Texas-San Antonio Roadrunners (9-12, 5-5)
vs.
Sam Houston State Bearkats (5-15, 5-4)
Saturday, Feb. 14 • 2 p.m. • Johnson Coliseum • Huntsville, Texas
RADIO/TV
Saturday's game can be heard on the Roadrunner Radio Network (KSJL Radio 92.5 FM/810 AM and www.goUTSA.com) beginning at 6:30 p.m.
UTSA TODAY
The Roadrunners look to get back in the win column with this afternoon’s matchup against the Bearkats. UTSA (9-12, 5-5 SLC) enters the game in seventh place in the Southland standings after dropping a 69-62 decision to Louisiana-Monroe Thursday night at home.
THE SERIES
UTSA leads the all-time series with Sam Houston State by the count of 20-13.The Roadrunners have won six in a row against the Bearkats including series sweeps in each of the last three seasons. The Roadrunners are 6-0 against the Bearkats under Coach Rae Rippetoe-Blair and 9-7 at Johnson Coliseum.
SCOUTING THE BEARKATS
Sam Houston State dropped to 5-15 overall and 5-4 in the SLC after a 66-61 home loss to Southeastern Louisiana Thursday night. Stacy Allen leads the way for the Bearkats averaging 14.0 points per game, while Kelley Kramer is the leading rebounder with 4.7 boards per game.
AT THE HELM
UTSA Head Coach Rae Rippetoe-Blair (Oklahoma State ‘85), in her fourth year with the Roadrunners, is a two-time Southland Conference Coach of the Year (2001, 2003). She is 59-48 at UTSA (.551) and 166-92 (.643) over a career that spans eight years. Her most recent coach of the year selection came in 2003 when she led the Roadrunners their first-ever SLC season championship. She is second on UTSA’s all-time wins list.
LAST TIME OUT
2/12 - ROADRUNNERS FALL TO ULM,69-62
SAN ANTONIO -Katie Sandefur led three UTSA players in double figures with 16 points, but it was not enough to get by Louisiana-Monroe as the Lady Indians defeated the Roadrunners 69-62 in Southland Conference women's basketball action Thursday night at the Convocation Center.
The Roadrunners built a 12-point first half lead at the 1:47 mark behind 13 points from Nikki Hendrix. They shot 53.6% in the first half on their way to a 37-29 lead at the break.
The Lady Indians, led by 19 points from Gerline Guillaume, erased the eight-point halftime deficit with a 13-0 run to open the second. It was a steal and a fastbreak layup by Michelle Biley that gave ULM the 38-37 with 15:51 to play. Biley, one of three Lady Indians in double figures, finished with 10.The run would continue with another steal by Nina Randle and a pair of free throws by Randle who ended with 17 points on the night. UTSA would not score their first basket of the second frame until the 14:27 mark on a Hendrix layup making it 42-39. Hendrix had 15 for the 'Runners.
The Roadrunners, who were outscored 40-25 in the second half, would pull within two twice more before Ana Oliveira's 3-pointer tied the game at 58 for UTSA with 5:29 remaining.
UTSA's last lead came at 2:26 when Sandefur's layup made it 62-61. The Lady Indians ended the game in similar fashion to their second half opening going on an 8-0 run to seal the victory.
A LONG TIME SINCE OVERTIME
Saturday’s 64-56 overtime win over McNeese State marked the first time the Roadrunners have been to overtime since the 1999-2000. The ’Runners
outscored the Cowgirls 12-4 in the extra period giving Coach Blair her first OT victory at UTSA.
TWENTY SOMETHING
With 23 points in Saturday’s win over McNeese State, senior Nikki Hendrix reached 20 points for the fifth time this season, tying
a career-best for 20-point games.
MAY I HELP YOU?
Sophomore center/forward Katie Sandefur’s seven assists against Northwestern State is a career-high for the Oklahoma native as well as the most by a Roadrunner this season. Sandefur has dished out 39 assists this season, the second-most on the team.
EVERYDAY IS A HOLLIDAY
UTSA’s second leading scorer senior Dewella Holliday (14.8 ppg) has scored in double-figures in 16 of the Roadrunners 21 games this season. The Monroe City, Mo., native reached double digits in 11 consecutive games from Nov. 21-Jan. 10, which still holds as the team-high. She has also notched a team and career-best five double-doubles on the season.
THE COUNTDOWN BEGINS
Senior forward Nikki Hendrix is currently 9th all-time on UTSA’s scoring list with 977 points. The Oklahoma native is 23 points away from becoming the ninth Roadrunner to reach 1000 career-points. Hendrix also has 373 career rebounds, which is 13th all-time at UTSA. She leads the team in scoring with 16.4 points per game and in rebounding (tied) with 6.8 per game.
THAT 70’s SHOW
UTSA has scored 70+ points on three occasions this season. The most recent coming in a 79-60 win over Nicholls State on Jan. 31. The 79 points is a season-best and the most for Coach Blair ’s team since her first year, 2000-01. The most points scored by a Roadrunner team is 113 in 1990 against Schreiner. The most points in a conference game is 92 against Nicholls State in 1994.
SOUTHLAND HONORS FOR HOLLIDAY
Senior Dewella Holliday (Monroe City, Mo.) was named the Southland
Conference (SLC) Player of the Week it was announced Monday (Dec. 8).
The UTSA guard/forward earned her first-ever weekly honor after scoring her
second double-double of the season with 18 points and 12 rebounds in the
Roadrunners only game of the week at Alabama. She also tacked on two assists and one steal.
ALL-CONFERENCE HONORS
UTSA returns two all-conference selections from a year ago, with each of them landing a spot on the 2003-04 SLC pre-season all-conference squad Senior forward Nikki Hendrix (Ardmore, Okla.) was named to the first-team squad. Senior forward Dewella Holliday (Monroe City, Mo.) tied for the last available spot on the second-team.
The duo joins the following Roadrunners on the all-conference teams: Angel
Singleton, second team, 1997; Joyce Howard second team, 1998; Rosie Smith, second team, 1999; Keelah Wilson, second team, 2000; Renda Churman and Julie Rampley, second-team, 2001; Nikki Hendrix, second-team, 2002.
'RUNNERS UP
After winning the regular season Southland Conference (SLC) championship in
2002-03, UTSA is picked second in both the coaches and sports information
director's SLC preseason polls for 2003-04. Texas State, who edged out the
Roadrunners for the SLC tournament title last year was placed atop UTSA in
the preseason voting.
THE QUEST FOR FOUR
This season the Roadrunners are in search of their fourth consecutive
winning campaign. With a record of 18-11, the 2002-03 season marked the
third straight season, all under Blair, that the Roadrunners have posted
consecutive winning campaigns. The Roadrunners had not had three straight
winning seasons since the 1984-87 campaigns under the late Bill MacLeay. It
is the sixth time a Roadrunner team has had an 18-win season. The most wins
in a season is 21 which came in 1983-84 under Ginny DeHaven.
INJURY REPORT
UTSA: Nicole Dunson is out for the season with a torn anterior crucial ligament.
A LOOK INTO THE FUTURE
UTSA announced earlier this week the signing of two players to national letters of intent for the 2004-05 season. Joining the Roadrunners are 5-7 point guard, Terrie Davis from Houston Spring Woods High School and 6-0 forward, Tia Bogan, a McDonald's All-American candidate from Livingston (Texas) High School.
"Terrie is a true point guard that will be good for UTSA because she's capable of pushing the ball up the floor and scoring for us," said Blair. "Tia will really help us at the forward position and with her great athleticism she will also be able to contribute as a center."
NEXT UP
UTSA returns home on Wednesday, Feb.18, to face Texas-Arlington at 6 p.m. at the Convocation Center.