Game 1 – Old Dominion (13-8, 5-3 Sun Belt) vs. Texas State (13-6, 5-3 Sun Belt)
Game 2 – Old Dominion (13-8, 4-2 Sun Belt) vs. Coastal Carolina (9-10, 4-4 Sun Belt)
Game Info – Thursday, Jan. 26 at 6:30 p.m. EST
Saturday, Jan. 28 at 2 p.m. EST
Location – Chartway Arena (Norfolk, Va.)
Watch – ESPN+ (Game 1 | Game 2)
Listen – ODU Sports Radio Network
Live Stats – Game 1 | Game 2
Social Media – Twitter | Facebook | Instagram
Game Notes – ODU
NORFOLK, Va. – After splitting its conference games at Louisiana and Georgia State last week, Old Dominion women's basketball will host Texas State this Thursday and Coastal Carolina on Saturday. Thursday's game is set for a 6:30 p.m. opening tip and Saturday is scheduled for a 2 p.m. start.
Chip Tarkenton and Kim Aston will call both games on ESPN+ while Matthew Hatfield can be heard on the ODU Sports Radio Network. Live stats will also be available.
The Series
Both games will be the first-ever meetings with Texas State and Coastal Carolina.
About ODU
After a 61-51 setback at Louisiana last Thursday, the Monarchs (13-8, 5-3 SBC) found themselves trailing 42-35 at halftime last Saturday at Georgia State. ODU then outscored the Panthers 27-17 in the third quarter and stepped up its defensive effort to earn a 73-70 win on the road. Four Monarchs finished in double figures: Brianna Jackson turned in a career-high 18 points, Makayla Dickens went 4-for-7 from beyond to arc to finish with 13 points, Amari Young had 13 points with a team-high eight rebounds, and Jatyjia Jones shot 4-for-5 from the field and a perfect 3-for-3 from distance for a total of 11 points.
The win marked the 50th for head coach DeLisha Milton-Jones in her time leading the Monarchs. She is now 50-29 (.633) while at ODU and 82-61 (.573) overall.
Young is ODU's leading scorer with 11.1 points per game and Dickens is also averaging double figures with 10.9 ppg. Kaye Clark comes in at third (9.3 ppg) and Jordan McLaughlin is fourth (8.9 ppg). Dickens continues to have the hot hand from long range with 45 made three-pointers on the season. The Virginia Beach, Virginia native is second in the Sun Belt in both three-point attempts (100) and three-pointers made and ranks third in the league in three-point field goal percentage (.381) and three-pointers per game (2.25).On the glass, Young leads the team with 7.8 rebounds per game, Jackson is next with 4.5 rpg and Clark third at 4.0 rpg. McLaughlin and Clark have combined for 130 assists while Jackson and Young have recorded 10 blocks each. Through games played on Jan. 24, Clark ranks eighth nationally in steals (62) and 18th in steals per game (2.95).
The Monarchs enter the week shooting a combined .385 (505-for-1311) from the floor, .281 (110-for-391) from three-point range, and .627 (234-for-373) at the free-throw line. ODU is scoring 64.5 points per outing and owns a +3.2 scoring margin. The team currently ranks 19th in the country in turnovers forced per game (21.05), 31st in steals per game (10.4) and 32nd in turnover margin (4.71).
ODU is looking to keep its win streak at home alive having won all nine games at Chartway Arena this season. As of Jan. 24, the Monarchs are one of 27 NCAA Division I teams still unbeaten at home.
About Texas State
The Bobcats (13-6, 5-3) won their third game in a row with a 65-57 final at ULM last Thursday, but dropped a close game at South Alabama, 45-43 on Saturday as the Jaguars scored five unanswered over the final minute. Tianna Eaton led the team in the loss with a 14-point, 12-rebound double-double.
Texas State has three players scoring in double figures: Da'Nasia Hood (15.3 ppg), Eaton (11.0 ppg) and Kennedy Taylor (10.6 ppg). Lauryn Thompson isn't far off with 9.3 points per outing. On the perimeter, Tyalor has knocked down 35 threes and Taelour Pruitt (6.8 ppg) is next with 20 long balls. Hood (7.4 rpg) and Jada Reed (5.5 rpg) lead the rebounding effort while Kennedy is first in the conference in assists (116) and assists per game (6.1). Kennedy also owns the team high in steals with 36 and Eaton ranks fourth in the Sun Belt in blocks (26) and blocks per game (1.37).
The Bobcats average 67.4 ppg and have outscored opponents by an average of 10.4 points. The team is shooting .424 (461-for-1086) from the floor, .317 (101-for-319) from deep, and a league-best .761 (258-for-339) at the charity stripe. Texas State is also first in the Sun Belt in assists to turnover ratio (1.01) and turnovers per game (14.5).
Hood was named to the All-Sun Belt Preseason First Team and Taylor to the Preseason Second Team. The Bobcats received 135 points and were picked to finish fifth in the Preseason Coaches' Poll.
About Coastal Carolina
The Chanticleers (9-10, 4-4) also had a three-game win streak going after defeating Georgia State 68-57 in Atlanta last Thursday, but fell 81-74 at Appalachian State on Saturday. CCU led 44-38 at halftime, but was outscored 22-6 in the third quarter. Angie Just-Jean paced the offense with 21 points, Aja Blount turned in a 19-point, 12-rebound double-double, and Anaya Barney chipped in an 11-point effort.
Coastal also has three players with double-digit scoring: Blount (15.7 ppg), Deaja Richardson (10.5 ppg) and Arin Freeman (10.4 ppg). Barney has drained a team-best 38 threes, Miriam Recarte (6.3 ppg) follows with 27 made three-pointers, and Richardson is third with 22. Blount is pulling down 8.2 rebounds a game, Freeman owns 84 assists with 39 steals, and Recarte has the team high in blocks with 18. Blount's .906 (77-for-85) shooting at the line ranks first in the Sun Belt and 14th in the nation.
The Chanticleers own a +3.2 scoring margin and are netting 69.5 points per game. CCU comes into the week shooting .410 (466-for-1136) from the field, .323 (129-for-399) from the perimeter, and .743 (260-for-350) at the line. Coastal ranks second in the league in free-throw percentage and three-point percentage and is third in assists per game (14.2).
CCU was picked to finish 12th with 45 points in the Preseason Coaches' Poll.
NET Rankings
Sun Belt Conference in the NCAA NET Rankings – as of Jan. 24
| James Madison | 93 |
| Troy | 113 |
| Southern Miss. | 159 |
| Old Dominion | 167 |
| Louisiana | 178 |
| Georgia Southern | 190 |
| Marshall | 191 |
| Texas State | 197 |
| App State | 209 |
| Coastal Carolina | 225 |
| Georgia State | 246 |
| Arkansas State | 269 |
| ULM | 331 |
| South Alabama | 340 |
Up Next
ODU is back on the road next week with games at Southern Miss and Arkansas State. The Golden Eagles will host the Monarchs for a 7 p.m. EST game on Feb. 2 at Reed Green Coliseum. ODU then heads north to Jonesboro, Arkansas for a 5:30 p.m. EST meeting with the Red Wolves inside First National Bank Arena.