Preview: Women's Basketball Set for New Foes in 2019 Roo Holiday Classic

Season Highlights

Kansas City is prepared to play host to Bradley, Eastern Washington and Liberty in the fourth rendition of the Roo Holiday Classic. The Roos will take on Eastern Washington on Friday, followed by Liberty on Saturday afternoon.
The Roos hold a 2-4 record all-time in the Roo Holiday Classic, picking up both wins last season by defeating SIUE and Louisiana Tech.
The Roos will have their first opportunities in the program's 32-year history against both the Eagles and the Flames.
When Kansas City takes the court against the Eagles, it will be the second time this season that a Big Sky team has played at the Swinney Center. Portland State made an appearance early in the season during consolation play of the Preseason WNIT.
When the Roos take on Liberty, it will be just the sixth time in program history that they face a team from the current ASUN Conference. The Roos have played North Florida three times to a 1-2 record, and Stetson twice to the tune of two wins.
Kansas City will look to bounce back from a last minute loss to Kansas State and win back-to-back games for the first time this season.

Eastern Washington Scouting Report

The Eagles enter the Classic sitting on a 1-6 record following a closely contested loss to Boise State. Before that, they picked up their first win of the season, a 81-62 victory over Northwest Christian.
Eastern Washington has played two ranked opponents so far this season, in #3 Stanford and #23 Gonzaga. It took a 92-27 drubbing from the Cardinal before falling 84-44 to the Zags.
The Eagles return 10 players from last year's 13-20 team, including Grace Kirscher, 2018-19 Honorable Mention Big Sky player.
Despite their 13-20 record, the Eagles made a run in the Big Sky tournament last season, qualifying for the championship game before falling to Portland State in a thriller.
The Eagles have used a balanced scoring output to begin this season, as no individual averages more than 10 points per game.
Kennedy Dickie, a freshman from British Columbia, leads EWU by averaging 9.1 ppg, followed closely after by Kirscher, who puts out 8.9 ppg.
Kirscher put together the team's highest individual scoring performance of the season to this point and came within two points of her career-high, dropping 20 against Boise State.
The Eagles rarely send their opponents to the free throw line, ranking sixth in the nation in fouls per game. However, they also rarely take trips to the free throw line, ranking 348th nationwide in free throw attempts and 342nd by converting on 55% of their attempts.

Liberty Scouting Report

The Flames are in the midst of a busy stretch, as the game against Kansas City will be their fourth in eight days.
After beginning the season 1-5, Liberty is on a hot streak, winning four of their last five and their last three in a row.
The Flames return seven from last year's 16-16 team that made it to the ASUN Championship game before falling to Florida Gulf Coast.
Bridgette Rettstatt returns for the Flames as a returning ASUN Second Team All-Conference player. She has responded well, averaging 10.1 ppg, 6.2 ppg and 1.9 apg.
After earning Big South Player of the Year honors for the Flames in 2017-18, Keyen Green missed the entirety of last season due to injury. She has bounced back tremendously, averaging a team-leading 12.1 ppg and 7.1 rpg.
The Flames shoot the ball at a high rate, converting on 42.5% of their field goal attempts. That number is good for 97th in Division I.
Liberty has had trouble taking care of the ball to begin the year, averaging 18.82 turnovers/game and a 0.73 assist:turnover ratio.
Liberty will go deep into its bench, consistently playing 10 players over 10 minutes per game.

University of Missouri Kansas City Athletics