Jan. 20, 2005
WACO, Texas -
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Game 16:
Jan. 22 - 1:06 p.m. (CST)
#4/5 Baylor (13-2, 3-1) at #15/16 Texas (9-6, 2-2)
Frank Erwin Center (16,837) • Austin, Texas
RADIO
92.9 FM
Rick May - play-by-play
Lori Fogleman - color analyst
Broadcast begins 30 minutes prior to tip.
INTERNET FEEDS
Audio - live broadcast stream at BaylorBears.com
Video (BearCast) - None
TELEVISION
FSN
Kevin Eschenfelder - Play-by-play
Debbie Antonelli - Color analyst
#4/5 BAYLOR VS. #15/16 TEXAS...
The 4th-ranked Baylor Lady Bears, 13-2 on the season and 3-1 in league action, will play their sixth nationally televised game in Austin, Texas on Saturday, Jan. 22 when they take on the Texas Longhorns in a FSN broadcast.
Baylor comes into the game having won 13 of its last 14 games. After opening the season with a 71-70 loss to then-No. 3 LSU, Baylor posted wins over Indiana (60-47), Mississippi State (66-49), Sam Houston State (84-53), Rice (77-65), Jackson State (73-56), East Carolina (80-59), back-to-back Big Ten champion Penn State (91-70), Washington (74-58), Florida (89-62), Montana State (92-47), Texas A&M (64-50) and No. 7 Texas (63-60) before falling at Nebraska 103-99 in triple overtime. The Lady Bears got back on the winning track by defeating the University of Oklahoma (78-68) in Waco on Sunday, Jan. 16.
National Player of the Year candidates Sophia Young and Steffanie Blackmon lead the team in both scoring and rebounding with Young averaging 17.4 points and 9.7 rebounds and Blackmon right behind with 16.9 points and 8.5 rebounds.
Texas enters the contest with a 9-6 season record and a 2-2 Big 12 mark. The Longhorns are 7-1 in the Erwin Center this season and have lost four of their last six contests. They are led by sophomore center Tiffany Jackson's 15.9 points and 7.5 rebounds a game. Senior guard Jamie Carey and senior forward Heather Schreiber also average double figures in scoring with 11.9 and 10.3 points, respectively, for head coach Jody Conradt's Longhorns.
BAYLOR IN BIG 12 ACTION...
The 2004-05 season marks the ninth year of competition for women's basketball in the Big 12 Conference. Baylor has a record of 69-63 in Big 12 games. However, in Kim Mulkey-Robertson's four years, Baylor is 42-26 in Big 12 play and has never posted a losing conference record.
2000-01 - 9-7
2001-02 - 12-4
2002-03 - 8-8
2003-04 - 10-6
2004-05 - 3-1
DOUBLE TROUBLE...
The tandem of Steffanie Blackmon and Sophia Young in the paint has proven to be one of the most formidable inside duos in NCAA Division I. Last season the pair combined to average 32.3 points and 15.5 rebounds a game, which accounted for 39.7 percent of Baylor's scoring and rebounding. Over the past two seasons Blackmon has averaged 16.6 points and 7.5 rebounds while Young has scored 15.5 a game and hauled down 9.3 boards over that same span.
So far this season, the duo has scored 44.3 percent of the team's points, 514 of 1,160 points. Young has scored in double-digits in all 15 games while Blackmon has registered double-digit scoring in 13 contests. The tandem is combining to pull down 18.2 rebounds a game, good for 42.8 percent of the team's boards. Young is averaging 9.7 a game while Blackmon accounts for 8.5. Against the seventh-ranked Texas Longhorns, the tandem combined for 44 of Baylor's 63 points and 21 of the team's 39 rebounds and versus Nebraska they scored 55 of BU's 99 points and hauled down 25 of the squad's 52 rebounds
The tandem sits among the Big 12 Conference's leaders in both scoring and rebounding. Young is No.1 in rebounding and No. 4 in scoring, while Blackmon is No. 5 in scoring and No. 4 in rebounding.
Sophia Young
Player of the Year and All-America candidate ... Named one of the nation's top five power forwards by ESPN.com ... On Naismith Trophy and Wade Trophy watch lists ... Preseason All-American by Street & Smith, Lindy's and Athlon ... Has produced eight double-doubles and scored in double-digits in every game (and 25 straight dating to 2003-04) on year ... Among BU's all-time leaders in double-doubles (tie-No. 4, 35), steals (No. 7, 205), blocks (No. 7, 90), rebounds (No. 8, 798) and points (No. 12, 1,344) ... No. 8 in Big 12 career field goal percentage, No. 1 in rebound average, No. 4 in scoring ... String of 66 straight starts is squad's longest active streak ... Over last seven games has averaged 20.3 points and 10.7 rebounds, while shooting 62.5 percent (60-of-96) from floor and 68.8 percent (22-of-32) at the line ... Averaging 21.5 points and 12.0 rebounds vs. Big 12 foes ... Two-time 2004-05 Big 12 Player of the Week ... Season-high 29 points and 14 boards vs. Huskers in career-best 49 minutes ... One of seven Lady Bears with a GPA of 3.0 or better for fall semester.
Steffanie Blackmon
All-American and Academic All-American candidate ... On preseason watch lists for the Naismith Trophy, Wooden Award and Wade Trophy ... Named to Women's Wooden Award Preseason All-American Team ... Baylor's all-time shot blocker with 146 rejections is fifth on the Big 12 career chart ... No. 6 on BU career scoring list with 1,655 points, needs 55 to move into fifth place ... 21 career double-doubles rank No. 8 alI-time at Baylor ... Has recorded 13 double-digit scoring games on year, including six 20-point or better efforts ... Lady Bears are 26-5 all-time when Blackmon scores 20 or more points ... Has grabbed five or more rebounds in every game this year with four double-digit efforts to her credit and a high of 14 at Nebraska ... Tallied season-highs of 26 points and 14 rebounds in career-high tying 48 minutes at Nebraska ... Averaging 19.8 points and 7.8 rebounds in Big 12 play ... Had 14 points and nine rebounds against Oklahoma ... One of seven Lady Bears to attain a GPA of 3.0 or better for the fall semester.
LADY BEARS AMONG NATION'S LEADERS...
The Lady Bears appear in the top 50 in NCAA Division I statistics in nine categories and are among the top 10 in three areas. Baylor ranks No. 1 in 3-point field goal percentage (.440), No. 7 in assists per game (18.9) and No. 9 in scoring offense (77.3).
Individually, Sophia Young is 24th in rebounds per game (9.7) and Steffanie Blackmon ranks No. 40 in free throw percentage (.852). Last week Emily Niemann was listed at No. 3 in 3-point field goal percentage but now does not meet the minimum 2.0 made per game to be ranked.
SCOUTING THE OPPONENT...
The Texas Longhorns host Baylor after a cross-country trip to Connecticut where they lost to the defending national champions, the Connecticut Huskies, 73-57, on Monday. Texas enters the contest with a 9-6 season record and a 2-2 Big 12 mark. The Longhorns are 7-1 in the Erwin Center this season and have lost four of their last six contests. They are led by sophomore center Tiffany Jackson's 15.9 points and 7.5 rebounds a game. Senior guard Jamie Carey and senior forward Heather Schreiber also average double figures in scoring with 11.9 and 10.3 points, respectively, for head coach Jody Conradt's Longhorns.
Texas' Jody Conradt is in her 36th year overall as a head coach and her 29th season as the Longhorns' head coach. She is 856-275 for her career and is 739-213 at Texas. Conradt, a 1963 graduate of Baylor University, ranks No 2 in all-time women's basketball victories.
THE SERIES RECORD...
The Jan. 22 Baylor-Texas contest marks the 67th meeting between the two squads. Texas holds a 51-15 series lead over Baylor and has won four of the last six games. Baylor won the first meeting between the schools on Jan. 8 in Waco, 63-60. BU's Sophia Young produced the game's only double-double with a 25-point, 15-rebound performance. Steffanie Blackmon added 19 points for Baylor and three Longhorns, Jamie Carey (16), Tiffany Jackson (14) and Heather Schreiber (11), each scored in double digits. Baylor's Chameka Scott scored eight points, blocked four shots and registered three steals in the game as well.
Baylor head coach Kim Mulkey-Robertson is 6-4 versus Texas, having won her first four games against the Longhorns. Baylor is 2-2 in Austin versus Texas under Mulkey-Robertson's guidance.
