Sooners Head To North Carolina For ACC-Big 12 Challenge

Jan. 19, 2001

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THE GAME
Oklahoma (12-4, 4-1 Big 12) and Iowa State (14-1, 5-0 Big 12) will represent the Big 12 Conference against the ACC in the fourth Big 12/ACC Challenge Sunday, Jan. 21. OU will travel to North Carolina (10-6, 4-3 ACC) for a 3 p.m. EST tipoff while ISU plays at North Carolina State at noon. Both games will be televised nationally by ESPN2, calling the OU-UNC game will be Nancy Lieberman-Cline and Pam Ward. The contest will also be carried live on KOMA-AM (1520) radio station and on the Internet at www.SoonerSports.com.

OU enters the game ranked 13th in the AP and 15th in the USA Today/ESPN coaches' polls. North Carolina enters the game unranked but are receiving votes in both polls.

The Sooners hope to extend their three-game winning streak with recent victories over Texas A&M, 97-84, at No. 23 Baylor, 90-87, and No. 14 Texas, 85-74. North Carolina looks to continue its own winning streak as the Tar Heels have won their last two games, including an upset of No. 19 North Carolina State, 83-77, last Saturday in Chapel Hill.

The Big 12 took a 4-2 advantage in the challenge last year with wins by Iowa State over North Carolina and Texas over North Carolina State. The two conferences did not meet in 1998 as the Big 12 battled the Pac-10.

SERIES RECORD
North Carolina defeated Oklahoma, 68-61, at the 1998 Loyola-Marymount Thanksgiving Classic in Los Angeles, Calif., in the only meeting between the two teams. The two head coaches have never met on the hardwood.

OKLAHOMA (12-4, 4-1 BIG 12) LED BY COMMITTEE
Oklahoma has had seven different players leading the Sooners' offense this season. In two of the last three games junior center Jen Cunningham (Kingston, Ontario) has led the team. Cunningham scored a career-high 18 points against Texas A&M and Texas, plus had 12 rebounds against the Longhorns for her first collegiate double-double. She has come up one rebound short in the last two games for her second and third double-double. Junior guard Stacey Dales (Brockville, Ontario) led the team at No. 23 Baylor tying a career-high 28 points, while senior guard Sunny Hardeman (Norman, Okla.) poured in a career-high 20 points on a 6-of-8 performance from beyond the arc against No. 7 Iowa State. Sophomore forward Caton Hill (Ada, Okla.) recorded her fifth double-double of the season with career highs of 25 points and 15 rebounds at Colorado to open Big 12 Conference action. Bottom line, OU has many weapons to throw at its opponents and when they try to stop one or even two of those weapons, Head Coach Sherri Coale unleashes another.

Leading Oklahoma in scoring this season is preseason All-Big 12 selection and Conseco Nancy Lieberman-Cline Step Up Award candidate Stacey Dales (Brockville, Ontario). Dales sports team highs of 7.6 assists and 16.5 points per game, ranking first and sixth in the Big 12 Conference, respectively. Her assists per game also ranks fifth in the nation. In addition, Dales ranks second on the team and seventh in the nation in steals with 3.4 thefts per outing, plus she's third on the team in rebounds with 4.5 rpg.

Preseason third-team All-America canadiate LaNeishea Caufield (Ada, Okla.) leads the nation in steals with 4.4 thefts per outing. She also ranks second on the team in free throw percentage, hitting 85.4 percent (70-for-82), scoring (15.9 ppg), assists (3.4 apg) and fourth in rebounds (4.5 rpg).

Hill continues to play well for the Sooners with six double-doubles this season. She leads the team in rebounding with 8.6 boards per game and ranks third in scoring with 12.7 points per game. Hill's boards per game rank fourth in the league. She also ranks third in free throw percentage (.833). Cunningham tops the team in blocks with 1.4 stuffs per outing and ranks second on the team in rebounds with 6.6 rpg.

As a team, OU scores 83.3 points and gets 41.7 rebounds per game compared to its opponents' 73.8 points and 36.4 rebounds.

NORTH CAROLINA (10-6, 4-3 ACC)
North Carolina (10-6, 4-3 ACC) defeated Florida State, 75-62, Thursday night in an ACC matchup at the Tallahassee-Leon County Civic Center. Four Tar Heels tallied double figures with Juana Brown leading the way with a game-high 21 points and a career-high seven steals. LaQuanda Barksdale and Candace Sutton added 15 apiece, while Coretta Brown had 10. Barksdale also led the team with 10 rebounds. UNC outrebounded the Seminoles, 36-33, and forced 22 FSU turnovers while recording 17 assists.

The Tar Heels are on a two-game winning streak and sport a 6-3 home record. UNC opened the season with a 3-3 record with losses to Buffalo, 95-89, Old Dominion, 91-77, and No. 4 Notre Dame, 78-55. North Carolina has also lost to Georgia Tech, 82-75, Wake Forest, 73-71, and Virginia, 78-76. UNC's most impressive victories have been over No. 19 North Carolina State, 83-77 in overtime and No. 16 Clemson, 71-70.

North Carolina is led by senior forward LaQuanda Barksdale who averages team-highs of 18.9 points and 11.1 rebounds per game. She's followed by sophomore guard Coretta Brown's 17.2 ppg and 5.1 rpg. Brown also sports a team-high 6.4 assist per game. Senior guard Juana Brown is the final Tar Heel who averages double digit scoring with 13.8 ppg.

As a team, UNC scores 77.9 ppg and averages 44.9 rpg.

A LOOK BACK AT TEXAS A&M
NORMAN, Okla. (AP) - Jen Cunningham scored 18 points, including 10 in the first half, to lead No. 13 Oklahoma to a 97-84 victory over Texas A&M on Wednesday night.

Cunningham added nine rebounds for the Sooners (12-4, 4-1), who had five players score in double figures.

Jaynetta Saunders' career-high 35 points led the Aggies (11-5, 1-4), but her 14 first-half points couldn't keep the Aggies in it. Texas A&M shot just 34 percent from the field in the first half.

Oklahoma opened with a 16-2 run, and Texas A&M didn't make its second field goal until there was 14:16 left in the half.

Saunders' seven points highlighted a 12-4 run by the Aggies that cut OU's lead to 24-22.

But the Sooners responded with a 20-6 run to take a 44-28 lead at halftime.

Hill had 13 points and five rebounds for Oklahoma while LaNeishea Caufield added 17 points and five steals.

Toccara Williams had 11 points, six assists and four steals for Texas A&M and Brandy Jones added 13 points and three steals.

THE MISSING LINK
One of the most obvious keys to Oklahoma's most recent success has been the emergence of junior Jen Cunningham (Kingston, Ontario, Canada). Not only has the 6-3 center stepped up her defensive presence but she has emerged as an offensive threat for OU's opponents. Cunningham has had stellar performances over the past three games, including Wednesday night against Texas A&M. She has scored a career-high 18 points twice in two of the past three games and had the offensive rebound for the game-winning basket in the other.

In the Sooners' last three games the Canadian has averaged a double-double with 15.3 points and 10.0 rebounds. Cunningham is also shooting 66.7 percent from the field (16-of-24). Prior to the three-game breakout, Cunningham was just averaging 4.5 points.

After not attempting a shot against Iowa State, OU's only true center came to life against Texas as she scored a career-high 18 points and grabbed 12 rebounds for her first collegiate double-double. She also set personal bests in field goals made (8) and attempted (12) against the Longhorns. The following game against Baylor, Cunningham sealed the win for the Sooners as she grabbed an offensive rebound for a key three-point play in the final minute. She matched her career-best offensive performance against Texas A&M with a team-high 18 points. She has come up one rebound shy of a double-double in the last two games as she collected nine boards against the Aggies and Lady Bears.

"I think one of the things that's helped me this year is the fact I'm 100 percent healthy," said Cunningham after OU's 97-84 victory over Texas A&M. "I don't worry about my knee like I used to. That's helped me become more aggressive on the offensive end. I feel I've raised the bar for myself."

"She's the missing link for us," said Sooner coach Sherri Coale. "We have really good guard play, and when you can counter that with great post play, it really creates a dilemma for our opponents. When Jen's playing like she is now, she gives us a dimension we can't have any other way."

Cunningham has appeared in 13 starting lineups and has set or matched career highs in 10 of 13 categories, including 15 rebounds and five blocked shots at San Diego on Dec. 21. Cunningham has led the Sooners' blocking efforts with 23 of Oklahoma's 41 blocked shots. She now ranks ninth on OU's all-time blocked shots list with 42.

For the season, she contributes 6.5 points, 6.6 rebounds and 1.4 blocks per game plus shoots 47.7 percent from the field [41-of-86]. The Canadian also ranks among the Big 12 Conference best in blocked shots (4th), defensive rebounds (15th) and rebounds (18th).

OU DALES WILL BE FEATURED ON ESPN.COM
OU's Stacey Dales (Brockville, Ontario) will be a guest feature on ESPN.com Women's Hoops Spotlight, a weekly half-hour chat featuring the nation's top women's basketball players. Dales, a junior, will address basketball fans across the world on Tuesday, Jan. 23, beginning at 4:00 p.m. Central Time. For those interested in following the live interview with Dales or interested in submitting questions, go to ESPN.com's Chat page.

Dales was recently named the Big 12 Conference Player of the Week for her performances against No. 14 Texas and No. 23 Baylor. She averaged 20.5 points, 8.0 assists and 4.0 rebounds against those two teams. She also shot 50 percent from the field, hitting 14-of-28 attempted shots, and nailed 78.6 percent of her free throw attempts (11-of-14).

For the season, the 6-1 point guard leads the Sooners in assists with 7.6 and scoring with 16.5 points per game, ranking first and sixth in the Big 12 Conference, respectively. She also ranks second on the team in rebounds (4.5) and steals (3.4) per game. The preseason All-Big 12 selection and Conseco Nancy Lieberman-Cline Step Up Award candidate is ranked fifth in the nation in assists and 17th in steals per game.

TAYLOR TO MISS NEXT TWO WEEKS
Senior Desiree Taylor (Richardson, Texas) will miss the next two weeks due to tearing her PCL (post anterior cruciate ligament) against Baylor on Jan. 13. Taylor is averaging 1.5 points and 1.3 rebounds in 7.3 minutes of action this season.

HILL'S AMONG BIG 12 BEST ALL AROUND PLAYER
Sophomore Caton Hill (Ada, Okla.) is among the Big 12 Conference's best all-around players. In Big 12 Conference games, Hill is just one of two players who ranks among the top 15 in eight different statistical categories. Iowa State's Tracy Gahan is the other.

SEELEY'S HOT FROM THE ARC
Jadrea Seeley (Bethel, Okla.) has hit her last four attempted three-pointers and is 50 percent (10-of-20) from beyond the arc this season. She leads the team in this category, of players who average 10-or-more minutes per game, and has nailed 4-of-5 treys against Big 12 opponents.

Seeley averages 8.6 ppg and 1.9 rpg while shooting 45.6 percent from the field.

DALES BECOMES THE 16TH PLAYER TO SCORE 1,000 POINTS
In just two-and-a-half seasons, junior guard Stacey Dales (Brockville, Ontario) became the 16th player in Oklahoma women's basketball history to score 1,000-points. It took Dales 77 career games to achieve this goal, while teammate LaNeishea Caufield accomplished this milestone earlier this year against Georgia (65 career game).

Dales surpassed this milestone by matching a career-high 28 points in OU's 90-87 victory at Baylor on Saturday. She scored her 1,000th point on a jumper with eight seconds to play in the opening half. The Canadian native has scored 264 points this season, pushing her career total to 1,030.

She has scored in double digits and has dished out five-or-more assists in 14 of 16 games this year. Dales produced her first double-double of the sesaon when she scored 14 points and distributed a career-high 14 assists against SMU on Dec. 9, in Norman. She ranks fifth in the NCAA while leading the team and Big 12 Conference in assists per game with 7.6.

Dales also leads the team in scoring with 16.7 ppg and is third in rebounding with 4.5 rpg.

She currently ranks second among OU's all-time greats in assists and needs 139 to become OU's all-time leader. She has 462 career assists.

SOONER VERSATILITY
Head Coach Sherri Coale has a deeper and more versatile team as eight players are playing 10-or-more minutes per game. Coale has also seen six different player lead the Sooners in scoring, making it tougher for OU's opponents to focus on stopping the Sooners' dynamitic duo of junior guards LaNeishea Caufield and Stacey Dales.

DOUBLE DOSE
Sophomore Caton Hill (Ada, Okla.) continues to play well for the Sooners as the 6-1 power forward dropped 17 points and 12 rebounds against the Texas Longhorns on Jan. 10, for her sixth double-double of the season and fourth all-time against UT. Hill is third in the Big 12 Conference and leads the team for most double-doubles (6).

From Dec. 18 to Jan. 3, Hill produced four straight double-doubles, including career highs of 25 points and 15 rebounds at Colorado on Jan. 3. Hill owns 12 career double-doubles.

She tops the team in rebounding with 8.6 per game and field goal percentage (.513), of players averaging 20-plus minutes per game. She also ranks third on the team in scoring with 12.7 points per game.

BIG 12 HAS FIVE RANKED TEAMS FOR SECOND STRAIGHT WEEK
For the second straight week and only the third time in the conference's five-year history, the Big 12 has five ranked teams in the Associated Press Poll. Last week Baylor earned its first ranking in 23 years as it entered the poll at No. 23 to join Iowa State, Texas Tech, Texas and Oklahoma. This week's rankings are: No. 7 Iowa State, No. 9 Texas Tech, No. 13 Oklahoma, No. 17 Texas, and No. 25 Baylor. Prior to the last two weeks, the only other time the Big 12 has had five ranked teams was Nov. 17, 1997.

DALES NAMED BIG 12 CONFERENCE PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Oklahoma's Stacey Dales (Brockville, Ontario, Canada) was named the Big 12 Conference Player of the Week in a vote of a media panel for games played from Jan. 8-14. Dales becomes just the second OU women's basketball player to earn the Big 12 Conference Player of the Week award and just the 16th in school history to earn the conference honor.

Dales led Oklahoma to wins over No. 14 Texas and No. 23 Baylor last week as she averaged 20.5 points, 8.0 assists and 4.0 rebounds. She also shot 50 percent from the field, hitting 14-of-28 attempted shots, and nailed 78.6 percent of her free throw attempts (11-of-14).

The 6-1 junior point guard scored 13 points vs. Texas and contributed eight assists and four rebounds. At Baylor, Dales surpassed the 1,000-point plateau with a career-high 28 points, including six points in the final two minutes of action. She also had eight assists, four rebounds and shot 52.9 percent (9-of-17) from the field.

SOONER BACKCOURT TANDEM AS GOOD AS IT GETS
Juniors LaNeishea Caufield (Ada, Okla.) and Stacey Dales (Brockville, Ontario) are one of the best guard tandems in America. Sixteen games into the season, Caufield and Dales lead the Sooners and are among the Big 12 Conference and NCAA best as they post impressive numbers.

Dales ranks fifth in the NCAA and leads the team and Big 12 Conference in assists with 7.6 per game. She also averages a team-high 16.5 points while hustling for 4.5 rebounds and 3.4 steals per game which ranks 17th in the nation. Dales shoots 45.3 percent from the field and 71.3 percent from the charity stripe. The Canadian is also among the league's best in four categories: assists, assists/turnover ratio, steals and scoring.

Caufield leads the nation, Big 12 Conference and team in steals per game with 4.4 thefts per outing. She also ranks second on the squad in scoring with 15.9 points per game and is tied with Dales for third in rebounding with 4.5. The Oklahoman hits 85.4 percent of her free throws ranking her 32nd in the nation.

STEPPING UP THE D
Even though Oklahoma prefers a fast-paced offense, the Sooners don't lose track of the importance of good solid defensive pressure. That fact is shown in the Sooners' holding nine of their 16 opponents to 40 percent or below from the field which in return produces a 9-0 record for OU. Opponents are shooting 40.2 percent from the field against the Sooners, including just 33.6 percent from three-point territory. Oklahoma has also collected 202 steals as opposed to its opponents' 160. In addition, the Sooners have outrebounded their opponents 41.7-36.4 (+5.3) per game (667-583 overall).

OU RANKS 12TH IN LATEST RPI
The Sooners are also ranked 12th in the most current WBCA/ Summerville RPI Rankings. Oklahoma also ranks 19th in the latest Collegiate Basketball News Women's RPI College Basketball Rankings.

The Sooners have played eight top-25 teams this year. OU is 4-4 against the nation's best, defeating Southwest Missouri State, 89-82, Stanford, 102-98 OT, Texas, 85-74, and Baylor, 90-87.

JUCO ALL-AMERICANS MAKING IMPACT
Junior College All-Americans Rosalind Ross (Milwaukee, Wis.) and Jamie Talbert (Elkhart, Kan.) have made an immediate impact on the women's basketball program. Ross has played in all 16 games and averages 18.6 minutes per game while Talbert has seen action in 15 contests and plays 13.2 minutes per outing.

Ross, a three-point specialist, has hit over 70 percent (26-of-37) of her shots from beyond the arc and is shooting 85.7 percent (6-of-7) against Big 12 opponents. She also contributes 6.8 points and 2.4 rebounds per game.

Talbert, a power forward, averages 6.2 points and 3.0 rebounds per game while shooting 53.1 percent (34-of-64) from the field.

SOONERS AGAINST TOP 25 TEAMS
The Sooners are 5-2 against top-25 opponents at the Lloyd Noble Center over the last two years. The wins against Texas and Stanford marked the second and third time this year that Oklahoma has accomplished the feat after upsetting then-13th-ranked Southwest Missouri State on Dec. 1. Last year, OU defeated Texas Tech (No. 13/13), 82-76, and Kansas (No. 24/25), 88-69, in Norman.

OU's only home losses to top-25 teams have been against Iowa State, 81-79, on Jan. 6, 2001 and to the 2000 NCAA champions Connecticut, 84-68, on Dec. 29, 2000.

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