NEVADA WOLF PACK (14-5, 5-1 WAC)
vs. FRESNO STATE BULLDOGS (11-9, 6-1 WAC)
~ GAME 20 ~
Thursday, Jan. 31, 2008 * 7 p.m. (PT) * Save Mart Center * Fresno, Calif.
TV/RADIO: None/ESPN Deportes AM 1450; Ben Deach; Pregame 6:45 p.m.
INTERNET: Live stats and live streaming video (nevadawolfpack.com and gobulldogs.com)
SERIES HISTORY: Fresno State leads the all-time series 19-9
LAST MEETING: Nevada and Fresno State split games last season with Nevada winning 68-61 in Fresno, Calif. on Jan. 25, 2007. Fresno State beat Nevada 86-81 in Reno on Feb. 8, 2007.
About This Game
Nevada will travel to Fresno, Calif. to take on the first-place Bulldogs Thursday night. Nevada is second in the WAC standings and is half a game behind the first-place Bulldogs. Nevada and Fresno State split games last season with each team winning on its opponents home floor. Fresno State is 4-0 at home this season in WAC games. The Pack will be looking for its second win in Fresno, Calif., after picking up its first road win against Fresno State last season.
About the Nevada Wolf Pack
Nevada won its ninth straight home game on Jan. 26, beating New Mexico State 83-76 in overtime. Mikail Price (20 points) led five Nevada players in double figures as Nevada beat the Aggies to improve to 5-1 in the WAC. The Pack won its eighth straight home game and posted its first-ever win over La Tech in Reno Jan. 24 with a 74-70 victory. Dellena Criner, who scored 17 points, scored her 1,000th career point for the Pack in the win. Price and Brandi Fitzgerald each scored 12 points while Bre`Anna Henry added 11. Nevada suffered its first conference loss of the season on Jan. 19, falling at Boise State 82-74. Criner scored a career-high 33 points while Jennifer Gross and Johnna Ward each added 10 points for Nevada. Gross also grabbed a team-high eight boards. The Pack improved to 3-0 in WAC play for the first time in program history, beating Idaho 76-53 on Jan. 17. Criner led all scorers with 29 points while Fitzgerald added 16 points for the Pack. Cherlanda Franklin grabbed a team-high seven rebounds and added five steals for the Pack. As a team this season, Nevada is averaging just over 70 points per game (70.8) while holding its opponents to just over 60 points per contest (63.5). Criner (17.8 ppg) and Price (10.9 ppg) are the Pack’s leading scorers while Franklin leads the team in rebounding, averaging 5.0 rpg. The Pack is coached by Kim Gervasoni who is in her fifth season with Nevada and has a 55-85 overall record.
About the Fresno State Bulldogs
Fresno State is 11-9 overall and 6-1 in the WAC. The Bulldogs saw its nine-game win streak come to an end at Boise State on Jan. 28, falling to the Broncos 82-62. Fresno State has picked up WAC victories over La Tech, Boise State, Idaho, Hawai`i and two wins over San Jose State. The Dogs are led by Tierre Wilson (16.3 ppg, 4.2 rpg) and Jalessa Ross (10.3 ppg, 4.5 rpg). Erica Henry leads Fresno State in rebounding, averaging 5.8 boards per game. As a team, the Bulldogs are averaging 70.8 points per game while their opponents are averaging 68.5 points per game. Fresno State is coached by Adrian Wiggins who is in his third season. He has a 60-34 overall record with Fresno State.
Follow the Pack
On the Air (AM 1450 ESPN Deportes): All of Nevada’s home games, will be broadcast on AM 1450 (ESPN Deportes). In addition, nine road games and the WAC Tournament will be broadcast. On-air duties will be handled by Dan Gustin, Don Marchand and Ben Deach. A complete broadcast schedule can be found on page six of this release.
Live Stats: All of Nevada’s home games this season and selected road games, including the Nevada/Fresno St., game will have live stats and be available online at the following link.
http://www.nevadawolfpack.com/liveStats/liveStats.dbml
Live Streaming Video: All of Nevada’s home games this season and select road games, including Thursday’s game, will have live streaming video and can be found online at the link below.
http://all-access.cstv.com/cstv/player/player.html?code=fres&sport=w-baskbl&category=live&media=50292
Women’s Basketball Promotions Saturday Versus Utah State
Tickets for the Nevada/Utah State game on Saturday, Feb. 2 are just $1 each. A fan will also win two roundtrip tickets on Southwest Airlines to anywhere Southwest flies.
News and Notes
- A season-high 1,953 fans watched Nevada beat New Mexico State on Jan. 26 marking the 10th largest crowd in program history.
- Nevada attempted a program-record 44 free throws in the Pack’s win over New Mexico State on Jan. 26. Nevada made 35 free throws in the game, one away from tying the program record for free throws made in a game (36 vs. San Jose State in 1995).
- Cherlanda Franklin (17 points versus New Mexico State) and Bre`Anna Henry (11 points versus La Tech) each set new career highs in scoring last week.
- Nevada is 10-1 at home this season and has won nine straight games at home. The Pack has not lost at Lawlor Events Center since November 11, 2007.
- After scoring 17 points against La Tech on Jan. 24, Dellena Criner scored her 1,000th career point for Nevada. Criner, who has recorded 1,015 career points, is just the eighth player in history to score at least 1,000 career points.
- Nevada’s overtime win over New Mexico State on Jan. 26, marked Nevada’s first overtime game of the sesaon and the Pack’s first overtime game since Nevada’s 81-70 win over Boise State in Reno on Feb. 24, 2007.
- Seven Nevada players (Dellena Criner, Mikail Price, Marianne Lombardi, Johnna Ward, Brandi Fitzgerald, Shavon Moore and Cherlanda Franklin) have recorded a total of 14 games in which they have hit double-digit scoring by halftime.
- In its 14 wins this season, Nevada is averaging 73.2 points per game while holding its opponents to 58.8 points per game. In the Pack’s five losses, the team is averaging 64.0 points per game while allowing 76.8 points per game.
- Seven players (Bre`Anna Henry, Cherlanda Franklin, Jennifer Gross, Johnna Ward, Brandi Fitzgerald, Mikail Price and Dellena Criner) have played in all 19 games this season.
- Nevada has scored at least 80 points in three games this season and has scored at least 70 points nine times this season.
- Nevada is first in the conference in steals (253) and second in scoring defense (63.5 ppg).
- Nevada opened the conference season with a 3-0 record marking the first time in program history that Nevada opened the WAC season 3-0 since Nevada joined the conference in 2000-01.
- This season the Pack has had 12 games in which Nevada has had at least three players score in double figures (Stephen F. Austin, Southern, UC Irvine, UC Riverside, CS Fullerton, UNLV, San Francisco, San Jose State, Hawai`i, Boise St., La Tech and New Mexico State). Nevada is 10-2 in games in which at least three players scored in double figures.
- Nevada has not dropped below .500 all season. The Pack has been at .500 twice this season (1-1 and 2-2) but Nevada has been above .500 since Nov. 22. Nevada had a season-high .750 winning percentage on Dec. 30 when the team was 9-3 and on Jan. 17 with a 12-4 record.
- Nevada has had five players score in double figures in two games this season, against CS Fullerton on Dec. 16 (Criner, Price, Moore, Ward and Franklin) and against New Mexico State on Jan. 26 (Criner, Price, Franklin, Ward and Henry).
- With its win over San Francisco, Nevada improved to 9-3 this season and tied the program record for best start through 12 games. The 1999-00 and 1985-86 teams also started the season 9-3. The 1999-00 team recorded the best start in program history (11-3).
- Nevada has scored at least 60 points in 17 of its 19 games this season including scoring a season-high 84 points in a win versus UNLV on Dec. 28.
- Dellena Criner, who has scored in double-figures in 16 of the last 17 games, is averaging a WAC-leading 17.8 points per game. For her career, the junior guard has recorded 47 double-digit scoring games including 12 20-point games and two 30-point games.
- Nevada has held 14 of its 19 opponents to under 70 points this season, including holding seven opponents (Santa Clara, 51; Stephen F. Austin, 55; Southern, 52; UC Riverside, 52; CS Fullerton, 57; San Jose State, 52 and Idaho 53) to under 60 points per game. In addition, Nevada has held one opponent, San Francisco, to under 50 points (44).
- Dellena Criner is one of just two players in the WAC to have recorded at least 30 points in a game this season and has scored the most points in a game (33) of any player in the conference this season. Her 33 points are the most by a Pack player since Kate Smith (2000-03) scored 36 points in a win over Air Force on January 8, 2000.
- The Pack has had four different players as Nevada’s top scorer. Dellena Criner has been Nevada’s leading scorer in 12 games, while Cherlanda Franklin has led the Pack in scoring three times. Mikail Price had led the team in scoring twice while Shavon Moore and Brandi Fitzgerald have each been Nevada’s leading scorer in one game this season.
- The Pack has had four players record a double-double this season, Marianne Lombardi Shavon Moore, Cherlanda Franklin and Brandi Fitzgerald. Lombardi recorded her first career double-double against Stephen F. Austin while Moore recorded her first career double-double at UC Riverside. Franklin recorded her third career double-double against Utah Valley University while Fitzgerald recorded her second career double-double against Hawai`i.
- All 17 players on Nevada’s roster have seen playing time this season, including all five newcomers on Nevada’s roster.
- Nevada finished its non-conference schedule 9-4 which marks the best non-conference finish under Kim Gervasoni and the most non-conference wins in program history since the 1999-00 team finished its non-conference schedule 11-4. Nevada also recorded the fewest non-conference losses (4) since the 1999-00 season.
- Nevada’s 84 points over UNLV on Dec. 28 marked the most points the team has scored under head coach Kim Gervasoni and the most points by a Nevada team since the Pack scored 84 over Eastern Michigan on December 1, 2002.
WAC Play Up Tour to Stop in Reno on Feb. 16
The Western Athletic Conference Play Up Tour will stop in Reno on Saturday, February 16 for Nevada’s game versus Idaho at 6 p.m. The Western Athletic Conference has launched it’s first-ever Play Up Tour for women’s basketball, after much success at the tour stops at various football, volleyball and soccer games throughout the fall season. The Play Up Tour heightens awareness of the WAC brand as well as reinforces the association between the schools and the WAC. At each stop, fans can join the WAC before the game to pickup free WAC beanies and t-shirts. Fans can register to win a trip to the 2008 WAC Basketball Tournament in Las Cruces, N.M., and will also have the opportunity to participate in an on-court promotion during the game.
Criner Named to the WBCA National Player of the Month Honorable Mention Team
Dellena Criner was named to the WBCA National Player of the Month Honorable Mention Team for the month of December. Only one player from each conference can be nominated for the WBCA National Player of the Month. Criner earned the honor after being named WAC Player of the Week twice in December. During the month of December she recorded 10 consecutive double-digit scoring games, helped lead the team to a Nugget Classic Championship and was named Nugget Classic MVP. She scored a career-high 32 points against Idaho State on Dec. 2 and recorded a career-high eight steals versus Southern on Dec. 1. For the month, Criner averaged 18.5 points per game, shot 50.7 percent from the floor, 57.9 percent from three-point range and 74.7 percent from the line.
Gervasoni Wins 50th Career Game at Nevada
Fifth-year head coach Kim Gervasoni, who picked up her 50th career victory in Nevada’s 66-44 victory over San Francisco on Dec. 30, became just the second coach in Nevada history to win 50 games with the Pack. Gervasoni is the second winningest coach in Nevada history (55-85) and became just the second coach in history to record at least 50 career wins with the Pack. Ada Gee (1993-2003) is Nevada’s winningest coach, with a 117-161 record.
Double-Digit Scoring
Through the first 19 games of the season, eight Nevada players have recorded a total of 45 double-digit scoring games. Mikail Price has scored in double figures 11 time, while Shavon Moore has scored in double digits six times. Cherlanda Franklin has scored in double figures four times and Johnna Ward has scored in double figures six times. Brandi Fitzgerald has recorded seven double-digit scoring games and Bre`Anna Henry has scored in double figures twice. Marianne Lombardi and Jen Gross have each recorded one double-digit scoring game. Lombardi and is one of four Nevada players, along with Moore, Franklin and Fitzgerald, to record a double-double. Dellena Criner has recorded 17 double-digit scoring games this season.
Nevada’s Record By Starting Lineup
Nevada has used five different starting lineups this season. Dellena Criner, Brandi Fitzgerald and Cherlanda Franklin have started all 19 games for Nevada.
Tough D
Through 19 games this season, Nevada has held 14 of its 19 opponents to under 70 points per game. The Pack has held opponents to under 60 points eight times this season versus Santa Clara (51), versus Stephen F. Austin (55), versus Southern (52), at UC Riverside (52), versus CS Fullerton (57), versus USF (44), versus San Jose State (52) and at Idaho (53). Through its first 19 games, Nevada is second in the WAC in scoring defense, holding opponents to 63.5 points per game.
Sitton Named a Candidate for the Lowe’s Senior Class Award
Senior forward Andrea Sitton has been selected as one of the 30 initial candidates for the Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award for the 2007-08 basketball season. The award presented annually to the NCAA Division I Student- Athlete of the Year in eight sports focuses on the “Four C’s” of classroom, character, community and competition. Lowe’s will award the winner with a trophy during the NCAA Final Four. This season, Sitton has played in all 10 of Nevada’s games and is averaging 8.2 minutes per game. Sitton is a three-time Academic All-WAC honoree and has a 3.68 GPA in elementary education. Sitton, who was named to the Dean’s List in the fall of 2006 and spring of 2007, is scheduled to graduate in the spring of 2008. Sitton has participated in a number of community service activities including: the X-Treme Ability Challenge (2004); Race for the Cure (2004-07); the Heart Walk (2005-06); Renown Seniors’ Day (2007) and the Girls and Women in Sports Day (2004-06). She has also been a member of the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) since 2004 and is a member of several clubs including Intervarsity, Fellowship of Christian Athletes (FCA) and Champions for Christ.
Nevada to Have Two Home Games Televised
After playing in its first nationally-televised game last season, the Pack will play in two home televised contests this season. KAME broadcasted the final game of the Nugget Classic on Dec. 2 and will also televise the Nevada/New Mexico State game on January 26. Both games will be shown on a tape-delay basis with the New Mexico State game being aired at 8 p.m. PT.
Nevada Radio Broadcast Schedule
Starting with Nevada’s game against Southern on Dec. 1, the University of Nevada women’s basketball team will have 13 home games and a total of 22 regular-season games broadcast on ESPN Deportes, AM 1450. On-air duties will be handled by Dan Gustin, Don Marchand and Ben Deach.
Nevada's 5th in the Nation in Ssteals (as of 1/27/08)
In the latest NCAA stats released Jan. 27, Nevada is fifth in the nation in steals. In 19 games Nevada has recorded 253 steals and is averaging 13.3 steals per contest. North Carolina leads the nation in steals (293 steals, 14.7 spg), followed by Morgan State (Baltimore, Md.) (241 steals, 14.2 spg) and Georgia Tech (276 steals, 13.8 spg) and Towson (245 steals, 13.6 spg). Cherlanda Franklin leads the conference and team with 49 steals while Mikail Price is second on the team and tied for third in the WAC with 45. Dellena Criner is third on the team and tied for seventh in the WAC with 39 steals. Nevada’s 253 steals leads the conference and is 71 steals above Utah State who is second in the WAC in total steals with 182.
Last Time Out
Saturday vs. New Mexico State
NMSU opened the game on a 7-0 run and led by as many as 14, 24-10, with 12:19 remaining in the first half. Nevada closed the gap to seven points on eight occasions in the first half as the Aggies took a 43-36 lead at the half. Nevada guard Dellena Criner, who entered the game averaging a league-leading 18.1 points per game, played only four minutes in the first half after picking up two quick fouls. A three-pointer by Criner with 16:56 remaining in the second half cut the Aggies’ lead to two, 45-43. NMSU went up by as many as nine, 56-47, with 12:50 left in regulation. A jumper by Mikail Price tied the game for the first time at 64-64 before a basket by Bre`Anna Henry gave Nevada a 65-64 lead for its first lead of the game. A three-pointer by NMSU’s Madison Spence with 53 seconds left in regulation put the Aggies up by two, 70-68, before Ward’s layup with seven seconds remaining tied the game at 70-70. Eleven of the 13 points the Pack scored in overtime were from the free throw line. Marianne Lombardi scored Nevada’s only field goal in overtime, giving Nevada a 77-76 lead with 41 seconds left in overtime. A pair of free throws from Criner with five seconds left sealed the win for the Pack.
2008-09 Signees
Nevada received signed National Letters of Intent from Amanda Johnson, a 5-6 guard from El Camino High School in Oceanside, Calif., Brittany Woodard, a four-year varsity team member from Christian Brothers High School in Sacramento, Calif., and Kayla Williams, a four-year varsity starter from Reed High School in Sparks, Nev. Amanda Johnson is a four-year varsity player and has been the starting point guard at El Camino High School in Oceanside, Calif., since her freshman season. She led her high school team in scoring her sophomore and junior seasons and was named All-Avocado League MVP in 2005. As a junior in 2006-07, Johnson averaged 15.1 points per game, 5.2 assists per game, 4.0 rebounds per game and 2.8 steals per game. Brittany Woodard is a four-year varsity player from Christian Brothers High School in Sacramento, Calif. She is a three-time Sierra Valley Conference All-League selection and is a two-time Sierra Valley Conference MVP. Kayla Williams is the third member of the Pack’s incoming class for next fall. She is a four-year varsity starter at Reed High School in Sparks, Nev. and plays club for Jam On It Basketball Academy. She is a three-time All-League Honoree, a second-team selection as a freshman and a first-team selection as a sophomore and junior.
A Look Back
The University of Nevada women's basketball team enjoyed a very successful 2006-07 season in which the team posted a 17-15 overall record and advanced to post-season play for the first-time in school history. Nevada also finished with its highest ever win total in WAC play (10-6), including its first-ever win over La Tech. Nevada started the season 3-0, its best start in 25 years and had three players earn All-WAC honors at the end of the season. Dellena Criner was named to the All-WAC First Team, the All-WAC Defensive Team and to the WAC All-Tournament team while Traci Graham was named to the All-WAC Second Team. Marianne Lombardi was named to the All-Freshman Team marking the third consecutive season Nevada had a freshman named to the All-Freshman Team.
Nevada Picked Second, Third in WAC Preseason Polls
The University of Nevada women’s basketball team has been picked to finish second in the WAC Preseason Coaches Poll and third in the Media Poll. Nevada, who received one first-place vote in each poll, also had two players named to the Preseason All-WAC Teams. Junior guard Dellena Criner was named to the First Team while junior guard Brandi Fitzgerald was named to the Second Team. Criner was also named to the Preseason All-WAC Media team.
Upcoming Schedule
Nevada will return home on Feb. 2 to host Utah State at 7 p.m. Nevada will then play at San Jose State on Feb. 7 at 7 p.m. before facing Hawai`i in Honolulu on Feb. 9 at 9 p.m. PT. Nevada will return home on Feb. 14 and 16 hosting Boise State on Thursday at 6 p.m. and Idaho on Saturday at 6 p.m.
