Colorado State University Athletics
Game notes: Rams enter tough road tournament
12/4/2009 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Dec. 4, 2009
Colorado State (5-2), off to its best start since 2004-05, leaves for Berkeley, Calif., for the annual Colliers International Tournament hosted by No. 19/20 California.
The Rams join Southern Illinois and No. 7/10 Texas A&M in what is sure to be the toughest challenge the team has faced so far this season.
Tipoff between CSU and Cal is at noon PT on Saturday and the Rams will play either Southern Illinois or Texas A&M Sunday at noon as well. Cal will play in the late contest regardless of the outcome of the first game.
The game will be broadcast live on AM 1410 KIIX. Matt Wozniak calls all the action. Live game audio will also be available via Rams All-Access subscription on CSURams.com.
Rams vs. the field...
Just like in the Coors Rocky Mountain Invitational earlier this season, two of the Rams' opponents in the Colliers International Classic are relatively unfamiliar.
Colorado State is 2-3 all-time against its first-round opponent, Cal, having defeated the Bears 66-57 at Moby Arena in 1999, the last time the two teams were matched up. The Rams have never faced Southern Illinois and their only game vs. Texas A&M was a loss, 54-65 at Moby back in 1978.
The last time...
The last time CSU went 5-2 to start the season was in 2004-05 under then-head coach Chris Denker. That year the Rams finished 15-13 overall and 6-8 in the Mountain West.
The last time CSU played a team ranked in the national polls was on March 12, 2008, when the Rams upset the No. 12 Utah Utes in the second round of the Mountain West Conference tournament in Las Vegas, Nev., CSU went on to play New Mexico in the quarterfinals, and lost 65-41.
About California...
Cal enters into action this week with a 3-2 record, having lost only to teams ranked higher in the polls, No. 8/8 Baylor and No. 3/3 Ohio State. The Bears have defeated Saint Mary's, Idaho State and Southern.
Senior guard Alexis Gray-Lawson and freshman forward/center DaNesha Stallworth lead the team in points per game with 13.6 each, while Gray-Lawson has 6.6 rebounds per game and Stallworth has 7.4. In the team's most recent matchup vs. Ohio State, Gray-Lawson played in all 40 minutes of the game and put up 25 points.
Cal is lead by head coach Joanne Boyle in her fifth season with the Bears. Last season, the team sat at No. 3 in the polls for four weeks, the highest ranking in school history. Boyle's record at Cal is 93-35 (.730).
About Southern Illinois...
The Salukis have gotten off to a slow 0-4 start this season despite a remarkable effort in their most recent loss vs. Western Michigan.
Four players scored in double digits, including 22 points from MVC Newcomer of the Week, Stephany Neptune, but the team could not keep pace with Western Michigan's high-scoring offense. Christine Presswood scored 20 points, Eboni Crayton had 16 and Teri Oliver scored 10 points.
About Texas A&M...
Texas A&M has returned two starters and 10 letterwinners this season including senior guard/forward Tanisha Smith. Smith is averaging 19.3 points and 4.3 rebounds per game.
In its last game vs. Stephen F. Austin the team topped 100 points and had four players score in double digits. Smith had 30 on the night in only 27 minutes of play. Sophomore guard Tyra White had 17, followed by sophomore guard Sydney Carter with 16 and junior forward/center Danielle Adams had 10 points.
Last time out...
The Colorado State women got off to a slow start and struggled with turnovers early, but the Rams held on to defeat Idaho 65-55 with clutch scoring from junior guard Bonnie Barbee Tuesday night at Memorial Gym.
The win was the first on the road for CSU (5-2).
After getting off to a quick start with a 5-0 lead, the Rams gave up six turnovers within the first 6 minutes of the game. Kim Mestdagh regained the momentum with a three-pointer, and from that point down to the 4-minute mark the team outscored the Vandals 22-4 and took a 15-point lead into halftime.
The Vandals cut the Rams' lead down to two in the final 20 minutes, but Barbee kept the Rams alive with 14 second-half points to top her career high with 20 in the game. She shot 75 percent from beyond the arc and tied her career high in assists with four.
Three other players scored in double digits for the Rams Tuesday night. Meghan Heimstra registered her third double-double on the season with 13 points and 12 rebounds. Chatilla van Grinsven had 10 points on the night and Mestdagh was held to 11 points.
Heimstra Heats up...
In seven games this season sophomore forward Meghan Heimstra has scored a total of 72 points and has 72 rebounds. Heimstra recorded her third double-double this season in the team's last game at Idaho with 13 points and 12 rebounds.
Mestdagh sets career highs...
Sophomore Kim Mestdagh is improving with every game the Rams play this season. Mestdagh set a career high in points starting with the Nov. 15 game vs. Wichita State. She had 21. Since then Mestdagh has broken that record twice with 22 points vs. Texas State (11/27) and her current high score of 25 points vs. Delaware (11/28), which secured her the Most Valuable Player award in the Coors Rocky Mountain Invitational.
Rams seeing double...
Since the start of the season, five Rams have scored double figures in at least one game. Sophomore Kim Mestdagh leads the pack with seven-consecutive games, followed by junior Bonnie Barbee with five. Sophomores Meghan Heimstra and Chatilla van Grinsven each have three games and Natalie van den Adel rounds out the bunch with one game.
Up next...
Colorado State returns for its only home game in December against in-state rival Colorado. Tip off is scheduled for 7 p.m. at Moby Arena on Dec. 11.