Nevada Notes 
Nov. 28, 2011
RENO, Nev. -
The University of Nevada women's basketball team (2-3, 0-0 WAC) will close out a three game home stand Wednesday against Pacific at 7 p.m. Pacific leads the all time series 7-12, with Nevada beating the Tigers in their last meeting at home during the 1999-2000 season.
LAST TIME?OUT
The University of Nevada women's basketball team fell to No. 16 Penn State 103-65 in the John Ascuaga's Nugget Classic Championship game last Saturday. Penn State opened the game looking to go inside and utilize its height advantage over Nevada, scoring 26 points in the paint in the first half. The Pack fought back led by Danika Sharp's 12 first half points, closing the lead to two by the 14 minute mark. Senior Kayla Williams battled in the paint and went 3-4 from the field before getting into foul trouble. Lady Lions guard Maggie Lucas caught fire, finishing the half with 18 and helped extend Penn State's lead to 15 by half time.
The Wolf Pack struggled to score coming out of half time, hitting its first basket six minutes into the half. Penn State continued to show its dominance in the post, finishing the game with 62 points in the paint. Senior Kate Kevorken tried to give Nevada a spark on offense, connecting on several three point attempts. Penn State remained steady from the field and scored points in transition to put Nevada away.
PACK ON TOP?OF?THE?WAC STATS
Nevada has players leading two WAC individual statistical categories. Forward Kate Kevorken is leading the conference in field goal percentage with .605 and guard Danika Sharp has the best free throw percentage at a perfect 1.000
NUGGET?CLASSIC?HONORS?FOR?NEVADA
Seniors Kayla Williams and Kate Kevorken were both named to the John Ascuaga's Nugget Classic All-Tournament Team this past weekend. Kevorken was a major factor in the team's Nugget Classic 71-69 win over Butler, leading all scorers with a career high 23 points. Kevorken followed that performance with 14 points and four assists in the Nugget Classic Championship loss to No. 16 Penn State
Williams barely missed a 15th career double-double against the Bulldogs, finishing with 16 points and nine rebounds. The forward battled in the paint with the Lady Lions in the championship game, adding 14 points, five rebounds and three blocks.
THE YOUNG BUNCH
After losing six seniors, Nevada is a young team in 2011-12. The Wolf Pack's 13-player roster features five newcomers, and just two seniors with more than one year of competition experience. Nevada has five newcomers joining the squad this year, all of whom will be true freshmen. The class adds two guards, two forwards and a center to the roster. Nevada added guards Faith Lois (5-11, Westosha, Wisc.) and Kelsey Kaelin (5-8, Tigard, Ore.) and forwards Emily Burns (6-0, Reno, Nev.) and Aja Johnson (6-1, Danville, Calif.). The final player of the incoming class adds significant size to the team. Standing at 6-7, Mimi Mungedi found her way to Nevada from Africa, hailing from Libreville, Gabon.
TOUGH AT HOME
Nevada has pulled together and impressive run of success in the friendly confines of Lawlor Events Center going 33-17 at home in the last four seasons. In her first season leading the Wolf Pack, Jane Albright coached the team to its first win over a ranked opponent in program history when the Pack stunned then No. 7 Louisville by beating the Cardinals 85-82 at the 2008 John Ascuaga's Nugget Classic. Last year, Nevada went 11-5 at home after going a perfect 7-0 at Lawlor in the non-conference season. Nevada set a new record for home attendance in the WNIT second-round game, with 3,361 fans watching the Pack take on USC.
LEADING THE WAY
Nevada will be led by seniors Amanda Johnson from the point guard spot and forward Kayla Williams, the team's leading shot blocker from last year. Johnson led the WAC throughout last year in both assists per game and assist/turnover ratio while Williams collected eight double-doubles for the season including a career-high 20 rebounds against Pepperdine.
LESS EXPERIENCE, BUT STILL A SENIOR LEADER
Fellow senior Kate Kevorken has taken on an important role with the team after starting in place of the injured Shavon Moore at the end of last season. Kevorken currently leads the team in scoring at 16.2 points per game. Kevorken was a big piece of Nevada's offense in the Nugget Classic, eclipsing her career high against Butler with a 23 point performance.
