GREEN BAY, Wis. - A busy weekend at the Kress Center begins Thursday night when the Green Bay women's basketball team welcomes Oakland to Titletown. The Phoenix will host Detroit Mercy on Saturday.

GAMEDAY INFORMATION
Green Bay (21-5, 14-2 HL) vs. Oakland (10-14, 6-10 HL)
Thursday, February 22, 2024 | Kress Center
7:00 PM CST | Tickets | Game Notes
Krash the Kress | Mental Health Awareness Day presented by Fox Communities Credit Union
Follow the action: Watch | Listen | Live Stats | History

Green Bay vs. Detroit Mercy
Saturday, February 24, 2024 | Kress Center
1:00 PM CST | Tickets
National Girls and Women in Sports Day
Follow the action: Watch | Listen | Live Stats | History

ON THE CALL
Both contests this weekend will be streaming live on ESPN+, on watchespn.com, and in the ESPN App. Ted Stefaniak (play-by-play) will be joined by Bill Rabeor (analyst) on Thursday and Heather Golden (analyst) on Saturday. WDUZ The Fan 107.5 FM will carry the game on both days with Brian Kuklinski handling the play-by-play.

Preparing to Rock The Kress this weekend, are you?????

Get your tickets and ????. ????????. ??????

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— Green Bay Women's Basketball (@gbphoenixwbb) February 21, 2024

ABOUT THE GOLDEN GRIZZLIES
Acting Head Coach Deanna Richard is 8-12 at the helm of Oakland's program since taking over for Jeff Tungate. Richard helped the Golden Grizzlies upset the Phoenix back on January 20 in Rochester. Brooke Quarles-Daniels, a big part of that upset (27 points, 7 rebounds), paces Oakland in a multitude of categories, including points per game (13.1), assists (2.9 APG), steals (2.2 SPG), and minutes (30.4 MPG). It's also a homecoming for Lianna Baxter, a native Marinette. Baxter attended Oconto High School and averaged a double-double during her senior campaign with the Blue Devils.

ABOUT THE TITANS
Head Coach Kate Atcher has her squad playing amid a tight race for third place. UDM is just two games back of third entering Thursday's Horizon League slate. Detroit Mercy boasts a strong defense, surrendering just over 63 points per contest, which ranks fifth in the HL. The Titans present two primary threats in Emma Trawally Porta, who averages 9.7 points per game and 7.9 rebounds per game, and Irene Murua, who notches 11.1 points per game and 7.6 rebounds per contest.

NOTHING BUT NET
As of February 20, Green Bay ranks 55th in NCAA's net ranking. The Phoenix has put together a solid resume this season, ranking as high as 27th in the NET, thanks to upset victories over Creighton and Washington State earlier this season. The Phoenix boasts the highest net ranking in the Horizon League, with Cleveland State ranked 81st.

QUARTERFINAL CLINCHED
The Phoenix officially clinched a first-round bye in the 2024 Barabsol Horizon League Championships, and is in a battle for first-place with Cleveland State. Green Bay and CSU also clinched a top-two spot in the upcoming conference tournament. GB will host a quarterfinal matchup against an opponent TBD on Thursday, March 7. Tipoff time will be announced at a later date.

HOMECOMING QUEEN
Oakland's Lianna Baxter returns to her Northeast Wisconsin roots for tonight's game. The Marinette, Wisconsin native, a sophomore for the Golden Grizzlies, attended Oconto High School. She was impressive on the hardwood, averaging a double-double per game with 19.8 points per contest and 11.3 rebounds per game.

BORSETH IN THE BOOKS (AGAIN)
Head Coach Kevin Borseth once again etched history into the record books recently. He collected his 500th win as the Head Coach of the Phoenix with a victory over Northern Kentucky on February 8 and is now just 10 victories from tallying his 600th win as a Division I Head Coach. The legendary HC, who ranks 16th all-time in NCAA Division I women's basketball wins, has the most wins in program history, having surpassed Carol Hammerle's 456 victories early last season.

SCHILTZ STEPPING UP
Junior guard Cassie Schiltz has been dominant from the field this season, shooting 43.6 percent overall, 40.4 percent from beyond the arc, and 93.6 percent from the charity stripe. Schiltz, who garnered her first Horizon League Player of the Week honor on January 2, also racked up 11 points, 5 rebounds in GB's win vs. IUPUI a couple weeks ago. Schiltz tallied a career-high 27 points in the win over Cleveland State on December 30.

SUPER SUPERLATIVES
GB has had unparalleled success during this season. Here's a breakdown of some interesting superlatives prior to Thursday's game against Oakland:

• There has been only one game that finished within three points.
• GB is 11-2 versus winning teams.
• Four of GB's five losses are against teams that are at or below .500.
• The Phoenix is 16-1 when scoring 70+ points.
• Green Bay is 20-0 when recording a higher field goal percentage than its opponent.
• GB is 20-1 when leading at the half.
• Green Bay is 18-0 when surrendering less than 60 points.
• The Phoenix has held all but two opponents (Oakland on Jan. 20) and (Cleveland State on Feb. 3) to less than 50-percent shooting.

SHINING SCHREIBER
Maddy Schreiber has been a big part of Green Bay's success this season, scoring at least 12 points 17 times. In those 17 games, GB's record is 13-4. She chipped in with 12 points in the upset win over then No. 23-ranked Washington State, 14 points in the upset victory over then No. 22-ranked Creighton, and poured in a career-high 23 points in the win over Milwaukee on November 30. Maddy chipped in with 18 points in the victory over Youngstown State last Saturday.

JACKPOT GREEN BAY
When Green Bay wins this season, they dominate. The Phoenix ranks 24th in scoring margin, winning by an average of 16.0 points per game. Green Bay is also 19-2 in games where the final score was decided by 11 or more points. GB's close defeat to Oakland in late January was the first game that Green Bay had finish within 10 points since the beginning of the team's 10-game win streak, a 64-56 win over UIC in mid-December. The Phoenix recorded its first 10+-game win streak since the program ripped off 13 victories in a row from January 22-March 6, 2023 last season with the win over Detroit Mercy a couple of weeks ago.

MONEY MCNEAL
Natalie McNeal has crashed the boards at a high rate this season, pacing the squad with 7.0 rebounds per game. The fourth-year player from Germantown, Wisconsin is in her second season as a Phoenix after spending her first two collegiate years with Saint Louis. Her 7.0 RPG is currently on pace for a career-high by a full rebound. McNeal was sensational in the victory over IUPUI, posting her sixth career double-double, scoring 26 points while racking up 15 rebounds. Two days earlier, she tied her career-high in rebounds with 16. McNeal has grabbed 16 rebounds in her career three times, all with the Phoenix.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY
Callie Genke and Natalie Andersen celebrated their birthdays yesterday. We wish them well.

WELCOME TO TITLETOWN
The Phoenix boasts a trio of true freshmen (Maren Westin, Sophie Lahti, and Meghan Schultz) and one transfer (Natalie Andersen, IUPUI). Westin and Andersen are guards, while Lahti and Schultz bring height to the forward position. Schultz stands at six feet, four inches, surpassing Kendall Renard as the tallest player on the team. The Phoenix once again boast a roster of mostly homegrown talent. Of the 13 players on the roster, 10 are from the dairyland. Only Westin (Becker, Minn.), Lahti (Pine City, Minn.), and Jenna Guyer (Circle Pines, Minn.) are not from Wisconsin.

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