The Eastern women’s basketball team went 3-3 over the holiday break, winning all three games in a row and losing all three in a row.

It was a holiday break full of streaks as the Panthers started at Wisconsin and lost to the Big Ten opponent by 29 points.

Then, the Panthers toured Illinois, losing to Western and Northern Illinois in close games.

The game against Western Illinois was a two-point loss for the Panthers despite an 18-point performance by senior forward Mariah King.

Both teams were held to low scores in the Northern Illinois game, one that Eastern lost 48-38.

The game was the fourth of the season in which the Panthers scored 47 points or fewer.

The Northern Illinois score was the Panthers’ season low — and lowest ever — as they failed to score more than their previous low of 39 points earlier this season against

Indiana State in a 30-point loss.

The low scoring in the four games is unfamiliar territory for the Panthers, who never scored fewer than 50 points last season.

In fact, the Panthers only scored in between 50 and 60 points six times last season.

Payne emerging

Red-shirt sophomore guard Katlyn Payne has set a career-high in points in two of the past four games.

Her current career-high is 17 points, which she scored Saturday on the road against Morehead State.

Payne averages seven points per game this season and has started every game.

Her playing time has increased in the absence of senior forward Sydney Mitchell, who spent most of the first half of the season trying to play through injuries.

Mitchell has been an integral part of the Panthers’ success in her career. She averaged 11 points per game last season.

Nixon chasing record

Senior guard Ta’Kenya Nixon is 257 points away from breaking former Panther Rachel Galligan’s all-time scoring record.

Nixon averages 12.9 points per game this season. Her average has increased every season in her career. Last year, she averaged 16.3 points per game.

OVC glance

As the teams ready for full-time conference play, the Ohio Valley Conference standings are tight.

Tennessee Tech leads the conference with the best overall record (9-7) and conference record (3-0). The overall record is only one win better than Eastern.

Eastern’s upcoming opponent, Jacksonville State, is looking for its first win this season.

The Gamecocks are 0-16 this season and 0-4 early in their conference schedule.

The Panthers are in the middle of the pack in the west division of the OVC. Eastern is tied with Southeast Missouri and Tennessee-Martin with 2-1 OVC records, though

Eastern has the better overall record of the three (8-7).

The Panthers return home after a long holiday season of road trips. They will play Jacksonville State at 4 p.m. Saturday in Lantz Arena.

Alex McNamee can be reached at 581-2812 or [email protected].