SAN ANTONIO – The University of the Incarnate Word women's basketball team has a chance to extend its home winning streak to three games when the Cardinals host Southland Conference foe, Abilene Christian Saturday afternoon. Tipoff is set for 1:00 p.m. (CT) at the McDermott Center.
 
UIW has won its last two home games, over New Orleans (81-69) and Southeastern Louisiana (76-69). The Cardinals have shot 45 percent from three in each of those games (18-40).
 
The Cardinals are currently 10th in the SLC, just one game behind eighth place. Only the top eight teams in the conference qualify for the conference tournament in Katy, Texas next month.
 

FOLLOW ALONG
Watch
Live Stats
Tickets


 
A STARR IS BORN

• Since the start of conference play, freshman forward Starr Omozee has emerged as a consistent contributor for UIW.
• Omozee tallied 18 points and nine rebounds in two straight games earlier this season (at HBU, 1/30/19 and at UNO, 2/2/19), raising her conference averages to 10.6 points, 6.5 rebounds and 1.7 assists in an average of 27.1 minutes in conference games.
• Her 6.9 rebounds per game is 12th best in the conference, tops among freshmen.
• While not a high volume outside shooter, she chooses her deep shots well, hitting seven of her 16 attempts in SLC games (43.8 percent).
• She leads the team with 135 rebounds this season, 11th best in the SLC, best among freshman.
• After securing three double-doubles in her first six games as a Cardinal, Omozee set the UIW DI freshman record for most double-doubles in a single season when she delivered her fourth of the season against Lamar (11 points and 10 rebounds) on Jan. 23, 2019.
• Against GCU (11/9/18), she posted 11 points and 15 rebounds, becoming the first freshman besides Robinson (2016) to record a double-double in UIW DI history.
• She set multiple season-highs in her first game at the McDermott Center (vs. Houston, 11/16/18), scoring her second double-double (19 pts, 10 rebs) and making multiple threes in a game for the first time.
• Just two games later, she hung 10 points and 11 rebounds on Weber State (11/21).
• While not a direct correlation, Omozee is averaging a double-double against opposing teams with purple as their primary color. In four games this season Omozee averages 10 points and 10.25 rebounds against purple teams.

 
YEEEEAAAAHHHHHH BOWIEEEEEE

• Throughout conference games, redshirt senior guard Gabbi Bowie has sprinkled plenty of flava into the UIW offense.
• In her last game, she delivered a season-high 17 points and five assists to lead UIW to success.
• Over her last seven games, she is putting up 7.9 points and 3.4 assists including an average of 13.5 points and six assists in her last two home games.
• Against New Orleans, she scored 10 points on a career high 10 made free throws. She also dished out a career best seven assists and a season high three steals in the win.
• In her last game, against SLU, Bowie scored a season-best 17 points on a career-high 71.4 percent shooting (5-7).
• As the lone senior on an inexperienced squad, Bowie has taken it upon herself to mold her game to the needs of the team, becoming more of a facilitator in recent weeks. Prior to her current three game stretch, Bowie averaged 0.7 assists per game throughout her career.
• She played a career high 39 minutes against New Orleans. Since the beginning of SLC play, she is averaging 26.7 minutes played per game.
• She set a new career high for assists in a single season this year, with 36. She still has seven games to add to that total.

 
TOWER OF LUNDEN

• Since arriving in the Alamo City, junior forward Lunden Henry has established herself as one of the Cardinal's most consistent presences in the paint. She averages 7.1 points per game this season on a team-leading .397 shooting (69-174), while pulling in an average of 4.9 rebounds per contest.
• She enjoyed her most productive game of the season at McNeese, where she recorded 14 points and 11 rebounds for her first career Division I double-double.
• She nearly collected her second double-double of the season when she registered 14 points and nine rebounds at HBU.
• Lunden set a new career high in her last game when she scored 15 points off the bench against SLU.
• She has proven to be a hard worker on the offensive glass, hauling in 44 offensive rebounds this season, including a season-high six, which she has achieved twice this year – vs UTA (Dec. 2) and at McNeese (Jan. 2).
• She has now recorded at least five points and five rebounds in nine games this season and has achieved at least one of those statistics 16 out of her 21 games played this year.

 
SCOUTING ABILENE CHRISTIAN

• ACU enters play in third place in the SLC. They are 8-4 in conference play, including an impressive 5-1 record on the road in conference play.
• The Wildcats are coming off a 76-66 home victory over Nicholls on Wednesday.
• They are led by one of the best starting fives in the conference as four of the five starters average over 10 points per game.
• This is the first of two meetings between UIW and ACU, with the return game in Abilene taking place March 9. The Wildcats lead the all-time series 21-9.

 
FOLLOW ALONG
For the most up-to-date information on UIW Athletics, visit uiwcardinals.com, follow the Cardinals on Twitter @UIWAthletics and like UIW Athletics on Facebook at UIW Athletics.