PROVO -- Putting on its best offensive show of the year, the BYU women's basketball team handed conference rival UNLV a 98-81 loss Thursday night at the Marriott Center.
Five Cougars scored in double figures, led by point guard Stacy Jensen, who shot an incredible 7-of-11 from the field and 4-of-5 from the three-point arc to finish with a career-best 30 points. Jensen also went 12-for-14 from the line to sink more free throws than the entire Rebels squad.
Freshman Jennifer Leitner came off the bench for BYU to rack up 19 points, tying her career-best. Leitner also chalked up her first official double-double with 10 rebounds. Rookie guard Erin Thorn contributed 15, while Lori Cuff and Jill Adams scored 13 and 10 points, respectively.
UNLV was led in defeat by forward Linda Frohlich, the conference's leading scorer, who scored 31 points.
"This was a great win for us," said BYU head coach Trent Shippen. "UNLV's a very hot team right now and we knew we had to pick up the intensity and play hard all 40 minutes to win."
BYU trailed 44-38 at halftime but came out on fire the second half. The Cougars finished shooting 46 percent on the game, including 57 percent from three-point land. The 98-point total by the Cougars was their highest this season.
BYU improved to 15-6 overall and 5-3 in the Mountain West Conference, while the Rebels fell to 11-10, 4-5. The Cougars next take on San Diego State Saturday at 3 p.m. in the Marriott Center.
The BYU Cougar women are currently in fourth place in this week's standings in the MWC. They are looking to move up with two critical conference games against the Lady Rebels of UNLV and the Aztecs from SDSU. BYU beat both of these teams on the road earlier this season.
Last Week Wrap Up
The Cougars went on the road last week playing the Air Force Academy, in a 93-64 victory for BYU. Lisa Osguthorpe captured her first double-double in her college career with 11 points and 11 rebounds against the Falcons. It was a different story however on Sat. Feb. 5 in Albuquerque as the Cougars faced a record crowd 18,018 at The Pit taking on the Lobos of New Mexico. Even though BYU had a solid 13-point lead at half-time 33-20, New Mexico bounced back late in the second half to steal the 65-59 victory. Jill Adams had a career record four three-pointers in the game.
This Week's Games To Be Seen On KBYU-TV, On BYU TV And On The Internet
BYU's game against UNLV can be seen on KBYU-TV, channel 11 on Friday, Feb. 11 at 7 p.m., on a tape delay basis. The Saturday afternoon game against SDSU will air live on channel 11 with a 3:05 p.m. scheduled tip off. Holly Rowe will call the play-by-play with Kim Free as the color analyst. If you are an owner of the Dish Network you can see both games live on BYU TV, channel 9403. Both games can also be heard live on KBYU-TV at www.kbyu.org/sports/wball/
Player Injury Report
Senior forward Cady Williams will be out about two more weeks after breaking her left hand in three places in practice last week. Williams is the Cougars third leading scorer averaging 11.5 points and 3.7 rebounds per game.
BYU Probable Starters
l 32 Lori Cuff - 6-1 F, Sr (6.4 ppg, 4.2 rpg)
l 31 Lisa Osguthorpe - 6-0 F, So (4.5 ppg, 2.8 rpg)
l 33 Jill Adams - 6-3 C, Jr (14.6 ppg, 6.9 rpg)
l 11 Erin Thorn - 5-10 G, Fr (13.4 ppg, 3.8 rpg)
l 22 Stacy Jensen - 5-6 G, So (6.3 ppg, 2.3 rpg)
BYU Players Off The Bench
l 05 Alisha Griffeth - 6-0 F, Sr (3.5 ppg, 1.5 rpg)
l 04 Renae Hansen - 5-11 G, Sr (1.9 ppg, .8 rpg)
l 00 April Hayes - 6-3 C, Jr (2.5 ppg, 2.0 rpg)
l 44 Caroline Beus - 6-1 C, Jr (3.0 ppg, 1.6 rpg)
l 21 Jennifer Leitner - 6-1 F, Fr (6.3 ppg, 5.4 rpg)
Cougar Quickie Stats - After 20 games
l Shooting from the field - .455 (499-1096)
l Shooting from the free-throw line - .713 (221-310)
l Shooting from the three-point arc - .376 (152-404)
l Averaging 68.6 points per game
l After averaging 21 turnovers in the first 11 games of the season, the Cougars are averaging 16.3 in the last six games played.
l The Cougars have a 3-1 record when playing on Thursday and a 5-2 record when BYU plays on Saturday
l BYU has gone on a four-game winning streak and a six-game winning streak
so far this season
BYU Player Quick Facts - After 20 games
l Jill Adams has scored in double figures in 15 of 20 games
l Cady Williams has scored in double figures in 12 of 17games
l Erin Thorn has scored in double figures in 15 games to date
l Jill Adams has rebounded in double figures in four games
l Jill Adams has had three games in which she's had double-doubles (vs Washington, Gonzaga and Montana)
l Lisa Osguthorpe had her first double-double of her career against Air Force on 2/3/00, picking up 11 points and 11 boards
l BYU's current five starters (without injured Cady Williams) are all from Utah
l Of the five starters, three are from Mountain View High School in Orem. Osguthorpe and Cuff played together in high school. Thorn and Osguthorpe were also teammates at Mountain View.
l While at Mountain View, Osguthorpe won four 5A state basketball championships (1996-1999). Cuff and Osguthorpe won the 1996 title together. Thorn and Osguthorpe won two state titles together in 1998 and 1999
Mountain West Conference Stats 4
BYU Team (7 Conf. Games Only - Top Five)
4 3rd in Scoring Offense - average 69.0 ppg (483 points)
4 3rd in Scoring Defense - average 61.1 ppg (428 points)
4 2nd in Scoring Margin - 69.0 off, 61.1 def + 7.9 margin
4 3rd in field goal percentage - .446 (177-397)
4 3rd in field goal percentage defense - .406 (155-382)
4 2nd in 3-point field goal percentage - .389 (56-144)
4 2nd in3-point field goal percentage defense - .298 (39-131)
4 1st in 3-point field goals made - average 8.0 (56)
4 2nd in rebounding defense - average 33.9 (237)
4 2nd in steals - average 12.20 (61)
4 2nd in assists - average 18.00 (126)
4 3rd in offensive rebounds - average 13.00 (91)
BYU Players (7 Conference Games Only - Top Five)
4 Erin Thorn - 4th in scoring - average 14.9 (35 fg, 25-3 fg, 9 ft, 104 pts)
4 Jill Adams - 4th in scoring - average 14.9 (40 fg, 12-3fg, 12 ft, 104 pts)
4 Erin Thorn - 1st in 3-point field goals made - average 3.57 (25)
4 Lori Cuff - 2nd in field goal percentage - .600 (24-40)
4 Jennifer Lietner - 4th in free throw percentage - .800 (20-25)
4 Jill Adams - 3rd in blocked shots - average 1.29 (9)
4 Stacy Jensen -3rd in asst/turn ratio - (asst 34, 4.9/turn 15, 2.1 avg, ratio 2.27)
4 Erin Thorn -5th in asst/turn ratio - (asst 25, 3.6/turn 16, 2.3 avg, ratio 1.56)
4 Stacy Jensen - 2nd in assists - average 4.86 (34)
4 Stacy Jensen - 5th in steals - average 2.29 (16)
Scouting UNLV
Half-way through this year's MWC season, UNLV is in fifth place, just behind BYU in the latest conference standings. The Lady Rebels come to the Marriott Center with an 11-9, 3-4 record. Last week UNLV was at home and split its two game losing to Colorado State 79-81 and then defeating Wyoming 73-59. Sophomore forward Linda Frohlich leads her team in scoring, averaging 21.4 points and 12.2 rebounds per game. Two other teammates also score in doubles digits. Kinesha Davis a 5-10 guard averages 15.5 points and 6.6 boards. Constance Jinks another guard on the squad contributes 11.3 points and 3.5 rebounds per game. UNLV averages 69.9 points a game, shoots 42 percent from the field and 62 percent at the line. Opponents are allowed 66.6 points and shooting 41 percent from the field an 65 percent at the free throw line.
UNLV Probable Starters
l13 Linda Frohlich -6-2 F, So (21.4 ppg, 12.2 rpg)
l 32 Carlesa Dixon - 6-1 F, Fr (5.9 ppg, 5.6 rpg)
l 03 Kinesha Davis - 5-10 G, So (15.5 ppg, 6.6 rpg)
l 22 Dayna Gambill - 5-6 G, Jr (5.5 ppg, 2.2 rpg)
l 24 Erin Johansson - 6-1 G, So (6.6 ppg, 1.8 rpg)
Series Against UNLV
Record: 7-4 in favor of the Cougars. Earlier in this MWC season, BYU traveled to Las Vegas where they defeated the Lady Rebels 84-75. For the Cougars, Jill Adams led the team in scoring with a season and career-high 28 points and seven rebounds.
Scouting San Diego State
SDSU comes to Provo with a 7-13, 2-5 record and is tied for sixth place with Wyoming in the conference standings this week. The Aztecs are coming off a 68-58 victory over Colorado State in San Diego. Last Thursday, SDSU lost to Wyoming 71-78 in a very close MWC game. Jamey Cox tops the team's list in scoring with 13.6 points and 2.2 rebounds per game. Also in double figures for the Aztecs is senior center/forward Mary Apiafi who's tallying 12.6 points and also tops the list in rebounds with 9.9 per game. SDSU scores 58.1 points a game, is shooting 40 percent from the field and 66 percent at the free throw line.
San Diego State Probable Starters
l 53 Anita Bundage -5-11 F, Jr (9.2 ppg, 6.7 rpg)
l 55 Atim Otii - 6-0 F, So (9.0 ppg, 5.2 rpg)
l 23 Mary Apiafi - 6-2 C/F , Sr (12.6 ppg, 9.9 rpg)
l 15 Shannon Lee - 5-9 G/F , Jr (5.9 ppg, 2.3 rpg)
l 20 Jamey Cox - 5-7 F, Fr (13.6 ppg, 2.2 rpg)
Series Against San Diego State
Series Record: 9-8 in favor of the Cougars. In the earlier meeting this year between the two teams, BYU defeated the Aztecs 60-37 in San Diego. Erin Thorn led the Cougars' effort with 18 points and Jennifer Lietner led the rebound effort with seven in the game. During the 1998-99 final WAC season the teams met twice with each team winning on their home courts. At the Marriott Center the win was 73-55 on 2/30/99 and at the Pit it was 60-68 on 2/25/99.
Coach Trent Shippen Quotes
(On the Cougars) We played well this past weekend and I need to credit our team for playing hard in both games. We need to play stronger down the stretch and finish the games where we're in them and are close Right now it's up to us, we're in control of our own destiny. We're just two games out of first place in the league standings. If we want to advance to the NCAA Championships we need to win some games. We are fortunate to be at home for these two upcoming games. The team enjoys playing in front of their fans and have a big crowd.
(On UNLV) - They're one of the hottest teams in our conference right now. They're a team that can beat anyone at any time. UNLV is the only team that was able to beat New Mexico at "The Pit." This is a key game for us to stay in the hunt for the conference title. Linda Frohlich is tremendously dangerous and she's tough to defend.
(On SDSU) The Aztecs are playing well right now. They rebound the ball well and that was the key in their victory over CSU last week. We'll have to do our best job in rebounding if we want to win.
Up Next For The Cougars
Next week BYU travels to play CSU on Feb. 17 and then takes on Wyoming on Feb. 19
BYU Media Information/Home Practice Schedule
At home, the Cougars practice at the Marriott Center. Practice schedule is Mon-Fri from 1 to 3:30 p.m. Player and/or coach Shippen interviews may be done in advance by contacting the women's basketball SID Norma Collett at 801-378-4908 or via e-mail at norma_collett@byu.edu There are no player interviews 24 hours prior to games.
