January 29, 2007
On the wings of its biggest victory ever in school history, the No. 18-ranked Texas A&M women's basketball team (15-4, 5-2) hosts Oklahoma State (15-5, 3-4) on Tuesday, Jan. 30 at 7 p.m. The Aggies look to protect their undefeated 11-0 record at Reed Arena as the Cowgirls are 1-1 on the road this season in Big 12 Conference play. A&M is one of only two teams in the league who remain undefeated at home. The Aggies will have played a tough four-game stretch in 10 days, while OSU is coming off a four-game homestand with the likes of Oklahoma, Baylor and Texas Tech. The Cowgirls have gone 1-3 in their last four games. A&M will be their second of four-straight top 25 opponents. The Aggies near the halfway point of the conference season as OSU is the last opponent they have yet to face among Big 12 South foes.
| GAME INFO |
| Tuesday, January 30, 7 p.m. (CST) Reed Arena (12,500), College Station Ticket Info: |
| RECORDS |
| Texas A&M: 15-4, 5-2 Big 12 Oklahoma State: 15-5, 3-4 Big 12 |
| RANKINGS |
| A&M is ranked 18th by The Associated Press and 20th by ESPN/USA Today. |
| TELEVISION |
| None |
| LIVE VIDEO |
| Tom Turbiville, play-by-play Tap Bentz, commentary |
| RADIO |
| KZNE-AM 1150 (Local) Tom Turbiville, play-by-play Tap Bentz, commentary (broadcast time 6:45 p.m. CST) |
| INTERNET |
| Live Video (Free): (Aggies All-Access) Live Audio (Free): (Aggies All-Access) Live Stats: (aggieathletics.com) |
| SERIES |
| Oklahoma State leads, 19-11 Last Meeting: (3/1/06) Last at Reed: (1/4/06) |
| UP NEXT |
| A&M hosts Kansas Saturday, Feb. 3, 6 p.m. (CST) Reed Arena, College Station Ticket Info: |
Last week, A&M picked up back-to-back top 25 victories for the first time in school history with wins over No. 25 Nebraska (66-65) on Jan. 24 and No. 6 Oklahoma (54-52) on Jan. 27. The upset of sixth-ranked OU marked the highest-ranked opponent to fall to the Aggies all-time and in the Gary Blair Era. Four of A&M's seven league games played have been decided by three points or less including its last two outings against Nebraska (+1) and OU (+2). Both the Aggies and Cowgirls will be looking for their 16th win of the season.
GAME PROMOTIONS
Join the Aggies as they honor Bryan-College Station's finest on Local Heroes Night with local emergency personnel to be honored at the Oklahoma State women's game. Fire trucks, police cars, motorcycles and K9 units will be on display in front of the main entrance of Reed Arena prior to tipoff with the Cowgirls. Free admission will be granted to all uniformed and emergency personnel who show their badge at the doors.
PINK OUT REED ARENA
Fans can join in on the Texas A&M athletic department's efforts to "Beat the Hell Outta Breast Cancer" as the nationally-ranked Aggie women host Kansas on Saturday, Feb. 3 at 6 p.m. Tickets are available for $10 with $8 of the ticket sale benefiting the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation. In addition, there will be official "BTHO Breast Cancer" shirts available in the concourse. This is a special opportunity to make a difference in the community. Fans are also encouraged to wear pink to the game in support of the cause. Following the game, the 12th Man TV at Reed Arena will air a battle of top 10 teams as the No. 8-ranked Texas A&M men's basketball team takes on No. 6 Kansas at Allen Fieldhouse in Lawrence, Kan. The final 300 standing-room only tickets reserved for A&M students for the men's Big Monday game against No. 22 Texas on Feb. 5 will be given out throughout the evening. Join the Aggies this Saturday night for a basketball doubleheader against Kansas.
A LOOK AT THE COWGIRLS
Second-year head coach Kurt Budke is continuing to build a top-notch women's basketball program at Oklahoma State. After turning in a 6-22 campaign a year ago, the Cowgirls are off to their best start since 2001-02. Over the last four years, OSU has recorded two eight-win seasons, one seven-win season and one six-win season. In fact, their current 15 wins is more than the 2004-05 (7-20) and 2005-06 seasons (6-22) combined. Last season, they became only the second school in league history to go 0-16 in Big 12 play. OSU needs one more win in conference play to record its most wins in Big 12 play since 2001-02 when the Cowgirls went 7-9. They have had only one winning season in league history with a 10-6 mark during the 1997-98 season. One of the top two rebounding ball clubs in the conference, OSU is outrebounding opponents by an average margin of 11.5 per game which ranks fifth nationally. Eight members on their 13-player roster are either junior college or Division I transfers. Sophomore Shaunte' Smith is the only probable starter who competed for the Cowgirls during the 2005-06 season. She is averaging 6.9 points and 5.5 rebounds per game. Senior Rashidat Sadiq, a transfer from Connecticut, is the team's leading rebounder at 6.4 boards per game.
PROBABLE STARTING LINEUPS
TEXAS A&M
No. Name (2006-07 Stats)
#10 A'Quonesia Franklin, G, 5-3, Jr. (8.5 ppg, 2.8 rpg)
#3 Takia Starks, G, 5-8, So. (13.7 ppg, 4.6 rpg)
#21 Morenike Atunrase, G/F, 5-10, Jr. (13.9 ppg, 4.4 rpg)
#24 Patrice Reado, F, 6-0, Jr. (7.4 ppg, 3.7 rpg)
#12 La Toya Micheaux, C, 6-3, So. (6.8 ppg, 6.6 rpg)
OKLAHOMA STATE
No. Name (2006-07 Stats)
#10 Andrea Riley, G, 5-5, Fr. (10.8 ppg, 2.9 rpg)
#31 Danielle Green, G, 5-8, Jr. (10.5 ppg, 6.3 rpg)
#1 Dominique Chism, F, 6-1, Jr. (5.0 ppg, 4.2 rpg)
#13 Rashidat Sadiq, F, 6-2, Sr. (12.2 ppg, 6.4 rpg)
#32 Shaunte' Smith, F, 6-0, So. (6.9 ppg, 5.5 rpg)
SERIES HISTORY
Oklahoma State leads 19-11 in the all-time series versus Texas A&M. The Aggies have won the last five-straight in the series by an average margin of 14.4 points per game. Last season, A&M swept OSU with a 74-52 win in the Big 12 opener in College Station on Jan. 4, 2006 and a 65-47 victory in the regular season closer contested in Stillwater. The Aggies and Cowgirls are tied 10-10 in Big 12 regular season games. Five of A&M's 11 victories in the series have been won at home.
CAREER WATCH
Junior All-American candidate Morenike Atunrase (Shreveport, La.) is on the verge of becoming Texas A&M's all-time leading shot blocker with 136 career blocks to date. She needs two more blocks to surpass former A&M standout Kelly Cerny (137) in the school record books. Atunrase moved into second all-time with three blocked shots in a 54-52 upset of sixth-ranked Oklahoma on Jan. 27. She is 26 points shy of recording her 1,000th career point and would become only the 18th player all-time to reach the milestone in school history. Atunrase would also become the first 1,000-point scorer since Toccara Williams did so during her senior campaign in 2003-04.
OSU SERIES PLAYBACK
In both team's regular season closer, Morenike Atunrase scored 22 points as No. 25 Texas A&M rolled on to a 65-47 win over Oklahoma State on March 1, 2006 at Gallagher-Iba Arena in Stillwater, Okla. A&M posted its best-ever finish in the Big 12 with an 11-5 mark and earned the No. 3 seed in the 2006 Big 12 Women's Basketball Championship. The Aggies committed 20 turnovers to OSU's 19 in the game. But, A&M converted the Cowgirls' miscues into 23 points. Atunrase drained four three-pointers in the first nine minutes of the game accounting for 12 of the Aggies' first 13 points. She was fouled while shooting from long range minutes later and made all three of her free throws giving the Aggies an 18-14 lead. The Cowgirls pulled within 23-19 with a pair of free throws by Brisa Silva with 4:15 to play in the half. A&M capitalized on OSU turnovers and worked its way to the free throw line as it outscored the Cowgirls 15-3 over the final four minutes of the half to lead 38-23 at halftime. Danielle Gant controlled the boards in the first half pulling down a career-best 11 rebounds. She finished with 14 points. Over the first six minutes of the second half, OSU closed the gap, 40-30, as the Aggies managed just two points during the stretch. A&M later responded with a 18-6 run sparked by seven points by Atunrase and five points by LaToya Gulley to take a 58-36 lead with 7:19 left in regulation. Gulley finished with a career-high eight points. Takia Starks added 11 points for the Aggies. OSU was led by Shaunte Smith's double-double with 13 points and 10 rebounds.
CLOSE CALLS
Five of A&M's games in conference play have been decided by eight points or less including a narrow victory over No. 25 Nebraska (66-65) on Jan. 24 and No. 6 Oklahoma (54-52) on Jan. 27. The Aggies have gone 4-1 in close game situations and are 3-1 when a Big 12 contest has been decided by three points or less. Only seven games of the season have been decided in single digits with only two going toward the win column for an opponent.
CONNECTED BY LOUISIANA TECH
Four head coaches in the Big 12 have Louisiana Tech roots under Women's Basketball Hall of Fame coach Leon Barmore. Texas A&M head coach Gary Blair served as an assistant coach there from 1980-85. During his five seasons in Ruston, Louisiana Tech won two national championships in four NCAA Final Four appearances. Baylor head coach Kim Mulkey starred for the Lady Techsters from 1980-84 and was coached by Barmore and Blair. She later served as an assistant coach at her alma mater from 1985-2000 and helped lead the Lady Techsters to a 430-68 record and seven NCAA Final Fours. Texas Tech head coach Kristi Curry also coached at La. Tech from 1996-99 before landing the head job at Purdue. After Barmore's retirement in 2002, Oklahoma State head coach Kurt Budke took over the reins at Louisiana Tech for three seasons. His Lady Techster squads went 80-24 with three-straight NCAA Tournament appearances from 2002-05.
OKLAHOMA RECAP
Junior Morenike Atunrase scored 18 points before leaving with an injury and junior A'Quonesia Franklin (Tyler, Texas) added 13 points as No. 21 Texas A&M ended sixth-ranked Oklahoma's 26-game Big 12 Conference winning streak with a 54-52 upset before a crowd of 11,486 at Lloyd Noble Center on Jan. 27. Texas A&M overcame a seven-point deficit with a 13-0 run, taking a 46-40 lead on sophomore Danielle Gant's two free throws following a technical foul on Oklahoma coach Sherri Coale. From there, the Aggies had to prevent the Sooners from staging their second rally from a five-point deficit in the final minute. After Erin Higgins' three-pointer from the right wing pulled the Sooners within 50-48, sophomore Takia Starks (Houston, Texas) answered with a three at the other end. After a series of misses by the Sooners and a turnover by Starks, Higgins drilled another three from the left sideline for a two-point difference with 55.1 seconds to play. Leah Rush made one of two free throws to get Oklahoma within one, but sophomore La Toya Micheaux (Missouri City, Texas) was fouled after grabbing the rebound on Rush's miss and also hit 1-of-2 to put the Aggies up 54-52 with 3.5 seconds left. Gant (Oklahoma City, Okla.) then blocked Kendra Moore's desperation three-pointer from the right wing to seal the win. Rush scored 16 points to lead Oklahoma and Courtney Paris ended up with a season-low 12 points and 20 rebounds for her 47th straight double-double. Oklahoma's scoring output was its lowest of the season and the Sooners committed a season-high 28 turnovers. It was A&M's first win in Norman since 1990 and first in conference regular season play.
SIMPLY THE BEST
Texas A&M continues to be one of the top 20 teams in the nation in five NCAA statistical categories. The Aggies have held opponents to 50.9 points per game behind the nation's third-best defense. They are only third-best to No. 9-ranked LSU (46.6) and top-ranked Duke (48.7) in scoring defense. A&M ranks seventh nationally in three-point field goal percentage (39.6) and 14th nationally in assists per game (17.2). They are also 15th in scoring margin (+17.2) and steals per game (12.1). Junior point guard A'Quonesia Franklin ranks 40th nationally in assists per game (4.9). Meanwhile, Oklahoma State point guard Andrea Riley ranks 31st nationally averaging 5.0 apg.
AGGIES IN THE RPI
The Aggies are currently No. 20 in the Jeff Sagarin/CBN Women's College Basketball Ratings as of Jan 29. Eleven Big 12 schools are rated among the top 100 RPI teams including Oklahoma (9), Baylor (15), Kansas State (22), Texas Tech (25), Texas (26), Nebraska (31), Iowa State (37), Missouri (43), Texas A&M (54), Colorado (86) and Oklahoma State (89) according to CollegeRPI.com. A&M has also played top 100 non-conference opponents in Washington (38), West Virginia (55) and Rice (92).
A LOOK AROUND THE BIG 12
Texas A&M is in a three-way tie for second place with Baylor and Nebraska in the latest Big 12 Conference standings. All three schools trail league leader Oklahoma who suffered its first loss in conference regular season play at then-No. 13 Texas (72-36) on Feb. 26, 2005. The Aggies will face two Big 12 North opponents in their next three contests including Kansas on Feb. 3 and Missouri on Feb. 7. KU is still looking for a win in conference play, while Mizzou has been successful twice this season. A&M currently leads the league in scoring defense, three-point field goal percentage, three-point field goal percentage defense (26.4), assists, steals and turnover margin (+7.6).
1. Oklahoma (17-2, 7-1)
2T. Baylor (18-3, 5-2)
2T. Nebraska (17-4, 5-2)
2T. Texas A&M (15-4, 5-2)
5. Texas Tech (13-8, 4-3)
6. Iowa State (16-5, 4-4)
7T. Kansas State (15-5, 3-4)
7T. Oklahoma State (15-5, 3-4)
7T. Texas (14-7, 3-4)
10T. Missouri (14-6, 2-5)
10T. Colorado (8-11, 2-5)
12. Kansas (6-14, 0-7)
SCHOOL RECORD 13-STRAIGHT WEEKS IN THE TOP 25
A&M climbed three spots to No. 18 in the latest Associated Press Top 25 Poll released Monday. Their previous No. 10-ranking during Week 3 in both the AP and Coaches Polls marked the highest-ever national ranking in school history. A&M is one of only seven schools including Ohio State, North Carolina, LSU, Connecticut, Duke and Tennessee with both its men's and women's basketball teams ranked among the top 25 teams in the country. The Aggies are the only Big 12 school to hold that distinction. A&M has appeared in the national polls a school-record 13-straight weeks since the preseason polls came out on Nov. 1 and 8. The school record for consecutive weeks in the AP Top 25 Poll was previously 12 which occurred during the 1994-95 campaign under former head coach Candi Harvey.
ASSOCIATED PRESS TOP 25 POLL
1. Duke (21-0)
2. North Carolina (23-0)
3. Tennessee (19-2)
4. Maryland (21-2)
5. Ohio State (18-1)
6. Connecticut (18-2)
7. LSU (20-2)
8. Stanford (18-3)
9. Oklahoma (17-2)
10. Purdue (19-3)
11. George Washington (18-2)
12. Arizona State (19-3)
13. Baylor (18-3)
14. Georgia (18-4)
15. Vanderbilt (18-4)
16. Marquette (19-2)
17. Bowling Green (18-2)
18. Texas A&M (15-4)
19. Louisville (19-2)
20. Middle Tennessee State (19-3)
21. California (16-5)
22. Nebraska (17-4)
23. Rutgers (12-6)
24. Wisconsin-Green Bay (17-3)
25. James Madison (17-2)
AGGIES ON THE RADIO
All Texas A&M women's basketball games can be heard via a radio broadcast on the Texas A&M Sports Network. Tom Turbiville (play-by-play) and Tap Bentz (color analyst) will call the action live from Reed Arena on KZNE 1150 AM.