OU Women's Basketball To Face Arkansas-Little Rock Tuesday Night

Dec. 4, 2000

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TIPOFF INFORMATION
The No. 15/18-ranked Oklahoma women's basketball team (3-2) will play at Arkansas-Little Rock (2-3) on Tuesday, Dec. 5, at 5 p.m. as the first game of a double header for the Trojans inside the Alltel Arena (18,000) in Little Rock, Ark.

The game will be broadcast live on KOMA-AM (1520) and on the Internet at www.soonersports.com. Ed Murray will provide the play-by-play and Jenny Bramer will be the color analyst for the women's basketball radio network.

OKLAHOMA
The Sooners (3-2) are coming off of an 89-82 victory over 13th-ranked Southwest Missouri State on Friday, Dec. 1, in Norman. OU used that game to rebound from two straight losses at the Coaches vs. Cancer Challenge. The Sooners lost to Georgia, 94-70, and host Wisconsin, 97-77, in Madison, Wis. Oklahoma opened its season with victories over Tulsa, 80-49, and host Oral Roberts, 87-56, at the Bertha Teague Classic in Tulsa, Okla. Junior Stacey Dales (Brockville, Ontario) was named to both all-tournament teams, while teammate LaNeishea Caufield (Ada, Okla.) was voted to the all-tournament team and MVP of the Bertha Teague Classic.

Oklahoma has four players averaging 10-plus points per game. Dales, a co-captain, is leading the Sooners was a team-high 17.8 points and 7.2 assists per game. She also ranks second in rebounds with 6.0 boards per outing. She has paced the Sooners in scoring in three of five games and been the high person in assists in four of five contests. Dales is shooting a solid 42.7 percent from the field (32-for-75) and 76.7 from the charity stripe (23-for-30).

Caufield, a 5-9 guard, is averaging 15.8 points, second best on the team, and a team-high 5.4 steals per game. Junior college transfer Rosalind Ross (Milwaukee, Wis.) comes off the bench to contribute 10.2 ppg while sophomore Jadrea Seeley (Bethel, Okla.) averages 10.0 ppg. Sophomore Caton Hill (Ada, Okla.) leads the team in rebounds with 7.0 per game and free throw percentage, hitting 84.6 percent.

As a team, OU is averaging 80.6 points and 39.8 rebounds to its opponents 75.6 points and 36.4 rebounds per game.

ARKANSAS-LITTLE ROCK
Arkansas-Little Rock (2-3) is coming off of an 1-1 performance at the South Florida Tournament in Tampa, Fla. UALR defeated host South Florida, 74-65, to advance to the championship game where the Lady Trojans lost to No. 14 Auburn, 106-37. Sophomore Muci Haris was named to the all-tournament after her 18 point, six rebound and four assist performance against USF. Haris was held scorless against Auburn. She has led the team in scoring in three of five games this season and has recorded 20-plus points in 19 career games at UALR.

Haris leads the team in points per game with 13.2, followed by senior center Scealta Drennon's 10.4 ppg. Haris and Drennon are the only two Lady Trojans averaging double digits in scoring. Drennon also leads the team in rebounds with 5.8 per outing.

UALR picked up its first win of the season against Louisiana-Monroe, 57-54, in Monroe, La. Southwest Missouri State handed the Lady Trojans a 97-34 loss in the opening game of the season in Springfield, followed by a slim 76-74 loss to Mississippi (76-74) in the Alltel Arena in Little Rock.

Arkansas-Little Rock is in its second year of competition since reinstating the program after an 11 year layoff. A year ago, UALR produced an overall record of 5-23 and finished ninth in the Sun Belt Conference with a 1-15 record. Haris was voted to the Sun Belt Conference Freshman of the Year after averaging 15.4 ppg to rank ninth in the conference. She also ranked fourth in free throw percentage with an 82.6 percentage (90-for-109). Haris led her team in scoring, steals, three-point field goals made and assists. Drennon joined the team halfway through the season but contributed immediately with 132 rebounds and 16 blocks. She ranked 11th in the league with 6.3 rebounds per game.

SERIES RECORD
OU vs. Arkansas-Little Rock - OU leads 2-0

Tuesday's game against the Lady Trojans will be the third meeting between the two teams. OU dominated last year's contest in Norman, winning 102-72, surpassing the 100-point plateau for the 50th time in school history. Oklahoma also won 99-67 in 1988 in Norman.

OU is 16-10 when playing teams from the Sun Belt Conference, including a 7-5 performance against Western Kentucky. OU Head Coach Sherri Coale is 1-0 against UALR.

LAST OUTING VS. SMS
OU sophomore Caton Hill (Ada, Okla.) was one of five Sooners to score in double digits as OU hung on to upset 13th-ranked Southwest Missouri State, 89-82, in their home-opener Friday night at the Lloyd Noble Center. Hill scored a career high 23 points and had 12 rebounds enroute to producing her first double double of the season and her seventh of her career. Junior point guard Stacey Dales (Brockville, Ontario) was second in scoring with 19 points. Dales also led OU in assists with eight. Junior LaNeishea Caufield (Ada, Okla.) poured in 17 points and pocketed a game-high five steals. Caufield also held SMS' All-American senior guard Jackie Stiles to just six shots and eight points in the first half. Junior guard Rosalind Ross (Milwaukee, Wis.) came off the bench to hit several key jumpers down the stretch to keep the Sooners ahead. Ross finished the game with 15 points, including a perfect 7-for-7 performance from the foul line, and five rebounds. Sophomore Jadrea Seeley (Bethel, Okla.) seemed to get back her offensive touch as she scored 11 points and was one of three OU players perfect from the free throw line.

The Sooners established school records at the free throw line. OU topped the most consecutive free throws made in a half with 18 in the opening period and most consecutive free throw made in a single game with 21. The Sooners were perfect from the charity stripe until Dales missed the second of two free throws with 2:16 remaining in the game.

SMS jumped out to a 10-2 lead in the opening minutes before Oklahoma roared back to take a 16-15 lead after Caufield's first three-pointer of the season. OU went into the locker room with a 48-37 lead but the two teams would battled back and forth in the second half with the Lady Bears pulling ahead of OU at the 10:42 mark with a two-point jumper by Stiles. Ross responded the next time down the floor with a jumper of her own to put the Sooners up for good at 60-59.

Stiles ended the evening by scoring 23 of her game-high 31 points in the second half (four points below her average).

OU outrebounded the Lady Bears, 36-28, and shot 53.6 (30-for-56) percent from the field compared SMS' 45.9 percent (28-for-61).

GAME NOTES
Friday's win marked the third time in the last two years that the Sooners have upset a higher-ranked opponent. OU accomplished the feat against No. 13 Purdue and No. 12 Texas Tech last year when the Sooners were ranked 18th in both contests.

OU held a 19-6 bench scoring edge over SMS. It is the fourth time this season that the Sooner bench had outscored its opponent.

Oklahoma established a school record for most consecutive free throws made in a half, with 18 before intermission, and in a game with 21. The previous record for most consecutive free throws made in a half was 16 and for a game was 20. Both were set against UNLV in 1980 and Missouri in 1986.

OU scored a season-high 89 points and hit a season-best 87.1 percent from the free throw line (27-for-31).

The Sooners' success at the free throw line was highlighted by three players who were perfect from the charity stripe, including sophomores Caton Hill (6-for-6) and Jadrea Seeley (5-for-5) and junior Rosalind Ross (7-for-7).

Friday's attendance of 2,387 fans was the 25th largest in Lloyd Noble Center history.

Oklahoma's home record improved to 3-1 against nationally-ranked opponents over the last two years. The Sooners only loss came to top-ranked Connecticut last year.

Hill registered her first double-double performance of the year and seventh of her career with a career-high 23 points and 12 rebounds. Hill's rebound total included a tie for a career best in offensive rebounds with five.

HARDEMAN'S ON THE VERGE
Senior guard Sunny Hardeman (Norman, Okla.) is just five assists shy of breaking into OU's all-time top-15 assists chart. Hardeman currently has 198 career assists.

HARDEMAN AND DALES SHARE LEADERSHIP ROLE
This year's 2000-2001 team captains will be senior Sunny Hardeman (Norman, Okla.) and junior Stacey Dales (Brockville, Ontario). Dales is a three-time team co-captain, while Hardeman will serve her first season as a team co-captain.

DALES SECOND IN ALL-TIME ASSISTS
Junior guard Stacey Dales (Brockville, Ontario) has dished out 36 assists this season to claim the No. 2 spot on Oklahoma's all-time assists list. She started the season ranked third with 340 assists. Dales needs 225 assists to become OU's all-time leader in this category.

She also only needs 170 points to reach the 1,000-point milestone.

Dales also ranks among the school's all-time best in three-pointers made and attempted, offensive and defensive rebounds, blocked shots and steals.

HILL PRODUCES SEVENTH CAREER DOUBLE-DOUBLE
Sophomore Caton Hill (Ada, Okla.) scored a career-high 23 points and had 12 rebounds to register her first double double of the season and seventh in her collegiate career.

IF . . .
If ... junior guard LaNeishea Caufield hits two three pointers she will break into the school's all-time top 15 list with 28 career treys.

If ... the Sooners win OU goes to 4-2 on the season and extends its all-time series record to 3-0 against the Lady Trojans.

If ... junior guard Stacey Dales hits one three-pointer she will rank among the school's top 10 best in that category with 70.

If ... senior guard Sunny Hardeman make two treys, she will move up to No. 6 for most three-pointers made in a career.

If ... senior guard Sunny Hardeman dishes out five assists she will break into the all-time top 15 in assists with 203.

If ... junior guard Stacey Dales pockets four steals she will rank 15th among the school's all-time best with 122.

CAUFIELD REACHES 1,000-POINT PLATEAU
Junior guard LaNeishea Caufield (Ada, Okla.) scored her 1,000th career point on a free throw at the 7:35 minute mark in the first half against Georgia on Nov. 22, in Madison, Wis., to surpass the 1,000-point milestone in her career. She joined the list of 14 other Sooner players who have scored at least 1,000 points. Caufield scored 457 points, including a career-high 32 against Missouri, as a freshman, followed by recording 506 points as a sophomore. She has scored in double digits 50 times and has had 20-plus performances in 19 games.

Caufield now has 1,042 career points to her credit. To become the school's all-time leading scorer, Caufield needs to average 21.5 points per game for the next two years (a total of 52 games).

SOONERS INK TWO IN EARLY SIGNING PERIOD
Head Coach Sherri Coale has received commitments from Dionnah Jackson (St. Louis, Mo.) and Antoinette Wadsworth (Grand Prairie, Texas) to attend OU and join Oklahoma's women's basketball program for the 2000-2001 season.

Jackson, a 5-9 guard from Parkway West High School, averages 13 points, four assists and five steals per game. According to the All-Star Girls Report, she is the sixth best point guard in the country and ranks 37th nationally. The four-year letterwinner is a three-time all-conference and a two-time all-district pick in the St. Louis Metro area. In addition, she's the school's record holder for most career steals.

Wadsworth, a 5-11 guard-forward from South Grand Prairie High School, is currently averaging 18.0 points and eight rebounds and is shooting 55 percent from the field. She is a first team All-District 5-5A selection and was a member of the gold medal Texas Junior Olympic team from a year ago.

SEASON TICKETS SALES ON THE RISE
Since the 1998-99 season ticket drive, Oklahoma has more than tripled its sales for home games. This year's the Sooners have already sold over 690 season tickets compared to 220 sold in 1998-99.

Oklahoma has also improved its home attendance over the past three years. OU's average home attendance has jumped from a per-game figure of 1,558 in 1997-98 and 1998-99 and finally to a 2,659 total in 1999-2000. That figure ranked 37th best in the nation.

OU women's basketball season tickets remain on sale and can be purchased by contacting the Sooner Ticket Office at 405-325-2424.

ESPN TAKES NOTICE OF DALES AND CAUFIELD
ESPN play-by-play announcer Beth Mowins selected juniors Stacey Dales (Brockville, Ontario) and LaNeishea Caufield (Ada, Okla.) as two of the top guards in the nation. Mowins believes with Dales' stint with the Canadian national team and her consistent, smart and a proven leadership abilities that she will be one of the top five point guards in the nation this season. In the off-guard slot, Mowins selected Caufield as a player to check out this season due to her strong NCAA performance last year.

SHOT BLOCKER
Junior center Jen Cunningham (Kingston, Ontario, Canada) blocked three shots against Tulsa in the season opener to break into the all-time record list at No. 13 in career blocks. Cunningham now has 25 career blocked shots to rank 11th.

She is averaging 4.4 points and 4.8 rebounds per game this season.

CAUFIELD TABBED AS THIRD TEAM ALL-AMERICAN
Junior guard LaNeishea Caufield (Ada, Okla.) was named a preseason third team All-American by the Women's Basketball News Service. Caufield caught the attention of the WBNS as a freshman when she was selected to the first team Freshman All-America squad. The 5-9 Ada, Okla., native is the team's top returning scorer averaging 15.9 points per game. She also paced the Sooners in the NCAA Tournament with a team-best 23.7 points per game. In addition, Caufield shot an impressive 60.5 percent from the field and 81.8 percent from the free throw line during postseason action.

TOUGH SLATE
Oklahoma's 2000-2001 schedule is the toughest under current Head Coach Sherri Coale. A current WBCA/Summerville RPI ranking confirms it as the Sooners have the 26th toughest schedule, out of 315, in the country. Conference wise, the Big 12 ranks fifth out of 31 leagues with the hardest slate this season. The SEC leads the pack, followed by the Atlantic Coast, Big East and Big 10.

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OU Women's Basketball To Face Arkansas-Little Rock Tuesday Night

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