Feb. 1, 2008

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - The Samford women's basketball team will play host to the Eastern Illinois Panthers in a key Ohio Valley Conference game Saturday afternoon at the Pete Hanna Center.

Samford, currently third in the OVC, enters the game with a record of 16-6 overall and 9-3 in Ohio Valley Conference play after a 67-59 win at Tennessee State Thursday night. EIU, the OVC leader, is currently 12-9 overall and 11-2 in league play after an 83-81, double-overtime win at Jacksonville State Thursday night.

In Thursday night's win at Tennessee State, Chika Okoli led Samford with 17 points. Behind Okoli for Samford, Savannah Hill scored 16 points, and Monica Maxwell added 12 points and dished out a career-high eight assists.

For the season, Samford is led in scoring by freshman Emily London, averaging 11.8 points per game. Fellow freshman Hill is second in scoring with an average of 10.0 points per game.

Hill also leads the team in rebounding, pulling down 5.0 boards per contest. Maxwell is second on the team in rebounding, with an average of 4.0 rebounds per game.

Senior Taryn Towns is the team-leader in assists, dishing out 3.8 assists per game. London and Maxwell are tied for second in the category, averaging 2.5 assists per game.

Samford players rank in the top five in the OVC in several statistical categories. London ranks fourth in three-point field goal percentage (45.3%), fifth in free throw percentage (84.7%), and is tied for fifth in three-point field goals made (1.77 pg.). Towns ranks second in the league in assist-turnover ratio (2.05). Maxwell is tied for fifth in the league in three-point field goals made per game (1.77 pg.).

Samford and Eastern Illinois are meeting for the seventh time, with Samford holding a 4-2 advantage in the series. Last season, Samford swept the season series, winning, 63-41 in Charleston, Ill., and 70-49 in Birmingham.

Saturday's game is scheduled for a 4 p.m. start from the Pete Hanna Center. The game can be heard locally on WVSU-FM 91.1, or worldwide on the internet at www.samford.edu/groups/wvsu/. The game can also be viewed on the internet at www.ovcsports.tv.