ORLANDO, FLA. – Looking to snap its three-game losing streak, the Elon women's basketball team (4-5) travels to Orlando, Fla., to compete in the UCF Christmas Classic. The Phoenix will open the tournament against Loyola Chicago at 12 p.m. Tuesday before facing the host Knights at 12 p.m. Wednesday.
 
COVERAGE
 

• Wednesday's game will air on ESPN+.
• Fans can listen to both contests on WSOE 89.3 FM.
• Live stats for Tuesday's game can be found here.
• Live stats for Wednesday's game can be found here.
• Other in-game updates will be provided via the program's Twitter account, @ElonWBasketball.

 
TICKETS ON SALE
 

• The best way to see the women's basketball team this season is by purchasing season tickets for just $40.
• Single-game tickets are also available, beginning at $10.
• For the first time ever, fans can purchase a book of 10 ticket vouchers for $75. These vouchers are redeemable for a ticket to any Elon men's or women's basketball regular-season home game. Use all 10 for any one game or use one voucher for 10 different games.
• Fans who purchase voucher books will also receive an Elon mini autographed basketball from head coaches Charlotte Smith and Billy Taylor. These tickets represent a 50% savings for men's basketball tickets and a 25% savings for women's basketball versus single-game prices.
• Ticket vouchers must be redeemed for a reserved seat ticket prior to entry. This can be done at the Schar Center Box Office during regular business hours (M-F, 9 a.m.-5 p.m.) or starting 90 minutes prior to tipoff.
• For more information, visit ElonTickets.com or call the Elon Ticket Office at 336-278-6750.

 
SERIES HISTORY VS. LOYOLA CHICAGO, UCF
 

• Elon and Loyola Chicago have never met on the hardwood.
• The Phoenix won its lone game against UCF, 71-57, on Nov. 22, 2017, in Orlando, Fla. Malaya Johnson led Elon with 14 points and nine rebounds. Jada Graves and Lexi Mercer also finished in double figures with 12 points each.

 
LAST TIME OUT
 

• Raven Preston erupted for a career-high 31 points – including 15 in the fourth quarter – but it wasn't enough as Elon lost 74-72 to Davidson on Sunday at John M. Belk Arena.
• Down 10 points with 7:50 left, the Phoenix rallied behind Preston to pull within two four times in the final 1:18, but it couldn't get any closer and ultimately dropped its third straight game.
• Elon's 45 second-half points were its most in any half this season.
• The Phoenix shot 52% from the field, its second-best mark of the season.
• Elon's seven 3-pointers matched its season high, set against Richmond on Thursday.
• Preston went 11-for-16 from the floor, including 3-for-4 on 3-pointers, en route to her fifth straight double-digit scoring performance and the most points by a Phoenix freshman since at least 2004-05. The Greensboro, N.C., also tallied a game-high eight rebounds, falling just short of her third double-double.
• Lenaejha Evans scored 13 points – all in the second half – for her seventh straight double-digit scoring performance. In that span, she's averaging 15 points on 48.8% shooting (41-for-84). The streak comes after the Rider transfer scored six points on 3-for-12 shooting in her first two games with Elon.
• Bria Harmon scored a career-high 13 points, besting her previous high of 10, set on two occasions.
• Aly Wadkovsky hauled in five rebounds, matching her total through her first six career games.

 
THAT'S SO RAVEN
 

• After recording her second career double-double against Richmond on Thursday and her first 30-point game against Davidson on Sunday, Raven Preston was named the CAA Rookie of the Week on Monday.
• Having also received the award on Nov. 28, Preston joined Drexel's Kylie Lavelle as the only CAA freshmen to earn two Rookie of the Week honors this season. She's the first Phoenix freshman to be recognized twice since Saadia Munford in 2017-18.
• With 10 points and 11 rebounds against the Spiders, Preston became the first Elon freshman to record multiple double-doubles since Shay Burnett had three in 2014-15.
• The Greensboro, N.C., native followed that up by scoring 31 points against the Wildcats on Sunday, marking the most points by a Phoenix freshman since at least 2004-05.
• Having already scored 22 points against Old Dominion and 26 at NC Central, she became the first freshman to post three 20-point games in the Charlotte Smith era (since 2011-12).
• Preston's three 20-point games account for three of the top four scoring performances by a freshman in Smith's 12-season tenure.
• Preston's 15 rebounds against Old Dominion tied for the third most by a Phoenix player and were the most by a freshman under Smith. They were also the most by a CAA freshman since UNCW's Taylor Webster had 19 against Norfolk State on Nov. 25, 2020.
• With her 22 points and 15 boards against the Monarchs, Preston became the fifth player and the second freshman to post a 20-point, 10-rebound game under Smith. The 20-point, 10-rebound game was the first by a CAA freshman since Towson's Allie Kubek had 20 points and 14 rebounds against Drexel on Feb. 21, 2021.
• Entering Monday, Preston ranked eighth in scoring (14.8 points per game) and sixth in rebounding (7.9 boards per game) among NCAA Division I freshmen. Lipscomb's Aleah Sorrentino was the only other player in the top eight among freshmen in both categories.
• Over her last five games, Preston has been especially great, averaging 21 points on 59.7% shooting (40-for-67) and 8.6 rebounds.

 
EFFICIENT PHOENIX
 

• Elon is shooting 44.7% from the field, its best mark through nine games since opening the 2017-18 season shooting 44.8%. That figure was good for 58th nationally and second in the CAA entering Monday.
• The Phoenix shot 58.2% (32-for-55) against NC Central on Nov. 27, the ninth best mark in school history and its best since shooting 60% (27-for-45) on Feb. 28, 2018, at Northeastern.
• Evonna McGill has been especially efficient, shooting 64.8%. This comes after the graduate center finished last season ranked 10th nationally in field-goal percentage (58.9%).
• McGill went 8-for-8 from the floor against the Eagles, marking the first time an Elon player finished 8-for-8 or better under Smith.
• Raven Preston is shooting 51.5%, good for 68th nationally and second in the CAA entering Monday.

 
PRESEASON ACCOLADES
 

• The Phoenix was picked to finish fourth in the CAA Preseason Poll, marking the sixth time in its nine CAA seasons that Elon has ranked fourth or better in the league's preseason balloting.
• Evonna McGill was named to the preseason All-CAA second team, becoming the first Phoenix post player to earn preseason All-CAA honors since Malaya Johnson made the second team in 2017-18.
• McGill, a center from Lowell, N.C., averaged 11.7 points, 4.8 rebounds and 1.0 blocks last season. All three of those figures rank in the top six among CAA returners.
• Her 58.9 field-goal percentage was the third best in program history and is also the seventh highest among returning Division I players who made at least five shots per game and played in 75% of their team's games last season.

 
FRESH FACES
 

• Elon boasts seven newcomers, including six freshmen in Hannah Dereje, Raven Preston, Aly Wadkovsky, Regina Walton, Ruby Willard and Chloe Williams.
• The six-player freshman class matches the Phoenix's largest under Charlotte Smith; Elon's 2017 recruiting class also consisted of six players.
• Graduate transfer Lenaejha Evans also joins the Phoenix after two seasons at Rider. The guard – who averaged 14.0 points en route to third-team All-MAAC honors in 2021-22 – began her career at Kansas City Kansas Community College in 2018-19, then transferred to Pensacola State College for one season before enrolling at Rider.
• Although they aren't new to Elon, redshirt freshmen guards Kamryn Doty and Diamond Monroe are also new to the mix after missing the entire 2021-22 season due to injury. Doty has started each of the Phoenix's first nine games at point guard.

 
BIG SHOES TO FILL
 

• Elon entered the 2022-23 season looking to fill the void left by Brie Perpignan, who finished her Phoenix career as one of only five players to record 1,100 points and 350 assists, along with Shay Burnett (2014-18), Ali Ford (2009-13), Lisa Briggs (1983-87) and Donna Trollinger (1981-85).
• Perpignan's 359 career assists are the eighth most in Elon history, and her 1,194 points are tied for the 14th most. She also ranks second in career free-throw percentage (min. 250 made) at 80 (335-for-419).
• The point guard was sensational in 2021-22, ranking second in the CAA in assists per game (5.5), third in free-throw percentage (81.1) fifth in points per game (16.6) and fifth in assist/turnover ratio (1.5).
• For her efforts, she was named to the All-CAA second team, becoming just the fourth Phoenix player to make the first or second team and the first since 2017-18.
• Perpignan accounted for 26.6% of Elon's scoring, 36.6% of its free-throw attempts, 39.9% of its free throws and 43.6% of its assists last season.

 
2021-22 REWIND
 

• The Phoenix went 17-12 last season to post its seventh winning season under Charlotte Smith and its first since 2017-18.
• Elon went 9-9 in CAA play to finish tied for fifth in the league. That marked the Phoenix's best finish since placing third in 2017-18.
• Ten of Elon's victories came at Schar Center, its most since moving into the state-of-the-art facility before the 2018-19 season.
• The 2021-22 Phoenix ranked in the top 10 in school history in free-throw percentage (74.2, first), 3-point attempts (563, second), 3-pointers (171, fourth), field-goal percentage (39.9, ninth) and assists per game (12.6, 10th).
• Brie Perpignan led Elon in scoring (16.6 points per game) and assists (5.5 per game), while Kayla Liles paced the team in rebounding (6.2 per game).

 
BONDING ABROAD
 

• As part of Elon's commitment to diversity and global engagement, the women's basketball team spent eight days in Italy in August.
• In addition to experiencing authentic Italian cuisine and seeing historical sites such as the Leaning Tower of Pisa and the Colosseum, the Phoenix scrimmaged a pair of local teams.
• For a team that features seven newcomers, the trip proved incredibly valuable. Said head coach Charlotte Smith: "It came at the perfect time. Because we have so many new faces, it allowed us an opportunity to implement some things in our system and to practice and to play some games internationally before they even played a game in the United States."

EDUCATION DAY RETURNS
 

• For the first time in more than a decade, the Phoenix welcomed local elementary school students to campus for a fun-filled Education Day on Dec. 15.
• The game against Richmond marked the first time that Elon held an Education Day since Jan. 27, 2011.
• The program welcomed more than 2,400 elementary school students from 10 Alamance-Burlington School System schools as well as Burlington Christian Academy and The Burlington School. Overall, 3,087 fans attended the game, marking the largest crowd in Elon's Division I era.
• Although the game between the Phoenix and Spiders was at the center of the festivities, the day also served as an opportunity for students to be introduced to the University and learn more about the importance of education and going to college. Different components of the in-game entertainment addressed that.
• Phoenix players also spent much of December visiting ABSS schools and talking about their experiences as collegiate student-athletes.

  
MAKING MOVES
 

• Ahead of their 12th season together at Elon, Charlotte Smith announced the promotion of Josh Wick to associate head coach in September.
• Since arriving with Smith as a member of her coaching staff in 2011, Wick has been integral to the women's basketball program's turnaround. In his 11 seasons at Elon, the Phoenix has posted a winning record seven times, including back-to-back 25-win campaigns in 2016-17 and 2017-18.
• In 2016-17, Wick helped the Phoenix to a record-breaking season that saw it win the CAA regular-season and Tournament titles while reaching the first NCAA Tournament in program history. The Phoenix reached the NCAA Tournament the following season, as well, after winning its second straight CAA Championship.

SCOUTING LOYOLA CHICAGO
 

• Loyola Chicago is 3-8 and coming off a 77-53 loss at Marquette on Saturday. The Ramblers' wins have come against Western Michigan, Saint Francis and Bradley, while its other losses have been against Milwaukee, Virginia, Eastern Illinois, Miami, Miami (Ohio), UIC and DePaul.
• Loyola went 18-12 overall and 10-8 in Missouri Valley Conference play last season, finishing fifth in the league.
• The Ramblers joined the A-10 this offseason and were picked to finish 13th in the A-10 preseason coaches poll.
• Maya Chandler leads Loyola in scoring at 13.5 points per game. Sitori Tanin paces the Ramblers in rebounding at 5.8 boards per game.

 
SCOUTING UCF
 

• UCF is 6-3 and coming off a 99-64 loss at Tennessee on Wednesday. The Knights' wins have come against Winthrop, Campbell, Louisiana-Monroe, Samford, Southeast Missouri State and Sam Houston, while its other losses have been against Auburn and Seton Hall.
• UCF went 26-4 overall and 14-1 in AAC play last season. The Knights won the league's regular-season and tournament titles en route to a No. 7 seed in the NCAA Tournament. UCF beat 10th-seeded Florida in the first round before falling to Connecticut in the second.
• The Knights were picked to finish eighth in the AAC preseason coaches poll.
• Destiny Thomas leads UCF in scoring (13.1 points per game) and rebounding (12.4 boards per game). Laila Jewett is the only other Knight averaging double-digit points at 10.4.

 
UP NEXT
 

• Elon will take eight days off before opening CAA play against North Carolina A&T on Dec. 30. Tipoff is slated for 6 p.m. in Greensboro, N.C.