9-0 Mastodon WBB Visits Detroit Mercy For #HLWBB Contest

Wednesday, January 22

Detroit, Mich.

7 PM

Purdue Fort Wayne

Detroit Mercy

Sydney Freeman

Photo by: Josh Gales

9-0 Mastodon WBB Visits Detroit Mercy For #HLWBB Contest

1/21/2025 10:35:00 AM | Women's Basketball

Live Stats Watch

FORT WAYNE, Ind. - The Purdue Fort Wayne women's basketball team looks to remain unbeaten in Horizon League play with a visit to Detroit Mercy on Wednesday (Jan. 22) for a 7 p.m. game.

Game Day Information
Who: Detroit Mercy Titans
When: Wednesday, January 22 | 7 PM
Where: Detroit, Mich. | Calihan Hall
Live Stats: Link
Watch: Link
Game Notes: Purdue Fort Wayne | Detroit Mercy | Horizon League

Know Your Foe
Detroit Mercy is 12-5 and has a 6-3 mark in Horizon League play. The Titans are 8-1 at home, with the only loss being Cleveland State by 10. After a 23-point loss at Green Bay, the Titans bounced back with a two-point victory at Milwaukee. Detroit Mercy is averaging 65.1 points per game, paced by Aaliyah McQueen's 16.1 points per game. She spent time at Illinois, Oakland and Madonna.

The Series
Detroit Mercy leads the series 10-9, but Purdue Fort Wayne has won seven of the last eight. The most recent edition featured the two squaring off in the Horizon League Championship quarterfinal, which saw the 'Dons hold the Titans to just 35 points. Audra Emmerson had 14 points to lead the Mastodons in that game.

Streaky!
Purdue Fort Wayne has the seventh-longest active win streak in the country at 11 victories. All of the teams with longer streaks, other than Grand Canyon, are ranked in the AP Top 25. Grand Canyon is ranked No. 7 in the Mid-Major Top 25.
1. No. 5 LSU - 20
2. No. 1 UCLA - 17
3. Grand Canyon - 15
4. No. 10 Kansas State - 14
5. No. 2 South Carolina - 13
5. No. 4 Southern Cal - 13
7. Purdue Fort Wayne - 11

League Win Streaks...
Purdue Fort Wayne has the ninth-longest active win streak of league games in the country at nine wins.
1. South Carolina - 44
2. Florida Gulf Coast - 43
3. South Dakota State - 43
4. UConn - 34
5. Fairfield - 31
6. UNLV - 22
7. Norfolk State - 18
8. Notre Dame - 15
9. Purdue Fort Wayne - 9

Streak Tracker
The Mastodons are on an 11-game winning streak, which ties the second-best in program history and is the longest of the Division I era (2001-present).
14 wins - 1995-96
11 wins - 1982-83, 2024-25

In The Polls...
Purdue Fort Wayne was ranked No. 18 in the most recent CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major Top-25. The Mastodons have received votes in every poll since November 12, but moved into the rankings for the first time in program history on January 14.

200 For the Boss
With the Mastodons' victory over Northern Kentucky, head coach Maria Marchesano earned her 200th career win as a head coach. She earned 27 wins at Urbana, 52 at Walsh, 61 at Mount St. Mary's and 60 at Purdue Fort Wayne.

Can't Lose if You Don't Trail
Over the last 11 games (440 minutes), Purdue Fort Wayne has only trailed a total of 71:46, with 31:26 of that coming at IU Indy, 14:42 at Cleveland State and 13:16 against Northern Kentucky. In the last eight games, Purdue Fort Wayne has only trailed for 29:16, with the Mastodons never trailing in four of those games.

We Love Fort Wayne
Purdue Fort Wayne's 8-0 start at home is the best as a Division I institution and the best overall since 1995-96, when the Mastodons went 13-0 at home.

Rankings Respect
Per the NET and Bart Torvik, Purdue Fort Wayne has a national ranking of 95 and 108, respectively. Both sets of rankings have Purdue Fort Wayne, Cleveland State and Green Bay in a cluster of less than 10 spots separating the three, effectively rating potential games between the three as toss-ups.

A Deep Lineup
Eight different Mastodons have scored at least 18 points in a single game in their Division I careers: Amellia Bromenschenkel, Audra Emmerson, Sydney Freeman, Jazzlyn Linbo, Ella Riggs, Lauren Ross, Renna Schwieterman and Taeya Steinauer.

Home Sweet Gates
The Mastodons are 8-0 at home this season. In its home games this season, Purdue Fort Wayne is scoring 82.1 points per game and has an average margin of victory of 27.1 points per game. The Mastodons are shooting 47.1 percent from the floor and 37.9 percent from 3-point range in Fort Wayne.

A Perfect Start to League Play
Purdue Fort Wayne is 9-0 to start Horizon League play this season. That is the best start to a league season in program history. The previous best was when the Mastodons started 7-0 in the Division II Great Lakes Valley Conference in 1995-96.

Ross Has the Sauce
Through 19 games, Lauren Ross is shooting 49.0 percent from the floor, 50 percent from 3-point range and 94.4 percent from the line. With a slight uptick in field goal percentage, she would be the first women's player and second player overall to ever shoot 50/50/90 since the 3-point line was added to college basketball. Salim Stoudamire (Arizona, 2004-05) is the only other college player to do hit all three marks for an entire season while meeting minimum requirements.

Points For Millie
Amellia Bromenschenkel needs 48 points to match Haley Seibert and move into ninth place on the Mastodons' all-time scoring list.
Career Points
8. 1480 - Teena Merrell (1986-90)
9. 1386 - Haley Seibert (2011-15)
10. 1338 - Amellia Bromenschenkel (2020-present)

Boards for Millie
Amellia Bromenschenkel needs five rebounds to match Robin Scott for third on the Mastodons' all-time rebounding list.
Career Rebounds
2. 759 - Pam Edwards (1989-94)
3. 662 - Robin Scott (1987-91)
4. 657 - Amellia Bromenschenkel (2020-present)

Linbo Limbo
Jazzlyn Linbo is in the top-five in program history in single-season field goal percentage and career field goal percentage. She will qualify for the single-season list with 18 more made baskets.
Career Field Goal Percentage (200 min. attempts)
3. 53.1 - Rhonda Unverferth (1982-85)
4. 51.7 - Jazzlyn Linbo (2021-present)
5. 50.7 - Pam Edwards (1989-94)

Single-Season Field Goal Percentage (75 min. attempts)
1. 57.8 - Rhonda Unverferth (1984-85)
2. 57.0 - Jazzlyn Linbo (2024-25)
3. 56.3 - Verea Bibbs (2003-04)

Ross Mode
Lauren Ross owns the best 3-point and free throw percentages in program history with minimums of 30 and 60, respectively, for a season-long mark.
Single-Season 3-Point Percentage (30 min. attempts)
1. 50.0 - Lauren Ross (2024-25)
2. 46.1 - Trish Fleming (2000-01)
3. 44.0 - Lindy Jones (1989-90)

Single-Season Free Throw Percentage (60 min. attempts)
1. 94.4 - Lauren Ross (2024-25)
2. 91.4 - Haley Seibert (2014-15)
3. 89.9 - Jordan Zuppe (2010-11)

Player of the Week x2
Lauren Ross was named the Horizon League Player of the Week on January 20 after leading Purdue Fort Wayne past Northern Kentucky. She had a line of 23 points, six rebounds, five assists and three steals while shooting 8-of-14 from the floor and 5-of-10 from 3-point range. She led the league in scoring at 23 points per game.

Lively Lineup
Purdue Fort Wayne has used the same starting lineup in 18 of the 19 games this season: Lauren Ross, Amellia Bromenschenkel, Jazzlyn Linbo, Audra Emmerson and Sydney Freeman.

National Leader
Lauren Ross' 50 percent clip from 3-point range is the best in the country. Her 3.26 triples per game ranks fourth nationally.

Defense Rules!
According to Bart Torvik, Purdue Fort Wayne has the best defense in Horizon League action. The Mastodons have a rating of 89.3, the lowest in the league. Green Bay is rated as the second-best with a mark of 90.3.

Offense Rules Too!
The Mastodons have the third-best offense in Horizon League play according to Torvik with a mark of 100.6. They are third behind Green Bay (103.4) and Cleveland State (100.9).

Big Shot Ross
Lauren Ross hit dagger 3-pointers in two Horizon League games this season. Against Green Bay, she drilled a triple with 1:02 left then made a free throw with 11 seconds left in the one-point win. At Cleveland State, she hit a logo 3-pointer with 2.5 seconds left to secure the 78-75 victory.

Fill It Up
Purdue Fort Wayne is averaging 78.1 points per game, which ranks first in the Horizon League and top-30 nationally. The Mastodons' 37.0 3-point shooting percentage and 9.7 3-point makes per game both rank in the top-15 nationally.

League Leaders
Purdue Fort Wayne stands as the only unbeaten team left in Horizon League play at 9-0. The Mastodons beat the only other remaining unbeaten, Oakland, 77-37 on January 5. The 'Dons are also the only team to beat Green Bay in league play.

Thief!
Sydney Freeman is second in the Horizon League and top-70 nationally with 41 steals this season.

Nope!
Jazzlyn Linbo is fourth in the league and top-115 nationally with 21 blocks this season.

Our Ball!
Purdue Fort Wayne's 7.79 turnover margin ranks first in the Horizon League and is a top-15 mark nationally. The Mastodons' 20.37 turnovers forced per game also leads the league and is top-40 in the country.

Career-Best For Freezy
Sydney Freeman is shooting 45.3 percent from the floor and 35.1 percent from 3-point range, both of which are career-best marks. Her 2.16 steals per game is also a career-best.

Offensive Threat
Per College Basketball Reference, Lauren Ross has an offensive rating (points scored per 100 possessions) of 134.7, the best in the Horizon League. She also has an effective field goal percentage of 64.1 percent, a team-best. She is taking 60.2 percent of her shots from 3-point range. She also has the highest plus/minus on the team among rotation players with +8.8 per game.

Last Time Out
Purdue Fort Wayne beat Northern Kentucky 76-52 behind 23 points from Lauren Ross. She had 20 of her 23 points in the first half.

Coming Up
The Mastodons will start the second half of Horizon League play by welcoming IU Indianapolis to the Gates Sports Center on Saturday (Jan. 25).

~ Feel the Rumble ~