ELON, N.C. – Riding a four-game home winning streak, the Elon women’s basketball team (12-11, 8-6 SoCon) returns to Alumni Gym on Saturday, Feb. 11, for a key Southern Conference matchup with the Davidson Wildcats (16-7, 12-2 SoCon). Tip is set for 2 p.m.
THE SERIES: Elon and Davidson are meeting for the 22nd time on Saturday. The Wildcats lead the all-time series, 15-6, which includes a win at Davidson earlier this season on Jan. 4. The Phoenix won the last meeting in Alumni Gym, as Shon Redmond completed an old-fashion three-point play with less than 20 seconds remaining to give Elon a late one-point lead. Laura Murray missed a jumper as time expired and the maroon and gold walked away with a 61-60 victory. The series dates back 35 years when Davidson won the first ever meeting, 65-52, on Feb. 25, 1977. Elon is 2-7 all-time against Davidson at home.
LOOKING AHEAD: Following Saturday’s game, Elon heads to the mountains of Boone, N.C., on Monday night for a 6 p.m. contest against conference-leading Appalachian State. The Phoenix’s next home game is Feb. 25 versus Wofford.
AWARD WINNER: Ali Ford was named the Southern Conference Player of the Week earlier this week. Ford averaged 22.5 points per game in two Elon wins over Furman and UNCG. Ford scored 26 against Furman on Feb. 4 to lead Elon to a 76-58 victory before tallying 19 at UNCG on Monday night in a 69-50 win. It marks Ford’s first career SoCon Player of the Week accolade. Ford is the first Elon player to earn player of the week honors since Kelsey Evans did so on Feb. 1 last season.
HOME COOKING: Elon improved to 8-2 at home this season with an 18-point win over Furman on Feb. 4. The Phoenix has won four straight in Alumni Gym, outscoring opponents by an average of 9.5 points. On the season, Elon is outscoring opponents by an 11.3 point margin in Alumni Gym. The Phoenix has knocked down a total of 75 three-pointers at home and has limited its opponents to just 37 makes from long distance.
RAREFIED AIR: Ali Ford moved into fifth all-time in scoring at UNCG on Feb. 6, passing former Elon great Holly Andrews. Ford now sits at 1,420 career points and is 39 shy of passing Elon Hall of Famer Donna Trollinger for fourth in program history. Including Trollinger, three of the four players ahead of Ford in scoring are in the Elon Hall of Fame (Trollinger, Lou Williamson and Venessa Corbett). Ford became Elon’s all-time three-point leader on Jan. 28 and the Southern Conference’s all-time leader from beyond the arc on Dec. 29.
STOP, THIEF!: Kallie Hovatter gave the Phoenix a spark off the bench against Furman on Feb. 4, as the senior went for nine points, five rebounds and five steals in a career-high 28 minutes. Hovatter’s five steals are a career-high and the most in a single game by an Elon player this season.
CLOSING IN ON 900: With 11 points at UNCG on Feb. 6, Kelsey Evans now sits at 870 career points. Evans has also grabbed 670 career rebounds and blocked 153 shots (third in Elon history) in her career.
ON POINT: Aiesha Harper tied a career high with eight assists in Elon’s win at UNCG on Feb. 6. Harper is currently tied for second in the Southern Conference in assists at 4.2 per game. Harper ranks first in the league in assist-to-turnover ratio at 1.5.
GETTING DEFENSIVE: Elon has held its opponent to 50 or fewer points in six of its victories this season. The Phoenix accomplished that feat four times all of last season.
ROAD TO ASHEVILLE: The 2012 Southern Conference Tournament is scheduled for March 2-5 in Asheville, N.C. Kimmel Arena will play host to the first round and quarterfinal games on March 2-3 before the tournament shifts to the Asheville Civic Center for the semifinals and championship on March 4-5.