By Robert McKinney, Athletics Communications Director, (503) 370-6110

SALEM, ORE. -- Willamette University played three women's basketball games in five days between Friday, Jan. 9 and Tuesday, Jan. 13, so the Bearcats were ready for three days off before their game at Pacific Lutheran University on Saturday, Jan. 17. The Bearcats are rested as they head north to Parkland, Wash., to take on the Lutes in Northwest Conference action.

Game time is scheduled for 4 p.m. (PST), with the men's game to follow at about 6 p.m. The Willamette women's team enters the contest with a 5-9 record, including 0-5 in the NWC. Pacific Lutheran's women are 3-9 on the season and 0-3 in the NWC. The Lutes will host Linfield College on Friday before taking on the Bearcats on Saturday.

Mike Allegre will provide a Live Audio webcast for Willamette during the game at Pacific Lutheran. You also can follow the action through Live Video and Live Stats courtesy of PLU.

Jojo DeLong (Sr., PG, Santa Clarita, CA/Canyon HS) the Bearcats' top scorer with 182 points in 14 games for an average of 13.0 points per game. She also leads the Bearcats with 4.3 assists per game and 0.9 steals per game. She is 36 of 46 (78.3%) at the free throw line and is second on the team with 4.7 rebounds per game.

Following DeLong on the WU scoring chart is Kylie Towry (Fr., G, Medford, OR/South Medford HS) with 10.8 points per game. Towry ranks first in the NWC with 44 three-point field goals and is second with 44.9% three-point shooting. She has connected on 86.7% of her free throw attempts (13 of 15).

Katie Kalugin (Sr., G, Woodburn, OR/Woodburn HS) ranks third on the team with 9.3 points per game. She is the Bearcats' leading rebounder with 6.1 boards per contest. She scored 17 points against nationally ranked George Fox last Saturday. She has grabbed 11 rebounds three times this season to tie her career high.

Marisa Hamilton (Fr., Beaverton, OR/Southridge HS) has been a key scorer in recent games. She tops the Willamette scoring chart in conference play with 9.0 points per game, while shooting 47.6% from the field (20 of 42). She has averaged 3.4 rebounds per NWC game.

For the season, Julia Brand (Sr., F, Kaneohe, HI/Punahou School) is third on the team in rebounding average with 3.8 boards per game. The last time the Bearcats played the Lutes, Brand and DeLong each scored 16 points to lead Willamette to a 72-53 victory at Cone Field House on Feb. 21, 2014. Kalugin earned 13 points and 10 rebounds during the game.

This year's Pacific Lutheran team is led by Megan Abdo (Jr., G) and Jori Hall (Jr., F). Abdo has averaged 10.9 points per game and ranks second on the team with 13 three-point baskets. Hall has contributed 10.8 points per game and leads the Lutes with 49.5% accuracy on field goals. Hall is second for the Lutes in rebounding (4.9 avg.).

Tayler Flemming (Jr., G) is the team's third-leading scorer with 8.9 points per contest. She has converted 21 of 26 free throws for 80.8%. Lacey Nicholson (So., G/F) tops the Lutes with 5.2 rebounds per game and has scored 6.7 points per game.

The Lutes have been working to replace the offensive power provided by Samantha Potter, who graduated after last season. Potter averaged 15.9 points per game last season, including 34 points in PLU's 71-66 home win over Willamette on Jan. 25, 2014. The Bearcats limited Potter to 14 points in Willamette's triumph later in the season.

One area where Willamette may have an edge this season is at the free throw line. The Bearcats are shooting 70.0% as a team (133 of 190) and are averaging 13.6 free throw attempts per game. Pacific Lutheran is sinking just 58.2% of its free throws (174 of 299), but the Lutes have taken 24.9 free throws per game.

Willamette and PLU are nearly even in field goal percentage and 3-point accuracy. WU is shooting 35.3% from the field and 31.3% from behind the 3-point arc. The Lutes are hitting 35.7% of their field goals and 31.9% from 3-point range. The Bearcats are averaging 14.7 turnovers per game, compared to an average of 19.8 turnovers by PLU.