The UIS women's basketball team is set to host a pair of home games this week, taking on Missouri S&T on Thursday at 5:30 PM and Drury on Saturday at 1:00 PM in GLVC action.

Illinois Springfield (3-14, 2-7 GLVC)
UIS comes into the week after two challenging road games. The Stars narrowly fell to Southwest Baptist, 81-78, in their closest loss of the season. UIS started strong, leading 46-39 at halftime, but a 22-4 stretch by SBU in the second half turned the momentum. The Stars battled back to tie the game at 75 but ultimately fell short in the final moments.

On Saturday, UIS faced Rockhurst and struggled to overcome an early 13-0 deficit. While the Stars kept pace with the Hawks for the remainder of the game and outscored them 19-11 in the final quarter, the early gap proved too much to recover from.

The team is averaging 62.6 points per game with a 40.7% field goal percentage and 30.1% from beyond the arc. UIS leads the conference in steals with 175 (10.29 per game) and ranks second in free throw percentage at 75.6%. Kayla Rice continues to be a standout player, leading the GLVC in three-pointers made and steals.

Missouri S&T (10-4, 5-3 GLVC)
The Missouri S&T Miners are off to a strong start with 10 wins this season. After dropping weekend games to Maryville and Missouri-St. Louis, the Miners bounced back with a win over William Jewell on Monday night in a makeup game.
Thursday's 72-57 loss to Maryville saw the Miners struggle against the Saints' offense, particularly in the second quarter, where they were outscored 23-10. The defeat snapped a four-game winning streak, despite strong individual efforts from their leading scorers.

Saturday's 72-61 loss to Missouri-St. Louis was a closer contest. The game was a back-and-forth battle, but UMSL's sharp shooting—50% overall and 40% from three-point range—proved to be the difference. The Miners, in contrast, shot 36.2% from the field and 28.6% from beyond the arc.

Key players to watch include sophomore Norah Gum, who leads the team with 11.3 points per game, and senior Katelynne Roberts, who is averaging 11.1 points per game and leads the GLVC in blocks with 30 in 14 games.

Drury (12-4, 8-1 GLVC)
The Drury Panthers, a longstanding force in GLVC women's basketball, are a tough opponent, having won six of their last seven games. Over the weekend, they secured victories over McKendree and Maryville.
In Thursday's 77-66 win over McKendree, Drury dominated for the first three quarters, outscoring the Bearcats by eight points in each of the first two frames. The Panthers' 24-16 third quarter appeared to seal the win, but McKendree made a late push to close within 11 points. Despite the late surge, Drury held on to grab sole possession of second place in the GLVC standings.

Against Maryville, Drury came out strong, building an early lead that the Saints never recovered from, ultimately winning 90-69.

Drury will play in Indianapolis on Thursday before traveling to Springfield to face UIS on Saturday.
Caitlynn Daniels has been leading the charge for Drury. The senior guard was named GLVC Player of the Week for Jan. 12-18 after averaging 15.5 points, 11.5 assists, six rebounds, and 2.5 steals in two games. Daniels has posted double-doubles in three straight games, including a triple-double on Jan. 11 at Missouri S&T, followed by back-to-back double-doubles last week.

Promotions
Thursday's matchup against Missouri S&T will feature a White Out theme, encouraging fans to wear white and bring energy to the TRAC. The game will also serve as the team's #WeAreStars game, where Prairie Stars from all sports are encouraged to 'Pack the Prairie' in support of their fellow Stars.

Saturday's game against Drury is expected to draw a packed house as UIS celebrates Family Day. Alumni will be in attendance, and it's also Faculty & Staff Appreciation Day, with UIS faculty and staff eligible for four free tickets each. The Prairie Stars will look to give their home crowd plenty to cheer about as they take on the tough Panthers. Fans are encouraged to come out and support the Stars during this exciting week of GLVC basketball action

Follow Along
The games will be streamed live on the GLVC Sports Network, and live statistics are available for fans who would like to follow online.