University of Massachusets Athletics
Women's Basketball Heads To Blue Sky Group Darmouth Invitational
December 28, 1999 | Women's Basketball
Dec. 28, 1999
MINUTEWOMEN HEAD TO BLUE SKY GROUP DARTMOUTH INVITATIONAL: The Minutewomen return to the hard-court after a two-week hiatus, travelling to the Blue Sky Group Dartmouth Invitational Women?s Basketball Classic on December 28-29. The Minutewomen will face Furman in the first round on Tuesday, December 28th at 6:00 p.m. UMass will take on either William and Mary or host Dartmouth in the Consolation or Championship round. The Minutewomen will round out the non-conference slate on January 2nd at Rutgers. Tip-off is scheduled for 2:00 p.m. UMass will not return home until January 9th when it takes on Atlantic 10 East opponent St. Bonaventure.
SCOUTING THE LADY PALADINS: Furman enters Tuesday?s game with a 4-4 overall record. The Lady Paladins are led by Jackie Smith who is averaging 18.9 points and 11.3 rebounds per outing. Kena Hodges is also averaging in double figures in the scoring column, adding 10.0 points per game.
THE SERIES WITH FURMAN: This marks the first meeting between the two schools in the sport of women?s basketball.
SCOUTING THE REST OF THE FIELD: UMass has never played William and Mary in women?s basketball. The Tribe enter the tournament with a 3-4 overall record. William & Mary is led by Jen Sobota and Mary Ronome who averaging 15.3 and 15.2 points per game respectively. Kate Von Holly leads the rebounding effort with 7.9 boards per game, while Ranome averages a team second-best 7.6. The series between Dartmouth and UMass is deadlocked at 8-8. The Big Green enter the tournament with a 4-4 record. Dartmouth won last year?s meeting a 72-70 win at the Mullins Center. UMass defeated the Big Green in the consolation game at the Dartmouth Citizens Bank Classic, 54-50 on Dec. 29th, 1997. The Big Green are led by Katherine Hanks who is averaging 17.3 points and 5.9 rebounds per game.
BUTLER NAMED ATLANTIC 10 ROOKIE OF THE WEEK: Jennifer Bulter earned her first Atlantic 10 Conference honor, being named the conference?s Rookie of the Week on December 18th. Butler posted her second career double-double in the upset win over then No. 22 Stanford with a 11 point, 11 rebound effort. She also had three steals and one block in the win. She had seven points and 13 rebounds in the win over Rhode Island along with three blocks, two steals and one assist in the win over the Rams.
THE FOUNTAIN OF YOUTH: There is no question that this year?s version of the Minutewomen is young. UMass has five freshmen, two sophomores and a junior college transfer on the roster, which adds up to eight first or second year players. Only co-captains junior Kathy Coyner and senior Alison MacFarland have played in every game the last two seasons. Senior Jaywana Bradley is the only other player that has over two seasons of collegiate experience, but she has only played in 19 games in the last two seasons as a result of various knee injuries.
COYNER IS MONEY IN WIN OVER STANFORD: Junior Kathy Coyner has a career performance in the upset win over Stanford. Coyner scored 20 points, including four threes, dished out 10 assists, pulled down six rebounds and had three steals in 38 minutes of action. Coyner hit a three pointer and hit four free throws down the stretch to help seal the upset win for the Minutewomen.
MAC-ATTACK: Senior co-captain Alison MacFarland has enjoyed an excellent start to her senior season. MacFarland is the Minutewomen?s leading scorer averaging 10.7 points per game. She is fourth on the team in rebounding pulling down 4.9 caroms per game. MacFarland was UMass? leading scorer in the Clemson, Holy Cross and Rice games and was UMass? leading rebounder against UNC-Charlotte. MacFarland is on pace to become the 11th Minutewoman, and the fifth player under current head coach Joanie O?Brien, to record 1,000 points in her career. MacFarland has scored 876 career points and with her current scoring average is on track to record her 1,000th point on the Duquesne and Virginia Tech roadtrip (Feb 11-13).
THE BUTLER DID IT: Jennifer Butler is off to an impressive start in her collegiate career. A starter in the last seven games, Butler is UMass? third leading scorer with 8.4 points per game and is leading the teams? rebounding effort with 9.7 boards per game. In her collegiate debut, Butler scored eight points and pulled down nine rebounds (seven in the first half) against Clemson. Butler who earned her first collegiate start against Holy Cross, pulled down a season-high 15 rebounds in 26 minutes of play. Butler is shooting a team best 52.0 percent from the field (30-of-57) and has led the Minutewomen in rebounding in six of the last seven games. Butler also leads the team in blocks (9) and steals (16). She posted consecutive double-doubles in wins over New Mexico State (15 points, 11 rebounds) and Stanford (11 points, 11 rebounds).
SNEED STEPPING IT UP: Freshman Amber Sneed has been a valuable asset to the UMass line-up so far this season. Sneed who has earned starts in two games has averaged 4.9 points and 3.4 rebounds per outing so far. Sneed is UMass? second most accurate shooter, connecting on 48.6 percent of her attempts from the field (17-of-35).
BUTLER NAMED TO THE GENE HACKERMAN RICE INVITATIONAL TOURNAMENT ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM: Jennifer Butler was named to the Gene Hackerman Rice Invitational All-Tournament Team. In the two games in Texas, Butler scored 24 points, while pulling down 19 rebounds and swatting three shots. She posted her first collegiate double-double in the consolation win over New Mexico State, pouring in 15 points and 10 rebounds.
MINUTE...WOMEN: Junior Kathy Coyner and senior Alison MacFarland have certainly logged plenty of minutes this season. Coyner is averaging a team-high 36.1 minutes per game, while MacFarland is right behind her at 34.8 minutes per game. The lowest minute total for Coyner this year was 28 minutes against Rhode Island, while MacFarland saw 27 minutes of action against the Rams.
ON THE BOARDS: The Minutewomen have consistently outrebounded their opposition this season on the glass, holding a +7.7 advantage on the glass. UMass has outrebounded its opponents in eight of the nine games this season. The Minutewomen have outrebounded the opposition on the offensive glass in all eight games this season, and hold a + 6.5 advantage per game on the offensive boards. The only game the Minutewomen were outrebounded overall was the Boston College game, with as the Eagles holding a 43-35 advantage on the glass over the Minutewomen.
NIFTY FIFTY: Sophomore Nekole Smith has returned to the form that earned her Atlantic 10 All-Rookie honors in the last two games. Smith has elevated her play in the last three games. She scored six points and pulled down seven rebounds, blocked one shot and had two steals in 18 minutes against New Mexico State. Against Stanford, Smith poured in 17 points (7-of-8 from the field) and pulled down six rebounds. Against Rhode Island, Smith added 13 points, four rebounds and a blocked shot.
UMASS SIGNS ONE DURING EARLY SIGNING PERIOD: UMass inked one player during the early signing period. Paige Harris, a 5-9 guard from Rochester, Michigan, has signed a national letter of intent to play at UMass next season. A four year letter winner at Rochester High School, Harris averaged 14.0 points five assists, six steals, and five rebounds per game in her career, while leading Rochester to four district championships. As a senior, Harris was an All-Area, All-League, and Detroit Free Press and Detroit News All-metro selection. She was also a member of the All-Oakland County Dream team and was a finalist for Michigan?s Miss Basketball.
MINUTEWOMEN PICKED TO FINISH SECOND IN THE ATLANTIC 10 EAST: The Minutewomen have been picked in second place in the Atlantic 10 preseason coaches poll released at the beginning of the season. The Minutewomen finished the 1998-99 campaign with an 11-5 mark in conference play, taking second place in the East to eventual Atlantic 10 Champion, St. Joseph?s.
COYNER NAMED TO PRESEASON ALL CONFERENCE TEAM: Junior point guard Kathy Coyner was UMass? lone representative on the preseason Atlantic 10 All-Conference team. Coyner was a third-team selection. Coyner, UMass? second leading scorer last season, averaged 11.0 points and 5.9 assists per game during the 1998-99 campaign. Coyner was one of three UMass players last season to start all 30 games.
THE O?BRIEN ERA: There is no question that Joanie O?Brien has led UMass to new heights since taking the reigns of the UMass program. In her first three seasons as head coach the UMass skipper posted a 29-53 overall record (.350) and 13-33 (.280) record in conference action. In the last five seasons O?Brien has posted a 92-56 overall mark (.630) and a 57-23 (.720) record in Atlantic 10 play. In the last five seasons the Minutewomen have averaged 18.4 overall wins a year and 11.4 wins a season in conference play, never finishing below second in conference play (either divisional or overall).
HEAD COACH JOANIE O? BRIEN: Joanie O?Brien is in her ninth season at the helm of the UMass women?s basketball program. The all-time winningest coach in UMass history, O?Brien has compiled an 124-115 record in her nine years on the sidelines in Amherst. The 1994-95 Atlantic 10 Coach of the Year, O?Brien has led the UMass women?s basketball program to new heights during her tenure. The architect of the school?s only 20-win season, O?Brien has directed the Minutewomen to their only two NCAA Tournament appearances. A 1986 graduate of Penn State, O?Brien was a four year letterwinner for the Lady Lions, playing for the highly successful Rene Portland. O?Brien was a part of the Lady Lion program that captured four consecutive Atlantic 10 titles and made four consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances. O?Brien joins former UMass men?s coaches Kid Gore (119), Jack Leaman (231, 217 men?s wins, 14 women?s wins) and John Calipari (193) in the UMass basketball century club. She trails only Leaman and Calipari in the victory column.
