University of Memphis Athletics
Women's Basketball to Make First-Ever Trip to UTEP
Feb 09, 2007 | Women's Basketball
Feb. 9, 2007
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The Lady Tiger basketball team (3-22, 0-11) will make its first-ever trip to El Paso, Texas, to face UTEP (18-5, 7-4), Saturday, at 8:05 CT.
The Lady Tigers are looking to snap a 14-game losing skid that dates back to December, while UTEP is looking to regain momentum after going 1-2 on a three-game conference road swing. The Miners are currently in the all-important fourth spot in the league standings, holding on to the last first-round bye slot for the conference tournament, which begins Mar. 1st in Tulsa, Okla.
Memphis is coming off a 77-61 loss to league-leading Tulane, which saw the Lady Tigers spot the Green Wave a 24-4 lead before Memphis got its offense going. The Lady Tigers out-scored Tulane in the second half and managed to out-rebound the Green Wave 44-43, but the hole was too much to overcome for the young Lady Tigers, and they suffered their 11th loss in league play.
Freshman Jazmyn Green led all scorers in that game with 16 points, going 6-for-9 from the field, 2-for-3 from three-point range and adding four rebounds, one assist, one block and four steals in 24 minutes of play. She was the lone Lady Tiger to score double-digits, as Aroha Jennings had her double-digit scoring streak snapped at six, managing just one field goal and a 4-for-4 performance at the free-throw line against Tulane. Senior Devin Necaise also missed double-digits for the first time in awhile, scoring nine points on 3-for-9 shooting. In league play, Necaise has only managed double-digit points in five of the first 11 games.
UTEP is led by a player who may be the Freshman of the Year, as Jareica Hughes leads the team in scoring with 12.1 ppg, already having dished out 124 assists and leading the Miners with 65 steals. The 5-3 guard is third in the conference in assists per game (5.09) and is one of three Miners to rank in the C-USA top 15 in that category. Teammates Shalana Taylor (10th with 3.24/game) and Ana Valtierra (14th with 2.96/game) are also in the top 15 in assists as the Lady Tiger defense will have to be patient while the Miners continue to work the ball around for an open look.
Inside, Izabela Piekarska leads the league in blocked shots, with 58 so far this season. She also adds 10.3 ppg as the 6-4 center also adds 5.3 rebounds per game. Three other Miners average about 9.0 ppg (Tasha Marisett, Timika Williams, Kasia Krezel). Williams also leads the team in rebounding with 6.4 per game.
Memphis is looking to put its early-game woes behind it on this, the program's first-ever trip to UTEP, as the Lady Tigers have out-rebounded C-USA foes in four of the last six games. The offense has only connected at a 40 percent or higher shooting rate just one time (at UAB).
Memphis vs. UTEP
This is the second meeting in history between the Lady Tigers and the Miners. Memphis leads the overall series 1-0 after a 71-66 win over UTEP last year snapped a 12-game Lady Tiger losing streak.
Memphis got 20 points from Devin Necaise and 18 from Paris Leonard in last year's game, while Tamika Butler knocked down 15 points, including 3-for-7 from three-point range. In all, Memphis hit 11 threes in last year's meeting, negating a 38-32 Miner rebounding advantage.
Green Has Career Night in FedExForum
Freshman Jazmyn Green is coming off a career-night in the loss to Tulane in the Lady Tigers' last game. The DeSoto, Texas, native scored a career-high 16 points, adding four rebounds, a block and four steals. Green hit 2 of 3 shots from three-point range, and was 6-for-9 from the field for the night. The four rebounds tied a career-high.
Green needs just eight more points to pass the 100-point mark for her young Lady Tiger career. She has now hit 19 shots from beyond the arc (on 49 tries for 38.8 percent), which ranks her tied for third on the team with fellow freshman Alysse Davis.
Looking to Shoot From Beyond the Arc
Memphis is a team that is not afraid to shoot from beyond the arc, sometimes to the detriment of its inside game. Memphis has attempted 488 shots from three-point range, connecting on 149 (30.5 percent). All but two Lady Tigers have attempted a shot from beyond the arc, as centers Robin Jones and Megan Gooch have no attempts from three-point range this year. Ashley Thornton has eight attempts from beyond the arc, but has not hit one in a game yet.
Fantroy 18 Rebounds Shy of 100
Starting point guard Se'erra Fantroy is third on the team in rebounding with 82 rebounds on the season, and is just 18 shy of hitting the 100-career mark in just her first season at Memphis. Fantroy may be able to pass two 100-career marks, as she is just 21 assists shy of 100 in her first collegiate season.
Jennings Double Digit Streak Snapped
Junior forward Aroha Jennings was 1-for-7 from the field against Tulane and finished with six points, snapping her double-digit scoring streak at six games. That was her longest scoring streak of the season and the New Zealand native has now been held without a shot made from three point range in each of the last two games.
She has held up at the free-throw line though, hitting 10-for-10 over the last three games. An 85.1 percent free-throw shooter, Jennings has hit 45-of-53 shots at the free-throw line since league play began. Jennings is now 19 points shy of her 300th career point in her first season at Memphis.
Undersized Thornton Working Hard On the Glass
The team's leading rebounder is the fourth-tallest player on the team, as sophomore Ashley Thornton is averaging 8.4 rebounds per night. She has hit double-digit rebounding just one time in the last seven games, but in the other six games, she has had nine rebounds three times and eight rebounds three times. She currently has 211 rebounds on the season with five regular season games remaining.
Her 8.4 rebounds per game average right now ranks her 6th in the record book for career rebounding. As a prep player, Thornton still ranks in the top 20 in Alabama prep history in career rebounds.
Adams 19 Points From 100
Freshman Hope Adams is just 19 points from her 100th career point, with 81 heading in to the UTEP game. The Oxford, Miss., native has developed a knack for offensive rebounding, with 47 of her 78 rebounds coming off the offensive glass, but she has managed just one offensive rebound twice in the last three games.
Leonard Stepping Up All-Around Game
Sophomore Paris Leonard has averaged 8.0 points and 5.0 rebounds per game over the last two outings, but had her two-game double-digit scoring streak snapped with just four points against Tulane. Leonard, who scored 334 points as a freshman, currently ranks fourth on the team in scoring with 7.5 ppg and is tied for fourth with 25 steals on the season.
Davis Scoring Streak Extends to 14-Straight Games
Freshman Alysse Davis has now scored in 14 straight games, and in 20 of her first 25 collegiate games. Davis is currently tied with Jazmyn Green for third on the team with 19 three-point field goals made this season.
Eight More Threes Helps Necaise Make Some History
Devin Necaise has now hit as many threes this season (56) as she did in all of last year. Necaise, who is setting a new senior single season record in three-point field goals made, is now just eight threes shy of moving in to the Conference USA career top 10, where DePaul's Ashley Luke (2002-2004) currently sits with 180 career threes. Also just eight three-point field goals away is LaTonya Johnson's single season record of 64 three-point field goals made. Johnson knocked down 64 treys during the 1995-96 season.
Memphis Snaps Free-Throw Line Jinx
Memphis had uncharacteristically struggled at the free-throw line in four straight games, hitting under 70 percent in losses against East Carolina (.667), UAB (.643), Marshall (.550) and at East Carolina (.600).
That streak was snapped in the loss to Tulane, where Memphis hit 78.9 percent (15-of-19) from the line.
For the year, Memphis is shooting 72.4 percent from the charity stripe, but just 70.3 percent from the line in league play.
Necaise Ties Career-Rebounding Mark
With a season-high seven rebounds against Tulane, Devin Necaise tied a career high for single game rebounds that she set last year in a loss at UCF.
Necaise Joins 1,000 Point Club
Senior Devin Necaise hit the Lady Tigers' first points of the game at East Carolina, and that three gave her exactly 1,000 career points. She would go on to finish the ECU game with 13 points, all in the first half, and currently ranks 17th in the Lady Tiger record book in career scoring with 1019 points, having passed Princess Swilley (2000-2004) at the 1,000 career point mark. Necaise needs 27 more points to move up to 16th in the Memphis scoring charts, which is where Terri Galloway (1973-75) sits with her 1,046 career points.
Fantroy Just Misses Double-Digit Assist Mark
Freshman point guard Se'erra Fantroy was just one assist shy of her first-ever double-digit assist game at East Carolina, Saturday. Fantroy finished the game with nine assists against just three turnovers, adding one steal in 23 minutes. The freshman point guard has struggled to find her shot lately though, going 9-for-32 since a 5-for-6 shooting night against UAB in the conference opener. In C-USA play, Fantroy is 14-for-38 (.368), and is 1-for-14 from three-point range. Fantroy was 31-for-77 (40.3 percent) in non-conference play from the field.
Adams Held Scoreless at ECU
Freshman Hope Adams was held scoreless by East Carolina, Saturday. That marked the first time in seven games that the Oxford, Miss., native had not scored in a game.
Green Warming up From Beyond the Arc
Freshman point guard Jazmyn Green has emerged as a three-point scoring threat for Memphis. Over the last five games, Green has knocked down 11-of-21 shots from three-point range. She has also figured in to the Lady Tiger offense from the point, handing out 11 assists in the last four games (2.8/game) while playing an average of 16 minutes a night.
Jones Held Without Rebound at East Carolina
For the first time in 22 games and for just the second time in her 23-game Lady Tiger career, freshman Robin Jones was held without a single rebound in the loss at East Carolina. Jones had last been held without a board in her first-ever collegiate game, against Winthrop.
Jones has also scored in all but two games of her Lady Tiger career, missing the scoring margin in the first game against Winthrop and in Memphis' C-USA opener against UAB.
Fantroy Moves to Third in Freshman Record Book Freshman point guard Se'erra Fantroy moved up to third in the freshman record book with 20 assists over the last five games. With her 79 assists on the season, Fantroy is behind just Ruth Ann Forsythe's 101 assists (1983-84) and Nicole Murry's 96 single season assists (1993-94) in the freshman record book. Fantroy is 21 assists shy of her 100th career assist. She is trying to repeat the 100-assist mark passed by Tamika Butler last season (115). If Fantroy can get to the 100 assist mark, it would mark the first time since the 2000-01 and 2001-02 seasons that the Lady Tigers have had players both dish out 100 or more assists in back-to-back seasons. Kalara McFadyen had 119 assists during the 2001-02 season, just after Tiffany Adkins had 132 assists during 2000-01. Memphis then went five seasons before having another 100 assist player.
Charge!
Memphis has drawn 25 offensive charges in the first 25 games of the season. Aroha Jennings leads the team with seven charges drawn, while Ashley Thornton and Jazmyn Green each have six charges drawn. Devin Necaise has three on the season, while Megan Gooch, Robin Jones and Paris Leonard all have one.
Setting a Dubious Streak
The Lady Tiger losing streak is at 14 games. The current streak is a new school record for consecutive losses, breaking the streak of 12, which Memphis had tied last season.
Last Conference Road Win
It's been over two calendar years since Memphis has picked up a Conference USA road win. Memphis' last road win was at UAB, on Jan. 21, 2005. Memphis' last C-USA win was against UTEP on Feb. 6, 2006.
Gooch Moves to Tie for Seventh on Career Blocks List
Senior center Megan Gooch had a pair of blocks in the UAB loss, and now has 54 blocks for her four-year Memphis career. That ties her with Linda Street (1980-81) and former teammate Raven Rogers (2001-2005) for seventh all-time. Gooch needs two more blocks heading in to the Marshall game to catch Kitty Allen (1993-97) for sixth place and needs four more to tie Kim Duppins (1980-1982) and to break in to the Memphis career top five.
