March 4, 2008

LOGAN, Utah -

Complete Release in PDF Format

GAME #27 - Boise State (21-6, 13-2 WAC) at Utah State (9-17, 5-9 WAC)
Thurs., March 6, 7 p.m. (MT) • Logan, Utah • Dee Glen Smith Spectrum (10,270)
Broadcast: 1390 AM • www.UtahStateAggies.com

GAME #28 - Idaho (3-24, 2-13 WAC) at Utah State (9-17, 5-9 WAC)
Sat., March 8, 7 p.m. (MT) • Logan, Utah • Dee Glen Smith Spectrum (10,270)
Broadcast: 1390 AM • www.UtahStateAggies.com

QUICKLY - Utah State women's basketball (9-17, 5-9 WAC) wraps up regular-season action this week, hosting Boise State (21-6, 13-2 WAC) on Thursday, March 6 at 7 p.m. (MT) and Idaho (3-24, 2-13 WAC) on Saturday, March 8 at 7 p.m. (MT) in the Dee Glen Smith Spectrum (10,270). Saturday is "Senior Night" as the Aggies will be honoring their three seniors: guard Taylor Richards along with forwards Jamelah Brown and Jenny Gross.

After Thursday's game, fans can get autographs of their favorite Aggie women's basketball players. The team will be signing autographs on the West concourse.

USU senior guard Taylor Richards scored her 1,000th career point on Jan. 12 at New Mexico State and became the fifth player in USU history to reach the 1,000 point milestone. She currently holds the No. 3 spot on USU's Career Points list with 1,114 points. She needs 78 points to tie Brenda House (1978-81, 1,192 points) at No. 3.

Richards also set a new USU career three-pointers record on Jan. 26, surpassing the previous mark of 83 held by former teammate Brittany Hagen (2003-07). Richards has currently made 90 career three-pointers and now holds two records for USU, including the career assists record with 360 helpers.

Aggie junior guard Danyelle Snelgro surpassed 100 career steals on Jan. 5 against San Jose State. She is now fourth on USU's career steals list with 135 and needs 10 to tie Carol Garrison (1980-81, 145) for third-place.

Snelgro has also posted 200 career assists, after adding three helpers on Sunday against Fresno State. She is currently sixth on USU's career assists list and needs two to tie Corrina Poto (1982-82, 202) for fifth-place.

SEASON 20 - The 2007-08 season marks the 20th year of women's basketball at USU, and just the fifth 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 third season in the Western Athletic Conference (WAC) after playing its first two seasons in the Big West Conference.

ADMISSION - Admission to all home Utah State's women's basketball games is $5 for adults, $1 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 and click on Tickets in the left hand column.

AGGIES ON THE RADIO/WEB - All Utah State women's basketball games can be heard on KLGN (1390 AM) in Logan with Evan Nyman calling the play-by-play and former USU women's basketball player Ashley Rutledge will be providing color commentary for home games. They can also be heard on the web through Yahoo! Sports, by going to the Utah State Athletics home page at www.UtahStateAggies.com and clicking on the Yahoo! Sports link in the right hand column.

GAMETRACKER - Fans can follow all the 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.

ON THE INTERNET - All Utah State's home games are available to watch live through UtahState.tv via the internet at www.UtahStateAggies.com. USU fans can also listen to every game both home and away, via USU's web site.

RETURNING - Head coach Raegan Pebley and the Aggies have three starters among nine letterwinners returning from last season's squad that posted an 11-18 overall record and 7-9 in the WAC... Senior forward Jenny Gross, senior guard Taylor Richards and junior guard Danyelle Snelgro return, as well as senior forward Jamelah Brown.

ABOUT UTAH STATE - The Aggies had their three-game winning streak snapped by losing at Louisiana Tech, 62-47, on Thursday. USU is now 9-17 overall and 5-9 in WAC action. In the WAC statistics, Utah State is third in free throw percentage (.698), as well as ranking seventh in scoring offense (59.0 ppg) and second in scoring defense (63.9 ppg), to rank seventh in scoring margin (-4.9). USU is also third in steals (9.31 spg), eighth in assists (10.88 apg), eighth in both three-point field goal percentage (.299) and ninth in rebounding margin (-6.3). Preseason all-WAC second-team selection Taylor Richards (SR, G, 5-4, West Valley City, Utah) leads Utah State with 10.2 ppg and 4.2 rpg, to go with 2.5 apg and 1.84 spg. Richards netted seven points and a tied a career-high with eight rebounds at Louisiana Tech on Thursday. She is 12th in the league stats in steals, 13th in assists and 14th in scoring. Junior guard Danyelle Snelgro (5-5, Altadena, Calif.) averages 9.5 ppg, 2.85 apg and 2.38 spg. In the conference stats, Snelgro ranks third in steals, ninth in assists and 17th in scoring. She tallied six points, four rebounds and three steals on Thursday at Louisiana Tech. Jenny Gross (SR, C/F, 6-2, Caldwell, Idaho) averages 9.6 ppg and leads the team with 5.4 rpg. Gross recorded her first double-double of the season with 17 points and 10 rebounds at Boise State on Jan. 17. She tallied a career-high 19 points against New Mexico State on Jan. 24. Gross recorded a team-high 14 points and snared five rebounds at Louisiana Tech on Thursday. She has scored in double-figures in the last seven games. In the league stats, Gross ranks eighth in field goal percentage (.474, 93-of-196), 12th in free throw percentage (.713, 62-of-87), 15th in rebounding and 16th in scoring. She earned WAC Player of the Week honors and USU Athlete of the Week accolards on Feb. 25 for her performances against Nevada and Fresno State. Senior guard Jamelah Brown (5-10, Phoenix, Ariz.) posts 8.8 ppg and is second on the team with 5.3 rpg. Brown scored a career-high 24 points at Boise State on Jan. 17. She scored 10 points and pulled down four rebounds on Thursday against Louisiana Tech. Brown is fifth in the league stats in three-point FG pct. (.368), 16th in rebounding and 23rd in scoring.

LAST TIME OUT - RUSTON, La. - Senior center Jenny Gross scored a team-high 14 points as Utah State women's basketball had its three-game winning streak snapped at Louisiana Tech, 62-47, Thursday at the Thomas Assembly Center. Senior forward Jamelah Brown scored 10 points for the Aggies while senior guard Taylor Richards tossed in 10 and tied a career high with eight rebounds as USU was out-rebounded, 49-34. Louisiana Tech snapped USU's three-game winning streak, as the Aggies are now 9-17 on the season and 5-9 in Western Athletic Conference action. The Lady Techsters picked up their second straight win, evening their record to 13-13 and improving to 7-6 in the WAC. Louisiana Tech had two players post double-doubles as Shanavia Dowdell had 13 points and 12 rebounds, while Tarkeisha Wysinger tallied 13 points and 11 rebounds. JoKeirra Sneed added a team-high 14 points and seven rebounds. Utah State finished the game by shooting 31.6 percent from the field (18-of-57) including 3-of-14 (21.4 percent) from three-point range and 50.0 percent (8-of-16) at the free throw line. Louisiana Tech shot 41.4 percent (24-of-58) including 1-of-6 (16.7 percent) behind the three-point arc and 56.5 percent (13-of-23) at the charity stripe.

SCOUTING BOISE STATE - The defending WAC champion Broncos are 21-6 overall and 13-2 in WAC action, sitting atop the conference standings. In its last action, Boise State defeated San Jose State, 74-65, on Thursday and Hawai'i, 66-55, on Saturday. BSU is currently on a 13-game winning streak. Boise State is first in the WAC in both scoring offense (74.3 ppg) and free throw pct. (.703), second in steals (9.85 spg), third in blocked shots (4.00 bpg), fourth in assists (13.93 apg), field goal pct. (.404) and three-point field goal pct. (.317). Preseason all-WAC second-team selection Tasha Harris, a 5-7 junior guard, leads Boise State with 16.2 points and 4.0 rebounds per game, and she is also hitting 44.7 percent from field goal range (139-of-311). Harris is second in the WAC in both scoring and assists (3.67 apg), sixth in steals (2.11 spg), seventh in free throw pct. (.759, 120-158), eighth in three-point field goal pct. (.357) and 11th in field goal pct. Harris scored 13 points and tallied five assists against San Jose State on Thursday, while she added 11 points, five assists and four steals on Saturday versus Hawai'i. Jessica Thompson, a 5-9 junior guard, was a preseason all-WAC first-team selection and is second on the team with 14.2 points and 4.0 rebounds per game. Thompson is shooting a team-high 36.3 percent from behind the three-point arc (41-of-113). She is second in the league stats in steals (2.56 spg), sixth in assists (3.87), seventh in both scoring and three-point field goal pct. Thompson tallied 17 points, seven rebounds, six assists and five steals on Thursday against San Jose State. She was held to two points and two rebounds while she had six assists against Hawai'i on Saturday. Boise State head coach Gordy Presnell (Northwest Nazarene, 1983) is in his third season at the reigns of the Broncos, posting a 58-30 record, including a 29-16 WAC record. Overall, this is Presnell's 21st season as a collegiate head coach, recording a 454-157 ledger. Presnell came to Boise State from Seattle Pacific, where he led SPU to nine straight and 10 of 11 NCAA Division II Tournaments.

THE SERIES VS. BOISE STATE - This will be the 15th meeting between the Aggies and Broncos, and Boise State leads the series, 12-2, winning the last nine in a row. BSU won earlier this season, 85-77, on Jan. 17 at Boise. Utah State's last win over Boise State was on Dec. 14, 1978, a 100-71 Aggie triumph. USU is 0-5 vs. BSU under Pebley, losing last season's games in the home WAC opener, 80-70, on Jan. 4, 2007 and at Boise, 80-38, on Jan. 24, 2007. BSU also won both games in 2006, 70-38, on Jan. 12 and 72-55 at Logan on Feb. 23.

LAST MEETING VS. BOISE STATE - Senior forward Jamelah Brown scored a career-high 24 points and senior center Jenny Gross recorded her second career double-double with a season-high 17 points and 10 rebounds as Utah State women's basketball fell to Boise State, 85-77, on Jan. 17 at BSU's Taco Bell Arena. Gross posted the first double-double of the season by any Utah State player. Brown's 24 points is a season game-high as well. Junior guard Danyelle Snelgro scored 13 points for USU. Senior guard Taylor Richards added 10 points and five rebounds, while junior guard Ana Pares also tallied a career-high four steals.

Tasha Harris and Jessica Thompson scored 19 points each for BSU, while Harris added a game-high eight rebounds. Jenna Galassi scored 15 points and pulled down five rebounds. Boise State and Utah State recorded 35 rebounds each. Boise State scored the first points of the game as Harris shot four free throws in the first minute of action. USU responded with a 14-6 run to lead 14-10 with 13:15 left to play. The Aggies led until the 5:45 mark when the Broncos tied it up at 26 and then went on an 11-5 run to finish out the half and take a 37-31 lead going into the locker rooms. BSU went on a 14-6 run to open up the second half at 51-37 with 13:21 left to play. Boise State took its largest lead of 16 points at 65-49 with 7:39 remaining in the half. USU came within six points at 79-73 with 45 seconds left to play but Boise State finished by shooting six free throws to clinch the victory. Utah State finished the game by shooting 43.1 percent from the field (28-of-65) including 6-of-23 (26.1 percent) from three-point range and shot 75.0 percent (15-of-20) at the free throw line. Boise State shot 45.8 percent (27-of-59) including 5-of-15 (33.3 percent) from behind the three-point arc and 76.5 percent (26-of-34) at the charity stripe.

SCOUTING IDAHO - The Vandals are 3-24 overall and 2-13 in WAC action after falling to Hawai'i, 67-54, on Thursday and then defeating San Jose State, 77-66, on Saturday. The win against SJSU snapped a nine-game losing streak. Idaho is fifth in the WAC in blocked shots (3.44 bpg) and seventh in steals (8.22 spg). Preseason all-WAC second-team Katie Madison, a 6-0 sophomore forward, leads the Vandals with 14.0 points and 6.6 rebounds per game, and she is also hitting a team-high 50.2 percent from field goal range (137-of-273). Madison is fifth in the WAC in field goal pct., seventh in rebounding, eighth in scoring and 13th in free throw pct. (.636, 91-143). She scored a team-high 20 points and grabbed eight rebounds against Hawai'i on Thursday, while she tallied a game-high 28 points and eight rebounds against San Jose State on Saturday. Yinka Olorunnife, a 6-0 freshman forward, posts 9.3 points and 7.5 rebounds per game, and is shooting 37.2 percent from the field (94-of-253). Olorunnife scored 10 points and pulled down a team-high nine rebounds against Hawai'i on Thursday, while she netted seven points and snared a game-high 13 boards against San Jose State on Saturday. In the league stats, Olorunnife ranks fifth in rebounding, 11th in steals (1.81 spg), 14th in free throw pct. (.634, 59-of-93) and 19th in scoring. Idaho head coach Mike Divilbiss (Winona State, 1981) is in his seventh year at the helm of the Vandals and 21st year overall. Divilbiss has an 80-117 record at Idaho and a 390-239 overall record. He also has a 9-36 league record.

THE SERIES VS. IDAHO - Saturday is the 13th meeting between the Aggies and Vandals, as USU is 3-9 vs. UI. Idaho won earlier this season, 70-64, in overtime on Jan. 19, at Moscow. Before that loss, Utah State won three of the previous four meetings, winning last season on Jan. 11, 2007, 78-70, in Logan, on Feb. 10, 2007, 57-53, in Moscow and 63-53 on Feb. 16, 2006 in Logan.

LAST MEETING VS. IDAHO - Junior center Ndoumbe Diop scored a career-high 12 points and had a career-high three blocks as Utah State women's basketball fell, 70-64, in overtime at Idaho on Jan. 19 at UI's Cowan Spectrum. Junior guard Danyelle Snelgro scored a game-high 14 points while senior guard Taylor Richards tallied 13 points for Utah State. Senior center Jenny Gross added 10 points and a team-high nine rebounds while senior guard Jamelah Brown recorded 11 points and seven rebounds, as USU was out-rebounded, 51-40. Idaho's Yinka Olorunnife scored a team-high 23 points and added 10 rebounds, while Katie Madison tallied 18 points and Sara Dennehy recorded 13 points and seven rebounds. Utah State finished the game by shooting 31.6 percent from the field (25-of-79) including 5-of-22 (22.7 percent) from three-point range and shot 69.2 percent (9-of-13) at the free throw line. Idaho shot 44.2 percent (23-of-52) including 2-of-6 (33.3 percent) behind the three-point arc and 61.1 percent (22-of-36) at the charity stripe.

GROSS PLAYER OF THE WEEK HONORS - Senior forward Jenny Gross has been named the Western Athletic Conference Player of the Week it was announced by the league office on Monday, Feb. 25. Gross was also named the America First Credit Union Utah State Student-Athlete of the Week, which is voted on by a state media panel, for the period ending on Sunday, Feb. 24. It is the first time in her career Gross has been named WAC Player of the Week. Gross is also the first Aggie this year to be honored by the conference. Overall, it is the third time that a Utah State player has received the weekly honor from the league office in the past two years. Gross is the second player this season to earn Utah State Student-Athlete of the Week honors as Danyelle Snelgro was named the USU Student-Athlete of the Week on Dec. 10. Overall, this is the fifth conference weekly player honor awarded to an Aggie player under head coach Raegan Pebley. Gross, a 6-2 senior forward from Caldwell, Idaho (Vallivue HS) led Utah State to a 2-0 record over the weekend, as the Aggies defeated Nevada, 56-48, and WAC-leading Fresno State, 44-40, at home. She scored 13 points against Nevada to go along with seven rebounds and three assists, and was two points shy of her career-high with 17 points against Fresno State. She also had six rebounds, two blocks and two steals against the Bulldogs. For the week, Gross averaged 15.0 points and 6.5 rebounds, while shooting 70.6 percent from the field (12-17) and 75.0 percent from the free throw line (6-8). Gross also played in her 100th career game against Fresno State and ranks ninth all-time in career games played.

RICHARDS IS USU CAREER ASSISTS RECORD HOLDER/TOP 10 STEALS AND POINTS LIST - Senior guard Taylor Richards now has 360 assists for her career as she holds the No. 1 spot on USU's Career Assists list. Richards also has 163 career steals to hold sole possession of No. 2 on the USU Career Steals list. She needs 12 steals to tie for first with Margaret Johns (1980-83, 175). The senior guard is also No. 3 on the USU Career Points list with 1,114 points. She needs 78 more to tie Brenda House (1978-81, 1,192) who holds the No. 2 spot.

SNELGRO MOVING UP CAREER ASSISTS LIST/CAREER STEALS LIST - Junior guard Danyelle Snelgro currently holds the No. 6 spot with 200 helpers. She needs two assists to become tied for fifth with Corrina Poto (202 assists, 1982-83). Snelgro also has 135 career steals and is currently in the No. 4 spot on the Career Steals list. She needs 10 more to become tied for third with Carol Garrison (1980-81, 145).

THREE-POINTERS MADE LIST - Five players hold a spot on the USU Career Three-Pointers Made list. Senior guard Taylor Richards broke the career record against Louisiana Tech on Jan. 26 with her first trey of the game, surpassing former teammate Brittany Hagen's (2003-07) mark of 83 and Richards has currently made 90 career three-pointers. Junior guard Danyelle Snelgro is now tied for fourth with former teammate Ashley Rutledge (2003-06) and Christina Zdenek (2004-05) with 53, while junior forward Lindsey Shipley is seventh with 36. Also on the list are senior guard Jamelah Brown and junior guard Ana Pares who are eighth and 10th with 35 and 20 three-pointers made, respectively.

CAREER FREE THROW PERCENTAGE LIST - Senior guard Taylor Richards, senior center Jenny Gross and junior guard Danyelle Snelgro are all shooting above 65.0 percent from the free throw line in their careers and hold a spot in the top 10 on the Career Free Throw percentage list. Richards is sixth (212-of-309, .687), while Snelgro is seventh (110-of-164, .671) and Gross is ninth (152-of-230, .661).

GAMES PLAYED - Senior guard Taylor Richards is in sole possession of third on the USU Career Games Played list with 110 games. Senior center Jenny Gross has played in 101 career games and is in ninth-place. She needs one game to tie Dorrinda Carey (1978-81, 102) for eighth.

TIME SHARES - Nine Aggies are averaging at least 10 minutes a game with junior guard Danyelle Snelgro leading the way at 31.7 minutes per game.

SCORING SPREAD - Six USU players have led or shared the lead in scoring this season with seniors Taylor Richards, Jamelah Brown and Jenny Gross paving the way, as Gross has led in eight games while Richards and Brown have led in seven games each... Richards tied a season-high with 18 points against Louisiana Tech on Jan. 26 and scored 17 points at Fresno State on Feb. 10... Brown tallied a career-high 24 at Boise State on Jan. 17 and posted 16 points at San Jose State on Feb. 14... Gross has led the Aggies in the past four games with 13 points against Nevada Feb. 21, 17 points on Feb. 24 against Fresno State and 14 points at Louisiana Tech on Thursday... Eight different players have led in rebounding, with senior Jamelah Brown leading the way with 11 games, as she tied a career-high nine rebounds against San Jose State on Feb. 14 and pulled down eight rebounds against Nevada on Feb. 21, while she tallied seven on Feb. 24 against Fresno State.

PEBLEY'S BITS - Pebley is entering her fifth season as head coach at Utah State, which is the longest tenure in the program's history... Pebley has coached 137 games and became the all-time leader in most games coached after the game at Idaho State on Nov. 28, topping Cindy Perkins (1978-82) who coached 115 games in her tenure at Utah State.

- With 42 careers wins, Pebley is second on USU's coaching wins list... Fern Gardner is the current leader with 55 career wins from 1972-1976.

- Four players earned academic all-conference honors in 2007 which include Jenny Gross, Brittany Hagen, Brittany (Tressler) Phillips and Taylor Richards.

- With a total of seven newcomers (four freshmen, three transfers), this is the largest group of newcomer's since Pebley's first season in 2003-04.

UP NEXT - Utah State will be at best the sixth-seed for the WAC Tournament, March 11-15 at Las Cruces, N.M. USU will open action on Wednesday, March 12 with the quarterfinal game. The semifinals are on Friday, March 14, with the championship game set for Saturday, March 15 at 1 p.m. (MT). If USU is better than a sixth-seed, it will be the highest seeding for a conference tournament under Pebley. Last season in the WAC Tournament, the Aggies were the sixth-seed, losing to third-seeded Nevada in the quarterfinals, while USU was the ninth-seed in 2006, losing to eighth-seeded Idaho in the play-in game. Utah State was a sixth-seed for the Big West Tournament in 2005, after being an eight-seed for the Big West Tourney in 2004. The Aggies have never won a conference tournament game under Pebley, and the last time a USU team won a conference postseason game was 1977 in the AIAW Playoffs.

-USU-