First half of conference slate concludes Wednesday

MURFREESBORO, Tenn. - The Middle Tennessee women's basketball team will hit the road for Boca Raton, Fla., for a 6 p.m. Central tip at Florida Atlantic Wednesday in the final game of the first half of the league schedule.

The Blue Raiders currently stand atop of the Sun Belt's East Division at 7-0, owning a two-game lead over Western Kentucky entering this week's action. Middle Tennessee garnered a season-high four votes in this week's ESPN/USA Today Coaches' Poll after it knocked off Denver at home Sunday, 71-58, to improve to a league-best 16-4 overall.

Senior Anne Marie Lanning became the 25th member of the school's 1,000-point club with an 18-point effort against the Pioneers. She is the fifth player to join the elite group in the last two seasons.

Freshman Ebony Rowe registered her 10th double-double of the campaign with 24 points and 17 rebounds, including 10 on the offensive glass.

Florida Atlantic owns a 4-14, 1-6 Sun Belt mark entering Wednesday's contest. Lyrell Barfield paces 12th-year head coach Chancellor Dugan's squad with 11.3 ppg, the only Owl to average double figures.

FAU has lost three straight entering the matchup, beginning with an 83-52 setback in the two teams' first meeting Jan. 12 in Murfreesboro.

During the first game this season, the Blue Raiders shot a blistering 63.3 percent from the floor, while limiting the Owls to just 16.7 percent during the opening period. Four MT starters reached double figures and sophomore Kortni Jones tallied the first double-double of her career with 11 points and 10 assists.

Dick Palmer will call at the action live on the Blue Raider Network, WGNS (100.5 FM, 101.9 FM, 1450 AM), WMOT (89.5 FM) and WBRY (96.7 FM, 1540 AM).

Tickets are also available for the upcoming Sun Belt Tournament, to be held March 5-8 in Hot Springs, Ark., for the third-straight season. Tournament booklets are $83 and can be purchased by calling the Middle Tennessee ticket office at 1-888-YES-MTSU.

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