|
After A Long Break Aggies Return To Action At Boise State On Friday
Feb. 17, 2009
LOGAN, Utah - GAME #24 Utah State (11-12, 5-5 WAC) at Boise State (14-11, 7-4 WAC) Friday, Feb. 20, 7:00 p.m. MT • Boise, Idaho Taco Bell Arena (19,667) Broadcast: KLGN 1390 AM (Tape Delay) www.UtahStateAggies.com TIP OFF - After a 12-day lay off, Utah State is back in action against Boise State on Friday, Feb. 20. The Aggies won the last meeting between the teams on Jan. 17 in Logan, 58-44. It was the first time that USU had defeated BSU since joining the WAC. The injury-prone Broncos are still tied for third place in the Western Athletic Conference standings with a 7-4 record. Despite losing to first-place Fresno State on Feb. 15, Boise State has won five of its last seven games. The Aggies continue to get strong scoring performances from senior guard Ana Pares and Danyelle Snelgro who both average 13.6 points per game. Today's broadcast is tape delayed to a scheduling conflict with KLGN. The Aggies will return to a live broadcast on KLGN for the broadcast on Feb. 22. Complete Release in PDF Format
SCOUTING BOISE STATE - Boise State's scoring woes surfaced again Sunday afternoon as Fresno State pulled away in the second half for a big 12-point, 70-58, road victory over the Broncos in Taco Bell Arena. After rallying from seven-points down early in the second period to tie the game, the Broncos went cold from the floor hitting only six field goals in the final 15 minutes of play. Meanwhile, the Bulldogs slowly pulled away out scoring Boise State 27-15 during that time span. In the end Fresno State won the battle for possession of first place in the league standings with the victory as they improve to 9-3 in WAC play while the Broncos fell to 7-4. The first half saw Boise State open solid taking a nine-point lead twice midway through the period, the last came with 6:09 to play and the score reading 29-20. Unfortunately, that is when the shooting problems began for the Broncos as the Bulldogs rolled off an 18-4 run to close the half up five points at 38-33. The second half started with Boise State rallying from an early seven-point deficit with a 10-3 run to tie the game at 43 with 15 minutes to play. Jamia Malone, who finished the game with a career-tying 19 points, hit her fifth and final 3-pointer from the right corner to tie the score. The Broncos hold an overall series lead 14-3. The Aggies' captured their first win against Boise State since joining the WAC on Jan.17 when USU defeated BSU, 58-44. Boise State holds the record in WAC games 1-7, including a loss in the WAC Tournament last season. Despite several injuries this season, the Broncos are still in the hunt for the WAC regular season title with a 7-4 WAC record and an 14-11 overall record. Boise State is currently tied for third with Louisiana Tech. BSU has an even lineup without one player averaging in double digits. Marisa Stotler leads the way, averaging 9.6 ppg and 6.0 rpg. Heather Pilcher averages 8.6 points per game. AGGIES VS BOISE STATE IN THE WAC 2005-06 Boise State 70, USU 38 (in Boise) Boise State 72, USU 55 (in Logan) PINK ZONE - Sunday, Feb. 22 is Utah State's Pink Zone game against Idaho. Anyone that comes to the game wearing pink will get free admittance. Also the first 150 fans will get a free pair of pink Crocs provided by the Women's Basketball Coaches' Association. Women's basketball teams across the nation are challenged to dedicate one game between February 13-22 to raise breast cancer awareness and funding. Over 1,200 teams are involved and both New Mexico State and Louisiana Tech in the WAC will also host Pink Zone events. SNELGRO TOPS IN THE WAC - Senior guard Danyelle Snelgro is still ahead fellow senior Dellena Criner of Nevada in steals, averaging 2.52 steals per game just ahead of Criner's 2.29 spg. She has a WAC-leading 58 steals. In assists, Criner has the edge, averaging 4.33 assists per game. Snelgro is second with 4.17 apg. WAC FINISHES - With six conference games left to play, the Aggies are looking for their best finish ever in the Western Athletic Conference. In 2006-07, USU was 7-9 in the WAC which was good for sixth which was its best finish since joining the league for the 2005-06 season. Last season, the Aggies were 5-11 and finished seventh. In 2005-06, USU was 2-14 which placed it in ninth. IDENTICAL TWINS - Senior guards Ana Pares and Danyelle Snelgro have identical scoring number 23 games into the season. Both guards average 13.6 points per game. To continue the similar numbers, both players average 4.0 rebounds per game. CHANGING IT UP - In the first 21 games of the season, the Aggies started the same five for every game. Danyelle Snelgro, Ana Pares, Alice Coddington, Lydia Whitehead and Nicole Johnson started the first 21 games for USU this season. In the 22nd game against Fresno State, head coach Raegan Pebley made a change. Freshman Chelsea Burns made her first start of the season, while Whitehead came off the bench. TAKING A BREAK - After the win against Nevada on Feb. 8, Utah State will not have another game for 12 days which is the longest break of the season. After that USU will have four games in nine days before closing out the regular season on March 5 and March 7 at home. SWATTING THE RECORD BOOKS - Several Aggies are forging their way into the Utah State record book, with 45 blocks this season, junior forward Nicole Johnson is already in the top 10 in the all-time single season list. She is now in fourth, passing Ali Marchant who had 38 blocks in the 2005 season. Johnson is only three blocks from tying Jessica Freeman who had 48 blocks in both 2005 and 2006. With 58 steals and 96 assists, senior guard Danyelle Snelgro is nearing the top 10 in both categories. Junior forward Lydia Whitehead is also close to making the top 10 in blocks. Her 24 blocks this season is tied for ninth with Sharon Epps during the 1983 season. LOOKING AT THE STANDINGS - After a week off from play, the Aggies have now played the least amount of conference games with a 5-5 record. Fresno State has taken the lead in the standings with a 9-3 league mark. Surprise team, Idaho, is second with a 8-3 conference record, while both Louisiana Tech, Nevada and Boise State are tied for third with a 7-4 WAC record. Utah State stands alone in sixth with a 5-5 record just ahead of 4-7 New Mexico State. Hawai`i stands alone in eighth place with a 2-9 record, and San Jose State is ninth at 1-11. LAST TIME OUT - In a battle of two of the top defensive players in the Western Athletic Conference, senior guard Danyelle Snelgro had the slight edge over Nevada's Dellena Criner, scoring a career-high 29 points in the Aggies, 63-52, win over first-place Nevada in Reno on Sunday. The win was the Aggies first win in Reno in four attempts. With the win, USU broke a two-game losing streak and now stands 11-12, 5-5 in the WAC. Nevada drops its second-straight game and is now 13-9 and 7-2 in conference play. Aside from Snelgro's 29 points, the Aggies also got a career-high 15 rebounds from sophomore guard Alice Coddington. Junior forward Lydia Whitehead scored nine points, while senior guard Ana Pares scored eight. Pares did have her 13-game double-digit scoring streak come to an end. For the game, Utah State shot 35.8 percent from the field (19-of-53), while shooting 33.3 percent from three (four-of-12). USU was solid from the charity stripe, shooting 70 percent (21-of-30). After getting out-rebounded by 21 in a loss to Fresno State on Feb. 1, the Aggies moved to 8-1 in games when they out-rebound their opponent by winning the rebound battle 44-40. Nevada shot 29.1 percent from the field (16-of-55), while shooting 28.6 percent from beyond the arc (2-of-7). The Wolf Pack shot 62.1 percent from the free throw line (18-of-29). UNLUCKY 13? - Senior guard Ana Pares had her double-digit scoring streak stopped at 13 in the Aggies' win against Nevada on Feb. 8. She came close, scoring eight points in the win. The guard has had three 20-point games this season. Pares topped her career high in points when she scored 25 in a loss to Utah Valley on Jan. 3. Starting the season, her high was 10 points against Portland in 2006. To start this season, Pares scored 11 points once again against Portland for a new career high. This high would not stand long as the senior scored 18 points against Northern Arizona on Nov. 19. SNELGRO REACHES CAREER HIGH AGAIN - With 29 points in the win against Nevada on Feb. 8, senior guard Danyelle Snelgro broke her career high in points scored. The 29 points were the most scored by an Aggie this season. Her previous career high was 19 points against Louisiana Tech on Jan. 10. She also scored 19 points as the Aggies defeated Weber State for the first time since 1984 on Dec. 22. Snelgro scored 19 points, 13 in the first half, en route to a 44-41 win over the Wildcats. Her previous high was 18 points at Utah Valley in 2006. Snelgro's point explosion helped the Aggies capture their second road win of the season. FOUR TIMES THE FUN - In the win against San Jose State, four different Aggies scored in double figures. It was the second time that four different players scored 10 or more points in a single game. Against New Mexico State, Lydia Whitehead, Ana Pares, Danyelle Snelgro and Chelsea Burns all scored in double figures. Against SJSU, Whitehead, Pares, Snelgro and sophomore Alice Coddington scored in double digits. ON THE BOARDS - Utah State is 8-1 when out-rebounding its opponents. In the win against Southern Utah, the Aggies out-rebounded the Thunderbirds, 48-34, including a season-high 27 offensive rebounds. USU had 20 offensive rebounds in the win against Northern Arizona and 50 total. USU earned its sixth win when out-rebounding its opponents against Boise State on Jan. 17. In the win over the Broncos, USU had 17 offensive boards. TOP THIEF - With a season-high five steals, senior guard Danyelle Snelgro tied all-time steal leader Margaret Johns (1980-83) with 175 steals. In the win against New Mexico State, Snelgro passed former teammate Taylor Richards (2005-08) who ended her storied Aggie career with 172 steals. She took sole possession of first place with her first steal against Louisiana Tech on Jan. 10. Snelgro now has 198 career steals and 58 this season. WITH A LITTLE HELP FROM MY FRIENDS - The Aggies had a season-high 20 assists in the win against New Mexico State on Jan. 8. Danyelle Snelgro had a season-high nine assists, while sophomore Alice Coddington had six assists. Snelgro is now second all-time in assists with 299. Taylor Richards is the all-time assists leader with 371. Snelgro is second in the league in assists, averaging 4.17 apg. In WAC games, Snelgro is first in assists with 57 helps for an average of 5.70 apg. ENDURANCE AGGIES - Four of the Aggies' five starters are among the leaders in the WAC in minutes played. Danyell Snelgro is now second behind Idaho's Charlotte Otero, averaging 37.48 minutes per game. Ana Pares is third in the WAC in minutes played, averaging 37.26. Nicole Johnson averages 31.48 mpg which places her 12th, while Alice Coddington rounds out the quartet of fit Aggies. Coddington averages 31.39 mpg, which places her 14th in the WAC. TURNING 21 - The 2008-09 season marks the 21st year of women's basketball at USU, and just the sixth since the program was restarted prior to the 2003-04 season. The women's hoops program at USU had been disbanded following the 1987 season due to budget cuts. USU is playing in its fourth season in the Western Athletic Conference after playing its first two seasons in the Big West Conference. GAMETRACKER - Fans can follow Aggie home games through the USU web site at www.UtahStateAggies.com via GameTracker, a free service, which updates play-by-play and statistics throughout the game. AGGIES ON THE RADIO/WEB - All Utah State home games can be heard on KLGN (1390 AM) in Logan with Evan Nyman calling the play-by-play and Ashley Rutledge providing color commentary for home games. They can also be heard on the web by going to the Utah State Athletics home page at www.UtahStateAggies.com. ADMISSION - Admission to Utah State's women's basketball games is $5 for adults, $1 for youth. Season tickets are also available $65 for adults and $10 for youth. Contact the USU Athletics Ticket Office at (435)797-0305 or at 1-888-U-STATE-1 (1-888-878-2831) for more information or visit the Utah State athletic web site at www.UtahStateAggies.com. UTEP THANKSGIVING CLASSIC - Both Danyelle Snelgro and fellow guard Ana Pares were named to the UTEP Thanksgiving Classic all-tournament team as voted on by the tournament's four coaches. Hawk Jennifer Bender was named both Defensive and tournament Most Valuable Player. COACH PEBLEY - Head coach Raegan Pebley is entering her sixth season as head coach at Utah State, which is the longest tenure in the program's history. Five games into last season, Pebley overtook the lead for the most games coached in Utah State history (116). She has now coached 163 games for the blue and white. Pebley now has 53 wins as Aggie head coach which places second ahead of Cindy Perkins in wins and just behind of Fern Gardner (55) on the all-time win list. AGGIES AGAINST EVERYONE - The Aggies rounded out non-conference play against Utah Valley on Jan. 3. Portland State was the fourth team from the Big Sky Conference that the Aggies have faced this season. USU is 2-2 against the Big Sky with a win against Northern Arizona and Eastern Washington and a loss to Idaho State. USU is 0-1 against the Northeast Conference after a loss to Monmouth, while the Aggies hold a 1-0 record against the Southland Conference with a win against Texas State. Finally, the Aggies are 0-1 against the West Coast Conference after a season-opening loss to Portland. USU is now 0-2 against the Mountain West Conference with a loss to BYU on Dec. 13 and a loss to UNLV on Dec. 30. USU played its fifth and final Big Sky Conference team when it defeated Weber State. Aggies vs. Conferences Big Sky Conference 3-2 Mountain West Conference 0-2 Northeast Conference 0-1 Southland Conference 1-0 Summit League 1-0 Non-Division I Opponents 1-0 Provisional Division I 0-1 West Coast Conference 0-1 Total 6-7 AGGIE ALGEBRA 1A-The number of times that the Aggies have defeated the Rainbow Wahine in Honolulu. 2A-The number of players on the 2008-09 roster hailing from the Beehive state of Utah (Lydia Whitehead and Ana Pares). It is also the number of players from Senegal (Banna Diop and Ndoumbe Diop). 2B-The number of times this season that a quartet of Aggies has scored in double figures in wins against New Mexico State and San Jose State. 2C-Total number of different starting lineups that the Aggies have started this season Danyelle Snelgro, Alice Coddington, Ana Pares, Nicole Johnson and Lydia Whitehead have started 22 games this season. Against Fresno State, Chelsea Burns replaced Whitehead. 4A-The number of seniors leading this year's Aggie squad, including Danyelle Snelgro, Ndoumbe Diop, Shawnta Pope and Ana Pares. 4B-The number of overtime games that Utah State has played this season in eight total games. USU is 2-2 in games last longer than 40 minutes wins over Northern Arizona and Eastern Washington and a losses to BYU and Louisiana Tech. USU is 2-1 in overtime games at home. 5-Total number of players on this year's roster standing 6-0 or taller. 6-The number of conference games that the Aggies have remaining this season. 8-Ana Pares had a career-high eight rebounds in a loss to Idaho State on Nov. 22. 10-The number of wins that it took to pass the nine-win total from 2007-08. 12-Alice Coddington broke her career high of 11 points scored with a dozen scored in USU's win against San Jose State. 14-Career high in points by senior Shawna Pope in the loss to Idaho on Jan. 5. 15-Freshman Chelsea Burns had a career-high 15 points in the Aggies win over New Mexico State on Jan. 8. 21-The career high number of points Lydia Whitehead scored in an overtime win against Eastern Washington on Dec. 6. 25-Pares scored a career-high 25 points in a loss to Utah Valley. The 25 points were the most scored by the Aggies this season. 29-Danyelle Snelgro scored a career-high 29 points in the Aggies win over Nevada on Feb. 8. It is the most points scored by an Aggie this season. 53-Head coach Raegan Pebley's win total at the helm of the USU team. 198-Snelgro now stands alone as the all-time steals leader, passing Margaret Johns (1980-83) with 176th steal in the overtime loss to Louisiana Tech on Jan. 10. 299-Number of career assists that Aggie Snelgro has. 312-Total number of points scored by senior Ana Pares which is second on the Aggies. In the first three years of her career, she scored 146 points. 1,327-Total number of points that the Aggies have scored this season.
|
