Feb. 18, 2003
| TIPOFF: 7:00 p.m. CST. | ||||
| ARENA: Hearnes Center (13,611). Opened in 1972. MU is 269-90 (.749) here alltime, including 28-25 in Big 12 Conference play. | ||||
| RADIO: Available over the Tiger Network [KFRU-AM 1400, flagship]. David Lile, play-by-play/Gary Link, color. Also available on the Internet at www.mutigers.com. | ||||
| TV: None. | ||||
| COACHES: | ||||
| Missouri: Cindy Stein (Illinois '84), 80-61 at MU (5th season), 144-86 overall (8th season).
Kansas State: Deb Patterson (Rockford [Ill.] '79), 120-86 at KSU and overall (7th season). |
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MIZZOU GOES FOR SERIES SPLIT WITH TOP-5 WILDCATS
The Missouri women's basketball team, which is riding a three-game winning streak and has won seven of its last nine games, goes for its first win over a top-5 opponent since beating Georgia in the 2001 NCAA Sweet Sixteen when No. 5 Kansas State comes to the Hearnes Center Wednesday night.
? ? ? The Tigers are coming off a 61-55 win over archrival Kansas on FOX Sports Net, while Kansas State has won five straight - including a 68-52 decision over the Tigers in Manhattan on Feb. 5 - after beating Oklahoma State on Saturday.
? ? ? The Wildcats enter the game tied for the Big 12 Conference lead with 10th-ranked Texas, while the Tigers are in sole possession of fifth, three games back.
ABOUT KANSAS STATE...
Seventh-year mentor Deb Patterson has her Wildcats tied for the Big 12 Conference lead along with Texas, and the fifth-ranked Wildcats hold the tiebreaker over the Longhorns for the title should those two finish atop the league standings.
? ? ? The Wildcats' lone league loss came at Iowa State at the beginning of the month, yet K-State has resumed its winning ways with a five-game streak entering Wednesday's tilt.
? ? ? Sophomore F Kendra Wecker and junior C Nicole Ohlde continue to pile up All-America-caliber numbers, as Wecker continues to lead the Big 12 in scoring (19.8) ppg while her 8.7 rebounding average is third in the league. Ohlde is averaging 18.5 points and 8.6 rebounds per game, which rank her third and fourth, respectively, in the Big 12.
? ? ? Sophomore G Laurie Koehn, who led the nation in 3-pointers last year, has sat out the last five games with a nagging foot injury. She still is second in the league with 49 3-point baskets made; Koehn sank a Big 12-record 10 treys in a game earlier this season.
KSU SERIES...
Missouri owns a slim 31-30 advantage over the Wildcats in the all-time series after Kansas State has won the last three meetings - all as a top-25 squad - while the Tigers had won the previous four games. Kansas State has scored 30 more points (4,198-4,168) in the 61-game series.
? ? ? In Columbia, Mizzou leads by an 18-7 margin.
LAST TIME OUT: MU 61, KANSAS 55
Junior forward Evan Unrau led three Tigers in double-figure scoring with 18 points, and hit a pair of free throws to stave off a last-minute Kansas comeback to lead the Missouri women to a 61-55 win over Border War rival Kansas before a FOX Sports Net national audience Saturday afternoon.
MAKING A CASE FOR MIZZOU
Folks may take a look at the Tigers' 13-9 overall record, their 7-4 mark in Big 12 play or their current RPI in the 70's, and write Mizzou off from NCAA Tournament consideration. Given where they stand at the moment - using the "If the Season Ended Today" clich? - those folks might be right.
? ? ? Yet take a closer look at the Tigers' Big 12 results, and you'll notice that of Mizzou's four losses, its last three have come against national top-10 heavyweights Texas, Texas Tech and Kansas State. The fourth loss, at Baylor, came on the road in the first Big 12 game of the season on Jan. 8.
? ? ? Missouri has won seven of its last nine, and is in sole possession of fifth place in the Big 12, just one game behind Colorado - a team the Tigers dismantled by 19 points on Feb. 2 in Columbia. Mizzou also controls its destiny against both teams in the race for the fourth and final first-round bye for the Big 12 Tournament, as they will play them back-to-back on the road - at CU this Saturday, and at OU next Wednesday.
BARR CLIMBING CAREER CHARTS
Senior guard Kerensa Barr, who is expected to make the 86th start of her career on Saturday, became the 22nd member of Missouri's 1,000-point club after her 15-point performance against Oklahoma State on Jan. 25. She has played in each of Missouri's 112 games over her four-year career, and is 20 points from passing Debbie Walker (1980-83) for 19th place on the Tiger scoring chart; she passed former teammate Amanda Lassiter (2000-01) two weeks ago against KSU.
? ? ? With her eight assists against Illinois on Dec. 21, Barr moved past Dee Dee Polk as Missouri's No. 2 all-time assist leader. She added five assists against No. 20 Texas on Jan. 11, making her the 10th player in Big 12 history to record 400 career assists. She is 29 away from breaking Amy Fordham's school record. With six games guaranteed to remain on the Tigers' schedule, Barr needs to average roughly 4.9 assists per game to surpass Fordham's mark.
? ? ? Barr is already a member of MU's career top-5 lists in 3-point field goals made and attempted, as well as steals after passing Sandie Prophete (1986-89) with her 200th career pick Jan. 8 at Baylor. She just passed Carla Yancey (1988-91) for second on the list on Saturday at Kansas. Barr is just the fifth player in Big 12 history to record 400 assists and 200 steals in a career.
? ? ? Finally, Barr is currently percentage points ahead of Julie Helm as Mizzou's most accurate free-throw shooter in school history (79.87 percent). If she sinks 80 percent or more of her remaining free throws, Barr will finish as the record-holder.
UNRAU ... AND HOW!
That would likely be the reaction from Spanky, the chubby-cheeked member of the Little Rascals gang regarding the play of junior forward Evan Unrau. The honorable mention All-Big 12 member from 2001-02 has been racking up double-doubles left and right, yet it is her back-to-back season-high scoring totals - 23 points at Nebraska on Saturday, followed by 26 on Wednesday vs. Iowa State - that is taking center stage now. Both performances became the highest single-game scoring outputs of any Tiger this season.
? ? ? Unrau posted her seventh double-double of the season - and third straight - after her 20-point, 10-rebound effort against Oklahoma State on Jan. 28. It followed performances of 11 points and 12 rebounds against Nebraska and 21 points and 11 rebounds at Iowa State.
? ? ? Unrau's seven double-doubles are the fifth-highest total in the league, and her four double-doubles in conference play is just one behind Kansas State's Kendra Wecker.
? ? ? Unrau has led the Tigers in scoring 15 times this season. Her totals of 15.8 points and 7.9 rebounds both lead the team.
? ? ? She is ranked among the Big 12 leaders in six different categories: scoring (9th), rebounding (7th), field-goal percentage (12th, .487), steals (14th, 1.68), offensive rebounds (4th, 3.18) and defensive rebounds (13th, 4.73).
ADD UNRAU - 1,000 POINTS?
With a solid stretch run, Unrau will join Barr as the most recent members of the 1,000-point club by the end of the season.
? ? ? Unrau is just 63 points from the plateau, which would make her the 23rd member of the group at Mizzou. With at least six games remaining, the honorable mention All-Big 12 member from a year ago needs to average 10.5 points per game to reach the mark before the end of her junior year.
JAMES STRETCHES OUT
Junior forward Stretch James, who earned JUCO All-America honors at Tyler (Texas) JC before arriving in Columbia this fall, has adjusted well to the rigors of the Big 12, and it appears that she shines brightest under the TV lights.
? ? ? She recorded her second double-double of the season on Saturday at Kansas, hitting for 15 points and a Missouri career-high 13 rebounds. That came on the heels of her 14-11 double-double on Feb. 2 in the Tigers' upset of Colorado. Both games came in nationally televised tilts on FOX Sports Net.
? ? ? James has scored in double figures in seven of the last nine games, and 11 overall this season. She recently had a streak of five straight such games.
? ? ? James tallied a Missouri career-high 18 points and added a season-best three assists in the game against Nebraska on Jan. 22; she added 15 points in the win over Oklahoma State the following Saturday, and had a team-high 16 at No. 8 Texas Tech on Jan. 28. Her double-figure streak started with a 10-point outing in the win at Iowa State on Jan. 19.
? ? ? In Big 12 Conference play, James is averaging 10.9 points and 6.2 rebounds per game, which are third and second, respectively, on the team. That follows her season totals (9.6 ppg / 5.3 rpg), which are both third on the squad.
GLANCES STOLEN
Senior guard Kerensa Barr had seven steals for the second time in three games on Dec. 11 at Northern Iowa; she now has a team-high 57 on the year. She also had seven picks against McNeese State on Dec. 6.
? ? ? Barr's 2.59 steals-per-game average is the second-highest total in the Big 12 Conference.
? ? ? For the season, Barr is averaging 11.7 points, 4.0 rebounds and 5.1 assists per game. Those totals rank her second, fourth, and first, respectively, on the team this year.
? ? ? Barr is ranked among the Big 12's leaders in seven different individual categories: scoring (20th), assists (6th, 5.09); free-throw percentage (8th, 82.0%); steals (2nd, 2.48); 3-point FG percentage (12th, 35.4%); 3-point FG per game (12th, 1.32); and assist-to-turnover ratio (10th, 1.3).
TIGERS HIGH ON LOZIER
Early in the season, some questioned the decision to start junior guard Tracy Lozier because of her perceived lack of offensive firepower. In addition to her defensive prowess, leadership, and steady, consistent play, Lozier found her shot in a big way on Dec. 11 at Northern Iowa, and has continued her offensive prowess since.
? ? ? Lozier was averaging under 5 points per game coming into the UNI game, yet she poured in a career-high 19 points in the Tigers' win, hitting six of her seven field-goal attempts and all five of her 3-point tries.
? ? ? Lozier has shown that that performance was no fluke, as she has scored in double figures in three of the last four games, and nine times overall.
? ? ? For the season, Lozier is fourth on the squad with an 9.0 points-per-game average. She also is second on the team with 63 assists (2.8 apg) and third with 36 steals (1.6 spg).
? ? ? In conference games only, Lozier is second in the Big 12 with her 2.1-to-1 assist-to-turnover ratio. Lozier is also ranked among the Big 12 leaders in conference-only games in 3-point FG percentage (6th, 40.7%); 3-pointers made per game (3rd, 2.00) and assists per game (11th, 3.18).
FISHER GOES DOUBLE-DIPPING
Junior F/C Melanie Fisher put together back-to-back excellent offensive games against Nebraska and Oklahoma State, making 10-of-11 shots in the two games on her way to scoring 10 and a career-high-tying 14 points, respectively.
? ? ? Those two games were her first in double figures since her previous season high of 13 vs. Bradley on Nov. 26.
? ? ? Against Nebraska, Fisher was 4-of-4 from the field and made both of her free throws to get the 10 points; she added six rebounds, two assists, a block and a steal. Against the Cowgirls, Fisher was 6-of-7 with six rebounds.
? ? ? For the season, Fisher is averaging 5.5 points (fifth on team) and 5.8 rebounds, which is second only to Evan Unrau. In addition, Fisher has led the team in steals six times this season. Her 34 are fourth on the team.