GAME DAY LINKS -- 
McKENDREE vs. TRUMAN STATE -- Thursday, Dec. 7, 2017, 5:30 p.m.
Harry M. Statham Sports Center -- Lebanon, Ill.

WATCH LIVE (Bearcat Sports Network)
LIVE STATS
McKENDREE SEASON STATISTICS
TRUMAN STATE SEASON STATISTICS

(LEBANON, Ill., Dec. 6)--For the first time in nearly a month, the McKendree University women's basketball team will step onto its home floor to face off against an opponent. The Bearcats will entertain Truman State University in the team's Great Lakes Valley Conference home opener Thursday evening at 5:30 p.m. The game can also be seen live on the Bearcat Sports Network at www.glvcsn.com/mckendree.

McKendree has not played a home contest since Nov. 11, when the Bearcats rolled past Blackburn College 88-44 in the season opener for both teams. Since then, McKendree has played a pair of games at the Quincy Tip-Off Tournament before true road tilts at Lindenwood University and Drury University. The Bearcats enter Thursday's play with a 1-4 overall record along with an 0-1 conference slate following the 75-57 loss to then-No. 9 Drury on Saturday in Springfield, Mo. 

At Drury, Sydney Diekoff came off the bench to lead McKendree with 15 points. Diekhoff was 5-of-9 from three-point range in her 25 minutes of play. Megan Jensen netted 11 of her 13 points in the second half  The host Panthers raced to a 28-13 lead after one quarter of play and never looked back in the outing. 

Through five games this season, Jordan Heberg is the lone McKendree player averaging in double figures at 11.4 points per game. Heberg also has a team-best eight steals. Shauniera Wilson (Springfield, Ill./Southeast) paces the Bearcats in rebounding at 5.6 per outing, while Jordan Morton is close behind at 5.2 RPG. Wilson ranks fourth in the GLVC in blocks per game at 1.6 per contest. Jensen paces the squad in field goal percentage, hitting 73.7 percent of her attempts from the floor.

As a team, McKendree holds a rebound margin of +6.2 per game, which is third in the GLVC. The Bearcats lead the league in defensive rebounding, allowing its opponents just 27.8 rebounds per game. McKendree is scoring 66 points per game while allowing 67.6 PPG. 

Thursday's game with Truman State will mark the first game in a three-game home stand for the Bearcats. McKendree will step back into non-conference play each of the next two Mondays, hosting Kentucky State University before the team's final game before the holiday break Dec. 18 versus Northwest Missouri State University.

ABOUT TRUMAN STATE
The Bulldogs bring a 5-2 overall record into Lebanon. Truman State won its GLVC opener on Saturday at home against the University of Missouri-St. Louis, 71-66. The Bulldogs outscored the Tritons 24-16 in a pivotal third quarter and held off a late rally by UMSL to post the victory. Two players average in double figures for Truman State, led by Katie Jaseckas at 10.9 points per game. Jaseckas is also shooting 64.4 percent from the field -- which is good for second in the GLVC -- and has made all 16 percent of her free throw attempts. Ashley Hartwig is scoring 10.3 PPG and leads the Bulldogs with 5.4 rebounds per contest. Truman State, which as a perfect 4-0 record at home, is in search of its first true road victory of the 2017-18 season. 

McKendree and Truman State met one time during the 2016-17 season. That contest came on Jan. 7, 2017, when the Bulldogs registered a 73-64 win at the Statham Center. Jordan Heberg had 15 points in that outing for McKendree.