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By:
Stephen Williams
COLUMBUS, Ohio – The fourth-ranked Columbus State University women's basketball team returns to the floor on Tuesday with its Elite Eight contest against No. 18 Virginia Union. Tipoff is scheduled for noon at Alumni Hall on the campus of Ohio Dominican University.
Last Time Out
Columbus State (31-1) pulled away in the third quarter for an 86-75 victory over No. 13 Lincoln Memorial in the Southeast Region final.
Alexis Carter tallied 25 points, 14 rebounds, six blocks and six steals to capture the tournament's Most Outstanding Player honor.
Howard on the Matchup
"Virginia Union is a very talented team. They are very similar in style to us and do a lot of the same things. We need to come out and play Lady Cougar basketball and the rest will take care of itself."
Series History
Columbus State and Virginia Union have met one previous time with the Lady Cougars defeating VUU 67-57 on November 22, 2003.
Last Meeting
CSU earned its first victory of the 2003-04 season at home over Virginia Union. Karina Pulici scored 22 points on 6-of-13 shooting from the outside to lead the way. Angelica Graham added 16 points and 14 rebounds.
About Virginia Union
Virginia Union (26-4) worked its way through the Atlantic Region as the No. 3 seed, defeating Wheeling Jesuit, Indiana (Pa.) and California (Pa.) along the way.
The Panthers are making their second consecutive Elite Eight appearance and their fourth overall. VUU lost in the opening game last season to Bentley.
Virginia Union captured a share of the CIAA North Division regular season title, but fell in the conference tournament semifinals to Johnson C. Smith.
The Panthers have four starters averaging double digits in points this season, led by Brittany Jackson at 18.4 points per game. However, Jackson has not played in the three previous NCAA Tournament games.
Lady Walker is the team's second-leading scorer and top rebounder, averaging 14.4 points and 11.2 rebounds per night. The senior had 32 points in the Atlantic Region championship.
CSU Notes
The Lady Cougars captured their third regional title last Monday night and are back in the Elite Eight for the first time since the 2000-01 season.
Columbus State is 2-0 all-time in the Elite Eight round, defeating Emporia State (2000) and Southern Indiana (2001).
Alexis Carter led the Lady Cougars in scoring and rebounding this season, but has found another level in the postseason. Through six games, the junior is averaging 20.2 points and 14.7 rebounds with six straight double-doubles.
The Lady Cougars are 8-0 this season against teams that qualified for the NCAA Tournament. CSU has won those eight games by an average of 16.3 points.
Columbus State ranks 16
th in the country in scoring offense and 29
th in defense. CSU is one of only three teams in the country, and the only Elite Eight team, to rank in the top 30 in both categories.
Media Coverage
Tuesday's game will be streamed online through NCAA.com. CSU Hall of Fame broadcaster Scott Miller will also have play-by-play of the contest on NewsRadio 540 WDAK in Columbus and streaming on iHeartRadio.
