Women's Basketball Hosts UAB to Open C-USA Play

Game notes

BOCA RATON, Fla. – The Florida Atlantic University women's basketball team (3-10) will tip off the 2019 Conference USA slate on Thursday against preseason favorite and 2018 regular season champion, UAB (12-1). The Owls will host the Blazers at 7 p.m. at FAU Arena.

For tickets, call 1-866-FAU-OWLS or visit FAUSports.com. For fans who can't make the trip out to FAU Arena this weekend, the game will be streamed online and live stats will be provided throughout the game.

About the Owls

FAU kicks off the 2019 Conference USA slate by hosting preseason and 2018 regular season champion, UAB, on Thursday, Jan. 3. Then the Owls will host Middle Tennessee on Saturday, Jan. 5
Through 13 games, Juliette Gauthier is the leading Owl scorer with 9.7 points per game. Myka Johnson Matthews is close behind, averaging 8.7 points. Abby Voss leads on the rebounding front, pulling down 7.9 boards per game. Glenisha Harkless has recorded the most assists on the season with 28, but Danneal Ford leads on average with 3.4 per game
The Owls are 3-2 in C-USA openers all-time and 13-11 in conference openers since 1994

Last Time Out

The Owls closed out the non-conference season with the FAU Holiday Classic on Dec. 28 and 29 in Boca Raton
FAU faced North Carolina A&T first on Friday. After leading for most of the game, N.C. A&T charged back to take a lead in the second half. FAU was able to come back but the Aggies retook the lead on a three with 36 seconds left and secured the win
On Saturday, FAU took on Saint Louis. The Billikens pounced early, scoring 30 points in the first quarter and never looking back from there
Voss recorded the first double-double of the season for the Owls against N.C. A&T. She scored 19 points and pulled down 10 boards. She was 4-of-5 from deep
Gauhtier had a career-high 19 points against Saint Louis on 8-of-11 shooting. She also had seven rebounds and two assists. Ra'Kyra Gabriel and Amber Gaston joined Gauthier in double figures with 11 points each

Series History

Thursday's meeting will be the 11th all-time between FAU and UAB
The Blazers won the last matchup last season in Birmingham, 90-57. Ra'Kyra Gabriel was the leading Owl scorer in that game, putting up 24 points and seven rebounds
Overall, UAB leads the series 8-2 and have won three straight against the Owls
FAU's last win against UAB came in 2016 in Birmingham. The Owls picked up a 52-51 victory

Scouting UAB

UAB comes into the meeting with a 12-1 record, the top mark in Conference USA after the conclusion of the non-conference portion of the schedule.
On an eight-game winning streak, the Blazers are off to the best start in school history
Deanna Kuzmanic leads the Blazers, scoring 14.5 points per game. Rachael Childress joins her in double figures, averaging 13.5 points
As a team, UAB is putting up 78.8 points per game which is the most by any C-USA squad
The Blazers like to shoot from deep, hitting 9.6 3-pointers per game. That mark rank 16^th nationally. Childress is 8th in the NCAA making 3.4 per game

Owls on Social Media
For complete coverage of FAU women's basketball, follow us on Twitter (@FAU_WBB), Instagram (@FAU_WBB) and Facebook (Florida Atlantic Women's Basketball).

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Players Mentioned

Danneal Ford

Ra'Kyra Gabriel

Amber Gaston

Juliette Gauthier

Glenisha Harkless

Myka Johnson Matthews

Abby Voss

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