Viking turnovers, leading to 31 IWU points in its win Feb. 9. It marked the 15th time this season IWU has forced 20-or-more miscues. In fact, the Titans are 12-4 when doing so, compared to 2-4 when opponents record fewer than 20 turnovers.

PHENOMENAL FRESHMEN: Lauren Huber, Kate Palmer, and Mallory Powers have been some of the best freshmen in the CCIW this season, as IWU is the only school with freshmen ranked in the conference's top-25 in scoring, rebounding, field goal percentage, and steals.
    In points per game, Huber is eighth (12.4) and Palmer is tied for 18th (9.7). Huber is IWU's top rebounder at 6.5 caroms per contest, sixth-most in the league, while Powers' 5.3 are 18th-most. Huber's field goal percentage of 50.5 is the third-best in the conference, while she is 14th in free throw percentage at 72.1. Palmer is fifth with 1.9 three-pointers per game, with Powers just behind her at 1.4 per game (tied for 14th). Huber is also tied for 11th in the CCIW with 1.8 steals per game and slotted 23rd with 25.2 minutes played per contest.

LIGHTS OUT LANSFORD: Senior Brooke Lansford willed her team to a win over Carthage, Feb. 5, with a career day en route to CCIW Player of the Week honors. Lansford went off for 32 points on 12-of-18 shooting, highlighted by an impressive 6-for-9 effort from distance. Lansford's point total is the highest since Kendall Sosa dropped 34 against North Park Feb. 27, 2021.
Equally impressive was Lansford's clean play at the point guard position, where she added two rebounds, two assists, and two steals. Lansford played all 40 minutes for the Titans, without a turnover as IWU's primary ball handler.

ON THE HORIZON: Illinois Wesleyan closes out the regular season on the road with games at North Central and Augustana. IWU will head to Naperville for a midweek clash with the upset-minded Cardinals, Feb. 16, before wrapping up the regular season at Augie, Feb. 19. Tipoff against the Cardinals is scheduled for 7 p.m. inside Gregory Arena, while IWU will battle Augustana at 5 p.m., Feb. 19.