Nevada (13-5) vs. Colorado State (13-5)Â Â
Thursday, Jan. 27
5 p.m. PTÂ
Moby Arena – Ft. Collins, Colo.Â
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THE OUTLOOK
The Nevada women's basketball looks for its second-consecutive road win when it faces the Colorado State Rams at 5 p.m. Jan. 27 at Moby Arena in Ft. Collins, Colo. The Wolf Pack recorded its first 4-0 conference start since the 2009-10 WAC campaign after downing San Diego State, 58-46, Wednesday night after a nearly two-week hiatus due to COVID-19 concerns. The Pack defeated Air Force, 40-39, in a historic defensive performance on Monday. Nevada travels to Wyoming on Jan. 29 for a 1 p.m. tip against the Cowgirls.
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LAST TIME OUT (W, 40-39, at Air Force )
- The Wolf Pack was led offensively by senior Da'Ja Hamilton's 13 points to go along with five rebounds and one assist. Seniors Kylie Jimenez and Amaya West chipped in six points apiece
- K. Jimenez also recorded two rebounds, one assist and one steal. West added five boards, an assist, a steal and a block. Sophomore Lexie Givens tallied a team-high seven rebounds to go along with three points
- The Falcons' 39 points are the fifth fewest points scored by a Nevada opponent in program history. Additionally, the Pack scored 17 points off of Air Force's 17 turnovers
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DA'JA, DA'JA, DA'JA
It's no surprise senior guard
Da'Ja Hamilton is coming off five-consecutive double digit scoring performances, including three 21-point games. In Nevada's 67-52 win vs. Air Force, Hamilton surpassed 800 career points after netting a season-high 21 points to go along with two rebounds and two assists. She shot 7-for-15 from the field, including 4-for-7 from behind the arc, and went 5-for-5 at the line. Hamilton followed with another strong performance at San Jose State, tying her season-high in scoring with 21 points while adding five assists and one steal to pace Nevada to its largest conference win in program history. Hamilton pieced together another noteworthy performance against Utah State, compiling 21 points with seven rebounds and five assists. Hamilton led all Wolf Pack scorers against the Aztecs on Jan. 19, compiling 18 points, one rebound and one assist. Hamilton chipped in 11 points in the Wolf Pack's loss to UNLV.
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KEEPING UP WITH KYLIE
Senior point guard
Kylie Jimenez's 3.29 assist to turnover ratio ranks second in NCAA Division I women's basketball. In addition, Jimenez's success on the court and in the classroom earned her Wolf Pack Student Athlete of the Month for January. She currently ranks third on the NCAA's active career assist list with 594, which is only four behind second place. Jimenez is one point away from her 1,400th career point and six assists away from her 600th career assist.
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RODEN'S BREAKOUT FRESHMAN CAMPAIGN
Freshman
Audrey Roden has put together a breakout freshman year through 18Â games this season. Roden is averaging 11.3 points and 3.2 rebounds per contest this season.
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WRITING HISTORY
Nevada's dominating performance against San Jose State was the largest margin of victory in conference play in program history. The Pack also turned the ball over just three times, tying the program record for fewest in a game (tied with three turnovers vs. Wyoming on 3/7/2018). Nevada also shot 50 percent from the floor for its second-consecutive game shooting 50 percent or better. In addition, Friday's win pushed gave Nevada its first 2-0 start since the 2014-15 season.
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Nevada's win over Utah State improved its record to 11-4 overall, and to 3-0 in Mountain West play, marking the Pack's first 3-0 conference start since joining the loop. The Pack will go for its first 4-0 start in conference play since the 2009-10 WAC campaign Thursday.
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TAKIN' CARE OF THE BALL, TALKIN TURNOVERS
The Pack's 5.78Â turnover margin ranks second in the Mountain West. Nevada has registered only 232 turnovers this season. The Wolf Pack has forced 336 opponent turnovers so far this season. Nevada turned the ball over just three times at San Jose State, tying the program record (last vs. Wyoming on 3/7/2018). Senior
Kylie Jimenez played a large role, dishing out 10 assists while recording zero turnovers at the point guard spot against the Spartans.
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ALL-AROUND DEFENSE
Nevada's scoring defense ranks second in the Mountain West through five games, giving up an average of 58.6 points. The Pack held UC Merced and Bushnell to just 41 and 42 points in its back-to-back wins at home. Nevada's 80-42 win over Bushnell marked the third-largest margin of victory in program history (tied with Nevada's 38-point win over LaVerne on Jan. 13, 1982). The largest margin of victory in program history is its 50-point win against Lassen on Nov. 21, 1981.
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FRESHMAN OF THE WEEK X3
Audrey Roden was named Mountain West Freshman of the Week on Nov. 22, Dec. 6 and again on Dec. 20. Roden recorded a career-high 22 points
and three rebounds in the Pack's win over Pacific on Dec. 4. Roden led the Pack with five rebounds and also added two assists and one steal against the Wolverines. Roden scored 14 of her 17 points in the first half, including knocking down three three-pointers. Roden followed up her performance against Pacific with another big night vs. UC Merced, leading Nevada with 17 points, two rebounds and two assists. Against Eastern Washington, Roden netted a team-high 18 points to go along with a career-high two blocks, two rebounds and one assist. Roden shot 4-for-6 from three, while knocking down two crucial threes in the fourth quarter.Â
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Roden is the first Nevada player to receive a weekly honors since
Nia Alexander earned Mountain West Player of the Week on Dec. 30, 2019.
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CLUTCH VICTORIES
The 2021 Nugget Classic presented by the University of Nevada was filled with four strong teams and six intriguing matchups. Nevada bounced back after its loss to Drake to claim two crucial wins over Idaho and San Francisco. The wins didn't come easy, but Nevada never backed down to the challenge. Down by one with six seconds left, senior
Nia Alexander's hard cut to the basket during a baseline inbound resulted in two free throws. Alexander showed she wasn't afraid of big moments after sinking them both to propel Nevada to a 61-60 victory over the Idaho Vandals. The Pack tallied another win over San Francisco after
Da'Ja Hamilton's clutch three at the final buzzer took the game into overtime. Nevada, which controlled the overtime period, cruised to a 73-67 win. Moral of the story: don't count the Pack out, even when down in a game's final minutes. Nevada showed it can inch itself back into a game and find a way to win.
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ALEXANDER, HAMILTON ON TRACK FOR 1000
Nia Alexander and
Da'Ja Hamilton are on track to hit 1,000 career points this season. Alexander currently sits at 955 and Hamilton sits at 879.
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WINNING FREE THROW PERCENTAGE
Nevada ranks 13th in the country in free throw percentage (78.4 percent) and first in the Mountain West through 18-regular season games.
Nia Alexander's crucial free throws against Idaho secured a Wolf Pack win at the Nugget Classic. Nevada was down by one in the game's final six seconds. Alexander's hard cut under the basket on an inbound led to an Idaho foul and sent her to the line. Alexander was unphased at the line, hitting both free throws. Head coach
Amanda Levens praised the team's dedication to free throws during the off-season, which is paying off for the team so far this season.
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A DYNAMIC DUO
Reunited for the first time since high school, the Jimenez sisters are making the most of their time together. Both had standout weekend's against Drake, Idaho and San Francisco. Kylie led Nevada offensively vs. Drake, tallying 18 points, three rebounds, two assists and one steal. In game two vs. Idaho, Kylie also tabbed 12 points, five rebounds and four steals. Alyssa had a breakout weekend as well, recording eight points, four rebounds, one block and one steal against Idaho before registering a career-high 14 points to go along with three rebounds and a steal in Nevada's 73-67 win over San Francisco. Kylie followed with another strong performance against Cal Poly, netting 11 points while adding four rebounds, one steal and one assist. The duo has started eight games together this season.
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JIMENEZ NAMED MW NEWCOMER OF THE YEAR
Graduate transfer
Kylie Jimenez was named Preseason Mountain West New- comer of the Year on Oct. 13. Jimenez, a Colorado native and grad transfer from Portland State, is the sister of Wolf Pack guard
Alyssa Jimenez.
Kylie Jimenez played a huge role for the Vikings the past four seasons as she tied the school record with 122 starts, which is every game she played in. Throughout her career, the 5-foot-6 guard earned many accolades including Big Sky Freshman of the Year, All-Big Sky Third Team twice, an All-Big Sky honorable mention, a Big Sky Player of the Week honor, and was named to the 2019 All-Big Sky Tournament team. She helped her team to a 25-win season during her sophomore campaign, a Big Sky Tournament Championship and an appearance in the NCAA Tournament.
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NEW STAFF ADDITIONS
The Pack welcomes three new staffing additions ahead of the 2021-22 season:
Asami Morita (assistant coach),
Savannah Reier (graduate assistant) and
Logan Shaw (graduate assistant).
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MEET THE NEWCOMERS
• #3
Kylie Jimenez | 5-6 | G | Gr. | Thornton, Colo./Horizon HS/Portland State
• #4
Audrey Roden | 5-9 | G | Fr. | West Linn, Ore./West Linn HS
• #5
Kaylee Borden | 5-6 | G | Fr. | Anadarko, Okla./Anadarko HS
• #33
Hannah Hartley | 5-11 | F | Fr. | Reno, Nev./Galena HS
• #52
Natalie Lathrop | 6-3 | F | Fr. | Tualatin, Ore./Tualatin HS
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