NASHVILLE - The Tennessee State women's basketball will travel to Kansas City to take on the University of Missouri-Kansas City in an early season road test. Both the Tigers and Roos are coming off big season-opening wins. Head coach Ty Evans will be eyeing his second career 2-0 start after his team went 2-0 to start last season. 

The Matchup: Tennessee State Tigers (1-0, 0-0 OVC) at. Kansas City (1-0, 0-0 Summit)
Date/Time: Friday, November 11 at 7:00 pm.
Location: Swinney Center || Kansas City, Mo.
TV: Roos All-Access
Live Stats

SERIES INFORMATION: This will be just the third all-time meeting between the Tigers and the Roos. After waiting for 33 years between the first two matchups, TSU and UMKC will meet again for the second time in less than a year as they matched up last December in Nashville. UMKC came away with the 74-70 win to give them a 2-0 edge in the all-time series. Gia Adams finished with 21 points with four made three-pointers, while Saniah Parker chipped in nine points in last year's loss.

FORCED TO BE RECKONED WITH: TSU forced 40 turnovers against Fisk in Monday's season opener, which is tied for the 4^th most in the nation this season. The Tigers were able to turn those 40 turnovers into 34 points on the offensive end.
 
FOUR OR MORE: The Tigers had four players finish with 10 or more points against Fisk. Four out of the five TSU starters finished in double-digits, as Gia Adams led the team with 20 points. Erica Haynes-Overton finished with 13 points, while Saniah Parker (12) and Lyric Cole (11).
 
NO SLUMP FOR THE SOPHOMORE: After being named the OVC Freshman of the Year after an incredible season last year, sophomore guard and All-OVC preseason selection Gia Adams showed no signs of a sophomore slump in the opener against Fisk. Adams finished with a team-high 20 points in the opener, along with four assists and three rebounds. It took Adams eight games to reach the 20-point plateau in her first season, whereas she started the season with 20 this year.
 
HAYNES-OVERTON OVERPOWERS: Erica Haynes-Overton showed what made her so special at ETSU and how she got to Kansas as she made her TSU debut in front of her hometown fans on Monday night. The sixth-year guard played the most minutes she has played in a game since the 2019-2020 season. Haynes-Overton got the start and tallied 20 minutes, making the most of her minutes as she finished with 13 points, five steals, and three rebounds.
 
O'FER TEN: Tiger defenders did a great job of not letting Fisk get off many three-point shots on Monday night. Fisk finished 0-10 from beyond the arc in the contest, not connecting on a single attempt. TSU held the Bulldogs to just 16-of-52 from the field, only allowing 32 points. Fisk was able to convert 29 made free throws.
 
CATCHING FLIGHT: Friday's game against UMKC will be one of two contests that the Tigers will fly to this year. TSU will catch its second flight of the season when they travel to Waco, Texas, to take on Baylor in December.  
 
MIDDLE OF THE PACK: TSU was slotted to finish fifth in the 2022-2023 Ohio Valley Conference women's basketball preseason coaches' poll out of the 10-team ranking. Sophomore guard Gia Adams was named to the All-OVC Preseason team. The Lady Tigers received 95 total points and one first-place vote in the preseason ranking that was voted on by the league's head coaches and sports information directors.

FAMILIAR FACES: After welcoming in 12 newcomers a season ago, head coach Ty Evans will be a bit more familiar with his team when they take the court tomorrow evening against Fisk as he returns eight players from last year's 2021-2022 squad. TSU's returners have combined for 963 career points, as Gia Adams leads the group with 400 career points. Saniah Parker is second amongst the group with 204 points, followed by Sierra McCullough (143 pts) and Kianni Westbrook (116 pts).

A NEW CREW: In addition to returning eight players from last year's team, Evans and his staff have brought in eight new faces, four of whom have D1 playing experience. The Tigers will welcome two high school signees, five four-year transfers, and one junior college transfer to mix in with their solid group of returning players. TSU's four D1 transfers in Ashley Malone (115 pts), Eboni Williams (855 pts), Erica Haynes-Overton (1,056 pts), and Lyric Cole (198 pts) have combined for 2,224 career points. Corina Suarez-Tudela joins the Tigers from the Juco level as she scored 512 points across two seasons at Garden City CC and Cochise College.

HOME GROWN: After having just one player from the state of Tennessee on last year's roster, the Tigers will see five faces from the Volunteer State on this year's team. Both Ashley Malone and Erica Haynes-Overton return to the Music City as transfers, as they are both Nashville natives. Malone was a two-time All-State and All-County player at Pope John Paul II High School, while Haynes-Overton suited up at East Nashville Magnet as a four-year letter winner and state champion. True freshman Zyion Shannon joins the list of local products as she comes to TSU from Stewarts Creek High School in Smyrna. Lyric Cole joins the Tigers after transferring in from Austin Peay, the sophomore forward who played her high school ball in Memphis at White Station High School.