Colorado State University Athletics
Women's Basketball To Host Newcomer TCU
1/20/2006 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Jan. 20, 2006
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Game 16: TCU (9-6, 3-1 MWC) at Colorado State (7-8, 1-3 MWC)
January 21, 2006 • 2:00 p.m. • Fort Collins, Colo. • Moby Arena (8,745)
The Matchup: Colorado State will face TCU for the first time since the 1999 season as the Horned Frogs are the newest member of the Mountain West Conference. The Rams are a perfect 3-0 against the Frogs and have scored at least 89 points in all three previous meetings. The average margin of victory for the Rams is 19.67 points. Both TCU and Colorado State have played Duke, New Mexico and San Diego State this year. The Frogs lost to Duke and defeated both the Lobos and Aztecs, while the Rams lost to Duke and New Mexico and beat San Diego State.
Scouting TCU: Sophomore guard Adrianne Ross and junior guard Natasha Lacy lead the Horned Frogs with 13.4 points per game each, while Lacy leads the club with 7.1 rebounds and 3.9 assists per contest. TCU is shooting .394 from the field and .273 from beyond the arc, as well as .673 from the free throw line. They are averaging 36.3 rebounds per game, while allowing 40.2. TCU has won its last three conference games after losing the season opener to Wyoming. The Frogs have also won seven of their last eight contests.
Last Time Out: Colorado State fell to 7-8 (1-3 MWC) on the season with a 67-62 loss to the UNLV Rebels (11-4, 3-1 MWC) Wednesday night at Moby Arena. Senior forward Melissa Dennett was the only Ram player to score in double figures, dropping 28 points on 9-of-14 shooting from the floor. Dennett's scoring output tied a career high set on the road against UNLV in 2004. Dennett also led the team with nine rebounds and had two blocks on the night.
Taking It To The Hole: Melissa Dennett scored her 1,000th career point with her second free throw of a two shot four with 5:50 remaining in the first half of the game against UNLV. She becomes the 14th player in school history and the second this season to eclipse 1,000 points. During the first half, Dennett scored 11 straight points for the Rams and 15 of the last 20 in the half. Senior guard Vanessa Espinoza is also closing in on one grand as she has 970, needing just 30 to break the barrier. This could be the first time in school history three players surpass the 1,000 career mark in the same year, as center Lindsay Thomas hit 1,000 against Tulsa and currently has 1,056.
Lone Rangers: Melissa Dennett was the only player in double figures in scoring against UNLV, posting up a season-high 28. In the loss to Utah, Lindsay Thomas was the only Ram to hit double figures, scoring 14. The last time only one Rams scored in double figures in back-to-back games was in 1993 when Holly Anderson scored 11 against Utah on Jan. 23 and Keleigh Logan scored 13 at San Diego State on Jan. 28.
Glass Blowers: In the last two games, Colorado State has kept the opponent off the offensive glass, allowing Utah and UNLV only seven offensive rebounds each -- a season opponent low. Opponents are averaging 13.7 offensive rebounds per game and 36.9 total rebounds a contest. In conference action, the Rams are allowing just 9.8 o-boards and 32.8 rebounds per game.
Tending Her Flock: Freshman forward Casie Shepherd got her first career start against UNLV on Wednesday and responded well. She posted career highs in rebounds (six), offensive rebounds (four), steals (two) and minutes played (29).
Block Party: Melissa Dennett blocked two shots against UNLV, bringing her season total to 23, which already ties for 15th on the CSU single season charts. The senior also has 92 blocks in her career, which ranks third all-time. Teresa James (1992-93) owns the single-season record with 48 and the career record with 164. Dennett's high for a season is 36 from 2003-04.
Send Us To The Stripe: In Mountain West Conference play, the Rams are shooting .788 from the free throw line, sinking 52 of their 66 attempts, which leads the league. Five different players have connected on all of their attempts, including a perfect 8-for-8 from junior guard Molly Nohr and 5-for-5 from Lindsay Thomas. Nohr has made her last 13 free throws, dating back to a miss against Tulsa.
Lucky Number 14: With her 28 points and nine rebounds against UNLV, Melissa Dennett moved into 14th on the CSU career charts in both categories. The senior now has 1,021 points and 551 rebounds in just 82 games played for career averages of 12.5 and 6.7, respectively.
Starting Lineups: For the first time all year, head coach Jen Warden started a different lineup in a game. Against UNLV, Casie Shepherd started instead of Molly Nohr. CSU used the same starting lineup in the first 14 games (Nohr, Dennett, Thomas, sophomore guard Sara Hunter, Espinoza). Last season the Rams used six different starting lineups. The combination of Nohr, Hunter, Dennett, Thomas and Espinoza went 1-2 in 2004-2005.
Arc Accuracy: Vanessa Espinoza has now hit at least one three-pointer in her last 12 games, the second longest active streak in the Mountain West behind the 16 by UNLV's Sheena Moore. Espinoza is connecting on .448 of her three-point shots this season, which would rank second, just behind her own record of .455 (51-112) from the 2003-04 season. For her career, Espinoza is shooting .414 (128-309) from beyond the arc, which also ranks second in school history.
That Can't Be Right!: The Rams' leading scorer, Melissa Dennett is averaging 15.5 points per game. The senior, however, is scoring more points in the team's losses than in the victories. In losses, Dennett is averaging 16.8 points per game, compared to just 14.0 in the wins.
Balanced Attack: Six different Rams have either led the team or shared in the team lead in scoring in a game this season. Melissa Dennett has led the Rams on seven occasions, Vanessa Espinoza four times, Sara Hunter and Molly Nohr twice and Casie Shepherd and Lindsay Thomas once.
Four and Five For Three: Vanessa Espinoza and Sara Hunter have combined to hit 60 of the team's 76 three-pointers this season, combining for four three-pointers a game. The pair make more three-pointers per game than any other duo in the Mountain West Conference, and also sink 78.9 percent of the Rams' outside shots, the most dominant pair in the league.
Guard Duty: The four guards that have played in all 15 games this season (Vanessa Espinoza, Sara Hunter, junior Liz Kramer and Molly Nohr) all have a positive assist-to-turnover ratio. The four have combined for 159 assists and 122 turnovers (1.30), while the rest of the team is responsible for just 63 assists and 158 turnovers (0.40). In conference play, the quartet has 33 of the team's 48 assists and 42 of the team's 72 turnovers (0.79 guards, 0.50 rest of team).
Taking Care of the Ball: In Colorado State's seven wins, the team is winning the turnover battle, averaging 18.3 turnovers, compared to 19.7 for the opposition, but in its losses, the Rams are averaging 19.0 turnovers per game, while forcing just 11.6. In the wins, the turnover margin is a +1.4, while it is -7.4 in the losses.
Tell-Tale Sign: If Colorado State leads at the half, more than likely the Rams will pull out the win. CSU is 6-2 in games this season when leading at the half, losing to Denver and UNLV. Over the last two years, CSU is 20-3 when either leading or tied at the end of the first stanza.
Rebounding Tandem: Melissa Dennett and Lindsay Thomas are combining to average 16.3 rebounds per game this season to lead the Mountain West Conference. The next best rebounding tandem is BYU's Ambrosia Anderson and Lauren Riley who combine for 14.3 rebounds a contest. Dennett and Thomas are bringing down 44.9 percent of the Ram's rebounds this year.
A Handle: In non-conference games, Molly Nohr averaged just 2.0 turnovers per game to go with 4.4 assists. The junior has struggled in conference matchups though, averaging 5.0 turnovers a game with just 1.8 assists a contest.
Stop, Thief: In Colorado State's seven wins, the Rams are averaging 8.3 steals per game, while in the losses they are getting just 4.3 swipes a contest.
Quick Starts: In all but two games this season (Duke and Utah), Colorado State has either been tied or held the lead at the first media timeout. The Rams are outscoring the opponents 142-86, averaging 2.19 points per minute and allowing just 1.33 points per minute through the first four+ minutes in the contest. However, through the rest of the first half, the Rams are being outscored 326-403, averaging 1.45 points per minute, compared to 1.80 for the opposition.
Hitting A Grand: Lindsay Thomas became the 13th player school history to score 1,000 points in a career, hitting her 1,000th point at the 1:57 mark of the second-half against Tulsa with a layup. Thomas now has 1,056 points to rank 12th on the school career charts and 19th in Mountain West Conference history. She needs 18 points to move into 11th on the CSU charts (1,073, Jennifer Halbach, 1984-88).
First Possession: Melissa Dennett has won the opening tip in all 15 games for the Rams this season. The Rams have scored first in 12 of the 15 games. She also won 20 of 28 opening tips during the 2004-05 season.
They're Accurate: The .643 (9-14) three-point field-goal percentage for the Rams at Texas-San Antonio is the fifth-best shooting performance from beyond the arc in school history and the second-best this season. The team also connected at a .692 (9-13) clip against Northern Colorado on Dec. 18. For the season, the Rams are shooting .396 (59-149) from the three-point line, which would be a new school record, surpassing the current record of .381 (169-443) from the 1995-96 team.
Hitting Their Shots: Colorado State leads the Mountain West Conference in every shooting percentage category. The Rams are shooting .430 from the field, .374 from the three-point line and .755 from the free throw line to lead the league in all three. In conference matches only, the Rams lead in free throw percentage, shooting .788 from the charity stripe.
Best In the Mountain West: Melissa Dennett leads the Mountain West Conference in rebounds per game with 8.7 a contest and is also on top in offensive rebounds with 3.93 per game, over a whole offensive board better than anyone else in the league (Alecia Steele, Air Force, 2.75). She also leads the conference with 1.53 blocks per game and is fourth in field-goal percentage (.527) and scoring (15.5). Vanessa Espinoza is fourth in three-point percentage, knocking down .448 of her shots and Lindsay Thomas ranks fourth in both rebounds (7.7) and defensive rebounds (5.47).
Among The Nation's Leaders: Colorado State currently ranks 29th in the nation in three-point field-goal percentage, shooing .380, while the Rams are also ranked 34th in free throw percentage, shooting .744 (out of 324 Division I schools). Statistics are through games played on January 9.
On This Date: Colorado State is 1-1 in school history in games played on January 21st and both games were in Moby Arena. The Rams and Horned Frogs have never met before on this date.
Double Your Pleasure: Lindsay Thomas and Melissa Dennett both tallied double-doubles in the games with South Dakota State, UC-Irvine, San Jose State and Tulsa. Thomas and Dennett had double-doubles in the same game three times last season. The Rams are 4-2 (1-3 this season) when both Thomas and Dennett record a double-double in the same game. Thomas has 18 career double-doubles, while Dennett has 15.
Scoring 80: The Rams have scored 80 points in four games this season and are 4-0 in those games. Colorado State is 166-12 all-time when scoring at least 80 points in a game. The last time Colorado State lost after putting up 80+ was on Jan. 22, 2004 when the Rams lost to UNLV 83-92 in Las Vegas.
Dynamic Duo: Lindsay Thomas and Melissa Dennett are on pace to go down as the most prolific shot blocking duo in school history. Dennett has 92 career blocks and Thomas has 73. The tandem of Shannon Strecker and Ashley Augspurger currently are the best blocking tandem in school history with a combined 175 blocks.
Point Per Minute: Melissa Dennett is making the most of her playing time this season. The senior is averaging 0.53 points and 0.30 rebounds per minute to lead the Rams in both categories. In conference action, she has increased her scoring to 0.58 points per minute for 17.5 points per game. Freshman Ashley Samuelson is second on the team in rebounding, averaging 0.29 per minute played this season, grabbing 10 boards in 35 minutes of play, including seven offensive rebounds.
Quite A Stretch: Colorado State has hit at least one three-pointer in the last 119 games, dating back to Jan. 17, 2002 against San Diego State. In that contest, the Rams were 0-14 from beyond the arc. That game snapped a 232 game streak, dating back to a Nov. 25, 1994 victory over Pennsylvania.
Fan Support: Colorado State has had at least 1,000 fans attend each of the last 154 home games. The last time the Rams played at home in front of fewer than 1,000 fans was Jan. 5, 1996 when Colorado State faced Idaho State.
Missing the Mark: The last time no Rams reached double figures in scoring was during the 2000-01 season. On March 10, 2001 no player reached double figures in a game against BYU. The Rams won that Mountain West Conference Tournament game 59-56. Colorado State had five players reach double figures in the season opener. This season the Rams have had at least one player reach double figures in scoring in every game this year.
Warden Hosts Pregame "Chalk Talks": This season Jen Warden will host a pregame "chalk talk" at all Colorado State home games. She will begin her talk 22 minutes prior to tip-off. The "chalk talks" are open to members of the Slam Dunk Club and will be held in the Hall of Fame room on the south concourse of Moby Arena. For more information on the Slam Dunk Club, contact Lisa Eakins at (970) 491-6569.
Coors Light Ram Basketball Coaches' Show: Catch Colorado State head women's basketball coach Jen Warden on the Colorado State Sports Network throughout the season. Warden will be on the Coors Light Ram Basketball Coaches' Show with head men's basketball coach Dale Layer live from the Fort Collins Hilton. The show starts at 7 p.m. MT. The broadcast can be heard on 600 AM KCOL in Fort Collins and 710 AM KNUS in Denver. Colorado State football and men's basketball play-by-play announcer Rich Bircumshaw will be the host. Broadcast Dates - January 23, January 30, February 6, February 13, February 20, February 27 and March 6.
