Beach Open Up Big West Play on Central Coast
49ers Look to Break Streak Against UCSB; at Cal Poly on Monday
December 30, 2003
PDF VERSION OF RELEASE at UC SANTA BARBARA (6-4), SATURDAY 7 P.M.
UCSB has won eight straight Big West titles, going 64-1 at the Thunderdome over that stretch... dropped out of the top-25, ranking No. 26 this week... UCSB is coming off a 69-62 win over Mississippi State on Tuesday... the Gauchos feature the last two BWC Players of the Year in 6-8 senior center Lindsay Taylor (14.1 ppg 7.4 rpg) and 6-2 junior forward Kristen Mann (13.6 ppg, 7.6 rpg)... Mia Fischer is averaging 9.3 ppg... UCSB is averaging 62.9 ppg playing a tough schedule featuring Texas Tech (L), Arizona (W), Florida (L) and Purdue (L).
at CAL POLY (4-5), MONDAY, 7 P.M.
The Mustangs have dropped four straight after losing in Las Vegas, 83-57, on Tuesday evening... 5-11 junior forward Katy Paterson (11.4 ppg) and 5-2 freshman point guard Sparkle Anderson (11.1 ppg) lead the club... Paterson leads in rebounding (6.7) and Anderson leads in assists (3.4)... Cal Poly is shooting just 39% from the field, but hitting 39% from three... over the last four, the Mustangs lost by two at USF and by one at LMU.
49ERS OPEN UP BIG WEST PLAY IN CENTRAL COAST
Long Beach State (4-5, 0-0 Big West) will open up Big West play on Saturday, January 3 at eight-time defending Big West Champion, No. 26-ranked UC Santa Barbara (6-4, 0-0 Big West) at 7 p.m., before traveling North to Cal Poly for a Monday night affair with the Mustangs (4-4, 0-0 Big West) at 7 p.m. The 49ers play five of its first seven conference games on the road, with the only home games coming in two weeks against Pacific (January 8) and CS Northridge (January 10). The Beach have won three of four, after starting the season 1-5. All LBSU games can be heard live at www.longbeachstate.com.
CONFERENCE OPENERS
LBSU has won seven of its last 11 Big West openers, winning the last two, falling last at UC Riverside three years ago. The team's only other trip to the Central Coast to open the conference season came in 1995-96, when LBSU dropped a 96-63 decision at UC Santa Barbara. (Cal Poly had yet to turn Division-I at that point).
THE HEGARTY FILE
Mary Hegarty, one of the 15 greatest players in UCLA women's basketball history (along with current assistant and Hall of Famer Denise Curry), begins her first season at the helm of the 49ers. Hegarty previously coached 10 seasons at Chapman University in Orange County, going 160-92 (.635), averaging 16 wins a season after the team won just two games the year prior to her arrival. Over the past three seasons, Chapman, a non-scholarship, unaffiliated Division-III program reached the last three straight NCAA Tournaments with at-large berths and went 57-24 (.704), including a Sweet 16 appearance in 2001-02. She appeared in four NCAAs in her 10 seasons.
BEACH CLASSIC
LBSU 70, NEW ORLEANS 68: The 49ers fought back from a seven-point second half deficit to hold on and defeat UNO in the finale of The Beach Classic. Jayme Connors' second double-double of the season led four 49ers in double figures, as Petra Gläser added 16 points and five rebounds. Connors was fouled with 0.2 seconds left and nailed both free throws to complete the comeback. BOX SCORE
LBSU 62, NO. ARIZONA 47: The 49ers shot 50% against an opponent for the third-straight game, running away from NAU on the first day of The Beach Classic with the best overall performance (to date) of the season. LBSU out rebounded NAU 44 to 24 as Petra Gläser tallied her first double-double with 18 points and 12 rebounds, while Lauren Bull added 12 points and four assists. BOX SCORE
McCUTCHEON READY TO GO?
The 49ers' 14-day break from December 20 to January 3 could not have come at a better time for second-leading scorer Crystal McCutcheon (Lancaster). McCutcheon, who was averaging 12.3 points this season, was forced to wear a cast for the last half of December, but missed just two games after a front-loaded non-conference schedule. McCutcheon, who had a torn tendon in her non-shooting hand, will be looked at by team physicians on January 2 and if she is cleared, will be available in the Big West opener at UC Santa Barbara.
COMING BACK TO WIN
Three times this season, the 49ers have come back in the second half to defeat their opponent, most recently to close out 2003 against New Orleans. LBSU trailed by seven to the Privateers, coming back to win by two. Previously, the 49ers overcame a 12-point (EWU) and 14-point (USD) second half to win by eight. Two other times (Colorado State and Fresno State) the 49ers came within a single basket.
FIRING AWAY
The 49ers have shot 50% or better in three of the past four contests, winning three of four. The 49ers opened the season losing four of five, never getting above 45% after the opener at New Mexico State, until hitting a season-high 52% at San Diego on December 6.
BULL HEATING UP
Since moving into the starting lineup four games ago, senior wing Lauren Bull (Rockford, IL) is averaging 9.0 points per game, including back-to-back double digit games at The Beach Classic to close out 2003. With a career 4.2 points per game average, Bull is averaging 7.2 points per game this season, after 13 points versus New Orleans and 12 points, six rebounds and four assists versus Northern Arizona.
THE STREAK
The 49ers won the first 37, UCSB has won 29 of the last 30, including 23 in a row dating back to January 22, 1994. The eight-time defending Big West Champions have gone an impressive 64-1 at the Thunderdome against the Big West over the past eight years. LBSU has not won in Santa Barbara since February 14, 1991 (80-68), dropping the last 12. In three of those losses, most recently in 2001, the final score has been within two buckets (2001, 1998, 1994).
LEADING THE CHARGE
After averaging 10.8 points per game over the first five games off the bench, sophomore guard Crystal McCutcheon (Lancaster) stepped it up a notch, averaging 16.0 points and 6.5 rebounds per game in two starts, before missing the final two games of 2003 with a thumb injury. McCutcheon ranks amongst Big West leaders in scoring (11th), shooting (2nd), assists (10th) and steals (9th). McCutcheon led LBSU in scoring four of the first seven contests.
SHE PASSES TOO?
Six-foot-six center Petra Gläser (Amtsberg, Germany) has scored in double digits in each of the last eight contests. But who'd have guess she would lead the team in assists in four of those games?-- including a season-high five assists in her last game against New Orleans. Over the last five contests she has averaged 16.6 points per game, leading the team in scoring three times, upping her team-best scoring average to 14.3 points per game. She is averaging 2.1 assists and 5.2 rebounds per game.
GEARING UP FOR THE BOARD
Forward Jayme Connors (Las Vegas) finished off the non-conference schedule with her second double-double of the season, 17 points and 10 rebounds versus New Orleans, to up her season averages to 9.7 points and 7.1 rebounds per game (8th in the Big West).
NOT A GOOD IDEA TO FOUL
The 49ers are hitting .707 from the free throw line this season, as four key players are shooting over 70%, led by Jayme Connors' (Las Vegas) 79% clip. Petra Gläser (77%), Candice Wilson (71%) and Christina Mack (9-11) are also automatic from the charity stripe. Should the 49ers continue to hit 7-of-10 free throws this season, it will be the first time since 1986-87 that a 49er team has shot 70% from the line.
REBOUNDING STILL A CONCERN
The Beach are averaging 32.9 rebounds per game, ninth in the Big West. Just twice this season LBSU has picked up 40 or more rebounds.
49ERS PICKED THIRD
LBSU was picked to finish third in both the coaches and media pre-season polls. UC Santa Barbara, which has won the last eight Big West titles was picked to win it. The 49ers have won eighteen conference championships in its history and reached seven Big West Tournament Championship games since 1989.
SUN CONTINUES TO RE-HAB
Redshirt guard Liz Sun (Chatsworth, CA) is out indefinitely after two separate knee injuries, one suffering in the spring of her senior prep season two years ago.
STRONG TRADITION
The Long Beach State program was ranked in the top-10 for much of the 1980's and have finished ranked in the top-20 10 times in its history. For 215 straight weeks from 1979 to 1991, The Beach were ranked in the top-25. LBSU has won 18 conference titles and reached 16 NCAA Tournaments. Despite not having a Kodak All-American since 1988-89, the 49ers ranked seventh all-time in total All-Americans since 1981.
HOW DO YOU SPELL THAT?
Germany native Petra Gläser last name is spelled with an umlat (ä) over the "a" in German and Glaeser in English. The preferred spelling is with the ä, if you can figure out the proper keys (usually alt-u followed by the a) to produce it!
TRANSFERS TO REDSHIRT
Sophomore Val Willhoit (Colorado Springs, CO-Colorado State) and senior Aisha Hollans (Berkeley, CA-USC) will both redshirt this season after transferring. Willhoit is a former All-State guard out of Colorado, while Hollans is a former first team All-Pac 10 guard from USC who averaged 14.3 points and 5.7 rebounds per game in three seasons at Southern Cal.
49ERS INK TWO FOR 2004-05
Jeanie Saunders (Long Beach) and Junior College transfer Meghan Griffith (Rocklin) both signed letters of intent to attend LBSU starting in 2004-05. Saunders, a 5-7 guard from Wilson High, averaged 12.7 points, 4.0 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 3.0 steals as a junior earning second team All-Press-Telegram Dream Team status. Griffith, as a 6-3 freshman at Sierra College in Northern California, averaged 13 points, 8.0 rebounds and 4.0 blocks per game. |
