It has been three weeks since the college basketball season started, and the women’s basketball teams of the OVC now have a decent number of nonconference games under their belts. 

Only two of the 10 teams in the OVC are coming off wins. Conference leaders Murray State has won four games in a row and second place SIUE has won its last three games after an 0-2 start. 

Murray State is 5-1 on the season so far. 

Only three teams are currently over .500, with Eastern joining Murray State and SIUE. The Panthers are 4-3 and, along with Tennessee-Martin, have played the most games in the OVC. 

Most of the conference is right around .500, with six teams either being .500 or within one game of .500. 

Morehead State is the only team in the conference without multiple wins so far, as the Eagles sit at 1-4. 

They opened the season with a tough game at Michigan State. Their schedule also does not get much easier in the near future, with their next two games coming against Baylor and Evansville

Murray State has gotten off to such a strong start by having the top-ranked offense in the conference and second-ranked defense.

The Racers are scoring 76.8 points per game while only allowing 52.8 points per game. 

The second-ranked offense in the conference belongs to SIUE with a 72 points per game average, but the Cougars defense is ranked last in the conference, allowing 75.8 points per game. 

They have lowered this number over the last three games after two blowout losses to open the season and are allowing just 64 points per game in that span. 

Eastern ranks fourth in offense and sixth in defense, but rank second in the conference in scoring margin this season at +5.3 points per game. 

The Panthers lead the conference in turnover margin this season. They rank third with 22.9 turnovers forced per game and have only turned it over 15.1 times per game, which also ranks third in the conference. 

This gives them a turnover margin of +7.71, 2.96 higher than the second-ranked team. 

Morehead State’s scoring margin -16.2 points per game ranks last in the OVC. The Eagles rank ninth in scoring offense and eighth in scoring defense. 

Individually, Murray State’s Katelyn Young has been the OVC’s top player so far. 

She leads the conference with 21 points per game and 9.5 rebounds per game. Her 21 points per game are tied for 12th in the nation. 

Belmont guard Destinee Wells, the preseason Player of the Year pick in the OVC, ranks second in scoring with 17.5 points per game. 

Eastern guard Lariah Washington is sixth in the conference with 15 points per game. Teammate Kira Arthofer is leading the conference with 5.1 assists per game and ranks second with 3.3 steals per game. 

Eastern freshman Julia Bengston ranks fourth in the OVC in three-point percentage, shooting 42.9 percent from deep. 

Adam Tumino can be reached at 581-2812 or ajtumino@eiu.edu.