Nov. 23, 2001
#13/16 Baylor Lady Bears (3-0) vs. University of Denver (2-0)
Sun., Nov. 25, 2:00 p.m.
Ferrell Center - Waco, Texas
Sunday's game pits two undefeated teams against each other. The Baylor Lady Bears are 3-0 and have won 16 consecutive regular season, non-conference games and the Denver Pioneers are 2-0 so far this season.
THE LADY BEARS...
Baylor moved up a spot in the AP Poll, checking in at No. 13 this week after starting the season ranked No. 14. They remained No. 16 in the USA Today/ESPN Coaches' Poll.
Three games into the season the Lady Bears are led by seniors Danielle Crockrom (Houston/North Shore HS), Sheila Lambert (Seattle, Wash./Chief Sealth HS), sophomore Jessika Stratton (Colorado Springs, Colo./Coronado HS) and freshman Steffanie Blackmon (Dallas/Rowlett HS). All four players are scoring in double figures. Lambert leads the way with 20.0 while Crockrom checks in at 18.3, Stratton 10.7 and Blackmon 10.3. Crockrom hasn't lost a beat from last season when she averaged a double-double for the season. She has hauled down an average of 11.7 rebounds a game in three games. Sophomore Chanelle Fox (Houston/Westfield HS) follows with 7.0 while Blackmon and senior Brooke McCormack (Melbourne, Australia) check in at 6.0.
THE OPPOSITION...
University of Denver The Denver Pioneers come into the game with a 2-0 record after posting victories over Air Force (a future Baylor opponent), 79-47, and the University of San Diego, 67-66. This will be Denver's first road game of the season. Head coach Pam Tanner's team is led by two senior guards, Melissa Garcia and Nikki Weddle. Garcia averages 22.0 points a game while Weddle checks in at 14.5. The Pioneers are a young team with nine freshmen and sophomores on a squad of 14.
THE COACHES...
Baylor's Kim Mulkey-Robertson is in her second year as a head coach after guiding the Lady Bears to a 21-9 record and the program's first-ever NCAA Tournament in her inaugural season. The Lady Bears enjoyed tremendous improvement last season over Baylor's 7-20 record of 1999-2000. Her career record is 24-9.
This marks Denver's Pam Tanner's seventh season. Her career record is 98-70, all at Denver.
SERIES RECORD...
Baylor leads the series with Denver 1-0. Their one and only meeting came last season (Dec. 5) in Denver when Baylor won 95-82.
LAST MEETING...
In the Baylor-Denver game last season, Crockrom and Lambert accounted for 67 of Baylor's 95 points. Crockrom scored 34 points and was 13-of-17 from the floor and hauled down 14 rebounds. Lambert scored 33 points which included 16 from the free throw line. In fact, it was the first time in Lady Bear history that two played scored 30+ points in the same game. The duo accomplished it twice more last season (Loyola Marymount & Missouri). The Lady Bears outrebounded the Pioneers 54-27. Denver has two players on this year's roster that contributed heavily to the Pioneers' scoring against Baylor last season. Senior guards Nikki Weddle and Melissa Garcia scored 24 and 10 respectively.
IN THE POLLS...
The Baylor Lady Bears basketball team has been ranked in both major top 25 polls, the Associated Press' (AP) poll and USA Today/ESPN Top 25 Coaches' poll.
After receiving numerous preseason top 25 rankings, the Lady Bears are ranked No. 13 by the AP and No. 16 in the USA Today/ESPN Coaches poll. This is the highest-ever ranking in the major polls by the Lady Bears.
Baylor, 21-9 last season, ended the 2000-2001 campaign ranked No. 23 in the AP's final poll but were not ranked at season's end by the coaches. Baylor has appeared only one other time in the coaches poll, they were No. 22 for one week (Jan. 29) last season. The Lady Bears were ranked for eight weeks in the AP Poll last season, their highest being No. 23.
Nov. 6 - #14 AP/#16 USA Today/Coaches
Nov. 12 - #13 AP/#16 USA Today/Coaches
SELLOUT 2002...
The Sellout 2002 campaign is an effort to fill the Ferrell Center for the men's Big 12 opener against Iowa State Jan. 5, and the women's Jan. 12 contest vs. Oklahoma. Oklahoma's women have won back-to-back Big 12 championships as have Iowa State's men's team. Both games will be televised live on FOX Sports Net Southwest.
THE MARGINS...
The Lady Bears are posting some big numbers while limiting their opponent's numbers. Here's a look at some of the margins between Baylor and their opponents.
Rebounds - BU 54.3/Opp 39.6 = +14.6
Steals - BU 11.0/Opp 6.33 = +4.67
Points - BU 87.0/Opp 63.7 = +23.3
Turnovers - BU 14.33/Opp 17.0 = -2.67 (even though it's a negative, this is good!)
STREAKS...
- Lady Bears have 16 straight regular season non-conference victories. Last regular season non-conference loss came at Loyola Marymount on Dec. 21, 1999, 71-55.
- Sheila Lambert has scored in double figures in 15 straight games. The streak started on Feb. 1, 2001 against Oklahoma State.
- Danielle Crockrom has scored in double figures in 12 straight games. The streak started on Feb. 10, 2001 against Texas A&M.
TAKING CHARGE...
Several Lady Bears have been taking charges for the team. Jessika Stratton has two while senior Nicole Collins (Houston/Dobie HS) and freshman Lauren Selmon (Norman, Okla./Norman HS) each have one.
BEYOND THE ARC...
So far this season Baylor's three-point shooting is vastly improved over last season's. The Lady Bears ended the 2000-2001 campaign with a three-point shooting percentage of .230. So far this season they are .458 from beyond the arc. In fact, Jessika Stratton already has six to her credit. She made only 15 last season. She has accounted for six of Baylor's 11 treys so far this season.
As a team, Baylor's three-point shooting percentage (.458) is higher than their overall field goal shooting percentage (.427).
MAKING THE MOST OF CHARITY...
Four of Baylor's players that play 15 minutes or more a game are shooting over .800 from the free throw line. Chanelle Fox and Nicole Collins are both perfect so far hitting 4-of-4. Freshman Kelly Sords (Austin/Westlake HS) is 14-of-16 for .875 and Danielle Crockrom is shooting .813 (13-16).
