No. 18/15 Women's Basketball Travels to No. 6/6 Mississippi State

MILWAUKEE – Up four spots this week in the AP Top-25 and two spots in the USA Today Coaches poll, the No. 18/15 Marquette women's basketball team gears up for a challenging road test against No. 6/6 Mississippi State in Starkville on Thursday night.

The Golden Eagles (6-1) made quick work of Michigan on Sunday at the Al McGuire Center, building a 20-point halftime lead before completing an 85-74 victory. Erika Davenport led all five starters in double figures, scoring a game-high 21 points with eight rebounds. Allazia Blockton moved ever closer to the program scoring record with 18 points and Natisha Hiedeman chipped in 11 points and seven assists, with a clutch nine points coming in a tone-setting first quarter.

Thursday's matchup marks the first-ever meeting against the back-to-back national runners-up and sixth-ever contest for Marquette in the state of Mississippi with the previous five (4-1) all coming against Southern Miss. and none since the 2004-05 season.

Following its battle in Starkville, Marquette stays on the road to take on Northwestern in Evanston, Illinois on Sunday, Dec. 9. Tip-off is set for 1 p.m. Central time and will air live on the Big Ten Network.

OPPONENT
MISSISSIPPI STATE (7-0): The sixth-ranked Bulldogs have won 44-straight non-conference games and coming off back-to-back NCAA Championship game appearances, but are still in search of the program's first national title. MSU topped No. 10 Texas, 67-49, last time out. The Bulldogs are led by Teaira McCowan's 18.6 ppg and 11.8 rpg. Anriel Howard, Chloe Bibby and Jordan Danberry are all averaging in double figures scoring as well.

STORYLINES
• Crashing the boards: Last time out, Marquette outrebounded a Michigan team, 39-28, that had entered play ranked 10th in the country in rebounding margin (+13.9). They'll face a Mississippi State squad that ranks third in the nation in rebounding margin (+18.8), seventh in rebounds per game (48.1) and ranks No. 1 in blocked shots (8.0 bpg) and scoring margin (+46.4).

• Allazia Blockton is poised to become Marquette's all-time scoring leader as she is just 33 points shy of passing Krystal Ellis' ('09) current record of 1,940 points. She is also on pace to become the first Golden Eagle, male or female, to reach 2,000 career points.

• Marquette is currently the only program is the country with five active 1,000-point scorers. Blockton (1,908) is joined by Natisha Hiedeman (1,394), Erika Davenport (1,261), Amani Wilborn (1,087) and King (1,053). Soon, No. 2 Notre Dame will also earn the distinction as it has four active 1,000-point scorers and a fifth (Jackie Young) just 66 points away. Both teams will meet on Dec. 22 at the Al McGuire Center in Milwaukee.

• Blockton is up for two major awards. She was recently named by the WBCA Wade Trophy Watch List as one of 35 candidates in the country under consideration for the nation's top Division I women's basketball player. She is also one of 30 finalists for the prestigious Senior CLASS Award, which focuses on both on-and-off the court accomplishments and encourages student-athletes to use their platforms in athletics to make a positive impact as leaders in their communities.

• Two long-standing records were broken in the Nov. 28 win over UW-Milwaukee. Blockton set the career record for made field goals with her fifth basket of the game late in the second quarter, passing Julie Sievers' 35-year-old mark of 717 made baskets. Meanwhile, Natisha Hiedeman, also in the second quarter, eclipsed Lori Goerlitz's 23-year-old career mark for 3-pointers made (221) as she knocked down four triples. She now has a career total of 226.

• Senior Danielle King became Marquette's fifth active player to reach the 1,000-career points mark with her 3-pointer late in the fourth quarter of MU's win over Montana State on Nov. 9.

• Marquette ranks among the nation's leaders in several categories, including scoring offense (87.4 ppg – 8th) and scoring margin (+29.1 ppg – 6th). In addition to ranking ninth in assists per game (20.1), MU is sixth in assist/turnover ratio (1.52) and ninth in turnover margin (+9.43). The team ranks 13th in the nation in 3-pointers made per game (9.7) and 23rd in field goal percentage (46.8).

• Individually, Hiedeman leads four Golden Eagles in the top-100 in assist/turnover ratio, coming in third-nationally (4.67). She also ranks 24th in assists per game (6.0) and 29th in total assists (42), while Davenport ranks eighth in field goal percentage (63.9) and Blockton is 53rd in points per game (19.1).

• Marquette had consecutive games in which six players reached double figures in scoring (Montana State and Northern Iowa). Last season, the Golden Eagles accomplished the feat just once - in an overtime loss on the road to the eventual national champions, Notre Dame.

• The Golden Eagles have dished out 20 or more assists in five of seven games this season. MU handed out a season-high 24 assists against Montana State and 22 helpers against South Dakota State, UNI, UIC and Michigan. They currently rank ninth in the country with an average of 20.1 assists per game.

• Head coach Carolyn Kieger's high-scoring offense is shining through once again this year as MU is averaging 87.8 points per game, which ranks ninth in the country.

• Blockton was tabbed as unanimous BIG EAST Preseason Player of the Year and is the reigning league player of the year and scholar-athlete of the year. Davenport, Hiedeman and Wilborn were all picked to the BIG EAST Preseason Team.

• The Golden Eagles spent the summer on a foreign tour in Australia from August 9-20. The team played four games overseas and experienced quite a few adventures, including snorkeling on the Great Barrier Reef, climbing the Sydney Harbour Bridge and visiting the Sydney Opera House.

• Head coach Carolyn Kieger enters her fifth season at the helm of the Golden Eagles. She has guided Marquette to the most wins in any two-year span in program history with 49 victories from 2016-18, including back-to-back 20-win campaigns. Kieger's record at Marquette stands at 77-57.

• Marquette earned an at-large bid to the 2018 NCAA Tournament, reaching the second round for the first time since 2011 and just the fifth time in program history, also marking the first time since 1999-2000 the Golden Eagles have made back-to-back trips to the Big Dance.