Southern Miss To Host La Quinta Inn Lady Eagle Classic
11/23/2006 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Nov. 23, 2006
HATTIESBURG, Miss. -- - The Southern Miss women's basketball team plays host to the 19th Annual La Quinta Inn Lady Eagle Classic, Nov. 24-25, in Reed Green Coliseum.
The Lady Eagles open the Classic against Grambling State in a 5 p.m., tip followed by Louisiana Tech and Eastern Kentucky at 7 p.m. The consolation game is set for 12 p.m., on Saturday, with the championship game to follow at 2 p.m.
The game will be broadcast over WXHB-FM 96.5 with the "Voice of the Lady Eagles" Jason Baker providing play-by-play action with former coach Kay James as the color analyst.
Southern Miss (1-3) is coming off a 47-45 loss at Jackson State on Tuesday night. Amber Eugene led Southern Miss with 18 points and Kendra Reed scored 13 points and grabbed a team-high eight rebounds.
Emer Foley leads the team in scoring and rebounding at 20.8 points and 9.3 rebounds per game. Reed is averaging 13.8 points and Eugene 12.7.
As a team, Southern Miss is averaging 62.0 points and 45.0 rebounds per game while shooting 42.5 percent from the field and 72.9 percent from the line.
Grambling State (0-3) is coming off an 82-55 loss at Chicago State. Sanora Cole leads the team with an 11.3 per game average. Tenisha Shaw leads the team in rebounding at 7.7 rebounds per game.
Eastern Kentucky (1-2) is coming off a 79-77 loss to Georgetown in the Waikiki Beach Marriott Classic. Crystal Jones leads the team in scoring, averaging 20.3 points while Amber leads the team in rebounding at 6.3 boards per game.
Louisiana Tech (1-2) is coming off a 77-59 win over Iowa. Shan Moore and Ty Moore are averaging, 13.3 and 13.0 points per game, respectively. Ty Moore also leads the team in rebounding at 9.7 per game.
Following the Classic, Southern Miss travels to Louisiana-Monroe for a game on Nov. 28 with a tip time of 7 p.m.
SOMETHING ABOUT THE FIELD Grambling State has lost its first three games and owns a 0-3. The Tigers have yet to play a home game. Sanora Cole is the lone player averaging in double-figures at 11.3 points per game. Head Coach Rusty Ponton is in his 10th season at the helm and his record is 167-97. As a team, GSU is averaging 60.0 points and 43.0 rebounds while shooting 33.7 percent from the field and 56.4 from the line. Eastern Kentucky is 1-2, with losses to Oklahoma and Georgetown. The Lady Colonels have four players averaging in double-figures, led by Crystal Jones with 20 points, Nikik Avery is averaging 16.0, Andrea Jenkins 10.7 and Amber Kirkpatrick 10.0. Head Coach Larry Joe Inman is in his 19th season at EKU and his record is 244-214. As a team, EKU is averaging 84.3 points and 40.7 rebounds per game, while shooting 44.0 percent from the field and 69.2 percent from the line. Louisiana Tech got its first win against Iowa. Only two players are averaging in double-figures, Shan Moore and Ty Moore are averaging 13.3 and 13.0 points, respectively. Head Coach Chris Long, a Southern Miss graduate, is in his second season and his record is 26-7. As a team, the Lady Techsters are averaging 64.0 points and 38.3 rebounds per game.
ABOUT THE SERIES AGAINST THE FIELD Southern Miss owns a 2-1 record against Grambling State. It's been five years since the two teams faced each other. Southern Miss and Eastern Kentucky have played only once and that was some 21 years ago in a tournament in Atlanta, Ga. Southern Miss leads the series 1-0. The Lady Eagles and Louisiana Tech have played only twice, both times in the second round of the NCAA Tournament and both times the Lady Techsters were a No. 1 seed in the tournament.
THE CLASSIC HISTORY Southern Miss lost in the championship game to Northwestern State, 85-75. Last season, Southern Miss failed to win a game in the Classic, going 0-2 with losses to Columbia (48-41), and then lost to American (66-56) in the consolation game. The Lady Eagles won their 14th Classic title with a 64-58 win over Texas A&M-Corpus Christi 2003. Southern Miss now owns a 30-6 overall record in the Classic. The first Classic was played Dec. 10-11, 1982. The Lady Eagles defeated Mercer University, 101-90, in the first Classic final. The Classic was not played again until 1988, when Southern Miss defeated Alabama, 84-79, in overtime. The Classic resumed in 1991 after a two-year absence. The Golden Eagles faced Mississippi State in the finals, winning 89-74. Southern Miss has lost only two championship games. In 1995, nationally-ranked Ole Miss defeated the Eagles in overtime, and in 1998, the Eagles lost to Florida International. In 1999, Southern Miss defeated UT-Martin, 81-65, in the championship game, followed by a 61-48 win over Appalachian State in 2001. In 2002, the Lady Eagles defeated Birmingham Southern 76-42.
