Wells Fargo/UTSA New Year's Classic
UTSA (6-4) vs. Miami/Ohio (7-4)
Saturday, Dec. 29 ? 4 p.m.
Convocation Center (4,080)
SAN ANTONIO ? UTSA looks to snap its season long four-game losing streak this weekend at it hosts the Wells Fargo/UTSA New Year’s Classic. The Roadrunners will face Miami (Ohio) on Saturday, Dec. 29, at 4 p.m. in the Convocation Center.
On the Web: Fans can listen to the game (Rowdy Zone subscription) at www.goutsa.com. Providing play-by-play announcing is Stu Paul. Live stats will be provided by UTSA.
Series meeting: UTSA and Miami (Ohio) meet for the first time.
Scouting Miami (Ohio): The Redhawks are 7-4 on the season and have won four of their five games. Miami (Ohio) is coming off a 77-56 victory against IUPUI on Dec. 19. Amanda Jackson, who is averaging a team-best 21.3 ppg, led the Redhawks with 21 points in the win, while Chanell Ridley and Stephanie Ford chipped in with 14 and 12 points. Jenna Schone ranks second on the squad with 14.8 points per contest, while Laura Markwood tops the team with 10.7 rebounds per game.
Last time out: The UTSA women’s basketball team dropped its fourth game in a row with a 76-42 loss against Tulane in the consolation game of the Tulane Doubletree Classic on Friday night.
York collects all-tournament honors: Freshman Whitney York continues to have an impressive rookie campaign for the Roadrunners. The Bryan native averaged 15.5 points per game, while shooting 46.2 percent from the field en route to picking up Tulane Doubletree All-Classic honors on Dec. 21. She also was tabbed Southland Conference Player of the Week in consecutive weeks (Nov. 9 and Nov. 18), making her the first Roadrunners in school history.
Stark’s steals away: Freshman Jordan Stark averaged 4.0 steals per game during the Tulane Doubletree Classic. The Weatherford, Okla., native set a career-high with four steals against Virginia Tech on Dec. 20. She then repeated her performance at Tulane matching her career-best with four the following day.
Shooting struggles: UTSA has lost its shooting touch over its last five games. Since making a season-high 51 percent against Georgia Southern on Nov. 24, the Roadrunners are shooting 25.5 percent from the field. In three of the last four games, UTSA shot under 25 percent, including a 21.5 performance against Tulane on Dec. 21.
Anderson has huge debut: Junior Onika Anderson made her Roadrunner debut at Florida International on Dec. 14. The Pine Bluff, Ark., native led the team in scoring with 11 points and grabbed eight rebounds in 21 minutes of action.
Postseason experience: UTSA’s 2007-08 schedule has them pinned up against five teams that advanced to postseason play last season, including three teams (Belmont, Robert Morris and UT Arlington) that went to the NCAA Tournament. The Roadrunners will face VT, who last year participated in the WNIT, on Thursday night and a possible match up against either Tulane (WNIT participant) or Robert Morris (NCAA participant). The Roadrunners will play their final postseason participant, UT Arlington, in conference action.
Davis set new mark: Senior Terrie Davis broke UTSA’s all-time 3-point record on her first attempt at Tulsa on Dec. 1. The Houston native has made a school-record 127 treys. Davis connected on three 3-pointers in the win against Belmont on Nov. 11.
Cleaning the glass: Senior Amanda Foster stands second on the team with 7.0 rebounds per game this season and is tied for seventh in the conference. She collected a career-high 12 rebounds against Belmont on Nov. 11.
Runners in the SLC: Senior Terrie Davis leads the team in scoring and ranks 11th in the league at 11.2 points per game. Freshman Whitney York’s 11.1 points per outing stands 13th in the conference and is fifth in field goal percentage (47.6 percent). Junior Monica Gibbs ranks third with 8.0 boards per contest, while dishing out a league-best 5.3 assists per game. Gibbs also ranks third in the conference in steals (3.0 spg). Senior Amanda Foster is for seventh in the SLC averaging 7.0 rebounds per contest.
Stark collects SLC POW honors: Freshman Jordan Stark, who averaged a double-double against Missouri State and Tulsa, collected Southland Conference Player of the Week honors on Dec. 3. The Weatherford, Okla., native averaged 14.5 points and 12.5 rebounds per game en route to collecting the weekly honor. She joins freshman two-time honoree Whitney York as UTSA has collected three weekly awards this season.
Stark’s doubling up: Freshman Jordan Stark recorded her first career double-double with 14 points and a career-high 13 rebounds in the win at Missouri State on Nov. 29. She then registered her second straight double-double with 15 points and 12 boards against Tulsa on Dec. 1.
York earns consecutive SLC honors: Freshman Whitney York became the first Roadrunner in school history to earn Southland Conference Player of the Week honors in consecutive weeks. York posted a career-high 22 points and tallied five steals in the 68-60 win against Wichita State on Nov. 18. The Bryan native helped UTSA to a pair of wins against Huston-Tillotson (89-50) on Nov. 9 and Belmont (77-65) on Nov. 11. In her Roadrunners debut, she tallied 12 points and was 10-of-10 from the free throw line. York then chipped in with 16 points on 6-of-11 shooting from the floor, while grabbing a career-best eight boards and dishing out four assists in the 12-point victory against Belmont.
Birdcage dominance: UTSA has proven time after time that home court advantage can result in a successful season. The Roadrunners are an impressive 221-129 (.631) at the Convocation Center all-time, including 5-0 this season.
Preseason rankings: UTSA, which finished 14-16 overall and 9-7 in SLC play last season, was picked first and fourth, respectively, in this year’s Southland Conference Preseason Coaches and SIDs polls. The Roadrunners collected five first-places votes in the coaches rankings for a total of 52 points. In the SIDs poll, UTSA garnered 42 points.
Gibbs collects preseason honors: Junior Monica Gibbs was named to the 2007-08 SLC Preseason First Team. Gibbs, who was a second-team All-SLC pick a year ago, led the conference with 13 double-doubles in 29 games in 2006-07. The Stillwater, Okla., native led the team in rebounding (8.1) and assists (4.7) and her 12.9 points per game ranked second on the squad last season. She currently ranks fifth on UTSA’s all-time assists chart with 330 and sits 10th with 49 career blocks.
Head coach Rae Rippetoe-Blair: In her eighth season as head coach of the UTSA women’s basketball team, Rae Rippetoe-Blair has established herself as the winningest and longest-tenured head coach in school history. Since her hiring in 2000, the Roadrunners have made the Southland Conference Tournament seven consecutive seasons, including two trips to the conference finals (2003 and 2006). She currently owns 119 wins at UTSA and her .557 winning percentage is second-best in school history. The Roadrunners have the second-most SLC wins (85) and second-best winning percentage (.685) since 2001. A two-time SLC Coach of the Year, Rippetoe-Blair has posted an overall mark of 226-138 in 11 plus years as a head coach.
Next on tap: The Roadrunners close out the Wells Fargo/UTSA New’s Year’s Classic against Weber State on Dec. 30 at 4 p.m.
