CARROLLTON, Ga. – As the calendar prepares to flip from 2025 to 2026, the UWG women's basketball team is preparing to flip from a successful non-conference campaign to a hopefully fruitful second season of Atlantic Sun Conference play.
West Georgia (7-4, 0-0 ASUN) opens league play on the road, traveling to the Bluegrass state for a pair of games, beginning with Eastern Kentucky (9-4, 0-0 ASUN) on Thursday evening at 6:30 p.m.
The Wolves roll into the ASUN slate winning their last two non-conference games, including a Sunday home triumph over Brewton-Parker. It was the seventh consecutive home win dating back to last season and gave the Wolves 17 straight home wins against non-conference opponents with that streak extending to the 2021-22 season.
EKU, who was picked fifth in the ASUN preseason poll, wrapped up their non-conference schedule with a 70-52 win over Hampton on Monday afternoon. The Colonels are 6-2 at home this season with losses to SIU-Edwardsville and Marshall.
Thursday's league opener pits two of the top four in scoring offense and defense. Offensively, EKU is atop the league, averaging 74.0 points per game while the Wolves rank fourth at 72.5 per contest. EKU also has the edge in scoring defense as the Colonels defense ranks third at 62.3 points allowed per contest while UWG ranks fourth with opponents scoring 63.5 per game.
For the Wolves, their offense begins with the backcourt combo of Grace O'Gara and Sydne Tolbert who are third and fourth respectively in the league in assist per game.
On the other end of those passes is the duo of Jasmine Jones and Asia Donald who enter league play both ranking in the top-five in scoring. Donald is the league's second-leading scorer with 15.9 and is coming off of a 17-point performance against Brewton-Parker. Jones, the nation's leader in three-pointers per game at 3.55, hit four of them in the Wolves' last game and finished with 20 points.
Tolbert is 13th in the league and third on the team in scoring at 13.8 per game. UWG is the only team in the ASUN with three players ranked in the top-15 in scoring in the conference. The Wolves and Colonels are the only two ASUN programs with two top-10 scorers in the lineup.
For EKU, their offense is led by Liz Freihofer's 13.5 points per game, which ranks her seventh in the ASUN. Joseana Vaz ranks 10th in the ASUN at 12.8 points per game.
Vaz, a Colorado State transfer, ranks sixth in the ASUN in rebounding at 7.5 per game and will create a fun matchup to watch going up against the Wolves' Destiny Jones, who is second in the ASUN in rebounding at 8.7 per game.
Last season, the Wolves and Colonels met just once with UWG earning a 71-64 victory over EKU at The Coliseum on January 8. Tolbert led the Wolves with 16 points in that win while Destiny Jones recorded a 13-point, 10-rebound double-double.
Following the game, UWG's roadtrip continues as they make the short trip to Louisville for a Saturday game at Bellarmine.
But first, the Wolves have their eyes set on a 1-0 start in league play. Tip-off from Baptist Health Arena is set for 6:30 p.m. on Thursday, January 1. The game will be broadcast on ESPN+.
