CEDAR FALLS, Iowa – The Drake University women's basketball team plays its third-straight road contest on Friday night when it travels to UNI with a 7 p.m. tipoff scheduled at the McLeod Center. The in-state matchup will be broadcast online via The Valley On ESPN3.
 
Drake (17-7, 10-3 MVC) and UNI (15-9, 10-3 MVC) along with Missouri State are locked in a first place tie on top of the Missouri Valley Conference standings. The Panthers defeated the Bulldogs by a score of 79-73 on Jan. 24 at the Knapp Center.
 
Drake dropped its last game at Indiana State, 68-53, as the Bulldogs struggled to shoot the basketball at 30.9 percent from the floor and made just 3-of-20 attempts from behind the three-point line. Even with the poor shooting, Drake only trailed by five points at halftime, but an 11-2 run by Indiana State to start the third quarter proved to be the difference. Junior Lizzy Wendell (Blue Springs, Mo.) scored 18 points while sophomore Maddy Dean (Jordan, Minn.) recorded her fifth double-double of the season with 13 points and 10 rebounds.
 
Indiana State held Drake, the MVC's top scoring team at 80.2 points per game, to its lowest season total. The Sycamores are one of two league teams that hold opponents to less than 60.0 a game.
 
UNI is the other top defensive team as it holds opponents to a league-low 58.2 points per game. Friday night features the MVC's top offense and defense in a game that will factor heavily in the race for the regular season title. Junior Madison Weekly leads the Panthers and ranks second behind Wendell in the MVC at 17.3 points per game.
 
Following Friday night's game, Drake returns to the Knapp Center for its final two home games of the season as Loyola visits on Feb. 26 at 7 p.m. followed by Bradley on Feb. 28 at 2 p.m.