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Jan. 25, 2001

Up Next
The University of Missouri women's basketball team returns to action after a six-day reprieve. The Tigers travel to Lincoln, Neb., to take-on the Nebraska Cornhuskers this Saturday at 7:00 p.m.

Missouri returns home to battle No. 7 Iowa State for the second time this season. The Cyclones defeated the Tigers 68-67 in Ames, Jan. 17. MU looks to overthrow Iowa State in the Hearnes Center Wed., Jan. 31 at 7:00 p.m.

Tickets for Missouri women's basketball are available by calling 1-800-CAT-PAWS or at the Hearnes Center ticket office.

Missouri Coverage
Missouri women's basketball is covered live on KFRU radio. David Lile, Gary Link and Jessica Jenkins offer all the action of Tiger women's hoops on 1400 AM.

Mizzou fans can also log onto the Missouri Tigers' Web site at www.MUTigers.com to get live coverage. Scroll down the left side of the MU Tigers main page and select Audio/Video. On the following page, scroll down and select the women's basketball Internet broadcast option. When the schedule of Mizzou women's basketball games is displayed, just choose the appropriate date and hit Go! (www.broadcast.com/sports/ncaa/Missouri/WomensBasketball/).

Turn on the Radio
The Cindy Stein Show features highlights of recent games, upcoming match-up and player profiles. Thursday nights at 7:00 p.m., Head Coach Cindy Stein dishes Tiger women's basketball live from Johnny's Beanery in Columbia, Mo. Listen on KFRU radio 1400 AM.

Missouri vs. Nebraska
Missouri (12-5) travels to Nebraska backed by an impressive 65-60 come-from-behind victory over Kansas State. The win takes the Tigers to a 3-3 conference record, including wins over Texas (68-52) and Texas A&M (69-61). The Huskers are 9-10 overall with a 1-5 conference record. Nebraska won its only Big 12 victory over Kansas State 67-58, while falling to Texas A&M (67-65), Iowa State (89-46), Texas Tech (66-50), Texas (62-48) and Colorado (87-69).

Much of the Missouri-Nebraska game will be decided on the boards. The Huskers average 40.1 rebounds per game while giving up 38.5 to their opponents. The Tigers average 42.8 boards and allow 38.1 opponent rebounds per contest. Missouri however averages 16 offensive boards per game while Nebraska only pulls down 12.8.

Another factor in the game will be the Tigers' characteristic attack of the basket. One of the key components in many of MU's close games this season has been repeated shot attempts. Although the Tigers only post a .451 field goal percentage, the Tigers have out shot their opponents 516-399. Likewise, Missouri has 1,145 attempts while leaving their opponents to just 1,028. In comparison, Nebraska has only made 448-of-1,006 attempts for a .445 field goal percentage.

During conference play, Missouri has drastically reduced its turnover ratio. In their first Big 12 game, MU had 26 turnovers against Texas Tech. Against Iowa State, the Tigers posted their lowest number of turnovers this season with just 12. Likewise, against Kansas State, Missouri had only 15 turnovers. In comparison, Nebraska averages 23.8 turnovers per game for a -3.9 turnover margin. The Huskers are 12th in the conference in assist/turnover ratio.

Scouting the Huskers
Nebraska is led by center Casey Leonhardt who averages 13.5 points and 5.9 rebounds per game. The center scored her career-high 25 points and had nine rebounds on Wednesday against Colorado. She was 10-for-14 from the field and 5-for-5 from the free throw line. Leonhardt also leads the team with 33 blocks and shooting 57 percent from the field netting 108-of-190 shots. Leonhardt is 13th in the Big 12 Conference in overall scoring and fourth in field goal percentage. She is also 19th in rebounding and third in blocked shots.

The Huskers have seven athletes on their roster, including Leonhardt, which average more than five points per game. Shannon Howell is third on the team with 8.4 points per game. She has recorded eight double-digit games this season, including 11 points against Colorado. Amanda Went is fourth with 7.3 and Monique Whitfield is fifth with 7.0 points per contest. She is also shooting 59 percent from the field and averages 4.7 rebounds per game.

Last season, Nebraska finished 18-13 with a 10-6 Big 12 Conference record to finish fifth in league standings. The Huskers traveled to the NCAA First Round where they were defeated by Boston College 93-76. Paul Sanderford is in his fourth season as head coach of the Huskers.

Series Shorts
Nebraska leads the MU-NU series 30-19. The series began in 1977 as part of Big Eight Conference parings. Missouri has won just one game against Nebraska in the last 10 years. The Huskers went on a 19-game win streak from 1991-99 before the Tigers defeated NU 74-66 in Columbia. The Huskers won both games last season 80-63 in Lincoln, and 80-66 in Columbia.

Last Year Against Nebraska
Game #15
The Tigers dropped their second straight conference road game falling to Nebraska, 80-63. Missouri turned the ball over 28 times and committed 29 personal fouls in a game that saw 53 fouls called in all.

The Cornhuskers played over half of the game without leading scorers Nicole Kubik, Brooke Schwartz and Charlie Rogers due to foul trouble, but the Tigers could not take advantage.

Nebraska led 43-33 at halftime, and outscored the Tigers 37-30 in the second half. The Huskers' 6-5 center Casey Leonhardt scored 15 points while recording seven rebounds and four blocked shots. Marlena Williams led Missouri with 17 points and 11 rebounds while Amanda Lassiter added 13 points.

Game #27
Nebraska took over fifth-place in the Big 12 Conference by defeating Missouri 80-66. The Cornhuskers overcame a 10-point second half deficit to win the ball game. Missouri finishes the regular season seventh and will take on the Colorado Buffaloes in the first round of the Big 12 Tournament in Kansas City, Mo.

Missouri trailed by as many as six points in the first half, but used a 6-0 run to finish the first half and took a 29-28 halftime lead. But for the first time this season, the Tigers did not win the game after leading at halftime.

Nebraska's full-court press, which hurt Missouri in the first half, got to the Tigers again. The Huskers went on a 25-6 run that covered seven minutes, nine seconds to open up a 62-53 lead. Missouri turned the ball over 10 times during the run, seven of them were steals by Nebraska. Nicole Kubik recorded four of her seven steals during that span while Melody Peterson got two. A three-pointer by Julie Helm (13 points), playing in her final home game, brought the Tigers back within six points at 62-56, but that is as close as the Tigers would get.

Missouri Defeats Kansas State in Come-From-Behind Victory
Missouri advanced to 12-5 with a 3-3 Big 12 Conference record following a 65-60 come back victory over Kansas State. The win extends the Tigers' home win streak to seven games on the season to mark their best home stand since 1987-88 when Mizzou won all nine of its home games. The loss drops K-State to 11-6 and 1-5 in league play.

The game was a struggle for the Tigers from the tip. K-State put itself on the board with a 3-pointer by Kim Woodlee--a shot that would prove troublesome for Missouri throughout the game. The Wildcats led through the entire first half taking its largest eight-point lead in the 12th minute. Missouri came back on a six-point run, but were unable to catch K-State in the first period.

Despite hitting only 33 percent in the first half, senior Amanda Lassiter scored 10 points. She also recorded a pair of assists, blocks and steals. Woodlee led Kansas State with 12 points making four 3-pointers.

The second half started off much like the first, with Kansas State pushing its lead and Missouri looking to catch up. The Tigers got tired of the race however, and turned up the volume to go on a nine-point run and take their first lead in the game 56-55 at 3:58. Senior Marlena Williams ignited Mizzou's rally. She had four-points, two rebounds and an assist within a two minute span to spark the Tigers. Heavy rebounding and solid defensive play by Mizzou put MU over the top for a hard fought 65-60 triumph.

Missouri had three players score in double digits. Lassiter led the team with 15 points, nine rebounds and three blocks. Sophomore guard Kerensa Barr scored 11 points, pulled down seven rebounds and recorded a career-high two blocks in the game. Williams scored 10 points overall with six rebounds and three assists and sophomore Wannette Smith played19 minutes and scored eight points shooting 67 percent from the field netting 4-of-6.

In the Record Books
? Senior Amanda Lassiter has set another Missouri record netting 38 3-point field goals in a single season. The previous record was set by Julie Helm during the 1996-97 season with 32. In conjunction, Lassiter also topped MU's record for 3-point field goal attempts in a single season with 106 (previously set by Stacy Williams with 100 in 1991-92).

? The Tigers tied a single-game team record for 3-point field goals made and topped the record for 3-pointers attempted against Iowa State. Missouri knocked down 10-of-25 shot from 3-point range against the Cyclones.

? Senior Tracy Franklin looks to break the single season record for highest 3-point field goal percentage. Franklin is shooting 40 percent from the 3-point arc hitting 24-of-60 shots. The record is held by Sandi Prophete who shot 41 percent (13-31) during the 1987-88 season. Adding to the competition, junior Natalie Bright is shooting 50 percent from 3-point range with 14-of-28 attempts.

Bringing Down the Boards
Freshman Evan Unrau recorded a career best 20 rebounds, including 11 offensive boards against Texas A&M. That marked the first time a Mizzou player has had 20 rebounds in a single game since the 1998 season when Kesha Bonds had 23 boards against Colorado. Unrau leads the Tigers with 53 offensive and 128 total rebounds on the season. She also tops the charts averaging 7.5 rebounds per game.

Seeing Double
Evan Unrau has posted four double-doubles in her inaugural year on the Mizzou squad. She scored a career-high 18 points and pulled down 13 rebounds against No. 12 Texas shooting 80 percent from the field (8-of-10) and 100 percent from the foul line.

The forward also recorded double-double games this year with 16 points and 20 rebounds against Texas A&M, 15 points and 10 rebounds against Southern Illinois and with 14 points and 13 rebounds against Illinois State.

Senior Amanda Lassiter has also posted four double-double games in 2000-2001. She led the day in MU's 68-52 victory over Texas with 22 points and 10 rebounds. She also recorded doubles against Arkansas (22-11), Kentucky (19-10) and San Diego State (31-11). *points-rebounds

Unrau Update
Evan Unrau has scored in double figures in six games, including her career- high 18 points against then No. 12 ranked Texas. She also scored 16 points against Wisconsin-Milwaukee shooting 6-for-7 from the field and 4-for-4 from the foul line against the Panthers. She pulled down a season-high 11 defensive boards against Arkansas and had nine offensive boards against Illinois State.

Unrau leads the Tigers shooting 60 percent from the field netting 61-of-101 attempts. The freshman has 10 games on the season shooting 60 percent or above, including a perfect game against Eastern Illinois (4-for-4). Unrau was 7-of-8 against Southern Illinois and also owns five perfect games from the free throw line.

Looking at Lassiter
Senior Amanda Lassiter leads the Tigers with 20.1 points and is second on the team with 7.3 rebounds per game. Lassiter has scored in double digits in all 17 games this season including setting a career-high with 31 points against San Diego State. She owns 10 games scoring 20 or more points including four of six conference games. She recorded 21 points against Texas Tech, 22 points against Texas, 28 points against Colorado and 21 points against No. 7 Iowa State.

The forward is second on the team with 124 rebounds, including a team-high 101 defensive boards. She also tops the team with 54 steals and is second with 66 assists.

Blocking Report
Lassiter has 45 blocks this season to lead the team and top the Big 12.

Lassiter set the single season blocked shot record as a junior last year with 69. She is currently ranked sixth in all-time blocks (114). She is just five blocks from moving into fifth-place to best Renee Kelly who recorded 118 blocks from 1984-87. She is averaging 2.6 blocks per game.

Watching Williams
Center/forward Marlena Williams is taking the Big 12 Conference by storm. In three league games this year she has posted season highs in points and rebounds. She had a career-high 24 points against Colorado hitting 10-of-19 from the field and 1-for-1 from 3-point range. She also had five assists in the game. Against Texas A&M, Williams came just one point (17) and one rebound (7) shy of tying her previous season marks. Against Texas, she had season-highs with eight rebounds and five steals. After a year plagued with foul trouble, she also posted a season best playing 34 minutes without a single foul.

The senior sparked Missouri's 65-60 come-from-behind victory over Kansas State scoring four points, two rebounds and an assist in two minutes of play. Before fouling out with 41 seconds left in the game, Williams scored 10 points, had six rebounds and three assists.

Williams has averaged over 10 points in the last 7-of-8 games, including her first +20 point game against the Buffaloes. She has also scored in double figures in 5-of-6 conference games. The center shot 75 percent against Wisconsin-Milwaukee hitting 6-for-8 shots from the field. She is also 3-5 on the season from 3-point range, hitting her first 3-pointer against Texas Tech. Williams is second on the team averaging 12.3 points per game

Bright Spot
Natalie Bright is proving her versatility in her new role on the Tigers' squad this year. The junior started 28-of-30 games she played in last season to average 7.3 points and come in second on the team with 86 assists.

This year, Bright has come off the bench as one of the key contributors. Against Iowa State the junior rejuvenated the teams efforts hitting two key 3-pointers. She scored eight points in the game and had two steals. Against Texas, she once again revamped the Tigers with five points and three rebounds in 14 minutes of play.

Bright hit double figures against Wisconsin-Milwaukee and Texas Tech. She had a perfect game against the Panthers hitting 4-for-4 from the field, 1-for-1 from 3-point range and 4-for-4 from the free throw line. In the conference opener against the Lady Raiders, Bright downed 3-for-4 from the field, was 2-for-3 from 3-point range and 5-for-5 from the foul line.

She is shooting 47 percent from the field overall and hits 50 percent from 3-point range. Bright is also a contributor from the free throw line with shooting 73 percent (24-33).

Barr Brief
Starting point guard Kerensa Barr is making a name for herself on the Mizzou hardwood as the floor leader. Barr recorded her fourth double-digit game of the season scoring 11 points against Kansas State. She also tied her season-high with seven rebounds. The sophomore leads the Tigers with 87 assists on the season. She averages 5.1 assists per game and hit her season high with nine against No. 7 Iowa State.

Barr is fifth on the team averaging 6.8 points and 5.0 rebounds per game. She is second on the team with 38 offensive rebounds and 25 steals.

Franklin Forecast
Guard Tracy Franklin recorded a career-high as a senior scoring 18 points against Eastern Illinois. She also hit season marks against Southern Illinois pulling down 11 rebounds and grabbing nine steals. In conference play, Franklin has slowly emerged from a four-game slump. She scored eight points against Colorado and hit her seventh double-digit game of the year against Iowa State with 11 points.

Franklin is third on the team averaging 9.5 points per game. She tops the charts shooting 40 percent from 3-point range (24-60). Franklin leads the Tigers with a .923 free throw percentage. She has hit 12-for-13 on the season. Her nine steals against SIU set a Big 12 season single-game record.

Tigers Got Game
Missouri (12-5) opened league competition with a 3-3 record to start Big 12 play with the best record in MU history.

In conference action, the Tigers are 3-0 on the home court defeating then No. 12 Texas (68-52), Texas A&M (69-61) and Kansas State (65-60). Missouri has suffered all three of its conference losses on the road, falling to Texas Tech (82-64) in Lubbock, Colorado (90-98) in Bolder and Iowa State (68-67) in Ames.

Mizzou averages 79.2 points per game with a +13.4 scoring margin.

Rebounding Report
Mizzou is averaging 42.8 rebounds per game, including a season high 59 boards against Texas A&M. Freshman Evan Unrau recorded 20 rebounds in the game, including 11 offensive boards.

The Tigers are keeping their opponents to just 38.1 rebounds per contest for a +4.7 rebounding margin. Missouri owns a season mark against the Texas Longhorns with 33 defensive rebounds.

Assist Average
The Tigers have dished out 292 assists so far this season to average 17.2 assists per game to top their opponents who only average 12.1 assists per outing. In their first five games this season, the Tigers out assisted their opponents 94-42. Missouri recorded 26 assists against Eastern Illinois (11/17) and 24 against Wisconsin-Milwaukee (12/30).

Block Breakdown
Missouri is topping the charts with 73 blocks on the year to average 4.6 blocks per game. MU's opponents have only knocked down 50 blocks this season. The Tigers have recorded 12 games in 2000-2001 with five or more blocks, including six against Pepperdine, Lipscomb, Illinois State, Colorado, Iowa State and Kansas State.

Although Texas A&M (86) and Colorado (77) lead the Big 12 in blocks this season, in their match-ups, the Tigers bested both the Aggies and Buffaloes. MU were 5-to-3 against TA&M and 6-to-4 against the Buffaloes.

Off the Bench
Missouri is relying heavily on the production of its bench this season. The MU bench corps has scored 359 of its 1,346 season points to average 21.1 points per game. In comparison, only 17.6 points per game were scored by the opponent's substitutions.

Conference Season Highs
Missouri is currently ranked sixth in the Big 12 Conference with a 3-3 league record. Texas Tech leads the pack with a 6-0 league record, but is closely followed by Iowa State that is 5-1 during conference play. Missouri is tied with Texas and Baylor in league games. In Big 12 statistics, Missouri ranks in the Top 40 percent in seven categories.

? The Tigers set a 2000-2001 season high hitting 42 field goals against Eastern Illinois. That mark ranks second in conference season records.

? Missouri went 14-for-14 from the free throw line against Kentucky to lead the Big 12 in single-game free throw percentage.

Tigers in the NCAA
Missouri is among the nation's leaders in several categories. In the most recent NCAA statistics released Jan. 22, Mizzou was ranked 16th in the nation with a 79.2 scoring average. The Tigers are 20th in 3-point field goals made (6.6) and are 23rd in 3-point field goal percentage (38.2). Senior Amanda Lassiter is ranked eighth in the country averaging 2.6 blocked shots per game. She is 18th in overall scoring.

Victory Margin
The Tigers 96-43 win over Lipscomb tops the season as MU's largest margin of victory. Mizzou has topped seven teams by more than 20 points, including a 47-point triumph over Eastern Illinois and a 35-point win over Kentucky.

Missouri is repeating history opening the 2000-2001 season with seven 20+ wins. In 1999-2000, the Tigers also recorded seven victories scoring 20 or more points over their opponents.

Tigers vs. Ranked Opponents
Missouri's 13-point triumph over then No. 12 Texas was the largest winning margin over a ranked team since the 1995-96 season when the Tigers defeated No. 20 Kansas 86-66. In the last six seasons, Missouri has claimed seven victories over ranked opponents, all in the Hearnes Center.

Mizzou in the Rankings
For the third week this season, the Tigers have received votes in the Associated Press Top 25 Poll. After defeating No. 12 Texas, Missouri received 18 votes from AP writers. After the Tiger's 90-98 loss to Colorado, MU dropped to four, but are back on the rise again with nine tallies after their 65-60 come-back victory over Kansas State.

The Tigers come in 40th in the NCAA Ratings Percentage Index, which ranks teams according to strength of schedule versus that of their opponents. Missouri was 63rd at the beginning of the season, but has climbed into the 40th slot. There are seven Big 12 schools ranked in the Top 50.

Hitting the Three
The Tigers have shot 40 percent or above from 3-point range in 12 of their 17 games. Missouri hit a season high 57 percent from the 3-point arc against San Diego State when the Tigers downed 8-of-14 attempts. Natalie Bright leads the Tigers from the 3-point arc shooting 50 percent (14-of-28). Tracy Franklin also posts an impressive 40 percent hitting 24-of-60 attempts. Center Marlena Williams broke out of her inside game to sink three 3s against conference opponents. She is shooting 60 percent from the 3-point arc with 3-for-5.

Topping Ten
Four Tiger athletes routinely hit double-figures, including Amanda Lassiter who is 17-for-17 and has yet to hit below 13-points in a game. Marlena Williams owns 13 double-digit games, including her career-high of 24 points. Tracy Franklin has seven double figure games and freshman Evan Unrau posts six. Franklin and Unrau hit career-highs with 18 points against Eastern Illinois and No. 12 Texas, respectively.

Making the Grade
The Tiger women's basketball team is proving they can get it done on and off the court. Junior Christa Millham, an elementary education major, was one of 25 Missouri athletes to post a perfect 4.0 grade point average for the 2000 fall semester. Joining Millham in the spotlight, seven other athletes were named to the Student-Athlete Dean's List: Kerensa Barr, Tracy Franklin, Amy Loftus, Tracy Lozier, Wendy Okeson, Evan Unrau and Terianne Wolford.

Tiger Cheering Section
The Missouri women's basketball program is on the rise and fans are taking notice. The Tigers began selling season tickets for the first time last year and recorded over 500 season purchases in 1999-2000. Midway through this season, Missouri has upped its season ticket numbers to over 800 holders. The Tigers averages 1,521 fans to rank 49th in the nation in women's basketball attendance. Missouri hit its season high in its Big 12 home opener against Texas when 2,422 fans populated the Hearnes Center for Toy Day. Missouri had its second largest crowd of the year when 2,062 fans cheered on the Tigers in their win over Kansas State.

Head to the Hearnes
The Tigers are looking to break new ground this season by packing the Hearnes Center during the MU-Kansas game on Sat., Feb. 10 at 3:00 p.m. Over 8,000 tickets for the event have already been sold. Tickets are just $1 and can be purchased from the Mizzou Ticket Office or by calling 1-800-CAT-PAWS or 884-PAWS in Columbia. Organizations looking to purchase group tickets please call the Missouri Group Sales Office at (573) 882-0710. Come out and help the Tigers pack the house.

Strength of Schedule
The 2000-2001 Missouri schedule is ranked in the top third of NCAA Division I schools by the WBCA/Summerville Women's Basketball pre-season poll.

Overall, the Tigers take on four teams ranked in the Top 25 and four schools currently receiving votes in the USA Today/ESPN Polls. The Tigers face No. 7 Iowa State, No. 8 Texas Tech, No. 13 Oklahoma and No. 18 Texas in Big 12 Conference action. MU also plays Baylor (16), Arkansas (15), Colorado (11) and Illinois.

In the Associated Press poll, Iowa State (7th), Texas Tech (9th), Oklahoma (12th), Texas (17th) and Colorado (25th) represent the Big 12 Conference. Arkansas, Baylor and Illinois all join Missouri receiving votes in the poll.

Also adding to Mizzou's schedule, the Tigers face nine teams that made post-season play in 1999-2000. Arkansas who advanced to the semifinals of the WNIT, Texas, Pepperdine, Nebraska and Kansas each traveled to the NCAA first round and Illinois was an NCAA second round participant. Iowa State and Oklahoma highlighted in the Sweet Sixteen and Texas Tech advanced to the Elite Eight.

Tiger Television
Catching all the action of Tiger women's basketball is now easier than ever, along with live radio coverage of every game on KFRU radio 1400 AM, six Mizzou games will be televised. Fox Sports Net and the Mizzou Sports Properties have each picked up three matches. This six game package offers the program the highest single season coverage to date.

Fox Sports Net is scheduled to cover two Tiger home games, including last Saturday's game against Kansas State and the Missouri-Kansas game Sat., Feb. 10. The network will also feature the Missouri-Baylor game in Waco, Texas, Sat., Feb. 17. All three games are scheduled to begin at 3:00 p.m.

Mizzou Sports Properties offered a similar package televising two home games and one from the road. MSP shot the Eastern Illinois game and Saint Louis game's in the Hearnes Center and the Iowa State game in Ames, Iowa.

Missouri on the Tube
The Tigers have had four games televised this season to post a 3-1 television record. Missouri defeated Eastern Illinois (106-59), Saint Louis (73-63) and Kansas State (65-60) and fell to Iowa State (68-67). The next televised game ffor MU is the Kansas game Sat., Feb. 10 at 3:00 p.m.

Special Promotions
The Missouri men's and women's golf teams are sponsoring a clothing drive that will benefit the Wardrobe. Anyone wishing to donate clothes can drop them off at A.L. Gustin Golf Course starting Mon., Jan. 29.

The Tiger women's team is working in conjunction with the charity. Anyone that brings used clothing to the Hearnes Center on Wed., Jan. 31 at 7:00 p.m. will get into the Iowa State for just $2.