University of Washington Official Athletic Site - Women's Basketball
Huskies Meet Cowgirls at 12 noon PST Sunday afternoon
 
The Huskies play a final non-conference road game against Oklahoma State Sunday afternoon |
Nov. 30, 2000
Seattle -
This Week
Game 5
Washington Huskies (2-2)
at Oklahoma State (4-1)
2 p.m. CST (12 noon PST)
Sunday, Dec. 3
Freede Wellness Center (3,500)
at Oklahoma City University
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
The Coaches
Washington
June Daugherty (Ohio St. `78)
Record at UW: 61-58 (5th yr.)
Career record: 184-132 (12th yr.)
Oklahoma State
Dick Halterman
(NE Missouri St., `74)
Record at OSU: 304-204 (18th yr.)
Career: 554-238 (27th yr.)
Series Notes
UW and OSU met last season for the first time and the Cowgirls won, 87-76, to claim the championship in the Seattle Times Classic at Mercer Arena (Dec. 19).
Washington record last year:
8-22 overall, 4-14 (9th) Pac-10
Oklahoma State record last year:
13-15 overall
Huskies on Radio
All UW games air live on KKOL 1300 AM radio. Steve Sandmeyer calls the action. Games can also be heard live on the internet at: http:/www.audionet.com/schools/washington/
June Daugherty Radio Show
KOMO am 1000
Mondays, 6:30-7 p.m.
Next Game
Les Schwab Challenge
vs. Nebraska
7:30 p.m., Dec. 6 (Fox NW)
Bank of America Arena
Seattle, Wash.
This Week: The Washington women's basketball team (2-2) plays the first of two games against opponents from the Big 12 Conference when it travels to the midwest for a game against Oklahoma State (4-1) at 2 p.m. Central Time (12 noon Pacific Time), Sun., Dec. 3. The game will be played at the Freede Wellness Center on the Oklahoma City University campus in Oklahoma City while Gallagher-Iba Arena in Stillwater is undergoing renovation. The game will be a re-match the Seattle Times Classic championship game last year when the Cowgirls knocked off the host Huskies, 87-76, to claim the tournament title in Mercer Arena. For Washington, it is a second straight road trip as the Huskies played at Boise State last Monday night. Rebounding from its home-opening setback to top-ranked Connecticut, the Huskies pounded the Broncos, 87-67, to even their record at 2-2. It was not without its consequences though as senior center LeAnn Sheets suffered a sprained left ankle on the final play of the first half. She will not play this weekend. Oklahoma State was off to a hot start, having won its first four games, before suffering a 78-44 setback to No. 13 SW Missouri State Wednesday night. The Cowgirls are led by sophomore guard Chantoya Hawkins, who is averaging 10.4 points and 4.0 rebounds per game. OSU hosts a Friday night game against Arkansas before facing Washington Sunday afternoon. Following the Oklahoma State contest, Washington remains at home for its next seven games; five non-conference match-ups, including the Seattle Times Classic, and the Pac-10 opening weekend versus UCLA and USC in January.
Probable Washington Starters
Name Pos. Ht. Yr. Hometown Pts., Rbs.
24 - Kellie O'Neill F 6-1 So. Lynnwood, Wash. 12.0 ppg, 4.8 rpg
23 - Emily Autrey F 6-0 So. Kennewick, Wash. 7.7 ppg, 3.0 rpg
40 - Andrea Lalum C 6-4 Fr. Bozeman, Mont. 5.3 ppg, 3.5 rgp
14 - Megan Franza G 5-11 Sr. Leavenworth, Wash. 13.8 ppg, 3.3 rpg
13 - Giuliana Mendiola G 5-11 Fr. Lake Forest, Calif. 12.3 ppg, 5.5 rpg
UW Against the Big 12: Washington is 10-14 in games against Big 12 Conference schools ... the most recent meeting was last season against Oklahoma State in Seatte ... UW also faced Nebraska last season, and suffered an 89-86 loss in Lincoln ... UW hosts the Cornhuskers in its next game, Dec. 6 in Seattle.
Time Change: The Dec. 6 game versus Nebraska has been changed to a 7:30 p.m. tip-off time at Bank of America Arena. It will be telecast live on Fox Sports Northwest.
Dawgbite: The Huskies and the Cowgirls both played to overtime in their season-openers this year. The Huskies fell, 77-74, at Indiana while OSU won, 71-63 at Oral Roberts.
Injury Update: Freshman Sarah Keeler had surgery Nov. 10 to repair a minor meniscus tear in her left knee. She is hopeful for the Seattle Times Classic, Dec. 21-22. Sophomore Loree Payne has a stress fracture in her left foot and is out four to six weeks. She is hopeful for the start of the Pac-10 season in January. Cheryl Sorenson missed the Boise State game with tendinitis in her knee. She is probable for the Oklahoma State game. LeAnn Sheets suffered a severe left ankle sprain at Boise State is out for the Oklahoma State and Nebraska games. Her status will be evaluated after that.
Boise State Recap (Nov. 27) UW 86, BSU 67 - Washington rebounded from its setback to top-ranked Connecticut by pounding Boise State, 82-62, in BSU's home-opener at Bronco Pavilion. For Husky coach June Daugherty, it was the fourth straight win over the school where she spent seven years as head coach prior to her arrival at Washington. Husky sophomore Emily Autrey came off the bench to lead all scorers with a career-best 20 points on 8-of-11 from the field. She topped her career-high of 15 points, set two games ago at Michigan. Freshman Giuliana Mendiola added 19 points, topping her 15 point effort in the season-opener at Indiana. Mendiola, who started in place of Autrey, was 7-of-10 from the field, with two treys, and 3-of-3 from the line, along with four assists, two steals and no turnovers in 30 minutes of action. The Huskies jumped out to a quick lead in the ballgame, behind the efforts of senior LeAnn Sheets, who scored six of the Huskies first 11 points. She was 4-of-7 from the field for eight points and added three rebounds, three steals, a block and an assist, before suffering a severe ankle sprain on the final play of the half. She did not return to the game. The Broncos tied the game at 15-15 with 11:22 to go but it was all Washington after that as the Huskies exteneded their lead. Mendiola hit a three-pointer, a layup and a pair of free throws in the closing minutes of the half and Washington took a 19-point lead, 44-25, at the break. The Huskies took their biggest lead of the game on a layup by Carli Halpenny with 13:25 to go in the second period, increasing the gap to 28 points, and cruised from there. BSUs Camille Woodfield hit a three-pointer at the buzzer to make the final margin an even 20 points, 82-62, in the Huskies favor.
Catching up with Kellie: Sophomore Kellie O'Neill has jumped out to a quick start in her second season as Husky. A 6-1 guard-forward who started only nine games and averaged 6.4 points before suffering an ankle injury last season, poured in a game-high 27 points against Connecticut in Washington's home-opener Nov. 24. O'Neill, who topped her previous career-best 16-point from December 1999, went 12-for-18 from the field, including a 2-for-3 effort from 3-point range. Even more impressive was who it came against. O'Neill put in the highest individual scoring effort against UConn so far this season. Only three players - including 2000 WNBA Rookie of the Year Betty Lennox - were able to score at least 25 points against UConn and its stingy defense last season. O'Neill, whose younger sister Kristen recently signed with Huskies for next season, finished her high school career at Meadowdale with 1,414 points, 810 rebounds, 213 steals and 170 blocks with a career field goal percentage of 50.9 percent.
What They're Saying about Kellie
"I like the way she plays," Connecticut head coach Geno Auriemma said of Kellie O'Neill after she scored 27 points against them on Nov. 24. "You have to guard her at the 3-point line. She's really smart with the ball in the lane. Their guards (Megan Franza and injured Loree Payne) get a lot of mention and notoriety, and they should. But I think that kid (O'Neill) is really, really good."
Megan on the Move: Senior guard Megan Franza needs just 71 points to move on to UW's career Top 10 scoring chart. After four games this season, she has 1,152 career points in 91 games. Franza averaged 17.2 points per game last season and has a career average of 12.7 ppg. She became the 16th Husky to top the 1,000-point barrier and only the eighth player to pass the mark as a junior last year. Dating back to last season, Franza has scored in double figures in 30 of the last 34 games. She was held to six points versus Connecticut. Franza has been in the starting lineup for 88 of UW's last 90 games.
More Megan: Franza entered the year at No. 2 on UW's career three point field goals made list, with 139. She has added nine more in four games this season for a total of 156, including five at Indiana. Franza is chasing former standout Jamie Redd (1995-99), who tops the list with 192 treys. She is also No. 2 on the three point attempts list with 499, again chasing Redd who attempted 675 long range bombs during her career. Franza, at 17.2 ppg, led the Pac-10 in scoring until the final two weeks of the season, while Loree Payne finished fourth with 17.4 points per game. Together they formed the highest scoring duo from the same school in Pac-10 history. With the graduation of Maylana Martin (UCLA) and the impending redshirt season for Oregon's injured Shaquala Williams, Payne and Franza enter the 2000-01 season as the leading returning scorers in the Pac-10.
Player Notes
24 - Kellie O'Neill ... Had a career-high 27 points vs. No. 1 Connecticut ... 19 pts. in the first half ... limited to 3 pts. at Boise State
23 - Emily Autrey ... Came off the bench at Boise St. for a career-high 20 points on 8-11 fg
40 - Andrea Lalum ... Expected to make her first start at OSU ... can pound inside or step and hit for three.
14 - Megan Franza ... Veteran senior captain is again leading scorer with 13.8 ppg ... 23 pts. in season-opener at Indiana
13 - Giuliana Mendiola ... Impressive in first 4 games ... 19 points at Boise St., with 4 assists, 2 steals and no turnovers in 30 min. ... started against UConn and BSU ... 1 turnover in first collegiate game at Indiana and also hit 3pointer to send game to OT
Off the Bench
32 - Jill Pimley ... Started first 2 games at PG ... tri-captain ... defensive stalwart
4 - Melissa Erickson ... Senior leadership and inside presence ... expect to see more playing time with Sheets injured
44 - Cheryl Sorenson ... Sat out Boise St. with tendinitis in knee ... expected to play at OSU ... versatile guard/forward ... returns from redshirt season and ACL surgery ... impressive in first game back, at Indiana, with 5-7 fg for 12 pts., 4 rebounds
33 - Carli Halpenny ... Healthy for first time in three seasons ... has made tremendous improvement in strength and aggressiveness
12 - Sarah Duncan ... Top defender off the bench ... has played in all four games
31- Gioconda Mendiola ... Averaging five minutes a game in first season ... speedy guard
41 - Heather Reichmann ... Has seen limited action in first 4 games ... will play more with Sheets out
Dawgbite: With the win at Michigan Nov. 19, fifth year Husky coach June Daugherty reached 60 wins in her tenure at Washington ... her win total is third among seven Husky coaches over the years. She is 61-58 at Washington and 184-132 in her 12th season as a head coach.
,b>Coaching Staff: Head coach June Daugherty and her staff enter their fifth year at Washington, with one newcomer on list. Former Michigan Wolverine Yeshimbra "Shimmy" Gray joins the Huskies this season, replacing Hulett Brooks who left to pursue private business. Daugherty, who was inducted into the Ohio State Athletic Hall of Fame in September, and her assistants, Sunny Smallwood and Mike Daugherty, have been together since the 1996-97 season.
A Healthy Front Line: Fifth year coach June Daugherty relishes the opportunity to open the season, even open practice, with a healthy front line. The group was straddled with injuries during the majority of last season, causing Daugherty to constantly alter her starting lineup and rotation. This year, senior LeAnn Sheets, the leading returning rebounder (6.8 rpg) in the Pac-10, enters her final campaign with no lingering effects from her foot surgery. In addition, sophomore Cheryl Sorenson, a guard/forward whom Daugherty calls the most critical missing piece last season - because of her versatility - is recovered from ACL surgery last November. Kellie O'Neill, who had an immediate impact last season, particularly in rebounding, but missed the tail end of the year with a severely sprained ankle, is stronger and faster as she enters her second season. The addition of two freshmen post players, Andrea Lalum (6-4) and Sarah Keeler (6-3) further bolsters the Husky interior game.
The Schedule: As is tradition, the Washington women's basketball team faces a challenging schedule as it enters the 2000-2001 season. The Huskies face 11 teams that played in the postseason last year, seven in the NCAA Tournament, including none other than defending national champion Connecticut in the home opener Nov. 24. Four Pac-10 teams advanced to the NCAA Tournament in 2000 and four opponents played in the WNIT, including national semi-finalist Colorado State.
Gold Medal Count: Sophomore Loree Payne capped a stellar freshman campaign with her selection to the USA Basketball R.William Jones Cup team that annually plays in Taiwan. The youngest player on the squad and the lone representative from the Pac-10, Payne helped lead the team to a gold medal in the four-game tournament. She finished with 16 points, three rebounds and four assists in three games played. Payne tallied 11 points in the gold medal game.
Huskies Among Returning Pac-10 Leaders
Pac-10 Conference 1999-2000 Final Individual Statistics
(returning players in bold)
SCORING G FG 3FG FT PTS AVG.
**1. Williams, Shaquala, ORE 31 189 53 118 549 17.7
2. Martin, Maylana, UCLA 29 193 0 120 506 17.4
3. Payne, Loree, WASH 30 183 60 95 521 17.4
4. Franza, Megan, WASH 30 192 62 69 515 17.2
5. Dietel, Alke, WSU 27 142 35 47 366 13.6
6. Ragland, Felicia, OSU 30 146 28 68 388 12.9
7. Pierce, Sissel, OSU 29 166 0 43 375 12.9
8. Lackey, Angela, ARIZ 31 137 1 119 394 12.7
9. Brown, Tatum, ARIZ 32 154 0 88 396 12.4
10. Moos, Carolyn, STAN 30 128 15 100 371 12.4
**injured, expected out for season
Recapping 1999-2000: Faced with a spate of injuries to its front line and a young squad with no seniors, Washington suffered through its first losing season in school history with a record of 8-22 overall and 4-14th for a ninth place finish in the Pac-10. The season was not without its highlights though, the biggest coming back on Jan. 27 when the Huskies upset No. 24 Stanford and captured the 500th win for the women's basketball program. It was the second victory in a row over Stanford and career win No. 180 for coach June Daugherty. Washington was led by the scoring duo of Loree Payne (17.4 ppg) and Megan Franza (17.2 ppg), who combined to form the highest scoring duo from the same school in Pac-10 history. Franza was named to the All-Pac-10 First Team, continuing a tradition which has seen Washington have a player on the first team every year but two since the league began play in the 1986-87 season. Payne finished the year as one of the most prolific freshman players in UW history. She broke eight freshman records, highlighted by her scoring mark of 521 points.
Departures: Although Washington did not lose anyone to graduation, two players did not return to the team this season. Starting point guard Julia Gray transferred to UNLV and reserve center Tiffiany Diggins left the program. Washington returns four of its starters from a year ago.
LAST WEEK
UConn Recap, Nov. 24, 2000
Connecticut 100, UW 54 at Seattle: Despite scoring 100 points, it was Connecticut's defense that dominated Washington. Svetlana Abrosimova scored 11 of her 23 points during a decisive early run as the No. 1 Huskies coasted to a 100-54 victory Friday night.
"In my 20 years of experience I can't think of another team that has as much talent and depth, short of the (WNBA's) Houston Comets," Washington coach June Daugherty said.
Abrosimova, a two-time All-America, started the early run with a 3-pointer. During a six-minute stretch, Connecticut outscored Washington 24-6 - and forced six turnovers - to take a 30-11 lead with 10 minutes remaining in the first half.
Connecticut (3-0) never trailed and dominated with defense, forcing 26 turnovers and limiting Washington to 31.7 percent shooting from the field.
Asjha Jones and Diana Taurasi each scored 14 points for Connecticut, and Tamika Williams added 11. Abrosimova was 10-of-11 from the field.
Kellie O'Neill scored a career-high 27 points for Washington (1-2). Megan Franza, Washington's leading scorer, was limited to six points on 3-of-15 shooting, including 0-of-9 from 3-point range.
"We were prepared," O'Neill said. "They're just very good."
Connecticut, which returns all five starters and the top eight scorers from last season's national championship team, led by at least 22 points throughout the second half. Sue Bird scored five points during a 17-0 run by Connecticut early in the second half that made it a rout.
Abrosimova missed only one of nine shots in the first half as Connecticut took a 53-27 halftime lead. O'Neill scored 19 of Washington's 27 first half points.
It was the inaugural game at the newly renovated Hec Edmundson Pavilion, which was originally constructed in 1927 and underwent a $40 million facelift that increased seating capacity to 10,000.
Nov. 17, 2000 BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - In a wild first game, the Washington lost its season-opener at the buzzer, 77-74, in overtime at Assembly Hall. After missing a pair of free throws, Indiana's Tara Jones got the ball on an inbounds pass and sank a three pointer as time expired to lift the Hoosiers to their first win under coach Kathi Bennett. It was almost Washington's win as freshman Giuliana Mendiola hit a three-pointer of her own at the buzzer in regulation to tie the game at 65-65 and send it to overtime. It capped a second half in which the Huskies outscored the Hoosiers by six. IU freshman guard Anna Waugh opened up overtime with a three-pointer, but Husky senior Megan Franza scored five consecutive points to give Washington a 70-68 lead. Indiana tied the score at 70-70 on layup with 2:05 to go. There were three more lead changes before IU's Heather Cassady hit a three-pointer to tie the game once again at 74-74 with :58 seconds remaining. After a Husky miss with 30 seconds remaining, Indiana slowly worked the ball upcourt and got it into the hands of Jones with time running out. IU's Jones tried to go up for a three-pointer with under one second left, when a hand check foul was called on senior starter LeAnn Sheets, who then fouled out of the game, and Jones went to the free throw line. After a five-minute delay due to discrepancies with the clock and number of personal fouls for Sheets, nine-tenths of a second was put on the clock, Jones went to the line and missed both free throws. On the rebound of Jones' second miss, the ball bounced off Husky sophomore Kellie O'Neill, giving the Hoosiers the ball back with seven-tenths of a second left under the offensive basket. Cassady inbounded the ball to Jones behind the arc, and she sank the game-winner. The sequence of events that sent the game to overtime were just as wild. The Huskies got two offensive rebounds off missed free throws but only cashed in on one, as they trailed, 63-62, with 16 seconds remaining in regulation. Franza missed a long three pointer and IU's Erika Christenson was fouled on the rebound, sending her to the line. She sank both free throws to put the Hoosiers up by three. Washington inbounded the ball to Mendiola, who was nearly stripped of the ball, bobbled it several times and then threw up a prayer, hardly looking at the basket, that went at the buzzer to send the game to overtime. Mendiola, making her collegiate debut, finished the game wih 15 points, on 5-of-6 from the field, including two three pointers, 3-of-4 from the line and five rebounds. Franza, who missed her first nine shots of the game, led all scorers with 23 points, including five three pointers. When she finally broke out of her slump, her shots came at critical points in the game. Franza hit back-to-back three pointers, sandwiched in between a Melissa Erickson jumper, to pull the Huskies within one, 50-49, at 8:24 in the second half. She hit Washington's first five points in overtime to give the Huskies their first lead of the game at 3:32 in the extra period. Washington also got double figure scoring from Cheryl Sorenson, who was playing for the first time since the 1998-99 season, while Sheets had a game-high 10 rebounds before fouling out. Indiana had four players in double figures, led by Wasugh's 17 points. Indiana led by as many as 11 in the first half and took a 33-27 lead at halftime.
Nov. 19, 2000 ANN ARBOR, Mich. - Washington rebounded from its loss at Indiana with a bang, defeating Michigan, 73-60, in a game they led from the tip at Crisler Arena. Michigan suffered the loss less than 48 hours from its season-opening win over No. 8 Louisiana Tech. Washington was led by sophomore Emily Autrey, who finished with 15 to lead four Huskies in double figures. She was followed by Megan Franza, also with 15, and Kellie O'Neill with 13 and Giuliana Mendiola with 10 points. The Wolverines, who never led in the contest, were led offensively by post players Raina Goodlow and LeeAnn Bies, who collected 17 and 16 points, respectively. The Wolverines and Huskies split the first 12 points of the contest before a three from Franza gave Washington a 9-6 lead. Washington would hold on to that lead for the remainder of the first half. Paced by four first-half treys Washington pushed its lead to as much as 11 at 36-25. However, Michigan, which shot .545 (12-22) from the field in the first stanza put together a 10-0 run to shave the lead to one. Washington ended the Michigan run with a conventional three-point play by Giuliana Mendiola with :09 remaining in the half and took a 39-35 lead into the intermission. After Washington scored the first hoop of the second half to lead by six, Michigan went back to work in the post. Heather Oesterle and Goodlow each collected baskets in the paint as Michigan regained its momentum from late in the second half and tied the contest at 46 at the 14:18 mark after an 11-5 run. Washington went back up 48-46, but Bies came right back with a hook in the lane to tie the game back up at 48. The momentum of the game switched on the next possession, however, as Mendiola drilled a pull-up triple to give Washington a lead it would not relinquish. From there, the Huskies methodically increased their lead to nine (60-51), but a Goodlow layup on a nice dish from Thorius brought the Wolverines within five (60-55), with seven minutes to play. That was as close as the Wolverines would get, however, as Washington answered with a triple from Andrea Lalum and Michigan was able to connect on just two more field goals in the final seven minutes. Washington held Michigan to just .267 (8-30) shooting in the second half and.385 (20-52) shooting for the game.
