CULLOWHEE, N.C. – Western Carolina women's basketball continues its four-game road swing on Thursday with a trip to Wilmington to battle UNCW. The matchup with the Seahawks is set for an 11 a.m. tip from Trask Coliseum and will be broadcast on FLO Hoops (paid subscription required). Live stats are available at CatamountSports.com.
Matchup: Western Carolina (1-2) at UNCW (1-1)
Date: Thursday, Nov. 16
Time: 11 a.m.
Site: Trask Coliseum (Wilmington, N.C.)
Live Stats: Stat Broadcast
Live Video: FLO Hoops
Twitter: @CatamountWBB
Western Carolina looks to rebound from Monday night's 81-56 defeat to UAB in Birmingham. Zanoria Cruz led the Catamounts with 12 points on 4-of-8 shooting along with a perfect 4-of-4 at the foul line. Jada Burton continued her strong start all over the stat sheet on Monday with 10 points, six rebounds, and five assists in the setback. Lonasia Brewer led WCU on the glass with seven boards for a second consecutive game which included five on the offensive glass against the Blazers.
Burton continues to pace WCU in the assist column with 18 helpers through the opening three games, which ranks second in the SoCon behind only the league's preseason player of the year Rachael Rose from Wofford. Burton also ranks 17th nationally with her 18 assists. The Spartanburg, S.C., native is fourth in the league in assist/turnover ratio at 1.6. Wooten and Tyja Beans both sit in a tie for third in the SoCon with seven steals apiece.
As a team, WCU ranks second in the conference in assists with 49 and ranks second in steals with 35.
UNCW finished with a 5-25 record including a 2-16 mark in the Coastal Athletic Association a season ago, as the Seahawks fell to Hofstra in the opening round of the CAA Championships.
UNCW comes into the matchup with a 1-1 record after a 74-49 loss to Wofford on Saturday. The Seahawks opened the 2023-24 season with a 78-42 victory over the Apprentice School last Tuesday. Taylor Henderson and Kylah Silver both lead the way with 13.0 points per game thus far in the opening two games. Evan Miller is averaging 12.0 ppg and adding 7.0 rpg for the Seahawks. Lexi Jackson leads the way on the glass with 8.5 rebounds/game.
UNCW was tabbed 14th in the CAA Preseason Poll under the direction of first-year head coach Nicole Woods.
The Catamounts and Seahawks meet for the 11th time in program history on Thursday morning with UNCW claiming seven of the previous 10 meetings. UNCW picked up the 60-51 victory a season ago in the Cherokee Invitational/Women's College Basketball Showcase. In the last meeting in Wilmington, the Catamounts earned the 64-53 win over UNCW during the 2014-15 season which served as the last head-to-head battle before last season.
Following Thursday's matchup in Wilmington, the Catamounts have a quick turnaround as WCU travels to Campbell for a 2 p.m. start on Saturday, Nov. 18 against the Camels. Campbell sits with a 2-1 record after falling to ACC foe Virginia in its most recent action. The matchup with Campbell will be shown on FLO Hoops (paid subscription required), with live stats available on CatamountSports.com.
Keep track of everything related to Catamount women's basketball and WCU Athletics through its social media outlets on Facebook (fb.com/catamountsports), Instagram (@wcu_catamounts), and Twitter (@catamounts, Catamountwbb).
