Game 11: Women vs. Western Kentucky

The #17/15 women's team faces Western Kentucky (4-1) tonight at the Smith Center in the final game of the GW Thanksgiving Classic. Yesterday, the Colonials (4-1) got double-doubles from Jessica Adair (18 points, 11 rebounds) and Kimberly Beck (16 points, 10 assists) in a 65-60 win over South Dakota State.

The Lady Toppers, who were picked to finish first in the East Division of the Sun Belt Conference, return four starters from the squad that went 23-9 and lost in the semifinals of the WNIT to Wisconsin. Western Kentucky is led by 6-3 senior forward Crystal Kelly (21.8 points, 10 rebounds per game this season), the preseason pick for the Player of the Year in the Sun Belt Conference and a two-time Wooden Award nominee, who averaged 24.1 points and 9.1 rebounds per game last season. Kelly is joined by 5-7 sophomore guard Kenzie Rich (14 points) and 5-11 junior forward Dominique Duck (12 points, 4.8 rebounds). Coach Mary Taylor Cowles is 115-50 in her sixth year at Western Kentucky.

Yesterday, the Lady Toppers beat Southern Illinois 88-71 in the first game of the GW Thanksgiving Classic. Kelly led the way with 27 points, 12 rebounds, and four assists, and was joined in double figures in scoring by Duck (20 points, five rebounds, three blocks) and Rich (11 points, five assists). Western Kentucky also has wins against East Tennessee State, Evansville and Louisiana Tech this season, with the lone loss coming at Notre Dame in the Preseason WNIT on November 13.

This is the third-ever meeting between these programs; GW is 1-1. The last meeting came on January 6, 1998 in Bowling Green, KY, which the Lady Toppers won 78-53. The Colonials won the last meeting at the Smith Center 88-63 on February 8, 1997.

This is a very dangerous game for McKeown and company, especially following the last two unimpressive performances against Rutgers and South Dakota State. Kelly is the type of player who can take over games and dominate on both ends of the court. Expect a close game throughout, but the money here is on the Colonials finding a way to win at home.

Chase Carpenter and David Earl have the call for WRGW with Vishal Aswani handling production duties. You can listen here starting approximately at 5.10 p.m.

Game notes: Sarah-Jo Lawrence needs six points to become the program's 24th 1,000-point career scorer...GW has lost two in a row on the second day when playing back-to-back games...The current senior class is 3-5 on the second day of back-to-back games...Whitney Allen is out for today's game with a broken finger, while Antelia Parrish is questionable with a sprained left ankle, which she suffered in yesterday's victory over South Dakota State...Southern Illinois and South Dakota State tip-off in the third game of the GW Thanksgiving Classic at three this afternoon...The GW Invitational originated in 1981 and ran until 1986...McKeown brought the event back for three years from 1993 to 1995...GW is 15-6 all-time in its own event, winning it all in 1985, 1993, 1994, and 1995...The Colonials are 7-0 all-time in the GW Invitational/Thanksgiving Classic under McKeown...The last GW loss in the event came on December 6, 1986 to James Madison by a score of 61-56...The current senior class is 32-5 at the Smith Center...Lawrence's second cousin Nikki McCray, the former Tennessee star, is in her second season as an assistant on Cowles' staff...McKeown is 14 wins shy of 500 for his career.

Almost all of my staff is home for the holiday, but we'll try to get some information from the Smith Center as we get closer to tip-off. Please check back later.

Update, 6.10 p.m. - Here were the starting lineups:

Western Kentucky
G - Kenzie Rich (5-7 sophomore from Tompkinsville, KY)
G - Hope Brown (5-8 freshman from Radcliff, KY)
G - Charlotte Marshall (5-10 senior from Shelbyville, KY)
F - Dominique Duck (5-11 junior from Pittsburgh, PA)
F - Crystal Kelly (6-3 senior from Louisville, KY)

GW
G - Stefani Munro (5-7 sophomore from Mount Clemens, MI)
G - Kimberly Beck (5-8 senior from Fairburn, GA)
G - Sarah-Jo Lawrence (5-11 senior from Rhoadesville, VA)
F - Jazmine Adair (6-3 junior from Washington, DC)
C - Jessica Adair (6-4 junior from Washington, DC)

First career start for Munro, who only appeared in 16 of the team's 32 games last season.

Update, 6.55 p.m. - This is Greg Shapiro reporting live courtside from the Smith Center. I will be live blogging the remainder of the game.

The Colonials came out of halftime firing after going into the locker rooms with a minor 37-35 lead. Going into the second official's timeout, GW is on a 16-10 run to open the second half, now leading 53-45. Jessica Adair is the high scorer for the Colonials with 17. Kim Beck and Sarah-Jo Lawrence each have 13. It's impressive to see the Colonials so aggressive defensively even with the absence of two of their best on-the-ball defenders in Antelia Parrish and Whitney Allen.

Update, 7.08 p.m. - The Colonials have been struggling for the field making only one of their last five field goals, but are getting second opportunities from the tenacious play of Jamila Bates on the offensive glass. She is now tied with Jess Adair for the team lead in rebounds with 7, 5 of which are offensive. The Lady Toppers won't go away however thanks to to the brilliant play of Cyrstal Kelly who leads all scorers with 24. The Colonials lead 65-55 with 7:00 remaining.

Update, 7.13 p.m. - Timeout Western Kentucky. The Colonials are fired up now on mini 5-0 run. The most interesting trend in this game is the extended use of Stefani Munro and Erica Rivera at the point guard position. Without the offensive firepower of Parrish, Coach McKeown has brought his back-up point guards into the game to free up Beck around the perimeter. Munro and Rivera have logged a combined 32 minutes and Beck has scored 16. The Colonials lead 72-57 with 4:40 remaining.

Update, 7.26 p.m. - And the Colonials have run away with this one. Final score GW 80, Western Kentucky 63. Stifling defense and efficient shooting down the stretch led to this Colonials victory. The team shot 50% from the field led by Jess Adair's 23 points. She was 10-14 from the field. The Colonials also had an impressive performance on the boards. They outrebounded Western Kentucky 38-23. So it is all smiles for Coach McKeown and his staff, able to use their bench effectively, with a season-high 14 points, with the loss of Whitney Allen and Antelia Parrish to injury.

Post-game audio to come.

Update, 9.21 p.m. - Unfortunately, due to the holiday weekend, press was limited and no post-game press conference was held.

Weekend roundups to follow tomorrow. We'll be back in action for the women's game on Tuesday night at James Madison. Thanks for stopping by.