Feb. 8, 2001

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Up Next
The University of Missouri women's basketball team faces Kansas Saturday in the game heralded as MU's season extravaganza. The Tigers play the Jayhawks at 3:00 p.m., in the Hearnes Center. Missouri looks to break new ground during the game by packing Hearnes to capacity and setting a new MU attendance record.

Mizzou continues with a two-game home stand when they host the Nebraska Cornhuskers Wed., Feb. 13 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.

Head to the Hearnes
The Tigers are looking to make history by packing the Hearnes Center during the MU-KU game. Tickets for the event are just $1 and can be purchased at the Hearnes Center Ticket Office. Over 12,000 tickets are have been purchased.

The second annual Head to the Hearnes promotion was kicked off last season. Missouri set the single-game home attendance record in 1999-2000 when 6,227 fans cheered for the Tigers against Oklahoma.

"The team is very excited to play in a packed house," Head Coach Cindy Stein said. "We've challenged some of the nation's best in the Hearnes Center and we're pumped up about getting our name out there."

Missouri vs. Kansas
Missouri (14-7) continues Big 12 Conference action after its second come-from-behind over Kansas State. The Tiger women's basketball team became the first Mizzou team to triumph over Kansas State in Manhattan, Kan., in the 2000-2001 season. Mizzou defeated the Wildcats 63-54 to post a 5-5 league record. The Tigers faced K-State coming off losses to No. 10 Oklahoma (82-62) and No. 7 Iowa State (73-63). In conference play, four of Mizzou's losses have been to Top 15 competitors. The Tigers have defeated one ranked team in then No. 12 Texas (68-52).

Kansas is 9-12 with a 3-7 conference mark. The Jayhawks defeated Kansas State twice (78-67, 65-62) and picked up their third victory over Texas (70-60) in Austin.

The Tigers look to continue solid play on the boards. Missouri is third in the league averaging 15.48 offensive rebounds per game. MU is also sixth with 26.38 defensive boards. Overall, the Tigers average 41.9 rebounds per game and maintain a +2.6 rebounding margin over its opponents. Kansas averages just 12.81 offensive boards and comes in 12th in the Big 12 with 22.95 defensive rebounds per contest. The Jayhawks have yet to play a Big 12 game with more than 35 rebounds. Missouri has greatly improved its turnover ratio during Big 12 play. MU forced 20 Iowa State turnovers while giving up just eight in its last meeting (1/31). The Tigers opened conference play with 26 turnovers to Texas Tech. Since then however, Missouri has recorded eight games with less than 15 including back-to-back games with just eight turnovers. In Big 12 games, MU is sixth in the league averaging a 0.94 assist to turnover ratio. The Tigers are also fifth with a +3.24 turnover margin. Missouri averages 19.1 points per game from opponent turnovers. In comparison, Kansas posts a 0.88 assist to turnover ratio and is 10th in the league with a -0.6 turnover margin.

Scouting the Jayhawks
Kansas is led by three players averaging double digits, Jaclyn Johnson leads the Jayhawks with 16.3 points per game and is second on the team with 7.4 rebounds per contest. She is shooting 51 percent from the field netting 124-of-245 attempts. She also leads the team with 19 blocks and 48 steals on the year. Johnson is ninth in the Big 12 in overall scoring and rebounding.

Brooke Reves is leads Kansas with 7.5 boards and is second with 14.2 points per game. She is 11th in the Big 12 in scoring and eighth in rebounding. Jennifer Jackson rounds out the trio with 10.3 points and 3.3 rebounds per game.

Kansas is third in the Big 12 averaging 18.24 assists per game. The Jayhawks have four players on its roster averaging more than 2.6 assists per game, including Jackson, KC Hilgenkamp and Selena Scott that each average over three assists per outing. Kansas is also third in the league with a .461 field goal percentage--four of KU's players shoot 45 percent or above.

The Jayhawks were 20-10 last season with a 11-5 Big 12 Conference record to finish fourth in league standings. Kansas traveled to the NCAA first round where they were knocked out by Vanderbilt in a 71-69 heartbreaker. Marian Washington is in her 28th season as head coach of the Jayhawks.

Series Shorts
The MU-KU series began in 1974 in the Turkey Tournament. As members of the Big Eight Conference, the Tigers and Jayhawks continued the rivalry. Over the past 25 years, Kansas has come to dominate the series 31-24, including a six-game win streak from 1997-2000 before the Tigers defeated the Jayhawks 65-62 last season.

Last Time Against Kansas
Game #17
Missouri lost to the Kansas Jayhawks 90-71. The 23rd-ranked Jayhawks shot a sizzling 54.2 percent from the floor and forced 26 Missouri turnovers.

Kansas dominated the first 10 minutes of the game jumping out to a 20-4 lead. Seemingly done for, the Tigers clawed back and went on 21-9 run to cut the Kansas lead to 29-25 at the 3:53 mark.

Kansas shot 54.8 percent in the second half and never allowed Missouri to get closer than 11 points. Brooke Reves tossed in a career-high 28 points on 12-of-15 shooting for the Jayhawks while All-American Lynn Pride added 19 points. The Tigers, who played extremely hard in the second half, had four players post double-figures led by Marlena Williams with 16 points. Amy Monsees added 15 points and nine rebounds while Julie Helm had 12 points and Natalie Bright scored 10.

Game #25
Missouri and Kansas fought through five lead changes in the final five minutes of the game before Mizzou came out on top 65-62 over the 24th-ranked Jayhawks. The win was Missouri's second victory over a ranked opponent this month. Texas Tech fell victim to the Tigers on Feb. 8.

Missouri's seniors led the way paced by Julie Helm's 22 points and five rebounds. Helm connected on two 3-point field goals making her the all-time three-point shooter (117) in Mizzou history. Helm finished the night 10-for-12 from the floor.

Fellow senior Amy Monsees added 15 points and a game-high nine rebounds for the Tigers. It was a defensive play by Monsees that may have sealed the win. Kansas fed the ball into All-American Lynn Pride with ten seconds left in the game. Monsees sneaked in from behind to poke the ball away and force a jump ball with the alternate possession arrow pointing Missouri's way.

Amanda Lassiter ended the game with four blocked shots, breaking a single-season record for blocks (62) formerly held by Lisa Sandbothe.

Missouri Defeats Kansas State for Second Time
Missouri found a second half surge to once again overpower Kansas State. The Tigers pulled out their second come-from-behind victory against the Wildcats with a 63-54 topper. The win boosts Mizzou to 14-7 with a 5-5 mark in the Big 12 Conference. It is the first athletic event a Missouri team has won in Manhattan, Kan., during the 2000-2001 season.

The game got off to a slow start with both teams struggling to score in the first two minutes of play. MU senior Tracy Franklin knocked down a 3-pointer to get the game going. Missouri rallied an eight-point lead on the momentum, but quickly lost steam. Kim Woodlee and Nicole Ohlde scored seven points to bridge the gap and eventually take the lead. The Tigers posted good defense, but couldn't get their shots to drop. MU repeatedly ran down the Wildcat's shot clock forcing hustled attempts to keep K-State from scoring for three minutes. During that time however, Missouri only scored four points to end the half with a 26-23 deficit--its lowest scoring half all season.

The second period started off much like the first, with both teams slow to start. Solid defense and production from Missouri's bench proved to be the key to the half. Junior Wendy Okeson and freshman Tracy Lozier came in to score seven points and bring the Tigers within four, 43-39. The hammer in the coffin for K-State, however, was the efforts of MU's senior class that scored 22 of the Tigers' last 24 points to give the Tigers the 63-54 victory.

Despite beginning the game shooting just 32 percent, the Tigers came back to shoot 61.9 percent from the field and 50 percent from 3-point range in the second period. Missouri shot 44.9 percent overall.

All three Missouri seniors scored in double digits. Amanda Lassiter led the team with 18 points, six rebounds and six steals. Franklin was second scoring 15 points, including three 3-pointers and Marlena Williams recorded 12 points in the game.

In the Record Books
? Senior Amanda Lassiter has set another Missouri record netting 43 3-point field goals in a single season. Julie Helm set the previous record 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 124 (previously set by Stacy Williams with 100 in 1991-92). She ranks third in MU record books with 79 career 3-pointers.

? 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.

? The Tigers set a season single-game team record with 12 blocked shots against Nebraska. The standing record was set in 1983-84 when Missouri had 14 blocked shots against Iowa State.

? Junior Natalie Bright looks to break the single season record for highest 3-point field goal percentage. Bright is shooting 43 percent from the 3-point arc hitting 15-of-35 shots. Also in contention, senior Tracy Franklin is shooting 41 percent from 3-point range. She has netted 32-of-78 3-point attempts this season and ranks11th in the Big 12 in 3-point field goal percentage. The record is held by Sandi Prophete who shot 41 percent (13-31) during the 1987-88 season.

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).

Both Unrau and Lassiter are tied for fifth in the conference in double-double games. Baylor's Danielle Crockrom leads the pack with 14 double-doubles and Iowa State's Angie Welle is second with 11 double bracket outings.

Looking at Lassiter
Senior Amanda Lassiter leads the Tigers with 19.8 points and is second on the team with 7.1 rebounds per game. Lassiter has scored in double digits in all 21 games this season including setting a career-high with 31 points against San Diego State. She owns 12 games scoring 20-or-more points including 6-of-10 conference games. She recorded 21 points against Texas Tech, 22 points against Texas, 28 points against Colorado, 21 and 20 points against No. 7 Iowa State and 27 points versus Nebraska.

The forward is second on the team with 149 rebounds, including a team-high 117 defensive boards. She also tops the Tigers with 67 steals and is second with 53 assists.

Blocking Report
Lassiter has 57 blocks this season to lead the team and top the Big 12. Her six blocks against Nebraska set the Big 12 Conference 2000 single-game high. Lassiter set the Missouri single-game high with seven against Western Kentucky last year and set the single-season blocked shots record as a junior with 69. She moves up as Missouri's third all-time blocker (126) to top Nikki Smith who had 125 blocks from 1992-95. Her season mark also ranks third in season-blocked shots, just 12 away from her record high. Lassiter is the only athlete appearing in the Top 10 who has played under three years. She is averaging 2.71 blocks per game.

In the NCAA
Lassiter continues to top the charts as one of the country's finest players. According to the latest NCAA statistics released Feb. 6., the senior is ranked sixth in the nation in blocked shots and is 24th in overall scoring.

Watching Williams
Center/forward Marlena Williams is taking the Big 12 Conference by storm. In four 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 Iowa State last Wednesday, Williams led the team with 20 points to record her second highest career mark. She came just one point (17) and one rebound (7) shy of tying her previous season marks against Texas A&M and had season-highs with eight rebounds and five steals against Texas.

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 9-of-11 games, including two +20 point games against Colorado and Iowa State. She has also scored in double figures in 7-of-10 conference games. Williams is second on the team averaging 12.2 points per game. She also has 11 blocks on the year.

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 56.6 percent from the field netting 69-of-122 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.

Bringing Down the Boards
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 62 offensive and 153 total rebounds on the season. She also tops the charts averaging 7.3 rebounds per game.

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 (1/20). She also tied her season-high with seven rebounds. The sophomore leads the Tigers with 104 assists on the year. Barr is just eight dishes away from appearing in the MU top 10 in season assists (Amy Fordham is 10th with 112 assists during the 1991-92 season). Barr averages 4.95 assists per game and hit her season-high with nine against No. 7 Iowa State (1/17). She has 203 career assists to date.

Barr is fifth on the team averaging 6.1 points and 5.0 rebounds per game. She is second on the team with 42 offensive rebounds and 33 steals.

Franklin Forecast
Guard Tracy Franklin scored a career-high 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 slump. She scored eight points against Colorado and hit her seventh double-digit game of the year against Iowa State with 11 points (1/17). Against Nebraska, she scored seven points and pulled down six rebounds. In her second match-up against the Cyclones, Franklin scored eight points and grabbed two steals. The senior as second on the team with 11 points against No. 10 Oklahoma and 15 points against Kansas State (2/7).

Franklin is third on the team averaging 9.7 points per game. She tops the charts hitting 32-of-78 shots from 3-point range. Franklin leads the Tigers with a .850 free throw percentage. Her nine steals against SIU set a Big 12 Conference 2000 season single-game record.

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 (1/17) the junior rejuvenated the team's 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.

The junior has started two games this season against Nebraska and Iowa State (1/31). She scored four points for the Tigers with six rebounds, three assists and three steals against the Huskers. Bright scored nine points and pulled down four boards against the Cyclones.

Bright is shooting 43 percent from the field overall and from 3-point range. She averages 5.2 points and 2.5 rebounds per game. She also has 47 assists on the season and five blocks.

Tigers Got Game
Missouri (14-7) are halfway through Big 12 Conference toting a 5-5 record. The Tigers got off to its best conference start in history this season taking wins over Texas, Texas A&M, Kansas State and Nebraska.

In conference action, the Tigers are 3-1 on the home court defeating then No. 12 Texas (68-52), Texas A&M (69-61) and Kansas State (65-60). Missouri has suffered four of its conference losses on the road, falling to Texas Tech (82-64) in Lubbock, Colorado (98-90) in Boulder, Iowa State (68-67) in Ames and Oklahoma (82-62) in Norman. The Tigers' only home loss this season was to Iowa State, 73-63 (1/31).

Mizzou averages 76.1 points per game with a +Texas (21st) represent the Big 12 Conference. Arkansas and Oklahoma State all join Missouri (2) receiving votes in the poll.

Rebounding Report
Mizzou is averaging 41.9 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 39.2 rebounds per contest for a +2.6 rebounding margin. Missouri owns a season mark against the Texas Longhorns with 33 defensive rebounds. The Tigers pulled down 26 offensive boards against Texas A&M for the season-high.

Assist Average
The Tigers have dished out 338 assists so far this season to average 16.1 assists per game to top their opponents who only average 12.3 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 101 blocks on the year to average 4.8 blocks per game. MU's opponents have only knocked down 60 blocks this season. The Tigers have recorded 13 games in 2000-2001 with five or more blocks, including their season-high 12 blocks against Nebraska. Missouri has also knocked down six blocks against Pepperdine, Lipscomb, Illinois State, Colorado, Iowa State and Kansas State.

Colorado leads the conference with 108 blocked shots, Texas A&M is second with 103 and Missouri comes in third. In their match-ups against Texas A&M and Colorado, the Tigers bested both the Aggies (5-to-3) and Buffaloes (6-to-4).

Conference Season Highs
Missouri is currently tied for fifth in the Big 12 Conference with a 5-5 league record. Iowa State, Texas Tech and Oklahoma hold a three-way tie with 9-1 conference records. Colorado is third with a 7-3 league mark. MU is tied in fifth with Texas. In Big 12 statistics, Missouri ranks in the Top 50 percent in 10 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 had a season mark with 12 blocked shots against Nebraska to rank second in the league.

? 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
In the most recent NCAA statistics released Feb. 6, Mizzou was 22nd in the nation with 6.4 3-point field goals made per game. Senior Amanda Lassiter also tops the charts as the country's sixth leading blocker. She is also 24th in overall scoring.

Victory Margin
The Tigers' 96-43 win over Lipscomb tops the season as MU's largest margin of victory. The biggest margin an MU team has won by is 98 points versus Bethany College in 1977.

Mizzou has defeated seven teams this year 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 this 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.

Off the Bench
Missouri is relying heavily on the production of its bench this season. The MU bench corps has scored 424 of its 1,599 season points to average 20.2 points per game. In comparison, only 16.5 points per game were scored by the opponent's substitutions.

The Tigers bench crew came in to add valuable support in MU's victory over Kansas State Wednesday. Wendy Okeson (4), Terianne Wolford (5) and Tracy Lozier (3) all played valuable minutes for the Tigers.

Mizzou in the Rankings
For the fourth 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. Following their come-back victory over Kansas State and 65-60 triumph over Nebraska, the Tigers received 13 votes. With losses to two ranked teams, MU makes the Top 50 with two votes.

The Tigers come in 41st 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, and climbed into the 35th slot after their one-point loss to ISU. 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 20 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 43 percent (15-of-35). Tracy Franklin is shooting 41 percent hitting 32-of-78 attempts. Franklin scored 15 points for the Tigers against Kansas State (2/7) hitting 3-for-5 from the 3-point arc. Center Marlena Williams broke out of her inside game to sink three 3s against conference opponents. She is shooting 43 percent from the 3-point arc with 3-for-7.

Topping Ten
Four Tiger athletes routinely hit double figures, including Amanda Lassiter who is 21-for-21. She scored a career-high 31 points against San Diego State. Marlena Williams owns 15 double-digit games, including two 20-point games. She scored a career-high 24 points against Colorado and 20 points against Iowa State (1/31). Tracy Franklin has nine 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 an athletic department-high with a 3.82 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 average 1,663 fans to rank 47th in the nation in women's basketball attendance. Missouri has boosted its season high with each Big 12 Conference game. In the home opener against Texas, 2,422 fans populated the Hearnes Center for Toy Day. Missouri had its third-largest crowd of the year when 2,062 fans cheered on the Tigers in their win over Kansas State. Missouri hit a new season high against Iowa State (1/31) with 2,654 spectators.

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 five teams ranked in the Top 25 and three schools currently receiving votes in the USA Today/ESPN Polls. The Tigers face No. 7 Iowa State, No. 10 Texas Tech, No. 11 Oklahoma, No. 20 Texas and No. 24 Colorado in Big 12 Conference action. MU also plays Baylor (34), Arkansas (8), Illinois (5) and Pepperdine (4).

In the Associated Press poll, Iowa State (9th), Oklahoma (10th), Texas Tech (11th) and Texas (21st) represent the Big 12 Conference. Arkansas and Oklahoma State all join Missouri (2) receiving votes in the poll.