March 13, 2002

GAME: No. 15 Bucknell (21-9) vs. No. 2 Baylor (26-5).
REGIONAL: East, First Round.
TIME: Friday, 9:30 p.m. EST.
SITE: Ferrell Center, Waco, Texas.

Baylor is making just its second NCAA tournament appearance, but it looks like it could become a regular under coach Kim Mulkey-Robertson.

Mulkey-Robertson has taken the Lady Bears to the tournament in each of her two seasons at the school, and she hopes her team can take another step forward as they play host to Bucknell.

Baylor, coming off an 84-69 loss to Oklahoma in the Big 12 conference championship game Saturday, is looking for its first tournament win.

The Lady Bears are playing host to two rounds of the tournament after earning their highest seed in the tournament.

"Hosting a subregional is a first for our program, and that's all we're focused on at this point," Mulkey-Robertson said. "Bucknell is our first opponent, and we will look no further at this time."

Baylor is led by Sheila Lambert and Danielle Crockrom, who combine to average almost 40 points per game. Lambert is the team's top 3-point threat, making 127 shots from beyond the arc.

The Lady Bears average 77.8 points per game, 18th in the country. They have outscored their opponents by an average of 15.6 points.

Bucknell, meanwhile, is making its first NCAA tournament appearance after defeating top-seeded Holy Cross 88-74 in the Patriot League championship game Wednesday.

The Bison are paced by Molly Creamer, who had 22 points in the contest and was named the tournament's MVP. The 5-foot-10 guard averaged 21 points, 7.7 assists and 2.7 steals in three games. Creamer shot 47 percent from the floor and missed only one of her 21 free-throw attempts.

Creamer ranks among the nation's leaders with 3.1 steals per outing.

The winner faces either Drake or Syracuse in the second round Sunday.

PROBABLE STARTERS: Bucknell - F Monique LeBlanc (5.5 ppg, 6.4 rpg), F Vickie Quimby (12.3 ppg, 6.9 rpg), G Desire Almind (10.3 ppg, 4.5 rpg), G Creamer (22.6 ppg, 5.9 apg), G Kate Franks (10.7 ppg, 4.3 rpg). Baylor - F Crockrom (17.6 ppg, 9.3 rpg), F Stasha Richards (3.4 ppg, 2.1 apg), C Brooke McCormack (5.9 ppg, 4.6 rpg), G Nicole Collins (3.7 ppg, 3.6 apg), G Lambert (19.9 ppg, 6.1 apg).
HOW THEY GOT HERE: Bucknell - Automatic bid, Patriot League champion. Baylor - At-large bid, Big 12 Conference.
ALL-TIME TOURNAMENT RECORD: Bucknell - 0-0, 1 year. Baylor - 0-1, 2 years.