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INDIANAPOLIS - The IUPUI women's basketball team heads to the Hospitality Hills Challenge in Denton, Texas for two games this weekend. The Jags face off with Stephen F. Austin on Friday (Dec. 4) at 6 p.m. before taking on the hosts in North Texas on Saturday (Dec. 5) at 3:30 p.m. 

The Jags are tied with the best six-game start in school history at 5-1. IUPUI has went 6-1 to start the season just twice before, including 2013-14 under Parkinson, but the Jags have never started a season 7-1. If IUPUI gets through the weekend with a pair of wins, it will be the best start in the history of the women's program. IUPUI's Scott Agness will have the call for both games on IUPUIJags.com.

The Jags (5-1) have won their last three games by an average of 49 points per game, including back-to-back blowouts against Oakland City (104-30) and IU-Southeast (99-50) before running away from Indiana State in the second half (68-43). 

IUPUI has built a very balanced offensive attack. When one scoring option seems to get shut down, another girl steps up. Head Coach Austin Parkinson's squad boasts four players averaging double figures and another handful averaging more than five a game. 

Preseason First-Team Summit League selection Akilah Sims has been the offensive juggernaut and leads the team in points per game (12.2) while averaging 6.0 rebounds per contest. Junior post player Mikale Rogers had a quiet night in her last game with only five points but she pulled down six rebounds and swatted five shots. She's averaging 10.8 points and 7.5 rebounds per. 

The Jags will face the Lumberjacks (4-2) in the Friday game. The Jacks are led by a 5'6" junior guard in Taylor Ross who has averaged 22.3 a game in four games this season. A pair of guards in Brentney Branch and Taylor Schippers give the Jacks the outside shooting threat while Ross' buckets come primarily from getting to the hole. Stopping Ross will be a point of emphasis for Parkinson's club. 

IUPUI will meet North Texas (2-3) in the Saturday contest. The Mean Green have a steady trio averaging in double figures, but they only play seven deep on the roster. While nine girls have logged minutes this season, seven players are getting over 20 minutes a game.