YSU BASKETBALL Men hope strong play earns win

Penguins' recent solid efforts could yield victory against Eastern Michigan.
YOUNGSTOWN -- The Youngstown State men's basketball team steps out of Horizon League action today, playing host to Eastern Michigan at the Beeghly Center.
The 2 p.m. contest is part of the Bracket Buster pool that was created by ESPN before the season.
The Penguins (4-20) have played well lately, but haven't been able to get a victory to show for it.
In its last outing, YSU lost 71-64 to Wright State at the Beeghly Center on Wednesday. Brian Radakovich scored a career-high 24 points and Quin Humphrey added 18 for the Penguins. In the second half, YSU trailed 57-42 with 8:28 remaining, before rallying to within 60-57 at the 4:07 mark.
Eastern Michigan (12-12) has won three of its last four games, including a 79-63 win over Northern Illinois 79-63 Wednesday. Markus Austin scored 16 points to lead the way for the Eagles.
Markus Austin and John Bowler are both averaging 14.1 points per game for the Eagles. Bowler is second on the team with 6.7 rebounds, trailing James Jackson's 7.1.
Eastern Michigan's lone road win of the season came at Central Michigan Jan. 9. The Eagles are 1-8 in road games this season and have dropped five in a row.
EMU leads series
This will be the third time this season EMU has played a team from the Horizon League. On Dec. 20, the Eagles lost 88-83 at Detroit and on Dec. 23, EMU beat Cleveland State 89-76 at home.
YSU and Eastern Michigan have played eight previous contests with the Eagles holding a 5-3 series edge. The last meeting was at the Beeghly Center on March 3, 1990 -- an 82-71 EMU victory.
Youngstown State's women's team travels to Wisconsin-Green Bay today for a 3 p.m. game at the Phoenix Sports Center.
The Penguins (9-15, 3-10 Horizon) last played Feb. 12, losing 72-61 to Butler at Beeghly Center. In the setback, Jen Perugini recorded her 11th double-double of the season with 20 points and 15 rebounds. Cathy Hanek added 10 points.
Green Bay (22-2, 13-0) has won 16 consecutive games and clinched at least a share of its seventh consecutive Horizon League regular season championship.
Tiffany Mor leads the Phoeniz and the Horizon League in scoring with a 16.4 average, while Abby Scharlow is averaging 12.8.
Mor is shooting 62.9 percent from the floor, also a league best. Sophomore Nicole Soulis is averaging 12.4 points per game.
Regular season winds down
Next week, the YSU men play host to Butler on Wednesday in its final home game of the season. On Thursday the women's team plays its home finale against Detroit. Both games are at 7 p.m.
Both teams are on the road Feb. 26 -- the men at Detroit and the women at Wisconsin-Milwaukee.
The Horizon League tournament starts March 1.