March 8, 2014
San Jose, Calif. - The San José State women's basketball team, the 10th seed in the 2014 Reese's Mountain West Women's Basketball Championship, plays its first round game against the seventh-seeded UNLV Lady Rebels on Monday afternoon at Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas, Nev.
GAME 30
vs. UNLV (7th seed)
Monday, March 10, 4:35 p.m.
Thomas & Mack Center, Las Vegas, Nev.
Streaming video is available on the Spartan Digital Network at www.sjsuspartans.com/video
Live stats available at www.sjsuspartans.com
Radio broadcast on 90.5 KSJS-FM
LIVE STATS
Fans can view live stats of all San José State women's basketball games in the 2014 MW Women's Basketball Championship the "Gametracker" feature at www.sjsuspartans.com. Click on the link on the women's basketball schedule page to follow the action.
VIDEO STREAMING
All games of the 2014 MW Women's Basketball Championship will be streamed live on the Mountain West Network (www.themw.com) leading up to the Championship Game which will be broadcast on CSB Sports Network. All San José State women's basketball games in the tournament can also be seen on the Spartan Digital Network. Go to Spartan Digital at top of the Spartans Athletics home page or go to www.sjsuspartans.com/video.
SOCIAL MEDIA
The women's basketball Twitter handle is @sjswbb and Facebook page is /SanJoseStateWBB.
Keep up with all 16 of San José State's team through social media sites Twitter and Facebook. For Twitter go to @sjsuathletics and on Facebook become friends with Sammy Spartan.
RADIO COVERAGE
KSJS-FM (90.5 FM, San Jose) will broadcast all San Jose State women's basketball games at the 2014 Reese's MW Women's Basketball Championship. Fans can also follow the action at www.ksjs.org. Alex Scott and Justin Allegri call the action.
REESE'S MOUNTAIN WEST WOMEN'S BASKETBALL CHAMPIONSHIP
In its inaugural season in the Mountain West, San José State is participating in its first Mountain West Basketball Championship. The Spartans finished the regular season with a 5-13 conference record and are the 10th seed.
CONFERENCE TOURNAMENTS A STRUGGLE
In 16 conference basketball championship tournaments, the Spartans have a 6-16 record. Playing in the Western Athletic Conference from 1997 to 2013, San José State had a 5-13 record in conference tournaments. In four Big West Conference Tournament's the Spartans were 1-3.
In the only meeting between San José State and UNLV in a conference tournament, the 1989-90 Big West Tournament, the Lady Rebels defeated the Spartans 102-67.
LUCKY 11?
After winning a total of just 13 games from 2008 to 2011, the San José State women's basketball team has won 11 games for the third time in as many seasons.
With a win in its opening round game of the Mountain West Championship, the Spartans can achieve their highest win total since they won 13 games in the 2005-06 season.
SINGLE-SEASON SCORING MARK IN JEOPARDY
The San José State women's basketball single-season record for points, 2,301, was set in 1979-80. The 2013-14 Spartans have that record in sight. The MW's second most prolific scoring team per game (77.0/g) has scored 2,233 so far this season.
San José State has a minimum of one more game to play and if they continue their per game scoring average the will set a new San José State women's basketball scoring record with 2,310 points.
FREE THROW MARKS ARE LOOKING OVER THEIR SHOULDERS AS WELL
The Spartan records for free throws made in a season, 487 in 2012-13 could fall this year. San José State has made 481 so far, an average of 16.5 makes per game. With a minimum of one game to go the 2013-14 Spartans are seven made free throws from setting a new record.
NEW TEAM FREE THROW ATTEMPTS RECORD SET
With 13 free throw attempts against Colorado State (3/4) the 2013-14 Spartans set a new single-season team record. They passed the previous record, 678 in 2012-13. They have attempted 709 so far this year. The Spartans have averaged going to the line 24.4 times per game.
WOODBERRY OWNS SPARTANS SINGLE-SEASON 3-POINT RECORDS
Rebecca Woodberry's (Jr., G, Phoenix, Ariz.) 84 3-pointers are the most by any women's basketball player in a single season in San José State history. Woodberry past Kari Steele's single-season record (74 in 1996-97) with her second trey vs. NEV (2/19). She leads the MW in 3-pointers (3.0/g) and ranks 15th in the nation.
With Woodberry's 14 3-point attempts against San Diego State she moved in to first place on the programs' single-season list. She has attempted 239 this season.
WOODBERRY OWNS ONE AND CLOSING IN ON ANOTHER MW 3-POINT RECORD
With 138 3-point attempts in conference play, Rebecca Woodberry (Jr., G, Phoenix, Ariz.) holds the single-season MW record for a junior in addition she also set the Mountain West record passing Utah's Iwalani Rogers' 134, which was set in the 2010-11 season.
CUNNIGAN FOURTH ON ALL-TIME SCORING LIST
Ta'Rea Cunnigan (Jr., G, Winchester, Calif.) has scored 1,484 career points and is in 4th place on the Spartans career-scoring list. On a layup with 1:49 to play in the first half at Air Force (2/12), she moved ahead Hulett Brooks (1990, 92-94 1,373 pts.) for the fourth spot on the list. On her first bucket against NEV (2/19), she is just fourth player in the Spartans' 38-year history to reach the 1,400-point plateau.
Cunnigan was the 13th player to reach the 1,000-point plateau in the game against UC Riverside (11/15). She accomplished the feat in 63 games, the second fastest in program history.
CUNNIGAN'S PLACE IN SPARTANS HISTORY
In addition to being the fourth leading scorer in Spartans history and poised to be the first to score 1,500 points in three years, Ta'Rea Cunnigan (Jr., G, Winchester, Calif.) is in the top-10 of seven more career categories.
THREES ARE THE NAME OF THE GAME
With 764 3-point attempts and 234 makes, the 2013-14 Spartans have shattered the program's previous marks in each category. San José State sank 146 3-pointers in the 27 games of the 1999-00 season. This year's team equaled that number in just 20 games (at UNLV 1/29). In addition, they passed the previous record for attempts in a season (493 in 29 games in 2000-01) in that same game.
At their current pace (26.4 attempts per game overall & 26.6 per MW game) the Spartans are projected to attempt 790 3-pointers for the year and 502 in Mountain West games. Both would set conference records. Fresno State holds the single-season and conference season records; 737 overall and the Spartans 476 3-point attempts in conference games are already a conference record.
THREE DOUBLE DOUBLES A FIRST
Riana Byrd (So., C, Richmond, Calif.), Rebecca Woodberry's (Jr., G, Phoenix, Ariz.) and Jasmine Smith (Fr., F, Burbank, Calif.) each grabbed 10 rebounds at Air Force (2/12) and scored 14, 15 and 12 points, respectively. It is the first time this season, and in available records, that three Spartans had double doubles in the same game.
WOODBERRY NEARLY AUTOMATIC AT THE LINE
Rebecca Woodberry (Jr., G, Phoenix, Ariz.) is shooting .918 for the season and leads the Mountain West. She is 56-for-61 this year and from November 17, 2013 to March 4, 2014, a span of 25 games, made 52 in a row.
She sank her first 33 conference FT attempts, before missing a pair at the end of the Colorado State game (3/4), but continues to be the leading free throw shooter in conference play at .897.
SPARTANS ALREADY SETTING MW RECORDS
When the Spartans launched 42 3-pointers at San Diego State (1/25), they set a San José State single game and a Mountain West Conference record. They broke the program's previous record of 36, which was set against USF (11/20/14) and the previous MW record of 41 set by Wyoming at Colorado State (1/28/05).
TEAM SCORING CONTINUES TO GO UP - THREE PLAYERS IN THE TOP-15
Averaging 77.0 points per game, the Spartans are the second leading scoring team in the Mountain West Conference and rank 334th in the nation. Just three years ago, the team was averaging 47.7 points. They have increased scoring by nearly 30.0 points per game.
San José State has three players among the top-20 scorers in the league, tied for the most of any team. Ta'Rea Cunnigan (Jr., G, Winchester, Calif.) ranks 2nd (18.7/g). Rebecca Woodberry (Jr., G, Phoenix, Ariz.) is 8th (14.1/g) and Classye James (Jr., G, East Palo Alto, Calif.) is 17th (11.8/g).
SPARTANS AMONG TOP MW GLASS CLEANERS
At 43.1 rebounds per game, the Spartans are the 2nd-ranked rebounding team in the Mountain West and have three of the top four rebounders in the league.
Riana Byrd (So., C, Richmond, Calif.) is second in the league at 9.5 boards. Jasmine Smith (Fr., F, Burbank, Calif.) is third at 7.7 rebounds and Rebecca Woodberry (Jr., G, Phoenix, Ariz.) checks in in fourth at 7.4 rebounds.
BYRD IN CAREER RECORD BOOK AS WELL
Riana Byrd (So., C, Richmond, Calif.), who blocked 64 shots in her freshman campaign and has 41 more this season, is already in fourth place in the program's career blocks list. She is 33 blocks from tying Lamisha Augustine (2002-06) for third place all-time. With 16 points against Wyoming (1/18), Byrd reached the 500-point scoring plateau for her career.
WOODBERRY IS LOOKING LONG
Rebecca Woodberry (Jr., G, Phoenix, Ariz.), who transferred from Nebraska, has found her stroke from long range. She is 15th in the nation in 3-pointers made per game (3.04) and leads all Mountain West shooters. Her 84 3-pointers are seven more, and her 239 3-point attempts are more than 30 more than her next closest conference rival.
Woodberry holds the San José State single-season record for 3-point attempts and makes.
In addition, Woodberry is already in 9th place in the San José State career list for 3-pointers. She is 12 3-pointer from tying Sara Plavljanin's (2011-12) 96 makes for eighth place on the list.
SEEING DOUBLE
With eight double doubles, Jasmine Smith (Fr., F, Burbank, Calif.) ranks second the Mountain West. She along with Riana Byrd (So., C, Richmond, Calif.) and Rebecca Woodberry (Jr., G, Phoenix, Ariz.) have combined for 19 double doubles which lead the league.
SMITH AMONG THE TOP OF THE MW AND THE BEST FRESHMAN
Jasmine Smith (Fr., F, Burbank, Calif.) is just a freshman, but ranks in the top-10 of four categories in the Mountain West Conference. She is 2nd in offensive rebounds (3.4/g), third in total rebounds (7.9/g), 8th in defensive rebounds (4.5/g) and 6th in field goal percentage (.475).
She is the highest ranked freshman in three of those categories (rebounds, offensive rebounds and FG%) and second in the other two (defensive rebounds). She is achieving these numbers while coming off the bench in 22 of the Spartans 28 games this year.
STILL ONE OF THE YOUNGEST TEAMS
San José State was the youngest team in Division I last year with just four years of collegiate experience on the roster (two years of Division I and two years of junior college). With injuries, which have sidelined several players, the Spartans are nearly right back to where they were last year. Ta'Rea Cunnigan (Jr., G, Winchester, Calif.), Classye James (Jr., G, East Palo Alto, Calif.) and Rebecca Woodberry (Jr., G, Phoenix, Ariz.) each have two years of collegiate experience. Riana Byrd (So., C, Richmond, Calif.) and Jayzyl Tauala (So., G, Pacifica, Calif.) have one year each of college experience.
SCOUTING UNLV
The Lady Rebels are 12-18 overall, 9-9 in the Mountain West. They have earned the seventh seed in the 2014 Reese's MW Women's Basketball Championship Tournament.
UNLV defeated Nevada 80-68 on Saturday. The Lady Rebels are 9-9 overall and 6-3 in conference games at home this season. Although the Championship is being contested in Thomas & Mack Center, UNLV is still considered to be in its home venue.
Alana Cesarz leads the team in scoring (14.3 pts) with Danielle Miller and Mia Bell also in double figures at 12.3 and 11.9, respectively. Bell also leads the team in assist 3.4/g). Aley Rohde is the leading rebounder at 7.0/g.
Head coach Kathy Olivier is in her fifth season leading the UNLV program. She brought a 21 season 304-293 career-record into this year and 72-85 record with the Lady Rebels.
This will be the 30th meeting between these programs. The Spartans trail by a large margin in the all-time series 3-to-26. The Spartans and Lady Rebels met 26 times between the 1977-78 and 1996-97 seasons, but just three times since, all UNLV wins. In their only matchup of the season, San José State fell 90-76 in UNLV's Cox Pavilion on January 29.