Preview: Women's Basketball Faces Grand Canyon in Phoenix

Chicago State women's basketball is set to face Grand Canyon in Phoenix at 7:00 p.m. on Thursday night for the teams' second meeting in the 2021-22 season. Here's how to watch, follow and attend.

ALL-TIME Grand Canyon leads the all-time series, 14-1. The Cougars last won on Jan. 17, 2019 in Chicago, a 50-48 win. On Dec. 30 of this season, the squads met in Chicago, with GCU winning, 66-49. Amara Graham scored 25 points to lead the Antelopes.

LAST TIME OUT The Cougars led early but fizzled late Saturday at Tarleton, 65-51 loss at Wisdom Gym. Nafa Haidara led all scorers with a season-high 17 points and 11 rebounds, while Aaliyah Collins scored 14 points, grabbed 12 rebounds and dished out five assists. Allysah Boothe added 12 points, nailing three treys.

SIZING UP THE ANTELOPES The 18-7 Antelopes have won three games in a row, last downing NM State, 46-43, on Saturday. Allowing under 60 points per game, this defensive-minded GCU team is led by Chicago-born Amara Graham, who scores 12.6 points per game. Head coach Molly Miller is in her second season in Phoenix. 

CLIMBING THE RANKS As just a freshman, former Washington State Player of the Year Aaliyah Collins has taken the conference — and nation — by storm. She leads the Cougars (and ranks seventh in the WAC) with 14.5 points per game, and her 2.6 steals per game rank third in the league, an average that ranks 18th in NCAA Division I. On Tuesday, Jan. 18, Collins earned the first USBWA Freshman of the Week honor for a WAC student-athlete and the first for a mid-major player since Nov. 2019. Collins has also been named WAC Freshman of the Week five times this season, the most ever for a Chicago State basketball player, men's or women's.

About Chicago State

Chicago State University Athletics is comprised of 15 intercollegiate teams involving over 150 student-athletes that compete in basketball, cross country, golf, soccer, tennis, indoor and outdoor track and volleyball. CSU held memberships in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) and NCAA Division II before transitioning to NCAA Division I in 1994. Melvin Bland was the first CSU student-athlete to gain NAIA All-American status in 1974 as a wrestler. Fred Evans became the first black swimmer ever to win a national championship in 1975. CSU's women's basketball team earned a spot in the 2011 Women's Basketball Invitational and CSU's men's basketball team won the 2013 Great West Conference Tournament title and made an appearance in the CollegeInside.com Postseason Tournament (CIT).  The Men's Outdoor Track & Field 4x100-Meter Relay team were 2019 Honorable Mention All-Americans and WAC Champions. Their feat marked the first time the Chicago State's men's track & field program was represented at the national meet. 

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