Jayhawks Set To Take On Bruins On FoxSportsNet
Dec. 19, 2008
LAWRENCE, Kan. –
Game Notes in PDF Format
OPENING TIP
The University of Kansas will travel to UCLA for the first time in program history. Kansas and UCLA will tip off at 2 p.m. (Central), Sunday, Dec. 21 in Pauley Pavilion. KU (7-1) and UCLA (8-1) are tied in the all-time series 1-1, however, the two teams have never met in Los Angeles. The game will be televised live on FSN with Jim Watson and Mary Murphy calling the action.
FAST BREAKS
-Bonnie Henrickson has the Jayhawks 7-1 on the season for the second-straight season.
-Kansas’ road trip to California to take on UCLA and Pepperdine before the Holiday break marks the second-straight season the Jayhawks have tripped to California prior to the Holiday break. Last season KU defeated San Jose State before falling at Cal on their west coast swing.
-Junior guard-forward Danielle McCray continues to lead the Jayhawks through nearly two months of play. McCray, who has scored in double figures in all eight games this season, is averaging 20.0 points and 8.5 rebounds to lead KU. McCray has also collected 15 steals and seven blocks. She ranks third in the Big 12 in scoring and fourth in rebounding.
-Kansas is making 45.6 percent of its shots from the field. The Jayhawks have knocked down 215-of-472 on the season. Seven Kansas players are shooting better than 40 percent from the field, led by Rebecca Feickert who has knocked down 75.0 percent of her shots.
-KU is sharing the ball well as it collected 117 assists on its 215 field goals. Kansas is averaging 14.6 assists per game, compared to just 8.0 for its opponents. Junior guard LaChelda Jacobs leads KU in assists with 40 on the season. Junior guard Sade Morris had collected 21 assists and senior guard Ivana Catic has 20 dimes.
-Eleven of 12 Jayhawks have recorded at least one block, led by junior forward Porscha Weddington with 10. Junior guard Sade Morris has tallied nine blocks and McCray seven.
-Junior guard Sade Morris is the second Jayhawk player in double figures as she is posting 13.0 points per game. Morris is also pulling down 4.9 rebounds per game and leads KU with 18 steals.
A LOOK AT UCLA
UCLA is an impressive 8-1 on the season after Wednesday’s, 82-64, win at Rice. The Bruins only loss on the season came at the hands of nationally-ranked Maryland on the road. UCLA leads the nation in rebounding margin at an amazing +17.2. Senior forward Chinyere Ibekwe leads the team with 9.8 boards per game, while four other Bruins pull down five or more rebounds per game. UCLA has outrebounded its opponents by nearly 100 on the offensive glass. Sophomore guard Doreena Campbell leads a balanced UCLA offensive attack with 12.0 points per game. In its nine games, the Bruins have had seven different leading scorers. Nina Earl tosses in 9.3 points per game and Ibekwe adds 8.9. Six different UCLA players have collected 10 or more steals on the season, led by Christina Nzekwe with 15. Campbell leads the team in assists with 39, while Darzia Morris has dished 27. UCLA is under the direction of first year head coach Nikki Caldwell. Caldwell, who is in her first season as a head coach, arrived from her alma mater Tennessee where she was part of the last two national championship teams.
KU-UCLA SERIES HISTORY
Kansas and UCLA are tied at one game a piece in the all-time series history. The Bruins claimed the first game with a 73-71 win in Lawrence. KU followed that up with a 76-63 win in Iowa City, Iowa. The following is the series history:
Date Result Location
3-21-81 UCLA, 73-71 Lawrence, Kan.
11-25-90 Kansas, 76-63 Iowa City, Iowa
A LOOK AT KANSAS
Kansas is off to a 7-1 start to the 2008-09 season behind the strong play of its junior class. Led by a trio of guards in Danielle McCray, Sade Morris and LaChelda Jacobs, the Jayhawks are outscoring their opponents by 20.3 points per game. McCray tops the Jayhawk scorers with 20.0 points per game, while Morris adds 13.0 and Jacobs turns in 9.9. In addition, sophomores Nicollette Smith and Krysten Boogaard are adding 7.9 and 6.5 points per game, respectively. KU is shooting 45.6 percent from the field, while holding its opponents to just 33.7 percent field goal shooting. The Jayhawks have recorded 73 steals compared to just 48 for their opponents, led by Morris with 18 pilfers and McCray with 15. Jacobs is the leader in assists with 40 dimes in eight games, while McCray is pulling down a team-leading 8.5 rebounds and Smith is grabbing 5.6 per game. Kansas is also shooting well from the three-point line as it has connected on 52-of-125 shots from beyond the arc, good for 41.6 percent, tops in the Big 12 Conference. McCray is leading the way from beyond the arc as she has knocked 21-of-47 shots, while Smith has made 14-of-33 attempts from three-point range. Ivana Catic leads the Jayhawks from the foul line as she has connected on 17-of-18 attempts, good for 94.4 percent.
MCCRAY NEARS 1000
Jayhawk junior Danielle McCray is on her way to entering the prestigious 1,000 point club at Kansas. The Olathe, Kan., native, currently has tallied 922 points, leaving her just 78 points short of 1,000. KU currently claims 19 1,000 point scorers in program history. Kansas head coach Bonnie Henrickson has seen two players enter the elite club during her Jayhawk tenure as both Crystal Kemp and Erica Hallman reached 1,000 points while playing for Henrickson. Kemp eclipsed the 1,000 point mark during her junior season in 2004-05, while Hallman was the most recent KU player to go over 1,000 points, doing so in her senior campaign in 2005-06.
