The Lindenwood women's basketball team will be competing in the Thanksgiving Classic at Grand Canyon University on Friday and Saturday in Phoenix, Arizona. 

The Lions are coming off their first home game as a Division I program, having fallen to the Cincinnati Bearcats in a 60-71 final score on Monday night in Hyland Arena. Mary McGrath had an impressive night despite the loss, dropping a new season and career high 22 total points, putting her atop the leaderboard for the Lions. Masyn McWilliams also reached a new level against the Bearcats, knocking down 17 total points, which is a new personal best for the graduate transfer. 

On Friday, Lindenwood will go head to head with the Manhattan College Jaspers at 1:00 p.m. CST, which will be the first time that these two programs meet. The Jaspers are coming off their first win of the season that came Saturday, November 19 when they beat Howard by a tight 56-54 final score, improving their record this year 1-3. Other teams that Manhattan have faced include Wagner (60-63 OT loss), Stony Brook (51-69 loss) and Duquesne (46-67 loss).
 
The Jaspers' roster is sprinkled with various players from overseas, including Petra Juric out of Zagreb, Croatia who currently leads Manhattan with a 21.0 points and 14.0 rebounds per game averages. Dee Dee Davis is another one to watch, as the senior from the Bronx averages 15.8 points per game and 8.5 rebounds per game. 

Lindenwood will then have a quick turnaround to take on the host, Grand Canyon University, on Saturday at 3:30 p.m. CST. This will also be a brand new opponent for the Lions, much like many teams they will see this season. 

The Lopes will be looking to keep their three-game win streak rolling, having most recently beaten Nicholls on the road in a 79-41 victory. Three players are averaging double figures for GCU, with junior Tiarra Brown and sophomore Naudia Evans averaging 11.7 and graduate student Evan Zars at 10.3. Zars is near a double-double average with 8.7 rebounds per contest.

For more information regarding this weekend's tournament, head to 2022-23 Women's Basketball Schedule - Lindenwood University Athletics (lindenwoodlions.com)