UTSA Roadrunners (18-8, 10-3 SLC) at Texas A&M-Corpus Christi (10-17, 6-7 SLC)
March 1, 2008 ? 7 p.m. ? American Bank Center (8,400)
SAN ANTONIO ? UTSA looks to regroup after suffering a three-point setback at McNeese State Thursday night, this Saturday evening at Texas A&M-Corpus Christi at the American Bank Center.
On the Web: Fans can listen to the game (Rowdy Zone subscription) at goUTSA.com. Providing play-by-play announcing will be Stu Paul.
Series meeting: This will be the seventh all-time meeting between UTSA and Texas A&M-Corpus Christi. The Islanders lead the series, 5-1. The Roadrunners and A&M-Corpus Christi split last season with each team winning at their home floor.
Scouting Texas A&M-Corpus Christi: The Islanders are coming off a two-point (69-67) overtime victory at Lamar on Thursday night, snapping a four-game losing streak. TAMU-CC is 10-17 overall and are 6-7 in SLC play. Elisa Beagle’s 10.4 points and 7.4 rebounds per game leads the team, while Mercedes Cooper stands second on the squad at 9.6 points per contest.
Last meeting: Junior Onika Anderson posted a double-double with a game highs of 24 points and 16 rebounds to pace UTSA to a 65-56 win against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi on Feb. 2 at the Convocation Center. Freshman Jordan Stark added 10 points off the bench, while senior Amanda Foster and junior Monica Gibbs chipped in with nine points apiece for the Roadrunners.
Last time out: Juniors Onika Anderson and Monica Gibbs double-doubles weren’t enough, as UTSA dropped its second game in row with a 52-49 loss at McNeese State on Feb. 28 in Southland Conference action. Gibbs posted her fifth double-double of the season with a game-high 14 points and 11 rebounds, while Anderson collected her team-leading eighth double-double with a dozen points and game-best 13 boards. Freshman guard Whitney York added 10 points for the Roadrunners.
Bobcats deal UTSA first loss in six weeks: Texas State used balanced scoring to end UTSA’s winning streak at 10 games with a 85-79 win on Feb. 23 at the Convocation Center. The Roadrunners were led by junior Onika Anderson’s game highs of 23 points and seven rebounds, while junior Monica Gibbs chipped in with 18 and dished out four assists. Senior Terrie Davis added 13 points on the strength of three 3-pointers and freshman Whitney York scored 12 and matched Anderson with seven boards.
UTSA complete sweep of UTA: Senior Terrie Davis and junior Onika Anderson both scored a game-high 14 points and junior Monica Gibbs just missed a triple-double to lead UTSA to its 10th win in a row, a 63-46 victory at UT Arlington on Thursday night. Gibbs posted her fourth double-double of the season with a dozen points and game-high 11 rebounds and added a game-best eight assists for the Roadrunners.
Anderson powers to UTSA over Nicholls: Junior Onika Anderson posted her seventh double-double of the season and fifth in the past six games with game highs of 26 points and 12 rebounds to lead UTSA to a 82-41 victory against Nicholls State on Feb. 16 in the Convocation Center. It was the Roadrunners’ ninth win in a row. Junior Monica Gibbs just missed a triple-double with 10 assists, nine points and eight rebounds for the Roadrunners, while senior Amanda Foster and Tia Bogan added 10 and eight points, respectively.
On pace: With three games remaining on the ledger, UTSA is tied for the second most wins in a season (18, 7x, most recent 2005-06 season). The Roadrunners are three victorious away from tying the all-time win total of 21 set during the 1983-84 season.
Clamping down on opponents: UTSA in holding the opposition to a league’s best 61.6 points per game and ranks third in defensive field goal percentage at 38.7 percent.
Flat out dominance: During their 10-game winning streak, the Roadrunners have beaten up the opposition on both sides of the ball. UTSA was averaging 72.9 points per game, while holding its opponents to 54.4 points per contest (+18.5 scoring margin).
Taking care of the ball: UTSA committed only six turnovers in the win against Southeastern Louisiana on Feb. 14. The Roadrunners are averaging a league low 14.2 miscues per game and ranks 17th in the nation. UTSA has the league’s’ third-best turnover margin at +2.58.
Winning streak: UTSA’s 10-game winning streak marked the second longest in school-history and is the longest in SLC play. Meanwhile, the Roadrunners longest winning streak is 13 games set during the 2002-03 season (Jan. 9, 2003-Feb. 22, 2003).
Roadrunners sweep SLC Champions: After dropping all three meeting last season against UT Arlington, UTSA took the season series versus the Mavericks this year. The Roadrunners handed the champs with a 76-53 win on Jan. 24 in San Antonio, then dealt UTA a 17-point loss (63-46) Thursday night in Arlington. The margin of victory for the Roadrunners was +20.0 points per game.
Record-setting half: The 11 points scored by Central Arkansas on Jan. 17 in the second half were the fewest points allowed in a stanza for a conference game, while the four field goals made by UCA were also the fewest FGs in a frame for a league game. Both marks are school records.
Most non-conference wins: The eight non-conference wins that UTSA posted this season was the most by head coach Rae Rippetoe-Blair.
Birdcage dominance: UTSA has proven time after time that home court advantage can result in a successful season. The Roadrunners are an impressive 228-132 (.633) at the Convocation Center all-time, including 12-3 this season. UTSA’s 12 wins at home is tied for most wins at the Convo.
Runners in the SLC: Senior Terrie Davis ranks second the team in scoring and is 13th in the SLC at 11.9 points per game, while freshman Whitney York’s 10.3 points per outing ranks 20th in the conference. York also is seventh in the league in field goal percentage (45.3 percent). Junior Monica Gibbs is fourth in the league at 7.8 rebounds per contest, is dishing out a league-best 6.0 assists per game and is eighth in the conference in steals (2.0 spg). The Stillwater, Okla., native is tied for 16th in scoring (10.8 ppg).
New assist leader: Junior guard Monica Gibbs became UTSA’s all-time career assists leader in the win against Southeastern Louisiana on Feb. 14. The Stillwater, Okla., native currently has 433 dimes in her career and counting. Gibbs dished out a season-high 11 assists in the win against Stephen F. Austin on Feb. 9.
Dishing out dimes: UTSA handed out a season-best 23 assists in the win against Nicholls State on Feb. 16. Junior Monica Gibbs led the way with 10 dimes. She is averaging a league-best 6.0 assists per game and ranks 14th in the nation.
Gibbs doubles up: Junior guard Monica Gibbs posted her fifth double-double of the season with a 14 points and 11 rebounds at McNeese State Feb. 28. The Stillwater, Okla., native has 20 career double-doubles, including 13 that she recorded a year ago.
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 also paced 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 now owns UTSA’s all-time assists mark with 426 and is ninth with 56 career blocks.
O collects another double-double: Junior forward Onika Anderson tallied her team-leading eighth double-double of the season. Anderson scored 12 points and hauled in 13 rebounds at McNeese State on Feb. 28.
Anderson doubles Nicholls: Junior forward Onika Anderson collected her team leading seventh double-double of the season with 26 points and 12 rebounds in the win against Nicholls on Feb. 16. She has tallied a double-double in five of the last six games. The Pine Bluff, Ark., native scored 19 of her 26 in the first half.
Another double-double week for Anderson: Junior Onika Anderson recorded her second straight week with back-to-back double-doubles. The Pine Bluff, Ark., native posted her fourth double-double with 12 points and 10 rebounds in the win at Sam Houston State on Feb. 7. She then collected her fifth two days later against Stephen F. Austin with a career-high 27 points and grabbed 14 rebounds.
Anderson cleans it up: Junior Onika Anderson recorded her second consecutive double-double in the win against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi on Feb. 2. Anderson scored 24 points and grabbed 16 rebounds in that contest.
Anderson collects POW: Junior forward Onika Anderson collected her first career Southland Conference Player of the Week award, the league office announced Jan. 28. Anderson averaged 14.5 points and 13.5 rebounds per game, as the Roadrunners handed defending league champion UT Arlington a 76-53 defeat Jan. 24 and I-35 rival Texas State an 81-68 setback two days later. The Pine Bluff, Ark., native scored eight points and grabbed nine rebounds in the win against the Mavericks and followed that performance with 20 points and a conference school-record-tying 19 rebounds against the Bobcats for her third double-double of the year.
Wiping down the glass: Junior Onika Anderson dominated the glass at Texas State on Jan. 26. The Pine Bluff, Ark., native hauled in a conference school-record-tying 19 rebounds against the Bobcats. Her 19 rebounding effort is the third-best performance in a single game school history.
Davis tames Lady Lions: Senior Terrie Davis scored a game-high 20 points, including 16 in the first half, in the win against Southeastern Louisiana on Feb. 14. Davis leads the team with six 20-point efforts this season, including a career-high 24 points against Georgia Southern on Nov. 24.
Raining 3’s: Senior Terrie Davis broke UTSA’s all-time 3-point record on her first attempt at Tulsa on Dec. 1. The Houston native set a new school-record with a eight 3-pointers against Lamar on Jan. 12. She has a total of 177 3-pointers for her career. Davis stands sixth in the SLC in 3-point field goal percentage at 37.0 percent and is averaging a league-best 2.56 3-pointers per game and stands 24th in the nation.
Davis shoots down the Bobcats: Senior Terrie Davis scored 23 points on the strength of seven 3-pointers in the win at Texas State on Jan. 26. Davis was 7-of-11 from downtown, including 5-of-6 in the first half. She has made five or more 3-pointers in four games this season.
Scoring them in a row: Freshman guard Whitney York tallied 11 points in the win against SLU on Feb. 14. The Bryan native scored the final six points of the first half, then opened the second frame with the first five points.
Near perfection: Freshman Whitney York was a near perfect from the field, shooting 8-of-9, including making her first six attempts in the 73-45 win against Weber State on Dec. 30.
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 (Nov. 13 and Nov. 20). York posted a career-high 22 points 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, while grabbing a career-best eight boards in the 12-point victory against Belmont.
Stark ropes Mavs: Freshman Jordan Stark posted game-high honors with 21 points, including 13 in the second half, in the win against UT Arlington on Jan. 24. She connected on four 3-pointers.
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.
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.
Head coach Rae Rippetoe-Blair: In her eighth season as head coach, 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 131 wins at UTSA and her .565 winning percentage is second-best in school history. The Roadrunners have the second-most SLC wins (88) and second-best winning percentage (.685) since 2001. A two-time SLC Coach of the Year, Rippetoe-Blair has posted an overall mark of 238-142 in 11-plus years as a head coach.
Newest addition: UTSA announced on Feb. 5 that Alysse Davis, who hails from Corpus Christi, has transferred from Memphis to play for the Roadrunners for the 2008-09 season. She will have two years of eligibility remaining at UTSA.
Fall signing class: Coach Rippetoe-Blair announced on Nov. 19 the signing of JaMorgan Davis (Nacogdoches, Texas/Nacogdoches HS) to a National Letter of Intent for the 2008-09 season.
Next on tap: UTSA returns for its final home of the season at 7 p.m., on March 6 against Sam Houston State at the Convocation Center.
