MORRIS, Minn. – The University of Minnesota Morris women's basketball team is fighting for home-court advantage in the Upper Midwest Athletic Conference Tournament during the final week of the regular season. The Cougars are on the road for both games, starting with Bethany Lutheran College on Wednesday at 5:30 p.m., and concluding with the University of Wisconsin-Superior on Saturday at 3 p.m.
 
All conference games can be found on the UMAC Sports Network app or by clicking here. The live stats of UMM at BLC be found here and to follow the live stats of UMM at UWS click here.
 
The Cougars have clinched a playoff spot and will host a playoff game if they win one of their final two contests. They also have a chance to earn the No. 1 seed and a share of the conference title if they win both games and Bethany Lutheran goes 0-2.
 
The Cougars went 2-0 last week, defeating North Central University 62-57 and Martin Luther College 75-68. In the first game, Maddy Grove and Shelby Mortenson led the scoring with 13 points each, while Gianna Klarenbeek also reached double figures with 11. Grace Perry led the defense with 10 rebounds. In the second game, Grove scored a team-high 19 points and added eight rebounds, while Klarenbeek recorded a double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds.
 
The Cougars boast the highest-scoring offense in the UMAC at 68.3 points per game, with Grove leading the team at 18.8 points per game. The junior guard has totaled 432 points, the ninth-most in a single season at UMM. Mortenson and Klarenbeek follow with 211 and 201 points, respectively. Perry, Claire Stark, Anna Myers, and Brooke Ver Steeg each have more than 100 points this season. Klarenbeek leads the conference with 76 assists.
 
Defensively, the Cougars also lead the way with 39.3 rebounds per game. Mortenson and Perry rank sixth and seventh in the conference with 149 and 127 rebounds, respectively. Klarenbeek ranks 10th with 115 rebounds. UMM is also first in blocked shots and second in steals. Mortenson leads the conference with 37 blocks, and Grove ranks second with 55 steals.
 
Bethany Lutheran leads the conference at 10-0 and holds an overall record of 13-10. The Vikings extended their winning streak to 10 with victories over University of Northwestern (63-56) and UW-Superior (55-48). Emma Purfeerst is in her third season as head coach of BLC. The Vikings average 59.8 points per game, with Morgan Hulke leading the team with 245 points. Kenadi Arndt and Arinn McGee follow with 238 and 216 points, respectively.
 
In the first meeting between the teams, the Vikings won 71-63. The game was competitive throughout, featuring five lead changes and seven ties. Grove led the Cougars with 24 points.
 
UW-Superior sits third in the UMAC at 7-3 and is 10-13 overall. The Yellowjackets fell in their only game last week, 55-48, to Bethany Lutheran. Eveline Parsons is in her first season as head coach at UWS. The Yellowjackets are averaging 55.3 points per game, with Hope Carlson leading the team with 202 points. Charlotte Ferstl has a team-high 168 rebounds.
 
The Cougars defeated the Yellowjackets 59-48 in the first meeting of the regular season. The game was tied at halftime, but Minnesota Morris pulled away in the third quarter, holding UW-Superior to just one point in the period. Grove scored a game-high 28 points in the win.