WBB Game Day: UVA Wise

Game Day Coverage

Liberty Storylines

Following a 10-day break from competition, Liberty (2-2) will welcome Commonwealth foe UVA Wise (3-1) to Liberty Arena for the teams' first meeting in 14 years.
The Lady Flames will look to get back in the win column following setbacks at James Madison and to No. 11 Duke their last two times out. After Wednesday, Liberty will only play one more home game in the next 42 days.
Liberty is 4-3 all-time against UVA Wise, having won four straight meetings with the Highland Cavaliers. UVA Wise will visit Liberty Arena for the first time, where the Lady Flames own a 67-10 record.
Sophomore center Emmy Stout paced all players with a season-high 21 points against Duke on Nov. 16. Her 17.0 ppg scoring average is the highest by a Lady Flame through four games to start a season since 2020-21 (Emily Lytle - 17.8).
Liberty has outrebounded all four opponents this season and owns a +12.8 rebound margin. Ify Nwaobi has grabbed 24 boards during her last two games, giving her a team-best 10.0 rpg for the year. No Lady Flame has averaged double-digit boards through four games since Ashley Rininger (10.8) in 2014-15.

Notes and Anecdotes

Liberty and UVA Wise (then known as Clinch Valley College of the University of Virginia) met five times between 1978 and 1981 but have only faced one another twice since. Wednesday's matinee marks the Commonwealth foes' first matchup in 14 years.
Liberty is predicted for a runner-up finish in CUSA, while UVA Wise was picked eighth of 12 teams in the South Atlantic Conference.
UVA Wise finished 11-17 last season, making the Highland Cavaliers the only squad on Liberty's 11-team non-conference schedule which posted a losing record in 2024-25.
However, UVA Wise is off to a strong start this season at 3-1 and will retain that record regardless of Wednesday's outcome with the Highland Cavaliers classifying it as an exhibition.
Liberty will look to slow down sophomore guard Caroline Mullins. The NCAA Division II Player of the Week from Nov. 18 is posting 25.0 ppg and 12.0 rpg with three double-doubles this season.
The Lady Flames have faced UVA Wise head coach Jamie Cluesman once previously. She was an assistant for Shepherd when Liberty topped the Rams by a 69-57 count on Dec. 19, 2015 at the Vines Center.

Competing vs. the Commonwealth

UVA Wise is the second of four in-state opponents on Liberty's 2025-26 schedule. The Lady Flames previously lost 74-61 at James Madison on Nov. 12. Liberty will travel to George Mason (Dec. 7) and host Richmond (Dec. 13) next month.
The Lady Flames are now 11-5 in their last 16 meetings with Commonwealth foes.

Home Sweet Home

The Lady Flames are 2-1 at Liberty Arena this season, moving to 67-10 (87.0 win%) all-time at their home facility.
Prior to a 71-57 setback to No. 11 Duke on Nov. 16, Liberty had recorded 15 consecutive home victories. That was just one shy of the Lady Flames' longest winning streak at Liberty Arena (16 games from Nov. 10, 2022 through Dec. 1, 2023).
A crowd of 2,404 attended the Nov. 16 matchup with No. 11 Duke, marking the second-largest women's basketball attendance in Liberty Arena history.
Following Wednesday's meeting with UVA Wise, seven of Liberty's next eight games will be played away from home. They will take place in five different states (Hawai'i, Maryland, New Mexico, Texas and Virginia).

Early-Season Trends

Despite a change in head coaches, Liberty's emphasis on rebounding has remained constant. The Lady Flames have won the rebounding battle in all four games this season and currently rank No. 28 nationally with a +12.8 rebound margin.
Individually, Ify Nwaobi is pulling down a team-high 10.0 rpg through the first four games of her collegiate career, including back-to-back double-digit efforts against James Madison (13) and Duke (11). The last Lady Flame to collect that many rebounds during a season's first four games was Ashley Rininger (10.8 rpg in 2014-15).
The Lady Flames' preseason all-conference duo of Emmy Stout (17.0 ppg) and Avery Mills (15.0) ppg has each scored in double figures in all four contests and each has a 20-point game to her credit. Stout's 17.0 ppg marks the highest scoring average by a Lady Flame through a season's first four games since 2020-21 (Emily Lytle - 17.8 ppg).

Schedule