BYU (18-7, 8-4) Plays FInal Conference Games At Home Hosting Air Force On Mar. 2 And New Mexico on Mar.4

With the five-point victory over Utah on Saturday, the Cougars are just one game away from the number one spot in the MWC latest standings. Utah, CSU and UNM are all currently tied for first place with identical 9-3 records. Wins at home this week can put BYU in a great position for next week's conference tournament in Las Vegas.

Last Week Wrap Up

It had been eight years since BYU had beaten Utah at the Huntsman Center, that record was broken last Saturday afternoon with the 46-41 win for the visiting Cougars. Sophomore Lisa Osguthorpe, from Orem, Utah came off the bench to led the BYU effort with a game-high 10 points and six rebounds in a very defensive low scoring contest. Jennifer Leitner topped the list in rebounds with a game-high 10 boards for the victorious Cougars.

Cougars On Web, Radio And TV This Week

BYU fans can go to the internet for both Air Force and New Mexico games this week by clicking on www. kbyu.org/sports/wball. Chris Twitty will call both games. The BYU vs New Mexico game will be heard live on KSL Radio 1160 AM with Geoff Flynn and former BYU standout Amanda Covington Baker. KBYU-TV will also air the Cougars and Lobos game live. Play by play will be by Holly Rowe with Kim Free as the color analyst.

BYU Probable Starters

l 32 Lori Cuff - 6-1 F, Sr (7.3 ppg, 4.0 rpg)

l 35 Cady Williams - 5-11 F, Sr (11.5 ppg, 3.8 rpg)

l 33 Jill Adams - 6-3 C, Jr (13.2 ppg, 6.3 rpg)

l 11 Erin Thorn - 5-10 G, Fr (13.0 ppg, 4.0 rpg)

l 22 Stacy Jensen - 5-6 G, So (7.7 ppg, 2.7 rpg)

BYU Players Off The Bench

l 31 Lisa Osguthorpe - 6-0 F, So (4.4 ppg, 2.9 rpg)

l 21 Jennifer Leitner - 6-1 F, Fr (7.2 ppg, 5.7 rpg)

l 44 Caroline Beus - 6-1 C, Jr (2.7 ppg, 1.5 rpg)

l 05 Alisha Griffeth - 6-0 F, Sr (3.8 ppg, 1.4 rpg)

l 04 Renae Hansen - 5-11 G, Sr (1.8 ppg, .8 rpg)

l 00 April Hayes - 6-3 C, Jr (2.8 ppg, 1.9 rpg)

Cougar Quickie Stats - After 26 games

l Shooting from the field - .450 (625-1389)

l Shooting from the free-throw line - .719 (314-437)

l Shooting from the three-point arc - .363 (177-488)

l Averaging 69.6 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 ten games played.

l The Cougars have a 4-2 record when playing on Thursday and a 8-2 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 26 games

l Stacy Jensen had a career-high 30 points in the UNLV victory on 2/10/00

l The entire Cougar roster, minus injured Cady Williams, got some playing time and scored in the 98-81 win over UNLV on 2/10/00

l Jennifer Leitner had her first double-double of her career with 19 points and 10 rebounds in the 2/10/00 UNLV Cougar victory

l Jill Adams has scored in double figures in 17 of 20 games

l Erin Thorn has scored in double figures in 18 games to date

l Jill Adams has rebounded in double figures in four games

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

Mountain West Conference Stats 4

BYU Team (12 Conf. Games Only - Top Five)

4 2nd in scoring offense - average 71.2 ppg (899 points)

4 4th in scoring margin - 71.2 off, 63.4 def +7.8 margin

4 1st in free throw percentage - .724 (168-232)

4 2nd in field goal percentage - .438 (303-691)

4 3rd in 3-point field goal percentage - .355 (81-228)

4 4th in 3-point field goal percentage defense - .345 (71-206)

4 4th in field goal percentage defense - .426 (274-643)

4 2nd in 3-point field goals made - average 7.36 (81)

4 1st in rebounding defense - average 33.2 (398)

4 1st in steals - average 10.83 (130)

4 3rd in assists - average 16.58 (199)

4 4th in blocked shots - average 3.00 (36)

4 2nd in offensive rebounds - average 13.92 (167)

4 1st in turnover margin - BYU 192, avg. 16.0, OPP 229, avg. 19.1, margin+3.08

BYU Players (12 Conf. Games Only - Top Five)

4 Erin Thorn - 4th in 3-point field goals made - average 2.83 (34)

4 Lori Cuff - 2nd in field goal percentage - .580 (47.81)

4 Stacy Jensen - 5th in free throw percentage - .791 (34-43)

4 Jennifer Lietner - 4th in offensive rebounds - 2.75 (33)

4 Jill Adams - 4th in blocked shots - average 1.17 (14)

4 Erin Thorn - 3rd in asst/turn ratio - (asst 42, 3.5 turn 23, 1.9 avg, ratio 1.93)

4 Stacy Jensen -4th in asst/turn ratio - (asst 43, 3.6/turn 28, 2.3avg, ratio 1.54)

4 Stacy Jensen - 4th in steals - average 2.50 (30)

Cougars In National Stats

4 Erin Thorn - 7th in 3PT FG Made Per Game - average 3.0 (65)

4 Erin Thorn - 22nd in 3PT FG PCT - 45.1 (65-144)

4 Brigham Young - 21st in 3PT FG PCT - 37.4 (164-438)

4 Brigham Young - 8th in 3PT FG Made Per Game - average 7.5 (164)

Scouting Air Force (Mar. 2, 5 p.m.)

This week the Air Force Academy is in eighth place in the MWC standings with a 1-11 record and 4-21 overall. In last week's games, the Falcons hosted CSU and Wyoming, losing both contests. Mollie Peters leads the Air Force in scoring with 13.8 points and 5.0 rebounds a game. Megan Thiedeman also scores in double figures with 13.2 points and 3.7 rebounds. Rozalyn Russ leads in the rebound category, grabbing an average of 6.0 rebounds per game. The Falcons are shooting 60.0 points a game while opponents are tallying 76.6 points. The Air Force shoots 35 percent from the field and 65 percent at the free-throw line.

Air Force Probable Starters

l 34 Samantha Clifton - 5-11 F, So (4.0 ppg,4.0 rpg)

l 35 Mollie Peters - 6-0 F, Sr (13.8 ppg, 5.0 rpg)

l 25 Rozalyn Russ - 5-8 G, So (9.9 ppg, 6.0 rpg)

l 33 Lindsay Payne - 5-11 G/F, Jr (2.9 ppg, 1.1 rpg)

l 11 Morgan Bennett - 5-9 G, Fr (6.1 ppg, 4.2 rpg)

Series Against Air Force

Series Record: 3-0 favoring the Cougars. During conference play earlier this year, BYU played in Ft. Collins wit the Cougars picking up the 93-64 victory. Five BYU players scored in double figures including Erin Thorn with 25, followed by Stacy Jensen and Jill Adams with 13 points a piece. Lisa Osguthorpe contributed 11 points with Jennifer Lietner coming off the bench for her 10 points.

Scouting New Mexico (Mar. 4, 4 p.m.)

The Lobos come to BYU's Marriott Center with a 18-7, 9-3 record and are tied for first place along with Utah and CSU in the MWC. On the road UNM has a 3-2 record in conference action. Their three conference losses have been twice to UNLV and to CSU. Two Lobos score in double figures to date. Miranda Sanchez tops the list with 12.0 points and 5.8 rebounds. Freshman Jordan Adams tallies 11.7 points and 4.6 rebounds. UNM averages 67.2 points and allow opponents 57.6 points a game. The Lobos shoot 43 percent from the field, 34 percent from the arc, and 67 percent at the free throw line. Opponents are getting 38 percent shooting from the field and 33 percent from three-point range.

UNM Probable Starters

l 21 Miranda Sanchez - 6-1 F, Jr (12.0 ppg, 5.8 rpg)

l 23 Sonya Bryant - 5-11 G,Sr (8.2 ppg, 3.1 rpg)

l 40 Jordan Adams - 6-3 C, Fr (11.7 ppg, 4.6 rpg)

l 12 Molly McKinnon - 5-8 G, So (8.4 ppg, 4.6 rpg)

l 44 Nikki Heckroth - 5-8 G, Jr (3.6 ppg, 3.4 rpg)

Series Against UNM

Series Record: 30-11 in favor of BYU. In their earlier meeting this season, the Lobos defeated the Cougars 59-65 in front of a record 18,018 fans at "The Pit" in Albuquerque. Jill Adams led the BYU effort with 18 points including a career record four from behind the arc. Freshman Erin Thorn also scored in double digits with 15 points. Jennifer Leitner led all scores in the rebound category with 12

The Shippen File

BYU RICKS COLLEGE

1999-00 18-7 1994-95 33-3

1998-99 16-13 1995-96 19-11

1997-98 15-14 1996-97 19-12

Totals 49-34 (.590) Totals 71-26 (.731)

Coach Trent Shippen Quotes

(On the Cougars) The win over Utah on Saturday was big for us because now we're just one game out of first place and it probably helped us as far as the NCAA tournament is concerned. The two games here at home this week are very important for us because it gives us a chance to get 20 wins before we go to Las Vegas for the conference championship. Our practices are going well and we've got to come ready to play right from the start.

(On Air Force) They are still one of the best three-point shooting teams in the league. We need to be aware of Megan Thiedeman in particular. If they get rolling we will have our hands full.

(On New Mexico) New Mexico is tied for first place and so this game is very big for us especially if we can knock off the number one seed. They have good depth and play a lot of players. We have to be able to contain Jordan Adams, we didn't have an answer for her in our first game against them. The team is also very balanced from the inside and outside. We have to play an outstanding defensive performance to get the win.

Up Next For The Cougars

After these two final regular season conference games, BYU travels to Las Vegas to participate in the inaugural MWC Women's Basketball Championships, March 8-11. The seeding for the tournament will be announced at approximately 9:35 p.m., MT on Saturday, Mar. 4 by the conference office.

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: norma_collett@byu.edu There are no player interviews 24 hours prior to games.