University of Massachusets Athletics
Women's Basketball Set To Play Rhode Island
December 09, 2002 | Women's Basketball
Dec. 9, 2002
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Game Day Information
What: Massachusetts (5-1) at Rhode Island (6-0)
Where: Ryan Center (7,571) * Kingston, R.I.
When: Monday, Dec. 9, 2002 * 5:30 p.m.
TV: None
Radio: WMUA, 91.1 FM in Amherst * Matt Sherman (play-by-play) & Lizzy Nielsen (color)
Game Day... Massachusetts takes a break from a grueling non-conference slate as it heads to Kingston, R.I., for a rare early-season conference game against the University of Rhode Island. The Minutewomen are 5-1, off to their best start since the 1988-89 season, in which they also started 5-1, on the heels of a 70-50 win at New Hampshire last Saturday. Meanwhile, the Rams enter Monday's game with a perfect 6-0 mark, the best start in school history. Massachusetts leads the all-time series, 29-21. The two schools split last year's games, with each team winning on the opposition's floor. They will square off again on Jan. 30, 2003, when the Rams visit the Mullins Center.
Impressive Start ... When the Minutewomen downed Sacred Heart, 74-48 on Nov. 22, Marnie Dacko became the seventh head coach out of nine in the program's history to win their first game on the UMass bench. Of the seven, five have gone on to win at least their next game. Jane Farr (1972-73), Carol Albert (1974-75) and Jack Leaman (1986-87) all started 3-0, while Kathy Hewelt led the Minutewomen to a 5-0 start in the 1988-89 season.
Scouting The Rams ...With the 74-60 win on the road against Northeastern on Saturday, the Rams improved to 6-0 for the year, the best start in school history. Junior Shayla Johnson leads Rhode Island in scoring with 16.8 points, 4.5 rebounds and 3.0 steals per game while fellow junior Denise King has added 13.3 points and 5.8 assists per game. Sophomore Katie Stailing is the team's leading rebounder with 7.7 per game and is averaging 8.3 points per contest. Rhode Island has a +6.8 rebounding margin this season and is forcing 28.5 turnovers per game.
The Series ... Massachusetts leads the all-time series with Rhode Island, 29-21. Last year, the Rams downed the Minutewomen, 43-41, on Jan. 28, 2002 at the Mullins Center, while UMass took a 58-49 decision at Keaney Gymnasium on Jan. 21, 2002. This will be UMass' first look at the Ryan Center, the new $54 million home of Rhode Island basketball. Overall, the Minutewomen are 13-9 in Kingston in this series which dates back to the 1973-74 season. UMass is 2-1 in conference games played before January, with both wins coming over Rhode Island. UMass has won 11 of the last 13 games between these two rivals.
Last Time Out ... After trailing by as many as eight points in the second half, Massachusetts battled back but could not get any closer than a basket as Rhode Island held on for a 43-41 win at the Mullins Center on Jan. 28, 2002. UMass out-rebounded the Rams, 39-18, and took twice as many shots as the visitors (52-28), but could not find the bottom of the basket. Then-junior Jen Butler had 16 points and 11 rebounds for her 13th double-double of the season, while then-junior Nekole Smith added 12 points and four boards. UMass shot just .288 (15-52) from the field, including .100 (1-10) from behind the arc.
Rage In The Cage ... Massachusetts has announced that it will play Wednesday's game vs. Villanova at the historic Curry Hicks Cage. It marks UMass' first game at the Cage since an 82-40 win over Temple on Feb. 18, 1995. Overall, the Minutewomen went 124-107 (.537) at the Cage. The first 500 fans will receive a free t-shirt and there will be raffles held throughout the game for prizes such as an X-Box video game system and various tickets to games involving Boston professional sports teams.
Foster's Contribution ... The Minutewomen are 3-0 since junior Cleo Foster moved into the starting line-up. The Toronto, Ontario, native is averaging 2.5 ppg and 2.0 rpg, but her solid defensive play has earned her a spot in the starting five. She was a major factor in the defensive pressure the Minutewomen applied in the 70-50 win at UNH last Saturday. The Minutewomen forced the Wildcats completely out of their offense and caused them to commit 26 turnovers.
A Much Better Start ... At 4-1, UMass is off to its best start since the 1988-89 season. That year, the Minutewomen also started off 5-1. Last year, it was Jan. 26, before the Minutewomen posted their fifth win, a 68-44 triumph over Fordham at the Mullins Center. Dating back to the end of last season, UMass has now won nine of its last 11 games.
A Look Back At The New Hampshire Win ... Senior co-captains Jen Butler and Nekole Smith scored 37 combined points leading the University of Massachusetts women's basketball team to a 70-50 non-conference victory over the University of New Hampshire Dec. 7 at Lundholm Gymnasium. Butler had 19 points, 17 of them coming in the second half, to go along with eight rebounds, two assists and four steals. Smith finished with 18 points and four rebounds. Senior Ebony Pegues also had 18 points, a new season-high, to go along with four assists and two steals. Sophomore Katie Nelson scored just six points, but dished out five assists and did not commit a turnover. Butler and Smith were a combined 13-of-13 from the line. Butler has now made 14 consecutive attempts from the charity stripe against America East foes including last Wednesday's home win over Vermont. Junior Judit Zsedenyi had five points and has now made at least one three-pointer in all six games this season. New Hampshire opened up the second half on an 8-0 run to cut the UMass lead to one, forcing the Minutewomen to burn a timeout at the 17:53 mark. Massachusetts responded with a 10-0 run of its own over the next 3:12 and cruised the rest of the way. The Minutewomen applied defensive pressure throughout the first half, forcing 14 Wildcat turnovers. Massachusetts opened up a close game mid-way through the first half and led by as many as 12 points en route to an eight-point lead at the break. The Minutewomen played much of the first half without the services of Butler. Butler played just 4:16 due to foul trouble, but did manage two points and a rebound. Pegues led all scorers with 12 points in the half on 5-of-9 shooting. She added four rebounds and two assists. Smith had 11 points. UMass shot .438 (14-32) in the half, while holding the Wildcats to a .364 (8-22) clip from the field. Massachusetts was out-rebounded 33-28, but out-shot the Wildcats, .456 (26-57) to .391 (18-46). Massachusetts forced 26 New Hampshire turnovers, while only committing 11 of its own. UMass also tallied 13 steals. New Hampshire had four players score in double-figures. Aubrey Danen and Maren Matthias had 11 points apiece, while Lindsay Adams and Colleen Mullen each had 10.
One Half-Team ... In three of their five wins this season, the Minutewomen have relied on solid play in one half to carry them to victory. In a 52-49 win at Saint Peter's on Nov. 25, the Minutewomen overcame a 10-point second half deficit for the win. They shot just .226 (7-31) in the first half and went a span of 9:42 without registering a single point. On Dec. 1, the Minutewomen used runs of 14-1 to start the game and 19-0 later in the first half to take a 41-16 halftime lead at Toledo, but had to hang on for dear life in the second half to secure the 73-61 victory. The Minutewomen were caught in a deluge of Rocket three-pointers in the second half, but prevailed in the end. Toledo attempted 33 trifectas, converting 13 of them (.394), including 9-15 (.600) in the second half. In the win over Vermont Dec. 4, the Minutewomen used a late second half surge for the win. Ebony Pegues and Jen Butler scored nine unanswered points in the final three minutes of the contest to erase a four-point deficit and give the Minutewomen their fourth win in five games. UMass' 50-48 lead at the 1:29 was its first advantage since it was 4-3 at the 17:44 mark of the first half, but it held on. While the Minutewomen as a team played two solid halves in a 70-50 win at New Hampshire Dec. 7, Butler was especially strong in the second frame. She poured in 17 of her 19 points in the final 20 minutes after sitting out all but 4:17 in the first half due to foul trouble.
Injury Update ... Senior forward Siiri Liivandi suffered an injury during last week's trip to Michigan and Toledo. Due to the Health Information Privacy Act (HIPA), the University of Massachusetts does not reveal injury information about its student-athletes. She will likely be out at least one month.
Stealing Games ... Head Coach Marnie Dacko has been stressing a pressure defense since she took the program over last spring and it is starting to show now. After tallying just 23 steals in its first four games, Massachusetts has picked up 26 in the last two games, wins over America East members Vermont and New Hampshire. Jen Butler has recorded eight steals in the last two games after picking up just seven in her first four games.
Downtown Zsedenyi ...Cottey (Mo.) Junior College transfer Judit Zsedenyi has now made at least one three-pointer in each of UMass' six games this season. Against Michigan Nov. 29, the Budapest, Hungary, native connected on two trifectas for a career-high six points. She then set a new career-high pulling down three boards against Vermont, Dec. 4. She also made her first career two-pointer against the Catamounts. She is averaging 19.5 minutes per game this season, to go with 4.2 ppg.
RPI/Strength of Schedule ... In the latest WBCA/Summerville RPI ranking released Dec. 1, the Minutewomen are ranked 22nd out of 324 Division I institutions. Massachusetts' schedule has been ranked as the nation's 78th toughest, but this only factors in games that have been played and does not take future opponents into consideration. According to CollegeRPI.com, UMass is ranked second in the RPI. The RPI is a measure of strength of schedule and how a team does against that schedule. It does not consider things like margin of victory or where a game is played, only whether or not a team won. It is used by the NCAA as one of their factors in deciding which teams to invite to the NCAA Tournament and where to seed them. The basic formula is 25% team winning percentage (WP), 50% opponents' average winning percentage (OWP), and 25% opponents' opponents' average winning percentage (OOWP).
Solid At The Line ... The inside presence of seniors Jen Butler and Nekole Smith is crucial to the Minutewomen's offense, but their production from the free throw line is equally as important. In Saturday's win over New Hampshire, Butler and Smith went a combined 14-for-14 from the charity stripe, as the Minutewomen shot a season-best .882 (15-17) from the line. Butler has now made her last 15 free throw attempts dating back to the Dec. 1 win at Toledo.
Butler Movin' On Up ... Senior Jen Butler, who is already the school's all-time leading rebounder, is now just six boards shy of joining the prestigious 1,000/1,000 club. She is currently 11th on the all-time scoring list with 1,089 points to go along with her 994 rebounds. Last season, she became the 13th Minutewoman to eclipse the 1,000-point plateau. Butler's name is all over the school record book as she is sixth in free throws made (273), third in free throws attempted (510), fourth in blocks (107) and tied for third in steals (186). Next up on the scoring list is Helen Freeman. The 1990 graduate is in 10th place with 1,105 career points. The preseason first team All-Conference selection has recorded a double-double in four of six games this season and now has 45 in her career.
Steppin' Up The D ... In six games this year, the Minutewomen are yielding a mere 57.6 points per contest. They have held the opposition at or under 50 points on four occasions (Sacred Heart 48, Saint Peter's 49, Vermont 48 and New Hampshire 50), winning each game. In UMass' five wins, opponents are averaging 51.2 points. Vermont came into the Mullins Center on Dec. 4 averaging 71.0 points per game, but was held to a season-low 48 by the Minutewomen. UMass is also forcing its opponents to turn the ball over 19.7 times per game, but that number balloons to 21.4 per game in its five victories.
She Can Dish It Out ... Sophomore guard Katie Nelson is currently second in the conference with a 3.50 assist to turnover ratio. She has already dished out a career-high seven assists against both Sacred Heart and Michigan. Last year, she averaged 3.07 assists per game, good for 13th in the Atlantic 10. Through six games in 2002-03, Nelson sits in seventh-place in the A-10, averaging 4.67 assists per game.
Reversal On The Boards ... After out-rebounding the opposition in all but four games last year, Massachusetts has seen the opposition rack up a higher tally on the boards in the last two games, both wins however. The Minutewomen still hold a +5.4 edge on the boards.
The Coaches ... Massachusetts Head Coach Marnie Dacko won her opening game against Sacred Heart becoming the seventh head coach in the program's history to win their debut. Dacko is the ninth head coach in Massachusetts history. She won her second game against Saint Peter's and is now just the fifth UMass coach to win at least two games to start their career in Amherst. Dacko is currently 5-1 (.833) at UMass and 85-105 (.447) overall.
One the other side, Belinda "Boe" Pearman has posted a 34-56 (.378) record in three-plus seasons in Kingston. The 1984 University of Maryland graduate has a 2-5 career record against Massachusetts.
What's On Tap ... After playing four road games in 13 days, the Minutewomen return home for a two-game homestand prior to the break for final exams. Up first will be the 6-0 Villanova Wildcats on Wednesday, Dec. 11. The game, which will be played at the historic Curry Hicks Cage, is slated to tip-off at 7:00 p.m.