The Muskies and Eagles are playing for the first time since 1989, and this will be the first-ever meeting between the two teams on one's home court. The previous three matchups all were played from 1987-89, and all three were part of a yearly tournament hosted by the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire. Lakeland won by scores of 97-66 Nov. 21, 1987; 84-79 on Nov. 18, 1988 and 72-42 Nov. 18, 1989, with the first and third meetings both coming in the consolation game of the UWEC tourney and the second a semifinal game before the Muskies fell to the host Blugolds in the championship game.

Lakeland last time out: Defeated Aurora 60-57 last Saturday
The Muskies have been idle for a week due to final exams, but in their last game held on to win after the Spartans had come back from 13 points down in the second half to tie the game late. Ellie Felsinger's layup with 1:27 left in the game snapped a 56-56 tie, and Lakeland kept Aurora from getting off a good shot in the final seconds and won its third straight game. Felsinger posted her first career double-double with 13 points and 10 rebounds and Kacey Gardner also added a double-double (11 points, 10 rebounds).

Northwestern last time out: Lost at No. 5-ranked Wartburg (Iowa) 79-46 Dec. 7
The Eagles have been idle for 11 days, including a pair of games last weekend postponed due to health and safety protocols. Northwestern's most recent game came on the road against a Wartburg team that has been nationally ranked in NCAA Division III all season and was fifth in the D3hoops.com top 25 poll at the time. The Eagles trailed 39-23 at halftime and saw the game get away with a 17-3 run by the Knights in the third quarter. Northwestern shot just 24.1%, making 19 of 79 shots. Megan Roberts finished with 11 points and seven rebounds, the only Eagle to score in double figures, and Hailey Paup added nine rebounds.

About the Eagles: Northwestern is 4-2 on the season with its two losses coming to nationally ranked teams. In addition to falling to Wartburg, UNW also has a loss to Simpson (Iowa), ranked 10th in this week's D3hoops.com poll. The Eagles have wins over Minnesota opponents Hamline and St. Catherine and also topped Maranatha Baptist and Finlandia, the latter sharing a common opponent with Lakeland.

Northwestern is located in St. Paul, Minn., and is a member of the Upper Midwest Athletic Conference. Last year the Eagles  finished 17-6 overall and 7-1 in conference, falling to Bethany Lutheran (Minn.) in the UMAC Tournament semifinals. Northwestern also played in the National Christian College Athletic Association Tournament and finished as national runners up, winning three games before falling to Alice Lloyd (Ky.) in the national championship game.