WICHITA, Kan. - Wichita State returns to action after having the last two games postponed due to weather on Saturday at ECU.

ON THE AIR
Saturday's game can be heard on the radio at KFH 97.5 FM/1240 AM with the voice of Shocker Women's Basketball Steve Strain calling the action. Strain is in his seventh season broadcasting games for the women's program. The game will also be televised on ESPN+ and the ESPN app.

THE AMERICAN ON ESPN+ 
The American Athletic Conference is in its first season of a new TV deal that will see a majority of Wichita State's games televised on ESPN+. Fans can find more information and how to subscribe to ESPN+ here.

A CASE OF THE 'RONA
COVID-19 has wrecked havoc on the 2020-21 Wichita State women's basketball program. To date, the Shockers have had eight games postponed due to positive tests within the program. The Shockers are coming off a pause in all team-related activities due to a lack of players available that saw games against ECU, Memphis and USF all postponed. As of now, Wichita State's two matchups vs. SMU are the only contests that will not be made up, due to the Mustangs canceling the remainder of their season.

LAST TIME OUT
Wichita State dropped its third straight game following a 79-63 loss at Tulane last Saturday. The Shockers were swept by the Green Wave in the two regular season meetings.  Wichita State was outscored 16-6 in the second quarter, going 2-for-16 from the field. Asia Strong scored a team-high 18 points to go with six rebounds. DJ McCarty came up one point shy of her career high, finishing with 17 points off the bench. Mariah McCully scored eight of her 10 points in the first half, but struggled from the field, finishing 4-of-16. Wichita State committed only nine turnovers in the game -  a season low.

STRONG START
Wichita State junior forward Asia Strong is off to fast start in her first season at Wichita State. The South Bend, Ind., native has scored 10 or more points in 11 of the team's 12 games, including two games of 20 or more. In Wichita State's eight league games, she has scored 11 or more in every game and is averaging 14.9 points. Strong set a season high in points and rebounds vs. UNI on Dec. 6 with 22 points and 13 rebounds. Strong leads Wichita State in scoring at 15.2 points per game for the season, which ranks fifth in the American Athletic Conference. Her 44.4% shooting also ranks fifth in the league.

SCOUTING THE PIRATES
ECU enters the matchup at 6-11 overall and 4-8 in league play. The Pirates are led by senior guard Lashonda Monk, who averages 14.1 points to go with a league-leading 42 steals. Her 42 steals rank 44th nationally, while her 2.8 steals per game place her 30th. Last season, Monk set the ECU school record for steals in a single season with 125. Traditionally, ECU ranks in the top 25 in the country in steals and forcing turnovers.  That is no different this season, as the Pirates lead The American and rank 17th in steals per game. They force their opponents into 20.59 turnovers per game, which ranks 15th in the nation, and they are plus-4.53 in turnover margin - good for 33rd.

THE SERIES VS. ECU
Wichita State and ECU have met five times prior to Saturday's showdown with the Shockers owning a 3-2 record against the Pirates. ECU won the first two meetings, but Wichita State has won three straight, including a season sweep of the Pirates last season. This will be the fourth visit Wichita State to Greenville. Wichita State is 1-2 vs. the Pirates in Greenville. Aside from the game on Jan. 9, 2019 at ECU, every game between Wichita State and ECU has been decided by 10 points or fewer.

LAST MEETING
Wichita State completed the season sweep of ECU in 2020 with a narrow 57-55 win in Charles Koch Arena on Feb. 1, 2020. DJ McCarty knocked down a go-ahead three-pointer with 11 seconds left to spoil ECU's upset bid. Asia Henderson and Raven Prince scored 11 points apiece to lead Wichita State. Seraphine Bastin added seven points, nine rebounds and four assists. ECU's Taniyah Thompson scored a game-high 25 points, but was just 9-of-25 from the field. Wichita State shot just 36.4 percent from the field and 4-of-16 from beyond the arc. The difference in the game came at the free throw line where Wichita State was 21-of-30 compared to ECU going 4-of-10.

DYNAMIC POINT GUARD
Wichita State's point guard Seraphine Bastin has started the season on a mission. Bastin is averaging 10.5 points, 7.3 rebounds, 4.7 assists and 1.4 steals a game, while shooting 81.3 percent from the free throw line. The 5-foot-8 guard leads the team in rebounding, assists, steals and double-doubles. In two games at Houston and vs. Cincinnati, Bastin racked up double-doubles of 18 points and 11 rebounds and 10 rebounds and 10 assists. She missed a triple-double vs. Cincy by two points. In The American, Bastin ranks third in assist-turnover ratio (1.85) and free throw percentage (81.3),  fourth in assists (61) and  assists per game (4.7) and sixth in rebounds per game (7.3).

DJ EARNS FIRST HONOR ROLL
Sophomore DJ McCarty recorded her first American Athletic Conference Weekly Honor Roll selection following a breakout game at Tulane on Feb. 13. McCarty scored 15 of her season-high 17 points after halftime, finishing one point shy of her career high. The DeSoto, Texas, native was 7-of-12 from the field, while also grabbing four rebounds, dishing two assists and swiping two steals in 28 minutes off the bench.

A SHOCKER WIN WOULD...
... make them 5-9 on the season
... make them 2-7 in conference play
... snap their three-game losing streak
... make them 4-2 all-time vs. ECU
... give them four straight wins against the Pirates
... run Adams' career coaching record to 458-305
... make Adams 331-268 at the Division I level
... make Wichita State 617-707 all-time

A SHOCKER LOSS WOULD...
... make them 4-10 this the season
... make them 1-8 in conference play
... be their fourth consecutive loss
... drop them to 3-3 all-time vs. ECU
... snap a three-game win streak vs. the Pirates
... lower Adams' career coaching record to 457-306
... make Adams 330-269 at the Division I level
... make Wichita State 616-708 all-time

DOUBLE-DOUBLE UP      
Juniors Seraphine Bastin and Trajata Colbert both logged double-doubles in Wichita State's contest vs. Tulane on Feb. 3. Bastin scored a team-high 14 points to go with 13 rebounds for her third double-double of the season. Colbert pulled down a career-high 16 rebounds to go with 11 points. It was her first double-double of the season and third career. The duo became the first Shocker teammates to record a double-double in the same game since Feb. 26, 2018 at Tulsa when Rangie Bessard and Sabrina Lozada-Cabbage accomplished the feat.

UP NEXT
Wichita State hosts Houston in its 2020-21 home finale on Wednesday, Feb. 24 at 6 p.m. on ESPN+.