Jan. 1, 2004
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| TIPOFF: 7 p.m. CST. | ||||
| ARENA: Hearnes Center (13,611). MU is 277-96 (.743) here alltime, including 168-36 (.824) vs. non-conference opponents and 32-4 (.889) in those games under Cindy Stein. | ||||
| RADIO: KFRU-AM 1400 (David Lile, play-by-play/Gary Link, color). Also available on the Internet at www.mutigers.com. | ||||
| TV: None. | ||||
| SERIES: This is the first meeting between the two teams. Mizzou is 3-0 all-time against members of the Mid-American Conference, defeating Toledo, Northern Illinois, and most recently, Ball State in last year's second round of the WNIT. | ||||
| RANKINGS: Neither team is ranked nor receiving votes. | ||||
| COACHES: | ||||
| Missouri: Cindy Stein (Illinois '84), 91-68 at MU (sixth season) and 156-93 overall (ninth season).
Miami: Maria Fantanarosa (Miami '90), 87-65 at MU (sixth season) and 94-85 overall (seventh season). |
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TIGERS LOOK TO START NEW YEAR OFF WITH A BANG
The Missouri women's basketball team (7-2) seeks a festive start to the New Year when the Tigers host Miami [Ohio] (6-4) Friday night at the Hearnes Center. The contest will conclude a two-game homestand, and will be the final regular-season non-conference game at the Hearnes Center. It's also the middle game of a stretch this week that sees the Tigers play three games in six days. Mizzou plays at Saint Louis on Sunday.
? ? ? Mizzou's coming off a solid 10-point win vs. Iowa on Tuesday afternoon in a game which saw a career performance from sophomore point guard LaToya Bond.
MORE ON MIAMI
The RedHawks enter Friday night's game as winners of five of their last six games, including three in a four-game homestand that just concluded with a 12-point win over Valparaiso Tuesday night. That has turned around what had been a tough 1-3 start, with all three losses coming on the road at Michigan, Virginia Tech and California - teams that are currently a combined 25-9.
? ? ? Miami's led by junior forward Colleen Day, who is averaging 14.4 points and 8.4 rebounds a game. The RedHawks have five players averaging 9.8 ppg or more.
? ? ? There are a couple of connections - one legitimate, a couple of others shaky - between Mizzou and Miami. Head Coach Cindy Stein was an assistant at Miami in the 1987-88 season, when the Redskins - Miami's former nickname - finished second in the MAC. One of Stein's players on that 1988 team was current RedHawk coach Maria Fantanarosa. Former Mizzou assistant director of marketing Greg Herring, who was responsible for the promotional efforts for the women's basketball team last year, is a 1999 graduate of "the other" MU; and finally, we'd be remiss without adding that the writer's girlfriend, Miss Carla Millard, was a former star student assistant in the 1990's in the Miami sports information office before retiring from the field (and more importantly, moving to Columbia) last year.
LAST TIME OUT: MIZZOU 75, IOWA 65
LaToya Bond had a career afternoon in leading the Mizzou women to a solid 75-65 win over Iowa Tuesday at the Hearnes Center. Bond set or tied career highs with 20 points, seven rebounds and nine assists, and also had four steals. The nine assists are the most since Kerensa Barr tallied nine against UW-Green Bay three years ago to the day.
BIG 12 TOPS IN CURRENT CONFERENCE RPI
The Big 12 leads the country in conference RPI in the WBCA/Summerville Conference RPI rankings through the games of Dec. 28. The Big 12 also leads the nation in non-conference winning percentage with an .809 mark.
? ? ? The Big 12 is the only conference in the country that has its entire membership above .500. In addition, the league is a combined 59-5 on its home floors this season.
TIGERS SWATTING SHOTS AT A NATION-LEADING RATE
While it can be debated whether it is the product of good defense, or merely as a defense mechanism, this is not for debate: No one in the country is blocking shots at a higher rate than the Mizzou women, according to the NCAA. NOTE: Rankings have not been updated since prior to the Tigers' game at Evansville.
? ? ? The Tigers have swatted 64 shots in their first nine games, an average of 7.1 a contest. Big 12 colleague Oklahoma State is second at 7.1 bpg, followed by Jackson State and New Mexico.
? ? ? The Tigers are well ahead of a pace that would break the current school record of 128, set in 1999-2000.
? ? ? Mizzou is ranked in the top 25 (out of 324 Division I schools) in three other categories: Scoring Offense (80.1 ppg / 13th); Scoring Margin (+22.1 ppg / 14th); and Rebound Margin (+9.4 rpg / 23rd).
? ? ? Two Tiger seniors are ranked individually among the nation's leaders. Stretch James leads the Big 12, and is 14th in the country, in blocked shots (2.9 bpg). Evan Unrau has made half of her 28 3-point field-goal tries, which ranks her 18th in the country.
PERKINS REJOINS TIGERS
Senior guard MyEsha Perkins (Detroit, Mich. / Oak Park HS / Trinity [Texas] JC) has provided extra scoring punch in the two games she's played since becoming eligible on Dec. 19.
? ? ? Perkins, who was academically ineligible for the fall semester, has hit on seven of her first 10 shots this season, including a 5-for-7 showing against Iowa on Tuesday on her way to 11 points. Her best game as a Tiger last season also came against the Hawkeyes, when she netted a team-high 16 points with three 3-pointers.
? ? ? Last season, Perkins was sixth on the team in scoring at 4.4 points per game.
A PUBLIC-SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENT
This note is simply a reminder to everyone to write "2004" on your check purchases. According to the Elias Stats Bureau, the average American writes 2.3 checks before remembering to write the correct year once the calendar has flipped.
BOND MAKING HER POINT(S) AT THE POINT
Sophomore point guard LaToya Bond (Urbana, Ill. / Urbana HS) has adjusted well to taking the reigns at the point-guard position for the Tigers this season. A year removed from a support role behind all-everything Kerensa Barr, Bond has seized the spotlight this season with her status as the MU's third-leading scorer (12.9 ppg).
? ? ? Another dazzling performance on Tuesday against Iowa is the latest example. Bond went off for career highs of 20 points, nine assists and a career-high-tying seven rebounds, and added four steals, which was just one off her best ever. The nine assists were the most since Barr had the same number exactly three years previous to the day, against UW-Green Bay.
? ? ? Bond made her first collegiate start at Bradley on Nov. 23, scoring a game-high 17 points, including an impressive 11-of-12 showing from the free-throw line; she added four steals against the Braves. She scored in double figures again Nov. 26 vs. Southern, tallying 11 points and grabbed seven rebounds vs. the Jaguars. With her seven games of double-figure scoring in Mizzou's first nine outings, she's already surpassed her double-figure output from last season, when she scored 11 points each vs. Illinois and IUPUI. Bond has also exceeded her totals for the entire season last year in scoring (116 points), field goals (37), 3-pointers (eight), free throws (34), assists (47) and blocks (six). Her first minute on the floor against Miami will equal her court time for all of last season.
? ? ? Bond came off the bench in 29 games last season is support of the departed Barr, and averaged 3.2 points and 1.3 rebounds a game. This season her numbers are higher across the board: 12.9 points, 5.2 assists, 3.9 rebounds, and 2.8 steals. She's also knocking down 85 percent of her free throws.
UNRAU MAKING GOOD ON PROGNOSTICATIONS
Senior forward Evan Unrau (Fort Collins, Colo. / Rocky Mountain HS) continues to be the engine that pulls the Tigers' train, leading the team with her scoring and rebounding averages of 19.2 points and 9.3 rebounds a game. Those are the third-best numbers in the Big 12 Conference. In addition, Unrau has four double-doubles this season, and has averaged 20.8 points and 9.0 rebounds in her last eight games.
? ? ? Unrau was selected to Street & Smith's preseason women's All-America team, and the four-year starter continues to impress this season. Unrau was one of 50 players listed by Street & Smith's, and one of 30 players given Preseason Honorable Mention All-America status by the magazine. Ten others were each named to the "Terrific 10" and High Honorable Mention lists.
? ? ? Last year, Unrau became Mizzou's second First Team All-Big 12 Conference selection in the seven-year history of the conference. She led the Tigers in both scoring (16.0 ppg) and rebounding (7.7 rpg) in leading Mizzou to postseason play for the fourth straight year.
JAMES STRETCH-ING DEFENSES
Senior forward Stretch James (Columbus, Ohio / Northland HS / Tyler [Texas] JC) struggled early-on at UW-Green Bay on Nov. 29, hitting just one of her three field-goal attempts in just five minutes on the floor.
? ? ? Since then, James has been on fire. When the second half rolled around, James went into high gear, going 10-of-14 from the floor on her way to a career-high 24 points. She also pulled down four rebounds and made three blocks, including a clean stuff of the Phoenix' Tiffany Mor that unfortunately caused the UWGB star to seriously injure her knee with 9 minutes left. She averaged 17.0 ppg in Mizzou's two games in Wisconsin.
? ? ? The following weekend, James made a case for being named to the Unilever All-Tournament Team, and received several votes from the assembled balloters. She averaged 13 points and eight rebounds, and shot 65 percent (13-of-20) from the field.
? ? ? In the 4-1/2 games after that first half at UWGB, James was 38-of-68 (55.9 percent) from the field. In her last three games, James is averaging 16.0 points, 8.8 rebounds and 4.0 blocks per game. She has double-doubles in two of her last four games.
? ? ? James is second on the team in scoring (13.3 ppg), rebounding (7.3 rpg) and blocks (3.0 bpg, which leads the Big 12 Conference) after averaging 10.3 points and 5.6 rebounds a game last year.
? ? ? In addition, James has moved into the Mizzou career top-10 in blocks. She has 72 in less than a year and a half, putting her in ninth place all-time.