March 23, 2009

#5/5 Baylor (28-5) vs. #16/15 South Dakota State (32-2)

Tuesday, March 24 - 8:40 p.m. (CT)
NCAA Second Round
United Spirit Arena (15,050)
Lubbock, Texas

OVER THE AIRWAVES

TV: ESPN2*
Ron Franklin, play-by-play
Fran Fraschilla, analyst

* Complete coverage in home market with whip-around coverage from other games provided.

Internet Feeds
Webcast: BaylorBears.com
Live audio (free)
ESPN360.com

Radio: KLRK - 92.9 FM - Waco

Radio Talent:
Rick May, play-by-play
Lori Fogleman, color analyst

2009 NCAA Tournament
Raleigh Regional

First Round - March 22 (Sunday)
United Spirit Arena - Lubbock, Texas

No. 7 South Dakota State def. No. 10 TCU - 90-55
No. 2 Baylor def. No. 15 UT-San Antonio - 87-82

Second Round - March 24 (Tuesday)
No. 7 South Dakota State (32-2) vs. No. 2 Baylor (28-5) - 8:40 p.m. CDT

No. 5/5 Baylor is competing in its sixth straight and eighth all-time NCAA Tournament, as all eight appearances have come since head coach Kim Mulkey assumed the program's helm. BU is 14-5 in NCAA Tournament games including 7-1 in first round games, 3-3 in second round games, 1-2 in the Sweet 16, 1-0 in the Elite Eight, 1-0 in the semifinals and 1-0 in championship games.

The Lady Bears, a No. 2 seed for the third time in program history, have made three Sweet 16 appearances and won the 2005 NCAA championship. Baylor secured the program's second automatic bid after claiming the Big 12 Championship with a victory over 10th-ranked Texas A&M in the title game. The Lady Bears, ranked No. 5 in the final AP Poll, are competing in the NCAA Tournament as a No. 2 seed.

Baylor advances to the NCAA Tournament's second round for the sixth consecutive season and seventh time in program history. A victory on Tuesday would propel the Lady Bears into the Sweet 16 for the fourth time in program history and first time since 2006.

ESPN TO BROADCAST ALL GAMES
ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU, ESPN360.com and ESPN FULL COURT will combine to present all 63 games from the NCAA Division I Women's Basketball Championship for the seventh consecutive year. During the first-and second-rounds, ESPN and ESPN2 will present 48 games within 12 telecast windows, while ESPN FULL COURT, the out-of-market pay-per-view package, will offer complete game telecasts of all 48 games. The final 15 games from the regional semifinals, regional finals and Women's Final Four will all have national telecast windows on ESPN or ESPN2.

In addition, ESPN360.com is streaming all women's games throughout the 2009 Women's Final Four tournament, www.espn360.com .

BAYLOR Lady Bears

IN THE POLLS
5 - Associated Press
5 - USA Today/ESPN Coaches

PROBABLE STARTERS (based on previous game)
21 Kelli Griffin - So., 5-8 - 6.5 ppg, 3.8 apg
15 Jhasmin Player - Sr., 5-10 - 10.9 ppg, 5.7 rpg
3 Jessica Morrow - Sr., 6-0 - 11.5 ppg, 3.0 rpg
14 Rachel Allison - Sr., 6-1- 8.8 ppg, 6.4 rpg
4 W. Zachariason - So., 6-2 - 0.9 ppg, 1.0 rpg

SOUTH DAKOTA STATE Jackrabbits

IN THE POLLS
16 - Associated Press
15 - USA Today/ESPN Coaches

PROBABLE STARTERS (based on previous game)
2 Macie Michelson - So., G, 5-6 - 5.6 ppg, 2.0 rpg
14 Kristin Rotert - So., G, 6-0 - 10.4 ppg, 3.1 rpg
22 Ketty Cornemann - Jr., F, 5-11 - 8.3 ppg, 3.2 rpg
40 Maria Boever - Jr., F, 6-1 - 10.1 ppg, 6.0 rpg
44 J. Warkenthien - Sr., F, 6-0 - 15.1 ppg, 8.7 rpg

LADY BEAR LEADERS
With 33 games under its belt, Baylor continues to rank among the Big 12 Conference leaders in rebounding and is No. 8 nationally in rebounding margin (+8.5). Four players haul down 5.7 or more rebounds a contest, junior post Danielle Wilson leads the way with 9.6, senior post Rachel Allison ranks second on the squad with 6.4 and sophomore guard Melissa Jones hauls in 6.0 while senior guard Jhasmin Player manages 5.7. The Lady Bears average 43.5 rebounds a contest while limiting their opponents to just 35.2.

Wilson leads the team in both scoring and rebounding at 15.1 points and 9.6 boards a game while senior guard Jessica Morrow ranks second on the team in scoring at 11.5 a contest and Player completes Baylor's double-digit scorers at 10.9 a game.

• All three of Baylor's seniors, Rachel Allison, Jessica Morrow and Jhasmin Player, are scheduled to graduate in May 2009. The trio has posted a 105-27 (.796) record, including a 59-7 (.894) Ferrell Center mark, throughout their four years. This class has posted three Big 12 Conference second-place finishes, one third-place finish and a Big 12 Championship postseason tournament championship (2009).

• Senior Jhasmin Player now ranks No. 10 on BU's all-time steals list with 191. In addition, she needs 20 points to reach 1,000 for her career.

• Sophomore Melissa Jones enters South Dakota State game having made 31 consecutive free throws since first-half miss at Texas; one make shy of Baylor record set by Jessika Stratton in 2004-05 season.

SCOUTING THE JACKRABBITS
The South Dakota State Jackrabbits, 32-2 on the season, enter the contest riding an 18-game win streak and are winners of 28 of their last 29 games. The Jackrabbits earned an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament by winning the Summit League tournament, downing Oakland, 79-69. They advanced to the NCAA Tournament's second round with a 90-55 victory over TCU.

South Dakota State head coach Aaron Johnston is in his ninth season on the Brookings campus with a record of 225-64 (.779). Johnston has led the Jackrabbit program to the top of NCAA Division II and has led SDSU through a successful transition into the Division I ranks. SDSU's first season in Division I was in 2004-05.

Four SDSU players average double-digit scoring. Leading the way is 6-0 senior forward Jennifer Warkenthien's 15.1 points while 6-0 sophomore guard Kristin Rotert scores 10.4, freshman guard Jill Young comes off the bench to average10.3 and junior forward Maria Boever averages 10.1 a contest. Warkenthien is the squad's top rebounder at 8.7 a game while the 6-1 Boever follows with 6.0 boards a contest.

SERIES RECORDS
Baylor and South Dakota State will meet for just the second time when the two teams square off on Tuesday evening. Baylor leads the series 1-0 after downing the Jackrabbits at the Junkanoo Jam in Freeport, Bahamas, 71-53, on Nov. 25, 2006.

COMMON OPPONENTS
Baylor and SDSU have two common opponents this season. SDSU posted wins over Missouri (55-50) and Oregon (80-63) while BU also defeated Missouri (72-43) and Oregon (81-71).