Dec. 27, 2000
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Game 11
Northern Arizona Lumberjacks (3-8*) at
San Diego State Aztecs (5-5)
DAY/DATE: Saturday, Dec. 30, 2000
PLACE: Cox Arena at Aztec Bowl (12,414), San Diego, Calif.
TIME: 5 p.m. PST
SERIES: Aztecs lead, 6-1
WEBCAST: Saturday night's game versus Northern Arizona can be heard live over the Internet at www.goaztecs.com. Dan Lawton handles the play-by-play for all road contests with Bill Earley (p-b-p) and Tammy Blackburn (analysis) calling the home webcasts.
San Diego State Storyline
* Winners of two in a row and four of its last six games, San Diego State looks to post its first three-game winning streak of the Barb Smith era when the Aztecs host Northern Arizona in the opener of a women's/men's double header at Cox Arena Saturday night at 5 p.m. The SDSU men battle Oklahoma State at 7:30 p.m. in the nightcap. The Aztec women are coming off a 63-49 victory over California and at 5-5 are off to their best start since the 1996-97 campaign.
A Quick Look At The Aztecs
* San Diego State will be out to complete a perfect homestand Saturday night, when the Aztecs take on Northern Arizona in Cox Arena. SDSU evened its record at 5-5 last Friday with a 63-49 victory over California. The win over the Golden Bears snapped a six-game losing streak versus the Pacific-10 Conference and, coupled with its 84-47 victory over Cal State Fullerton, placed SDSU on the brink of its first three-game winning streak since winning 11-of-12 to close out the 1996-97 season.
* Already off to its best start under current head coach Barb Smith, a victory over NAU Saturday night would also give the Aztecs six wins before Jan. 1 for the first time since SDSU opened the 1995-96 campaign with a 7-2 mark.
* Junior Tanisha Knight continues to lead the Aztecs in both scoring (14.1 ppg) and rebounding (5.9 rpg). Knight, the Mountain West Conference's No. 3 scorer, extended her double-figures scoring streak 10 games Friday with a game-high 15 against Cal.
* Sophomore Jamey Cox appears to have broken out of her brief shooting slump and has connected on 9-of-15 from the field and averaged 12.5 ppg during the homestand. Cox is now second on the team in scoring, averaging 9.4 ppg. She also ranks among the leagues' assist leaders at 4.1 apg and has led SDSU in three straight.
About Northern Arizona
* Northern Arizona enters the week with a 3-8 record. However, don't let the Lumberjacks' slow start fool you. NAU, which plays at Loyola Marymount on Thursday, Dec. 28, before heading south to take on the Aztecs, has faced the nation's 54th-most difficult schedule thus far (according to rpiratings.com) and is virtually the same squad that knocked off SDSU, 65-57, last season in Flagstaff.
* Still, NAU, which returns all five starters and 8-of-12 letterwinners from 1999-00, has struggled to find a rhythm on offense (57.7 ppg) and is shooting just 36.6 percent from the field, including 29.5 percent from beyond the arc.
* Under the guidance of fifth-year head coach Meg Sanders (67-57, .540), the 'Jacks have been led by guard Kara Kleinhenz (11.6 ppg) and forward Bridjette Wickham (6.2 rpg).
Series Shorts
* Saturday's meeting with Northern Arizona will be the eighth between the two teams. San Diego State leads the all-time series, 6-1, however the Lumberjacks were victorious the last time the two squads squared off, defeating the Aztecs, 65-57, last season in Flagstaff.
* This year's contest will be the fifth between SDSU and NAU in San Diego, but the first since a 66-61 Aztec victory in 1995. SDSU is a perfect 4-0 against the 'Jacks in San Diego and through the years have had an easy time with NAU at home, winning by an average of 18.3 ppg (68.3-50.0) in America's Finest City.
SDSU Versus The Big Sky
* San Diego State is 18-6 (.750) all time against the Big Sky Conference and will be out to make it two in a row over the league against Northern Arizona.
* The Lumberjacks are the third of three 2000-01 Big Sky opponents for SDSU.
* The Aztecs, who have struggled lately versus the Sky, snapped a two-game losing streak against the conference on Nov. 28 with a 53-50 win at Portland State and evened their record a 1-1 versus the league on the year.
* San Diego State opened its 2000-01 season with a 68-58 loss at Montana on Nov. 18.
The Last Time We Met
* San Diego State suffered its first loss in seven meetings as Northern Arizona slipped past the Aztecs, 65-57, at the Walkup Skydome on Dec. 28, 1999.
* NAU, which got a game-high 20 points from Kara Kleinhenz, lead 33-20 at intermission and by as many as 20 midway through the second half before the Aztecs began chipping away at the Lumberjacks' advantage.
* SDSU, which was led by Jamey Cox's team-high 17 points, sliced the NAU lead to as few as eight points twice in the final minute of play, but the Aztecs could draw no closer.
Noting SDSU's Win Over California
* San Diego State improved its record to 5-5 with a 63-49 victory over California last Friday in Cox Arena.
* Junior Tanisha Knight led all scorers with 15 points and has now finished in double figures in all 10 games this season.>
* Sophomore Jamey Cox added 12 points for her fifth double-figure scoring game of the year -- second in a row -- and the 26th of her career. Cox also dished out a game-high five assists.
* Senior Anita Bandage came off the bench to score a season-high 11 points.
* Despite being out rebounded, 35-31, San Diego State forced Cal into 24 turnovers and limited the Golden Bears to just 36-percent shooting from the floor.
* The Aztecs trailed Cal by as many as eight early on before going on an 11-0 run to take a 17-14 lead with 3:45 to play in the first half. SDSU, which led 26-19 at the break, never trailed again.
* Cal used an 8-0 spurt to get back in the game and trailed just 49-44 with 7:38 to go. However the Aztecs limited the Bears to just five points down the stretch and led by as many as 16 in the final minute of play.
Heating Up, Staying Hot...
* San Diego State's team field goal percentage continues to be a positive in 2000-01. The Aztecs enter Saturday's game shooting 45.2 percent on the season, second in the Mountain West Conference and up significantly over last year's 40.4 team percentage.
* The Aztecs have also shot better than 50 percent in 7-of-20 halves thus far, and have three times topped 60 percent in a half. The Aztecs shot over 60 percent in both halves versus Illinois State, to finish at 68 percent (32-of-47). That performance broke a 13-year-old school record, eclipsing the old mark of 65 percent (34-of-50) set on Jan. 19, 1987, versus Hawaii.
* Four Aztecs -- Bemi-Morrison, Bundage, McCartny and Vargas -- are shooting better than 50 percent from the field, including McCartny's league-leading 65.4 percent.
...And That Translates Into More Points
* SDSU is also scoring 7.5 ppg more than it did a year ago and has already surpassed the 80-point plateau twice. Last season, the Aztecs never scored more than 80 points. San Diego State has also shot better than 45 percent in 5-of-10 games compared to a season ago when the Aztecs eclipsed 45 percent in just 9-of-28 contests.
Getting Defensive
* San Diego State has held six of its 10 opponents under 60 points this season, including five of the last six. That defensive effort appears to be working for the Aztecs as SDSU has won five of the six games in which its opponent has failed to crack 60 points.
* SDSU has also held three of its last five foes under 50 points. The Aztecs have won all three games.
* The Aztecs have held four of their last five opponents below 37 percent shooting, including Cal State Fullerton, which became the second SDSU foe this season to shoot less than 30 percent from the field.
Hard To Get The Three
Through 10 games, San Diego State has proven itself to be the toughest team in the Mountain West Conference to sink a three-pointer against. Heading in Saturday's game with Northern Arizona, Aztec opponents are shooting just 30.6 percent from beyond the arc and have not connected on a trey in over three games. Since Missouri burned SDSU for eight triples on Dec. 2, Aztec foes are a combined 0-for-23 from three-point distance.
Turnovers Still The Key
After struggling in the turnover department much of last season, SDSU has cut its turnovers in excess of three per game in 2000-01 and have had fewer turnovers than their opponents in 6-of-10 contests. The Aztecs averaged 22.5 turnovers per game last year and enter Friday's game averaging 19.4.
* The Aztecs have already posted five games with 18 or fewer turnovers, including a season-low 12 at Portland State -- SDSU's fewest turnovers since committing just eight versus Pepperdine on Dec. 7, 1996. However the key stat remains which team has the fewest miscues. SDSU is 5-1 when it has less turnovers than its opponent.
Aztecs Keep Dishing the Rock
* Not only are the Aztecs doing a better job of taking care of the ball, SDSU is also making better decisions on offense. San Diego State ranks third in the Mountain West Conference in assists (16.4 apg) and boasts a stellar assist-to-field goal ration of 68 percent (241 field goals on 164 assists). Not surprising the Aztecs have a pair of players ranked in the MWC's top 5 in assists. Senior Shannon Lee ranks third at 4.50 apg, while sophomore Jamey Cox is fourth at 4.10 apg.
Five-Finger Discounts
* One of San Diego State's most amazing turnarounds this season has been in the steals category. Through 10 games, the Aztecs rank third in the Mountain West Conference in steals per game at 10.20. SDSU picked off 10 against Cal and a season-high 18 versus Cal State Fullerton -- its most since snatching 22 against Fresno State on Feb. 24, 1999 -- and now has notched double-digit steals in six games on the year. Last season, SDSU averaged just 8.5 spg, good for seventh in the eight-team league, and finished with double-figures in steals in only 10-of-28 games. Three Aztecs rank among the Mountain West's top 11 in steals per game: Tanisha Knight (3rd), Shannon Lee (9th), and Jamey Cox (11th).
Slow Starts and Fast Finishes
* Through nine games this year, San Diego State has shown itself to be a second-half team. The Aztecs, who are averaging 64.7 ppg on offense, have scored more points in the second half of every game thus far for an average of 11.3 points more after intermission. SDSU's biggest second-half surge came versus Alcorn State, when the Aztecs doubled their first-half production (20) in the second period (40). Earlier this year at LMU, the Aztecs reeled off 17 more points after the break. Overall, SDSU has scored 59 percent of its points after halftime.
Good Knight!
Just how big has junior Tanisha Knight been for the Aztecs since arriving from Central Arizona College? Knight, who has scored in double figures in all 10games, leads San Diego State in both scoring (14.1) and rebounding (5.9). In fact, Knight ranks in the MWC's top 10 in five separate categories: Scoring (3rd), Steals (3rd), Blocks (3rd), Free Throw Percentage (6th), and Rebounding (9th).
* Last week, Knight scored a game-high 15 points and grabbed a team-leading seven boards against California. The junior just missed her first career double-double with 11 points and nine rebounds against Cal State Fullerton to open the homestand.
* Prior to that, Knight posted an impressive four-game road trip. After opening up with 17 points in SDSU's win at Portland State, the junior scored 12 points against Alcorn State before pouring a team- and career-high 22 against Missouri. She wrapped up the stretch with a 16-point effort at San Jose State.
* SDSU's leading scorer in four of the last six games, Knight has also connected on 81 percent of her free throws (51-of-63, good for sixth in the MWC), and was an all-tournament selection at both the Pacific Bell Classic as well as the Unilever Lady Tiger Classic.
Cox Gets Back On Track
After averaging just 3.5 ppg during SDSU's four-game road trip, Jamey Cox appears to have gotten back on track since returning to Cox Arena. Cox, the Aztecs' second-leading scorer at 9.4 ppg, opened the homestand with 13 points and 10 assists against Cal State Fullerton for her first career double-double. She then came back to add 12 in SDSU' win over California -- her fifth double-figure scoring game of the season. In addition to her scoring punch, Cox has also picked up other parts of her game and has led the Aztecs in assists in each of the last three contests.
Bundage Bounces Back
After getting off to a slow start in 2000-01, senior Anita Bundage show why she has been one of the Aztecs' most consistent players over the past three seasons last Friday against California. Bundage, who has made only one start and is averaging just over 15 minutes per game, came off the bench to post her best effort of the year against Cal, scoring a season-best 11 points and collecting four boards in 19 minutes of work.
Scho-Time Debuts at Cox Arena
Missy Schomaker finally unveiled the scoring punch she show while at Hutchinson Junior College versus Cal State Fullerton Monday night, pouring in a career-high 20 points on 8-for-15 (53 percent) shooting, including three treys. It was the second double-digit scoring game of the season for the junior forward and may have signaled a shooting thaw for Schomaker, who entered the game shooting just 32 percent from the floor
Swinbank Stepping Up
After missing all of last season, junior Claire Swinbank appears to be regaining some of the consistency she show as a freshman. Swinbank posted her third double-digit scoring game of the season and second in the last three games, finishing with 14 points on 6-for-9 shooting against Cal State Fullerton.
Not your Typical Double-Doubles
San Diego State has had just two players turn in double-doubles this season, senior Shannon Lee and sophomore Jamey Cox. However, neither was your typical double-double. While most double-doubles are of the points/rebounds variety, both of SDSU's this season have come via the points/assists route. Lee notched the Aztecs' first double-double this season and the third of her career with 10 points and 14 assists versus Illinois State. Cox got into the act against Cal State Fullerton with 13 points and a career-high 10 assists for her first career double-double.