KENNESAW, Ga. – EKU women's basketball (13-11, 6-5 ASUN) sets its sights on week six of ASUN Conference play with a road trip down South, facing Kennesaw State for the second time and Jacksonville State.
 
Thursday's contest with KSU is set for Thursday, Feb. 9 at 7:00 p.m. ET and Saturday's game is scheduled for Saturday, Feb. 11 at 5:00 p.m. ET. Fans can view both games on ESPN+ or tune into 92.5 WEKY, the EKU Sports Network radio coverage with Wes Chandler on the call.
 
The Colonels are coming off a two-game home stand that saw the team take losses to Lipscomb and Austin Peay. EKU remains in fifth place in the ASUN standings.
 
Antwainette Walker was named the ASUN Newcomer of the Week on Monday, Feb. 6 by the league office. Walker averaged 25.5 points, 10.0 rebounds, 2.5 assists, and 1.5 steals while shooting 53.8 percent from the floor.
 
The Lisle, Ill. native recorded a career-high 33 points going 13-of-21 (.619) from the floor in the loss to Austin Peay. Walker added 11 rebounds for her 12th double-double of the season, placing her in the top-15 in the NCAA.
 
Graduate Student Danielle Rainey enters week six of conference play scoring 10-or-more points in five of her last seven games, including 17 points in back-to-back contests with Bellarmine and North Florida. 
 
Eastern Kentucky Notes
- EKU head coach Greg Todd needs 10 wins to reach 300 in his career.
- Walker was tabbed to the 2023 Ann Meyers Drysdale Award Mid-Season Top 10 list by the National Basketball Hall of Fame and the WBCA. The nod recognizes the top shooting guards in women's college basketball, voting is now available through hoophallawards.com.
- Walker became the first player since Jalen O'Bannon on Jan. 16, 2016 to earn 30+ points, 10+ rebounds, and three steals in a single game. 
- With 126 assists on the season and averaging 5.2 assists per game, point guard Alice Recanati sits inside the top-30 in the NCAA in both categories. Recently entering the top-10 in EKU career assists, needs 14 assists to move into 6th in program history.
- Emma Hacker and Ariel Kirkwood have both moved into the EKU all-time career block top-10 list this season, both averaging over 1.2 blocks per game.
- Rainey recorded the first triple-double in EKU program history with 16 points, 13 rebounds, and 10 assists in the Colonels 110-49 win over Alice Lloyd.

Game 25: Eastern Kentucky (13-11, 6-5 ASUN) vs. Kennesaw State (9-13, 5-6 ASUN)
- Thursday, February 9, 2023 – 7:00 p.m. ET
- KSU Convocation Center – Kennesaw, Ga.
- Tickets
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All-Time vs. Kennesaw State
- EKU is 3-0 all-time over KSU, including an 87-72 win earlier this season in the first game of ASUN play.
- Walker led EKU with 28 points, seven rebounds, and four steals. Rainey (18) and Marissa Mackins (16) also found themselves in double-figure scoring.
 
Scouting the Owls
- KSU is led by head coach Octavia Blue, who has compiled a record of 18-32 in two seasons.
- After the Owls suffered a defeat to EKU earlier in the season, the Owls won three straight games over Austin Peay, Bellarmine, and Lipscomb.
- Despite the added effort after the contest in Richmond, KSU has lost its last four conference games to North Alabama, Central Arkansas, Queens, and Liberty.
- KSU is led by Jah'Che Whitfield, a graduate student from Sumter, S.C., who averages 14.2 points per game, 5.7 rebounds per game, and shoots 42.1 percent from the field.
- Amani Johnson, a Preseason All-ASUN selection, leads the Owls with 4.9 assists per game.
 
Game 26: Eastern Kentucky (13-11, 6-5 ASUN) vs. Jacksonville State (12-10, 5-6 ASUN)
- Saturday, February 11, 2023 – 5:00 p.m. ET
- Pete Matthews Coliseum – Jacksonville, Ala.
- Tickets
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All-Time vs. Jacksonville State
- Saturday's game is the 41st meeting between JSU and EKU, the Gamecocks own a 21-19 all-time record over the Colonels dating back to 2002.
- Jacksonville State claimed both meetings last year in EKU's inaugural season in the ASUN.
 
Scouting the Gamecocks
- Jacksonville State HC Rick Pietri entered his 10th season at the helm of the program, he has a 155-131 (.542) record with the Gamecocks.
- The Gamecocks played a tough non-conference slate with losses to power-5 Georgia and Ole Miss on the road, wins over Samford, Utah Tech, and Chattanooga.
- JSU has ASUN wins over Queens (x2), Central Arkansas (x2), and North Alabama. Losses to Lipscomb (x2), Austin Peay, Kennesaw State (x2), and Liberty.
- Kennedy Gavin, a graduate forward from Petal, Miss., leads the Gamecocks with 12.5 ppg and 7.7 rpg.
- Fifth-year point guard Shawnta Shaw leads JSU with 2.1 assists and 1.9 steals a game.

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