JACKSONVILLE – The Jacksonville State women's basketball team looks to keep its momentum rolling on the road this weekend as Ohio Valley Conference play continues at Southeast Missouri and UT Martin.
JSU (10-11, 6-4 OVC) will open the weekend slate in Cape Girardeau, Mo., on Thursday afternoon with a 5:15 tip against SEMO. The Redhawks (16-5, 8-2 OVC) are tied for third in the league standings and riding the longest win-streak in the OVC at seven games. The Gamecocks also bring a lot of momentum into into Thursday, having won four of the last five games, including a dominating 60-41 effort over defending champion Belmont in their last outing.
Getting set for the 25th meeting between the two programs, the Gamecocks trail the series 7-17, but have have won the last two season matchups, including a 56-39 defensive battle last year at SEMO's Show Me Center.
Averaging over 12 points apiece, JSU is led offensively by graduate
Destiney Elliott and junior
Taylor Hawks. Elliott is also one of Jax State's leading rebounders along with redshirt-senior
Chloe Long (7.0 RPG) and
Jessie Day (5.2 RPG). Rebounding is a key to SEMO's success as the RedHawks rank in the top 20 nationally in multiple categories including rounding margin (16), rebounds (10) and offensive rebounds (7). JSU's strength has come from is defensive presence which ranks once again as the top scoring defense in the OVC, and has been sensational in guarding the perimeter allowing the seventh-fewest three-pointers in the nation.
Along with snapping SEMO's extended winning streak, a victory for JSU on Thursday would be the third-straight for the Gamecocks for the longest stretch all season. Every win is critical in the final month of the regular season, and none will come easy as JSU faces the top four teams in the league standings in seven of the final eight games.
On Saturday, JSU heads back down the road to Martin, Tenn., to meet the Skyhawks of UT Martin who are currently tied for second in the OVC with a 9-1 mark. Both games will be streamed on ESPN+ with live stats available at JSUGamecockSports.com.
