So far in the 2018-19 women’s basketball season, five OVC teams are over .500. Four of those teams are currently unbeaten.

Sitting at 2-0 are Morehead State, Murray State and Tennessee-Martin. Southern Illinois Edwardsville is 1-0 and Eastern, though not unbeaten, is the last OVC team over .500. The Panthers have a 2-1 record.

With the exception of Southern Illinois Edwardsville, each of these teams boasts a scoring average in the top four of the OVC.

Murray State and Tennessee-Martin lead the way, averaging 97 and 92 points per game respectively.

Eastern is third in the conference in scoring, averaging 78.7 points per game so far. 

Morehead State is just behind with a scoring average of 78 points. 

Eastern leads the conference defensively, allowing 49.7 points per game. Among the other previously mentioned teams, only Murray State and Southern Illinois Edwardsville are in the top five defenses. They rank third and fourth respectively. 

Morehead State’s defense ranks eighth in the OVC allowing 68 points per game. Tennessee-Martin’s defense is ranked 11th out of 12 conference teams. They are surrendering 81 points per game so far. 

But at this point in the season, team statistics can be misleading. There have been many uneven matchups so far, as five OVC teams have an average scoring margin of positive 10 points or more.

Also, some OVC teams have played far superior opponents. 

For example, Eastern has played Butler, Austin Peay has played both Cincinnati and Vanderbilt and Southeast Missouri has played Mississippi State, who just last March made it to the NCAA title game. 

The individual scoring leader through the first few games of the season is Morehead State’s 6-foot-1-inch guard, Aliyah Jeune. 

A redshirt-junior, Jeune transferred to Morehead State from Rutgers. She is averaging 28 points per game for her new team. 

Second in the OVC in scoring is Southeast Missouri sophomore Tesia Thompson with 25.5 points per game. Another Morehead State player, senior Miranda Crockett, is third with 21 points per game. 

The highest Eastern player on the scoring list is sophomore guard Taylor Steele. She is averaging 13 points per game, which is tied for seventh in the conference. 

Steele’s .571 three-point percentage is also second in the OVC for players with 10 or more attempts. 

There is still over a month and a half until the conference season begins, and by then the conference standings and statistical leaders will be much clearer. 

Adam Tumino can be reached at 581-2812 or [email protected].