Game 10  ·  American (3-6, 0-0 PL) vs. George Washington (6-5, 0-0 A-10)
Sunday, Dec. 22, 2019  ·  2 p.m.  ·  Washington, D.C. (Bender Arena)
All-Time Record: George Washington leads, 16-11

WASHINGTON - The American University women's basketball team (3-6) will host crosstown foe George Washington (6-5) in what is becoming a holiday classic in D.C., as the Eagles prepare to close their nonconference slate with a 2 p.m. tip in Bender Arena on Sunday. 

SERIES HISTORY

• The Colonials hold the advantage in the 27-game series, 16-11, after claiming four of the last five meetings against the Eagles.
• The two teams last battled on December 7, 2017, at George Washington, with GW overpowering the Eagles, 61-44.
• American's last win in the series was in Bender Arena on Dec. 7, 2016, with the 66-61 overtime battle.

LAST TIME OUT 

• American picked up its first road win of the season with a 59-55 victory at Radford on Dec. 15. 
• In one of the most well-rounded scoring efforts of the season, four of the five starters landed in double-figures including sophomore Taylor Brown, who hit a career-high 11 points in her third career start. 
• Senior Kaitlyn Marenyi paced the team for the third time this season with 16 points, followed by 15 from junior Indeya Sanders, and 13 from sophomore Jade Edwards. 
• For the fourth time this season, Sanders filled the score sheet with a team-high eight rebounds, team-high four assists, along with one block and one steal. 
• Brown also added a career-high three assists and gave up only one turnover in her career-high 30 minutes. 
• The Eagles led early, outpacing Radford 8-4 by the first media timeout. But the Highlanders responded quickly out of the huddle, hitting an 8-2 run and closing the quarter with a one-point advantage at 14-13. 
• The Highlanders spread the gap to as much as seven points in the second quarter before baskets from freshman Karla Vres and Edwards tied the game at 24-24 with 1:51 left in the half. A late trip to the free throw line put Radford back up at 25-24 heading into the locker rooms. 
• AU took a brief lead in the third quarter after baskets from Brown, Marenyi, and Sanders, but Radford steadily rebuilt a six-point lead by the final 40 seconds. 
• A clutch play from Sanders in the final seconds of the stanza shifted momentum, though, after she drew the foul on a layup for a quick three points to bring American back within three at 42-39 heading into the fourth. 
• Sanders hit six more along with Edwards in the final 10 minutes to deliver AU the win. Radford pulled ahead by five briefly with 6:30 remaining, but the 11-3 AU run in response, and another 5-1 closing argument, sealed the deal for the Eagles. 

SCOUTING THE EAGLES

• Sophomore Jade Edwards is having the best start in a decade for the Eagles with her 17.2 ppg. The last player to average over 17.0 ppg after nine games was Michelle Keller in 2009-10 (20.3) en route to a program-record 565-point season.
• Edwards is one of three Eagles to rank within the top-three in the PL; she sits in second on scoring behind PL Preseason Offensive Player of the Year, Holy Cross' Lauren Manis.
• Junior Indeya Sanders has also had a strong start to the season. The 5'6" guard ranks third in the league with 1.1 blocks per game. She is the only player in the PL to lead her team in both assists (4.4) and blocks (1.1) per game, and also stands alone as the lone player to rank within the top-five in the conference in both categories (third).
• Senior Kaitlyn Marenyi, who joins Sanders as one of the two AU players averaging in double-figures with 11.4 ppg, continues to rank among the league's best perimeter shooters with 2.4 made 3's per game (third).
• American has kept a fairly consistent starting five so far this season, with only sophomores Emily Fisher and Taylor Brown switching in and out of the lineup. So far, the starters have dominated for AU, accounting for 88.6 percent of scoring (52.6 ppg) and 72.5 percent of rebounding (22.0 rpg).
• Although the team currently holds a -6.1 scoring margin against its opponents, the starters have actually outscored their foes by an average of 5.8 ppg.

PROTECT THIS HOUSE 

• The Eagles are on 41-7 at home since the start of the 2016-17 season, including an undefeated 23-0 run that ranked sixth in Division I before ending with a loss to Ohio on Dec. 29, 2018. 
• In the Megan Gebbia era, the Eagles are 70-23 (.753) in Bender Arena, including 53-12 (.815) against Patriot League opponents. Among the highlights in her six seasons was the program's first undefeated season at home since the 1970's in 2017-18. 

KEEP IT CLEAN 

• American leads the PL and is 25th in Division I for fewest personal fouls per game, averaging only 14.3 per game and allowing opponents only 11.9 free throw attempts per game. 
• Ohio appeared on the line more than any AU opponent so far this season with 18 free throw attempts while Villanova (9) and Saint Joseph's (5) were both held to under 10. 

FIRST ONE TO 60... 

• Since head coach Megan Gebbia took the reins in 2013-14, the Eagles have put up an 94-31 record when scoring over 60 points, and 43-2 when scoring over 70. 
• Included in that run is a staggering 43-6 record since the 2017-18 season. 
• On the flip side of that, AU is 23-68 when its opponents score over 60 points. 
• In Gebbia's tenure, AU has allowed its opponents to score over 60 points only 91 times while the Eagles have crossed that threshold 125 times. 

SCOUTING THE COLONIALS 

• GW is coming off back-to-back losses to Minnesota (RV/RV) and, most recently, James Madison on Friday, 50-69. 
• Alexandra Maund paced the Colonials with 11 points and seven rebounds against the Dukes, followed by 10 points from Tori Hyduke. 
• Struggles with possession costed GW against the Golden Gophers, as Minnesota picked up 33 points off the Colonials' 23 turnovers. GW fared better against JMU, but still gave the ball up 15 times to 11 from the Dukes. 
• The Colonials entered the weekend leading the A-10 with their 36.6 percent shooting from three, and sit in third on the offensive boards (16.0). 
• Tori Hyduke ranks 15th in Division I with 48.9 percent shooting from three. She leads the team with 12.9 ppg followed by 9.5 ppg from Alexandra Maund. Sydney Zambrotta played her first minutes in seven game after missing a chunk of the season with injury - she averages 12.0 ppg. 
• Mayowa Taiwo leads the team under the basket with 6.0 rpg while Kayla Mokwuah has brought down a team-high 12 blocks in 11 games. 
• GW was picked to finish seventh in the A-10 Preseason Poll. 

For the latest on American University Women's Basketball, stay tuned to AUEagles.com and follow the team on Twitter (@AU_WBasketball) and Instagram (@auwbasketball).

WOMEN'S BASKETBALL SEASON TICKETS

• General admission season tickets are $80 for adults and $50 for youth (17 & below) / seniors (65+).
• Full exchange for games you cannot make – as well as discounts, and special benefits throughout the year. All season ticket holders receive priority ticketing for all non-Patriot League postseason tournament games.
• Purchase online at AUeagles.com/Tickets

GROUP TICKETS

• Available for purchase for groups of 10+ and 40+. Tickets start at just $2.

INDIVIDUAL GAME TICKETS

• Available for purchase now to all home games starting at $5 per ticket.
  Purchase online at AUeagles.com/Tickets

AU STUDENTS

• Undergraduate, graduate, and Washington College of Law (WCL) students are admitted free of charge to all home basketball games with a valid AU ID.

For further inquiries on season ticket packages, mini-plans, group, or individual game tickets, call (202) 885-TIXX(8499) or e-mail clawed@american.edu. Tickets can also be purchased in person at the Bender Arena Ticket Office from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday. For further updates, news, and to purchase tickets, visit AUeagles.com/Tickets.