Weber State University Athletics
Wildcats Hit the Road at Portland State Thursday
1/8/2008 7:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
?Cats hit the road to take on league-leading Vikings
Weber State hits the road in the Big Sky this week when they play at league-leading Portland State this Thursday night at 8:00 p.m. Mountain time. The Wildcats are coming off a 70-60 home loss to Northern Colorado last Saturday, dropping their Big Sky opener. WSU now sits a 6-7 overall and 0-1 in Big Sky play.
Home streak ends with loss to Bears
The Wildcats lost for the fourth straight time and dropped their Big Sky opener Saturday afternoon in the loss to Northern Colorado. It also ended WSU's seven-game home winning streak.In the game the ?Cats shot just 34 percent from the field and turned the ball over 14 times, which Northern Colorado turned into 20 points. Senior Sara Tuomi led the Wildcats with her first double-double of the season, finishing with 13 points and a season-high 12 rebounds. Ahkiah Hunter added a team-high 16 points.
Big Sky standings update
Last weekend was the first week of action in the Big Sky Conference and three teams are undefeated after the first week. Portland State picked up wins at Sacramento State and Northern Arizona and is on top of the league standings at 2-0. Idaho State and Montana are next, both at 1-0. NAU, Northern Colorado, and Sacramento State are all 1-1.
Shooting woes continue for Wildcats
Weber State has shot less than 40 percent from the field in each of the last seven games, including Saturday's loss to Northern Colorado. The ?Cats rank last in the Big Sky in field goal percentage at 36.4 percent and have only shot better than 40 percent from the field three times in 13 games this season. The ?Cats are 4-1 this year when shooting better than their opponents and 2-6 when shooting worse.Losing streak to four games
The Wildcats have lost their last four games all by double figures, losing by an average of 24 points per game. WSU is averaging 49 points and giving up 73.2 points per game in the last four. The ?Cats are also shooting just 32 percent from the field and allowing their opponents to shoot 50 percent, including 48 percent from three-point range in that stretch. They have also been out rebounded 38 to 31 per game.
Wins vs. losses
In the six wins this season the Wildcats are averaging 64 points per game and giving up 52 points. They are also shooting 38 percent from the field and averaging 14 turnovers a contest. Sara Tuomi is averaging 19 points a game, with Ahkiah Hunter at 13 a game.
Conversely, in the seven losses this year WSU is scoring just 51 points and game and giving up 70 points. Opponents have scored 70 or more points in five of the seven losses. The Wildcats are also shooting just 35 percent from the field in losses, with the opponents at 47 percent. The ?Cats also average 18 turnovers a game in losses this season. Tuomi is averaging 14 points and Hunter 11 in losses.
60 is the key number
Weber State is 6-1 this year when holding their opponents under 60 points but they are now 0-6 when they allow them to score more than 60 points, which has happened in each of the last four games. WSU currently ranks last in the Big Sky in scoring offense at 56.8 points per game but they are first in scoring defense at 61.8. This season the Wildcats are 5-2 when scoring 60 or more points in a game and they are 1-5 when scoring less than 60 points
Big Sky rankings
Weber State leads the Big Sky in scoring defense at 61.8 points a game and they are last in the league in scoring offense at 56.8 a game. The Wildcats are also last in the Big Sky in field goal percentage, last in assists, and eighth in rebounding. They rank second in the conference in free throw percentage, behind Idaho State who is also first in the nation. At 16.3 turnovers per game the ?Cats are averaging the second fewest turnovers a game.
Individually senior Sara Tuomi ranks third in the conference in scoring at 16.4 points per game and is seventh in rebounding at 7.2. Sophomore Tonya Schnibbe is second in the league in assists at 4.9 per game and ranks third in assist/turnover ratio.
Wildcats play at Portland State Thursday
This Thursday the Wildcats will take on the Vikings at 8:00 p.m. Mountain time from the Peter W. Stott Center in Portland. The game will be broadcast live on KWCR 88.1 FM with Eric Knighton calling the action. Knighton will also call every game for the rest of the season on KWCR. Live video of the game is available at bigskytv.org.
Quoting WSU head coach Carla Taylor
"The biggest thing we have to focus on is our team playing as a team. We've got to have everyone committing to playing hard on every possession. We also have to be able to score points in the paint and we haven't been able to establish a low-post presence."
About Portland State
Portland State enters this week on top of the Big Sky standings after two wins last week at Sacramento State and Northern Arizona. The Vikings are 12-3 overall this season and have won seven of their last nine games.
The Vikings lead the Big Sky in scoring offense at 75.1 points per game. They are giving up 69 points a game, the fifth best in the Big Sky. PSU is also first in the league in rebounding defense, first in assists, second in field goal percentage, second in steals, and third in three-point field goal percentage. The Vikings do not rank lower than sixth in the conference in any category.
Individually, junior Kelsey Kahle leads PSU with at 17.8 points per game, second best in the Big Sky. She is also fifth in the league in rebounding and ranks first in field goal percentage and second in steals. Senior Delaney Conway is next at 13.7 points per game and sophomore Claire Faucher is averaging 12.1 points and leads the league in assists at 9.5 per game.
Head coach Sherri Murrell
The Vikings are coached by Sherri Murrell who is in her first season as head coach at PSU. She is in her 13th season as a head coach including spending five years as head coach at Washington State. WSU head coach Carla Taylor is 14-10 in her career against Portland State.
All-time series
The Wildcats lead the all-time series 20-12 over Portland State and WSU has won the last three and eight of the last nine games played between the two schools. WSU beat PSU three times last season, including a ten point win in the first round of the Big Sky Tournament. In games in Portland the Vikings lead 9-7 all-time but the Wildcats have won four of the last five games played at the Stott Center.
Looking ahead
After Thursday's game the Wildcats will stay on the road and play at Eastern Washington this Saturday, January 12 at 3:00 p.m. After that the ?Cats will return home next week for home games on January 17 against Montana State and January 19 against Montana.
