49ers Hit the Road For Two
Beach Play at Pacific, at CS Northridge This Week
January 4, 2005 49ERS HIT THE ROAD FOR TWO
Long Beach State women's basketball (5-4, 1-1 Big West) will embark on its first conference road trip of the season this week, traveling to the University of Pacific (3-6, 1-1 Big West) on Thursday at 7 p.m. and CS Northridge (6-3, 2-0 Big West, prior to hosting UC Irvine) on Saturday at 7 p.m. The Beach are coming off a strong start to Big West play in which senior guard Aisha Hollans (Berkeley) averaged a double-double last week as The Beach split their weekend against the Central Coast, coming within a minute of defeating defending Big West Champion, UC Santa Barbara, before defeating Cal Poly.
OPPONENTS
Pacific (3-6, 1-1 Big West): The Tigers split their first two games of the Big West schedule, losing at UC Riverside (67-54) and defeating CS Fullerton (61-55). Pacific has played one of the toughest schedules in the country, at times not performing particularly well (scoring 30 and 31 points in back to back games at Duke and against Illinois). Pacific also lost 82-26 at Stanford…. the Tigers are averaging just 45.3 points per game, shooting 32 percent from the field as Tina Sanerivi is averaging 7.9 points per game… LBSU leads the all-time series 28-15, having lost the last four meetings after winning eight of the previous 10.
CS Northridge (6-3, 2-0 Big West): The Matadors will know what home feels like for the first time since December 17 and for just the third time all year when they host UC Irvine and Long Beach State this week… CSUN is one of just two undefeated teams in the Big West (UCSB is the other)… the Matadors enter the week having won five straight, winning in double overtime over CS Fullerton and at UC Riverside last week… reigning Big West Player of the Week Ofa Tulikihihifo… Tulikihihifo is averaging 20.8 points per game, second-best in the Big West, while grabbing 8.6 rebounds per game… CSUN is averaging nearly 65 points per game… Jamie McCaa is just outside the top-15 with 10.2 points per game… LBSU leads the all-time series 24-6, winning five of the last six meetings.
LAST TIME OUT
LBSU 57, Cal Poly 48: Long Beach State split its opening weekend of Big West play, using a 10-2 run midway through the second half to pull away from visiting Cal Poly ( 57-48. Senior Aisha Hollans (Berkeley) scored a game-high 16 points and 14 rebounds, including eight points during that key rally to lead The Beach. LBSU outrebounded Cal Poly 55-to-45, as they had three players with double digits rebounds, and added a trio of double digit scorers. The 49ers shot 35 percent for the contest, including 40 percent in the second half. Petra Gläser (Amtsberg, Germany) had the game's other double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds. Jayme Connors (Las Vegas) added 14 rebounds and eight points, while Crystal McCutcheon (Lancaster) had 10 points and six rebounds. Jessica Eggleston led the Mustangs with 14 points and seven rebounds, who shot 27 percent for the game, including 23 percent in the second half. Katy Paterson, the Mustangs' leading scorer at just over 10 points per game, was limited to three points, missing all five of her field goals.
UCSB 85, LBSU 80, OT: Defending Big West Champion UC Santa Barbara made it count at the end, going on a 16-4 run over the final two and a half minutes of regulation and then the first 2:52 of overtime to come back and defeat host Long Beach State 85-80 in overtime. The 49ers had led 69-64 with 2:29 left in regulation on a Crystal McCutcheon jumper, only to see UCSB go on a 5-0 run over the final minute to send the game into overtime. LBSU still led 69-68 before a steal from Karina Bond and 1-of-2 free throws with 7.8 seconds left, tied the game at 69-69. Santa Barbara then went on an 11-4 run to start the overtime. Kristen Mann finished the contest with a game-high 25 points on 11-of-25 shooting, while McCutcheon countered with 16 points. The Beach shot 49 percent for the contest, while UCSB hit 43 percent of its shots for the game. Brandy Richardson added 16 points and 11 rebounds for UCSB, while Aisha Hollans countered with a double-double of 16 points and 10 rebounds for LBSU. The Beach shot 56 percent in the second half, compared to the Gauchos' 35 percent clip, but UCSB would convert 9-of-13 free throws in the second half, compared to just 3-of-3 for the 49ers.
HOLLANS RINGS OUT THE YEAR
Senior guard Aisha Hollans (Berkeley) rang out 2004 in strong fashion, averaging 15.3 points and 12.0 rebounds per game over the final four games of the calendar year. Hollans stepped it up against UC Santa Barbara, scoring 14 of her 16 points after the first 20 minutes, while she personally scored the first eight points of a 10-2 run which put the contest away midway through the second half against Cal Poly. Hollans, who just misses the cutoff for percentage of games played (75), would rank fifth in the Big West in scoring (15.6) and third in rebounding (10.6). Hollans is coming off an LBSU-best 14 rebounds against Cal Poly and has hit for at least 16 points in four of her five games since becoming NCAA certififed.
SCORING MACHINES
The 49er offense is averaging just under 68 points per game, second-best in the Big West (behind UC Santa Barbara), as it features four players in double figures. If Aisha Hollans' 15.6 points per game was eligible for statistical purposes, LBSU would have the only offense with three players ranked in the top-15 in scoring. No other team has more than two players averaging over 10.4 points per game. As of right now, Crystal McCutcheon's 15.3 points per game ranks fifth in the Big West, while Petra Gläser is averaging 12.7 points per game.
GUTTING IT OUT
Jayme Connors (Las Vegas) continues to "gut it out" after re-injuring her left ankle, the same ankle which forced her to sit out most of the 2002-03 season. Connors injured the ankle in the early going in the win over No. 15-ranked Houston, eventually scoring the game-winning basket in minute No. 35 for Connors. Including that contest, Connors is averaging 11.7 rebounds per game over her last three games. On the year, Conors is averaging 10.2 points and 9.2 rebounds per game. Her rebounding ranks third in the Big West, while her shooting (47 percent) ranks fourth.
McCUTCHEON PROVIDES INSTANT OFFENSE
A two-time Big West Player of the Week, Crystal McCutcheon (Lancaster) is second on the team in scoring at 15.3 points per game, ranking second in the Big West in steals (2.4) and third in three-point accuracy (45 percent). McCutcheon's best game came against San Diego when she tied her career-high with 21 points and added a career-tying seven assists. McCutcheon has hit for double digits in eight of nine starts.
SANTOS ADJUSTS TO THE POST
Listed as a guard, despite being 6-3, junior Fernanda Santos (Sao Paulo, Brazil) has seen a good many minutes in the post as of late. And responded. In a season-high 23 minutes off the bench, Santos as most productive against UC Santa Barbara last week, firing off a season-best nine points, grabbing five rebounds and dishing off four assists. Santos, known for her long-range shooting, is just 0-for-4 from beyond the arc this year.
GLASER SOLID IN THE POST
Petra Gläser (Amtsberg, Germany) continues to give opponents matchup problems as a six-foot-six center that can shoot a long-range jumper, averaging 12.7 points per game on the season (12th in the Big West), while shooting 46 percent (seventh) from the field and 86 percent from the charity stripe (fourth). Gläser is coming off her first double-double of the season, against Cal Poly, of 11 points and 10 rebounds, tallying a career-best 27 points earlier this season at Stony Brook.
DON'T SEND THEM TO THE LINE
Opponents be warned. It may not be best to foul the 49ers. The 49ers are shooting 72 percent from the charity stripe this season, with point guard Candice Wilson (94 percent), center Petra Gläser (86 percent) and Crystal McCutcheon (82 percent) all ranking in the top-10 in the Big West.
ROAD ACHES
The 49ers have not faired particularly well on the road, playing possibly their three worst games of the season away from The Pyramid (losses to Pittsburgh, San Francisco and California). LBSU is 1-3 away from The Pyramid, shooting 44 percent. LBSU has lost by a combined 12 points on the road.
BIG WIN FOR THE 49ERS
With the team's 54-52 upset of No. 15-ranked Houston on December 20, it was the team's first win over a ranked opponent since 1992, a string of 18-straight defeats to ranked teams.
49ERS PICKED THIRD
The 49ers were picked to finish in third place in the Big West pre-season coaches poll, following UC Santa Barbara and Idaho. Last year LBSU finished fifth, but won two games in the conference tournament. Pacific, Cal Poly and CS Fullerton made up the next trio, followed by UC Riverside, CS Northridge, UC Irvine and second-year program, Utah State.
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.
SCHWARZENEGGER'S BIG WEST
Coming in 2005-06 the Big West will become an all California conference with the exit of Idaho and Utah State to the Sun Belt and the addition of Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger's neighbor, UC Davis. Davis (not Grey), near Sacramento, will become a full member in 2007-08.
SCORING PUNCH
The 49ers feature five players who have averaged at least 10 points per game in a Division-I season, and two seniors who have averaged double digits over their four-year careers. Entering the season, center Petra Gläser (Amtsberg, Germany) averaged a team-best 13.4 points per game last season and has an 11.5 scoring average in two years at UNLV and one at LBSU, while guard Aisha Hollans (Berkeley) averaged 14.3 points per game in three years at USC. Junior guard Crystal McCutcheon (Lancaster) is coming off a 10.0 points per game clip last season, while senior guard Candice Wilson (Sacramento) averaged 11.0 points per game as a junior followed by 9.7 points per game last year.
INTERNATIONAL EXPERIENCE
The 49ers boast two national teamers on the roster in Germany's Petra Gläser (Amtsberg) and Brazil's Fernanda Santos (Sao Paulo). Gläser competed for the Germans this past September and helped them qualify for the European Championships next fall, while Santos has been with the Brazilian national program since high school.
QUARTET SIGNS WITH 49ERS
Four players signed with the 49ers during the early signing period led by All-CIF guard Karina Figueroa (Corona/Rosary HS), and forward Sheila Ho-Ching (Long Beach/Wilson HS). Amanda Foster (Los Angeles/Marshall HS), and Mary Has (Long Beach/Millikan HS) also signed National Letters of Intent. At 5-8, Figueroa led all of Orange County with 6.3 assists per game last season to earn first team All-CIF honors for the second time in her career. Figueroa added 7.8 points and 4.0 steals per game, to go along with her 52% clip from the field and a 35% percentage from 3-point range. Ho-Ching is the cousin of current 49er guard Jeannie Saunders, and one of two Long Beach players signed. Ho-Ching, a 5-10 forward, earned second team All-CIF accolades in 2002-03 and is a three-time All-Moore League selection. She averaged 10 points and nine rebounds per game last year. Foster, a 6-0 power forward from Marshall High School, is a two-time League MVP, All-City and All-League selection who injured her ACL prior to her senior season. Has, a 5-8 point guard from Millikan High, was named All-Moore League for the second time in her career last season after averaging 13 points, five assists and six rebounds per game.
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! |
