Women's Basketball Hosts Sacred Heart In 2008-09 Season-Opener

Nov. 12, 2008

LAWRENCE, Kan. –

Game Notes in PDF Format

OPENING TIP

The University of Kansas women’s basketball team hosts Sacred Heart in its 2008-09 season-opener. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. in Allen Fieldhouse. The Jayhawks and Pioneers will be meeting for the second time in program history, with Kansas leading the series 1-0. KU enters the contest having posted a 2-0 mark in exhibition play with wins over in-state foes Fort Hays State (93-37) and Washburn (67-51). Sacred Heart will also be opening the season on Friday evening.

FAST BREAKS

-Bonnie Henrickson is 3-1 in season openers at KU, including a 76-72 win over Hartford last year. Henrickson has compiled a 10-1 record in season openers as a head coach.m

-The Jayhawks are 7-3 in their last 10 season-opening contests.

-KU wrapped up its exhibition seaosn with a 2-0 mark for the fifth-straight season under Henrickson. The Jayhawks defeated Fort Hays State, 93-37, and Washburn, 67-51.

-Kansas sophomore Danielle McCray led KU in scoring and rebounding in the two exhibitions, averaing 18.0 points and 8.5 rebounds per game. McCray also led the team with 10 steals in the two games.

KU-SHU SERIES HISTORY

Kansas leads the all-time series with Sacred Heart 1-0. KU defeated the Pioneers, 58-48, in Allen Fieldhouse on Nov. 24, 2004. The win marked Bonnie Henrickson’s first victory as the Jayhawk head coach.

A LOOK AT SACRED HEART

The Pioneers return all five starters and 10 letterwinners off last season’s 19-11 squad, that finished third in the Northeast Conference with a 14-4 mark in league play. Senior center Kaitlin Sowinski leads the way for SHU as she returns to the line-up after averaging 17.2 points and 7.4 rebounds last season. Sowinski also collected 101 blocks on the season, which ranked first in the NEC, on her way to first team all-conference honors. Sophomore guard Alisa Apo turned in 12.3 points per outing as a freshman, while senior forward Stephanie Ryan added 11.9 tallies per game last season. Apo is one of the top long range threats for SHU as she knocked down 45-of-104 from three-point range last season. Sophomore guard Maggie Cosgrove also returns to the starting line-up after averaging 6.4 points per game last season. Cosgrove knocked down 48-of-124 shots from beyond the arc and also had a team-leading 78 assists last season. Sacred Heart is coached by Ed Swanson who owns a 297-213 mark as he enters his 19th season with the program. His overall coaching record is the same.

A LOOK AT KANSAS

Kansas will hit the court to begin the 2008-09 season returning 11 letterwinners, including four starters, from last season’s 17-16 team. KU returns 88 percent of its scoring and 80 percent of its rebounding from a season ago. Junior guard-forward Danielle McCray returns as the Jayhawks’ leading scorer (14.9 points) and rebounder (7.1 rebounds). McCray, who scored in double digits in 26 games last season, earned Honorable Mention All-Big 12 honors as a sophomore. Sophomore center Krysten Boogaard grabbed Big 12 All-Rookie Team honors last season after averaging 9.4 points and 5.6 rebounds per game. Junior guard Sade Morris also returns to the starting line-up. Morris turned in 9.8 points (second on the team) and 3.5 caroms per contest last season. Senior guard Ivana Catic and junior guard LaChelda Jacobs took turns handling the point guard duties in 2007-08 and both return to the court this season.

LAST TIME OUT

Danielle McCray and Krysten Boogaard’s double-doubles and a timely second-half run lifted the Kansas women’s basketball team to a 67-51 victory over Washburn in its exhibition finale at Allen Fieldhouse Sunday afternoon. McCray’s double-double featured 16 points and 10 rebounds, she also added six steals. McCray has turned in nine double-doubles during her Jayhawk career. Boogaard duplicated McCray’s totals with 16 points and 10 rebounds herself. Boogaard earned four double-doubles during her freshman campaign. The Jayhawks went on a 17-2 run over a six-minute stretch in the second half to take a 60-43 lead, one that they would never relinquish. The run was jump started by six consecutive points by junior Sade Morris. Morris ended the game with 14 points and five assists. The Jayhawks once again displayed a stifling defense that held the Lady Blues to just 33 percent shooting from the field and 23 second-half points. The Jayhawks also forced 23 Lady Blues turnovers resulting in 26 Jayhawk points. A hotly contested first half, which featured seven ties and five lead changes, resulted in a tied game at halftime, 28-28. Both teams struggled offensively in the first stanza, with both teams shooting below 38 percent from the field. The Jayhawks’ largest advantage in the first half of 26-19 at the 5:06 mark was quickly erased by the Lady Blues who countered with a 9-2 run to end the half.

FRESH FACE

With the departure of assistant coach Kyra Elzy in April, head coach Bonnie Henrickson announced the hiring of Tamika Raymond as the new Kansas assistant coach. Raymond joined the Jayhawk staff after serving as an assistant under Jim Foster at The Ohio State University for the past five seasons. Raymond spent an additional year with Foster, serving as a student assistant in the Buckeye women’s basketball office in 2002 while she was pursuing her master’s degree in sports management. During her time in Columbus, the Buckeyes experienced great success as OSU finished the 2007-08 season as Big Ten champions for the fourth-straight season. Raymond was part of an Ohio State staff who produced the program’s first-ever three-time All-American in Jessica Davenport and during the 2007-08 season freshman sensation Jantel Lavendar was tabbed as, not only the league’s freshman of the Year, but also the Big Ten Player of the Year. Behind the play of Davenport and Lavendar, OSU has had the Big Ten Player of the Year on its roster in each of the last four seasons. The Buckeyes competed in the NCAA Tournament in each of Raymond’s seasons in Columbus, advancing past the first round in four of those six tournaments, including a Sweet 16 appearance in 2005. OSU received a sixth seed or better in each of its last five NCAA Tournaments, including a No. 1 seed in the 2005 tourney. The Dayton, Ohio native, arrives in Lawrence after her stint at OSU and is also fresh off her seventh season playing in the WNBA. She recently completed her first season with the Connecticut Sun after suiting up for the Minnesota Lynx for the previous six seasons. Raymond, formerly Tamika Williams, was a standout college basketball player at the University of Connecticut. She completed her four-year collegiate career with averages of 10.6 points and 5.8 rebounds a game. As a member of two Connecticut national championship teams (2000 and 2002). An All-Big East selection three consecutive seasons (2000-2002), Raymond also was an Associated Press All-America honorable mention honoree and Naismith Player of the Year candidate for the 2001-02 season.

A KANSAS WIN WOULD…

Give Kansas its 31st season-opening win … Mark the fourth-straight home-opening win for the Jayhawks … Make Kansas 2-0 versus Sacred Heart, with both wins coming under head coach Bonnie Henrickson … Improve Kansas head coach Bonnie Henrickson to 11-1 in season-openers in her career … Give Henrickson a 58-65 mark at Kansas and a 216-127 overall record … Make Kansas 654-463 all time.

A KANSAS LOSS WOULD…

Break the Jayhawks’ three-game season-opening win streak … Give Sacred Heart its first win against Kansas … Mark Kansas’ first loss versus a team from the Northeast Conference … Drop Kansas head coach Bonnie Henrickson’s record at KU to 57-66 and her overall mark to 215-128 … Make Kansas 653-464 all time.

SIX DEGREES OF SEPARATION

-Kansas does not have any players on its roster from the state of Connecticut, however assistant coach Tamika Raymond played collegiately at the University of Connecticut from 1999-2002.

-Sacred Heart freshman forward Callan Taylor is a native of Overland Park, Kan. Taylor graduated from Blue Valley North High School in 2008.

-The Jayhawks and Pioneers will share just one common opponent this season in Marquette. Sacred Heart travels to Milwaukee for a game with the Golden Eagles on Nov. 17, while KU will play in Milwaukee on Dec. 7.

KANSAS VERSUS THE NORTHEAST CONFERENCE

KU is 1-0 all-time versus the Northeast Conference, with the lone win coming over Sacred Heart. Kansas head coach Bonnie Henrickson is also 1-0 versus the NEC with the win over Sacred Heart.

JAYHAWKS IN SEASON OPENERS

Kansas is 30-9 all time in season-opening games, including a 3-1 mark under head coach Bonnie Henrickson. Kansas has won seven of their last 10 season-openers including three straight.

KANSAS IN HOME OPENERS

KU is 34-5 all time in home-opening games, including a 3-1 mark under head coach Bonnie Henrickson. Kansas has won 10 of its last 11 opening games played in Allen Fieldhouse.

KU IMPRESSIVE VERSUS NON-CONFERENCE OPPONENTS

The Jayhawks have compiled an impressive record outside the Big 12 Conference in regular-season play. KU owns a 270-138 (.662 winning percentage) record versus non-conference opponents. The Jayhawks’ best non-conference record came during the 2005-06 season when they posted a perfect 11-0 mark against non-conference foes during the regular season and added another out of conference win during the 2006 WNIT. KU finished with an 11-2 non-conference ledger in 2007-08.

EXHIBITION LEFTOVERS

vs. Washburn

— Kansas used the starting lineup of LaChelda Jacobs, Danielle McCray, Krysten Boogaard, Sade Morris and Porscha Weddington for the second-straight game.

— The score was tied 28-28 at halftime after six tie scores and three lead changes in the first half.

— Weddington paced the Jayhawks with six points and five rebounds in the first half. She finished the game with eight points.

— Danielle McCray made her first three shots of the second half, including a three-pointer, to give KU a nine-point lead, 37-28.

— Washburn worked back to within two before Sade Morris scored six straight points during an 17-2 Kansas run that put the Jayhawks on top for good at the 10:39 mark of the second half. Morris finished with 14 points and five assists.

— McCray finished the game with 16 points and 10 rebounds. It would have been the ninth double-double of her career if it were a regular season game.

— Boogaard also recorded a double-double with 16 points and 10 rebounds on seven of 11 shooting. Twelve of her points and nine of her rebounds came in the second half. It would have been the fifth double-double of her career.

— The Jayhawks forced 23 turnovers while turning the ball over just 13 times. Kansas converted the Lady Blues’ turnovers into 26 points.

vs. Fort Hays State

–The Jayhawks opened the game by scoring the first 10 points. Fort Hays State did not score its first points until the 16:22 mark.

–KU led 47-14 at the half while shooting 53 percent from the field. During the regular season last year, the Jayhawks were 13-3 when leading after the first half.

–The Jayhawks shot 54 percent from the field in the contest. Last season the Jayhawks’ average field goal percentage was 43.2 percent.

–Kansas’ 93 points are the most scored since the Jayhawks scored 97 points against Multiplan in 2003. Kansas held Fort Hays State to 37 points, the fourth-fewest points ever allowed by the Jayhawks in an exhibition game.

–The Jayhawks outscored the Tigers in the paint 46-14.

–Sophomore Danielle McCray scored a game-high 20 points. Last season, she scored 20 points or more five times. McCray also led the Jayhawks in rebounds with seven.

–In addition to McCray’s 20 points, four other Jayhawks scored in double figures including sophomore Sade Morris (14), and juniors Kelly Kohn (11), LaChelda Jacobs (10) and Porscha Weddington (10).

–As a team, Kansas dished out 21 assists, including seven by Ivana Catic and four by Sade Morris.

–KU’s defense collected 12 steals and forced 27 Fort Hays State turnovers. The Jayhawks turned the 27 Lady Tiger turnovers into 39 points.

–Freshman Aishah Sutherland played her first game in a Kansas uniform, contributing two points and four rebounds.

–With the exception of injured Angel Goodrich, every player on the Kansas roster saw minutes. Eleven different Jayhawks scored in the contest, and the Kansas bench outscored that of Fort Hays State 31-9.

LEADERS OF THE HAWKS

Seniors Ivana Catic and Katie Smith and junior Danielle McCray have been named tri-captains for the 2008-09 season. It is the third-straight year for Catic to be bestowed with the honor, while Smith and McCray are serving as captains for the first time in their Jayhawk careers.

GUARDIAN ANGEL

Kansas freshman guard Angel Goodrich will miss the entire 2008-09 season after suffering a torn anterior cruciate ligament in her left knee in practice on Oct. 19. The 5-foot-4 guard was expected to see significant playing time in her first season with the Jayhawks. Goodrich, a native of Tahlequah, Okla., arrived at KU as one of the highest ranked signees in Kansas women’s basketball history after helping guide her Sequoyah High squad to three state titles in four seasons. She was named a 2008 WBCA State Farm High School All-American, as well as the 2007 Oklahoma Gatorade Player of the Year. Goodrich had successful reconstructive surgery on Oct. 29.

BIG 12 PRESEASON POLL

The University of Kansas was tabbed ninth in the preseason poll voted on by the league’s head coaches. For the second time in the last three years, Oklahoma topped the poll. The Sooners received seven first-place nods and 124 total points as they return four starters, highlighted by three-time unanimous All-America Courtney Paris. Iowa State collected two first place votes, while Texas, Baylor and Oklahoma State each picked up one first place nod.

A DIFFERENT KIND OF COLLEGE

Junior guard-forward Danielle McCray took classes at a different kind of college over the summer as she traveled to Texas to attend Point Guard College. McCray spent part of the day taking notes on how to become a better leader and spent the other half of the day applying those skills in on-the-court sessions. McCray is the second Jayhawk to attend Point Guard College. Senior Ivana Catic was a student during the summer of 2006.

ALL IN THE FAMILY

Three members of the Kansas women’s basketball team come from highly athletic families. Juniors Kelly Kohn and Porscha Weddington and sophomore Krysten Boogaard all have current or former professional athletes in their immediate family. Kohn’s brother, Matt, currently plays indoor football (most recently for the Kansas City Brigade), while Weddington’s father, Michael, played football collegiately for Oklahoma and professionally for the Green Bay Packers. Boogaard comes from a hockey family. Her older brother Derek plays in the NHL for the Minnesota Wild, while another brother Aaron plays in the Pittsburgh Penguins minor league organization. Several other members of the Jayhawk roster have collegiate athletes among their family members. In addition, Kohn’s sister Lauren played college basketball at Syracuse before finishing her career at Ohio. Lauren Kohn is currently in her first year of law school at Kansas.

WORLD TRAVELERS

While most of the current roster of Jayhawks stayed in Lawrence for the majority of the summer, four members of the team took out their passports and took various trips to foreign countries. Seniors Ivana Catic and Marija Zinic both managed to get an extended visit home to their native Serbia to visit family and friends. Junior Rebecca Feickert made her way to Spain as part of a study abroad experience for college credit, while sophomore Krysten Boogaard ventured to both Canada (her native country) and to China. Boogaard played on the Canadian National Developmental Team and as part of her experience she and the team played three exhibition games in Beijing leading up to the 2008 Olympics. Although she did not play in the Olympic games, Boogaard’s Canadian team did scrimmage the Chinese Olympic team while in Beijing.

NEW MEDIA INTERVIEW AND WORK ROOMS

The new media work room for the 2008-09 season is located on teh second floor of Allen Fieldhouse in the southwest corner. To get there from the media entrance (south end of AFH, triple doors) go left and up the stairs in the southwest corner. You can also access the second floor via the elevator just west of the media entrance. Additionally, like last season, room 106 of Allen Fieldhouse is available. It is located just south of the media relations office.

WEBCAST AVAILABLE

Kansas fans will be able to watch all 18 KU home basketball games live via AT&T Jayhawk All Access on kuathletics.com. To subscribe to Jayhawk All Access, log on to kuathletics.com and click on the All Access logo in the upper right corner of the page.

EXCELLENT EXPOSURE

The Jayhawks’ television and radio coverage is one of the best in the country. KU will be featured on television 21 times this season, including all 18 contests at Allen Fieldhouse. Kansas will appear on national television six times. Among the Jayhawk Radio Network affiliates carrying the 2008-09 season includes WIBW (580 AM), which boasts the 11th largest signal in the country. KLWN (1320 AM) of Lawrence will join KCSP (610 AM), weekend games, and KXTR (1660 AM) and KALN (1370 AM), weeknight games, are a few of the affiliates fans can use to listen to Jayhawk basketball.

UP NEXT

KU will welcome the Iowa Hawkeyes to Allen Fieldhouse for a special weekday morning tip-off on Tuesday, Nov. 18. Game time is slated for 11 a.m. with a live broadcast by ESPN. The KU-Iowa game is the lone women’s basketball game featured in ESPN’s 24 Hours of College Basketball promotion. Jayhawk Sports Marketing his hosting Lawrence Elementary School Day as students in grades 3-6 from around Lawrence will be bused in to attend the game.

THIS DAY IN KANSAS BASKETBALL HISTORY

Nov. 14, 2007:

Kansas is 1-0 all-time in games played on Nov. 14. KU sophomore Sade Morris scored 13 points, including her team’s last six, as the Jayhawks held off a late rally by UMKC to improve to 2-0 with a 64-58 victory, marking head coach Bonnie Henrickson’s 200th career win. Senior Taylor McIntosh finished with 13 points and 12 rebounds, marking her fifth-career double-double. Freshman Krysten Boogard also turned in a strong performance in her second-career outing, scoring 10 points while grabbing five boards. Sophomore Danielle McCray added 12 points. The Jayhawks also announced on Nov. 14, 2007 the signing of WBCA All-American Angel Goodrich and Aishah Sutherland.