Jan. 5, 2015
San Jose, Calif. - Sporting a perfect 5-0 home record to open the 2014-15 season, the San José State women's basketball team looks to extend the streak when it welcomes the Air Force Falcons to The Event Center on Wednesday evening for a Mountain West Conference tilt.
GAME 14vs. Air Force (1-12, 0-2 MW)Wednesday, January 7, 7:00 p.m.The Event Center, San Jose, Calif.Streaming video is available on the Spartan Digital Network at www.sjsuspartans.com/videoLive stats available at www.sjsuspartans.com
LIVE STATS
Fans can view live stats of all San José State women's basketball games, home and away, by accessing the "Gametracker" feature at www.sjsuspartans.com. Click on the link on the women's basketball schedule page to follow the action.
VIDEO STREAMING
Spartan Digital is your all-access passport to Spartan Athletics. For live and recorded video/audio of San José State women's basketball home, Mountain West (road and home) and select road contests, Spartan Digital is your home. Go to Spartan Digital at top of the Spartans Athletics home page or go to www.sjsuspartans.com/video.
SOCIAL MEDIA
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.
The women's basketball Twitter handle is @sjswbb and Facebook page is /SanJoseStateWBB.
RADIO COVERAGE
Fans across the nation can now listen to every Spartans' women's home game via Stretch Internet Radio. KSJS-FM (90.5 FM, San Jose) also originates home broadcasts and select road contests.
WOMEN'S BASKETBALL TICKETS
Tickets for San José State women's basketball home games are free for all SJSU students with a valid student ID. Adult tickets are $5.00 and $3.00 for youth (12 and under).
Groups of 20 or more can buy discounted tickets at $3.00 per person by 5:00 p.m. the business day before the game via the Spartan Ticket Office at (408) 924-SJTX (7589) or (877) SJSUTIX (757-8849).
The Event Center Box Office opens two hours prior to tip-off for any weekend, holiday game or doubleheader and is open regular business hours (10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.) for weekday games or weekday doubleheaders.
PARKING
Parking for all San José State women's basketball games is in the University's Seventh Street Parking Garage. The Seventh Street Garage, located on the Northwest corner of San Salvador Street and Seventh Street, can be accessed through Seventh Street. Parking is $5.00.
SPARTANS KEEP HOME RECORD PERFECT WITH WIN OVER UTAH STATE
After its 62-58 win over Utah State (12/31), the San José State has run its home record to 5-0 on the season. The last time the Spartans went this far into a season without dropping a game at home was a 7-0 start in 2002-03. The best home record by a Spartan team came in 1978-79. That year the team completed the regular season without losing a game on its home court, going 14-0.
SJSU TOPS MOUNTAIN WEST IN SCORING
San José State is scoring 85.9 points per game, which leads the conference. The team is averaging 14.0 points more than its next closest rival (Boise State - 71.9 ppg). In addition to leading the Mountain West, San José State is the fourth highest scoring team in the nation behind DePaul (89.7 ppg), Baylor (88.7 ppg) and UConn (88.2 ppg).
Against Columbia (11/16) the team set a program and conference record for points in a game, when they dropped 119 on the Lions, which is the fourth highest single-game point total in the NCAA this year. The Spartans have eclipsed 100 points in a game three times this year and have come away with a victory each time.
CAN YOU HANDLE PRESSURE...SPARTANS 4TH IN THE NCAA IN TURNOVER MARGIN
Through 13 games the Spartans have shown what their pressure defense is capable of doing. SJSU has forced its opponents to turn the ball over 300 times and in those, made 153 steals. San José State has made those opponent miscues pay off to the tune of a 306-174 advantage in points off turnovers. Nationally, the team ranks fourth in turnover margin at 8.15 and 22nd in steals per game grabbing 11.8 per game.
SPARTANS RANK 12TH IN THE NATION & TOPS IN THE MW IN MADE 3-POINTERS
San José State is hitting an average of 8.3 shots from beyond the arc per game, which ranks 12th in the nation and tops in the Mountain West, but taking and hitting threes are nothing new under head coach Jamie Craighead.
With 245 made 3-pointers and 793 attempts, the 2013-14 Spartans shattered the program's previous marks in each category. The previous record of 146 3-pointers in the 27 games (1999-00) was equaled in just 20 games (at UNLV 1/29) last season. In addition, they passed the previous record for attempts in a season (493 in 29 games in 2000-01) in that same game. Both marks set Mountain West Conference records as well.
MY OH MYZHANIQUE
Myzhanique Ladd (Fr., G, Seattle, Wash.), the 2013-14 Ms. Basketball in the state of Washington, leads the Spartan freshman with a 6.8 ppg average and has earned starts in nine of the team's 13 games this year. On the team, MyMy ranks second in FT% (.882) and FTA (45), fifth in assists (20), and fourth in steals (15). Her FT% ranks 90th in the nation.
SOPHOMORES STEP UP
In their second season, the three sophomores who started their careers at San José State are stepping up and providing solid contributions to the team.
Rachol West (So., F, Bakersfield, Calif.) has more than doubled her per game scoring average, from 3.3 to 7.8. It took West just 12 games to surpass her 29 game point total from a year ago. She ranks second on the team in 3-pointers (18) and is the leading shooter from distance (.340). A 19-point outburst against Sacramento State (12/22) in which she drained 5-of-8 treys and grabbed five rebounds in just 19 minutes of work earned her first Mountain West Women's Basketball Player of the Week honor.
Paris Baird (So., F, Van Nuys, Calif.) surpassed her point total from her freshman season in just 10 games this year. Her scoring average has more than doubled from 1.4 to 4.1 points per game. Averaging just one minute more per game than in 2013-14, Baird has already passed totals from her freshman campaign in shots, 3-pointers and free throws.
Jasmine Smith (So., F, Burbank, Calif.) ranks second in the conference among sophomores at 10.2 points per game. Her scoring average is nearly the same as last season (10.8 ppg in 2013-14), but she is doing it in seven fewer minutes per game (down from 23 per game last year to 15.5 per game this year).
CUNNIGAN NEARS SAN JOSÉ STATE SCORING RECORDS
With a 13-point effort at Wyoming (1/3), Ta'Rea Cunnigan (Sr., G, Winchester, Calif.) inched closer to becoming the program's career scoring leader. Entering the game against Air Force her 1,693 career points are 67 behind all-time women's scoring leader Karen Mason (1,760 points from 1978-81) and 74 behind Ricky Berry (1,767 points from 1986-88) for the school's all-time record (men or women).
In the Utah State win (12/31), Cunnigan passed Elinor Banks (1,672 points from 1978-81) for third place and then Cricket Williams (1,676 points from 2001-04), who occupied second place.
EVERYBODY BRINGS SOMETHING TO THE PARTY!
In 2014-15, San José State is getting production up and down its lineup. Each of the 11 Spartans who have played in the first 13 games is averaging double-digit minutes. The bench has scored 445 of the team's 1,117 points; 40% of the total production. San José State has six games in which 11 players contributed in the scoring column and five games in which 10 players scored.
NEWCOMERS BRINGING IT AS WELL
Nyre Harris (Jr., G, Stockton, Calif.) completed her year in residency at the conclusion of the fall term. In the four games, three of which were starts, Harris is averaging 20.0 minutes and 7.5 points.
Emily Schill (So., F, Tacoma, Victoria, Australia) has appeared in the last two games, after being out 18 months with a leg injury, and is averaging 2.0 points, 1.0 rebound and 5.0 minutes.
CUNNIGAN ABOUT TO TAKE THE NEXT STEP UP IN ANOTHER CAREER CATEGORY
In addition to the San José State women's basketball scoring record, in which Ta'Rea Cunnigan (Sr., G, Winchester, Calif.) trails Karen Mason (1,760 points, 1978-81) by 67 points, she is on the cusp of moving up the career 3-pointers list
Cunnigan is one made 3-pointers from tying Cricket Williams for sixth place on the program's career 3-pointers list (114).
CUNNIGAN AMONG ACTIVE CAREER LEADERS IN THE NCAA
Among Division I women's basketball players, Ta'Rea Cunnigan (Sr., G, Winchester, Calif.) ranks first free throws made (478) and second in free throws attempted (646). She is 10th in steals (229). Her 1,433 field goal attempts are 12th most among active women players and she ranked 21st in field goals (551). Her 16.4/g career scoring average is the 15th highest among current players. Finally, Cunnigan is the eighth leading scorer among active players with 1,693 career points.
SCOUTING AIR FORCE
The Falcons have dropped both their home game to open Mountain West play; 74-65 to San Diego State (12/31) and 76-53 to Nevada (1/3). The team enters its match-up against the Spartans with a 1-12 record and are 0-7 on the road this year. They are averaging 47.3 ppg on the road and have lost their seven road games by an average of 37.0 points.
Air Force is under the direction of fifth-year head coach Andrea Williams. In four years as a Division I head coach, all at Air Force, Williams had a 20-100 record entering the 2014-15 season.
The Falcons' offense is led by senior guard Jimi Blagowsky, who tops the squad in points (12.1/g), steals (1.5/g) and assists (3.4/g). Lindsey Lewis, a senior guard, is the only other player in double figures at 11.2 points per game. Freshman Forward Dee Bennett is the top rebounder at 4.5 per game.
This will be the seventh meeting between these programs in which the Spartans hold a 5-1 advantage. San José State has won the last three meetings and has never lost to the Falcons on its home court.