No. 10 Oklahoma Prepares For Kansas State

Feb. 13, 2001

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THE GAME
The 10th-ranked Oklahoma women's basketball team returns to the comfort of the Lloyd Noble Center Wednesday, Feb. 14, to host Kansas State at 7 p.m. on Valentine's Day. The Sooners are 8-1 this season and have won 16 of its last 18 games when playing at home. OU also is on a 10-game winning streak and has won 13 of its last 14 outings.

Wednesday's game will be broadcast live by the Sooner Sports Network and air on KSBI Channel 52 in Oklahoma City, KWBT Channel 19 in Tulsa and KOMI-TV 24 in Woodward. Mick Cornett (play-by-play) and Laura Reece (color analyst) will call the game. In addition, all Oklahoma women's basketball games are broadcast on KOMA-AM (1520) radio station with Ed Murray (play-by-play) and Jenny Bramer (color analyst) calling the action. This live broadcast also is available through OU's athletic department web site at www.SoonerSports.com.

The Sooners enter the game with an 19-4 overall record and 10-1 mark in the Big 12 Conference. With Texas defeating Texas Tech Saturday, there is now a two-way tie for first-place in the league. OU and Iowa State have identical 10-1 records while Kansas State sits at the bottom with an 1-10 league record and an 11-11 overall mark.

Over the past 10 games, the Sooners are averaging 87.3 points and 42.3 rebounds per game while Kansas State averages 58.3 ppg and 31.6 rpg.

Oklahoma is ranked 10th in both the AP and USA Today/ESPN coaches' polls. Kansas State is not ranked.

SERIES RECORD OU vs. Kansas State
Kansas State leads the all-time series 21-17 but the Sooners have won the last three games between the two teams including an 64-56 victory in Manhattan a year ago.

Former Sooner Phylesha Whaley lead that charge with 28 points and 12 rebounds, followed by LaNeishea Caufield's 15 points. As a team, OU shot 39.3 percent from the field (22-of-56) while K-State hit 42.0 percent (21-of-50) of its shots. The Wildcats also hit 55.6 percent (10-of-18) of their three-pointers. Kristin Rethman and Kim Woodlee each hit five 3s against the Sooners last year. Rethman led the team with 16 points and Woodlee added 15.

OKLAHOMA
Oklahoma enters Wednesday's game averaging the nation's third best scoring performance of 84.1 points per game and ranks eighth in field goal percentage shooting 48.6 percent. Over the past 10 games, Oklahoma has shot 51.4 percent from the field, 43.2 percent from beyond the arc and 74.3 percent from the foul line. Not once in OU's 10-0 run has an opponent outshot OU from the field and only Baylor produced a better three-point field goal percentage than the Sooners. OU's defense has held over half of its opponents to 40 percent or below from the field which in return has produced a 15-0 record for the Sooners.

Three of Oklahoma's starters average double-figure in scoring and the Sooners are led by two of the best players in the country. Juniors All-America and Big 12 Player of the Year candidates LaNeishea Caufield (Ada, Okla.) and Stacey Dales (Brockville, Ontario) leads the team and ranks among the NCAA best in scoring, steals and assists. Caufield tops the nation in thefts with 4.7 steals per game and is among the elite in scoring with a team-best 17.7 points per game. She has pocketed five steals in seven of the team's last eight games including a career-high nine thefts at Nebraska. Caufield's free throw percentage of 87.1 percent (108-of-124) ranks first in the league and 24th in the nation. She also ranks second on the team in assists (3.5 apg) and fourth in rebounds (4.5 rpg).

Dales stands sixth in the country in assists (7.3) and has scored or assisted on 44.4 percent of Oklahoma's 710 field goals. The Conseco Nancy Lieberman-Cline Step Up Award finalist (the award is for the top point guard in the nation) follows Caufield in scoring with 16.3 points per game. She also ranks second on the team in steals (2.9 spg) and third in rebounds (4.9 rpg).

Sophomore Caton Hill (Ada, Okla.) leads the team and ranks second in the conference in rebounds with 9.2 boards per game. Not only is she effective in the paint but the 6-1 power forward is the conference's most consistent 3-point shooter in league games, hitting 63.0 percent of her treys (17-of-27). Hill also averages 13.0 points and shoots 81.7 percent from the foul line to rank third best on the team. In addition, she has supplied the Sooners with nine double-doubles (10+ rebounds, 10+ points) this season, pushing her career total to 15.

A large part of Oklahoma's success this season also is due to the play of its other two regular starters, senior Sunny Hardeman (Norman, Okla.) and junior Jen Cunningham (Kingston, Ontario, Canada). Although Cunningham is nursing a knee injury right now she was averaging 10.8 points and 7.8 rebounds over the last six game prior to her injury. Hardeman averaged 8.0 points per game last week including hitting seven 3-pointers. She ranks third in the league in 3-point field goal percentage, hitting 46.9 percent of her long range bombers.

KANSAS STATE (11-11, 1-10 BIG 12)
Kansas State enters the game looking for its second Big 12 Conference win of the season. The Wildcats are on a seven-game losing streak and have lost 10 of their last 11 contests, including all five of their Big 12 road games. K-State's most recent game was an 81- 52 loss at No. 9/7 Iowa State Saturday . KSU only victory in league play has been against Texas, 72-63, on Jan. 17 in Manhattan.

Against Iowa State, freshman Nicole Ohlde registered her fifth double double of the season and her second consecutive 28-point game. Ohlde had 28 points, 10 rebounds and three steals in the loss. Kimmery Newsom came off the bench for nine points.

Ohlde, a Big 12 Freshman of the Year candidate, continues to lead the Wildcats offensively with 17.2 points, while shooting 50.3 percent from the field and 67.0 percent from the foul line. She also averages 8.2 rebounds per game. KSU's guards, Kristin Rethman and Kim Woodlee, contributes 10+ points per game with 11.8 and 11.2, respectively.

As a team, the Wildcats rank 11th in the league in scoring at 63.9 ppg and 12th in rebounds with 34.1 rpg. KSU is shooting 42.3 percent from the field, 38.3 percent from three-point range and 69.8 percent from the free throw line.

UP NEXT
Oklahoma travels to No. 14/11 Texas Tech (18-4, 9-2 Big 12) on Saturday, Feb. 17. The showdown will be broadcast by Fox Sports Network at 1 p.m. inside the United Spirit Center in Lubbock, Texas. Texas Tech lost to Texas, 63-57, Saturday in Lubbock ending the nation's longest home winning streak of 41-games.

OU handed Texas Tech its first conference loss of the season, 84-66, on Jan. 28 in Norman. Sophomore Caton Hill led all scores with 22 points, followed by junior Stacey Dales' 21 and LaNeishea Caufield's 19. TTU had five players to score in double figures led by Jia Perkins and Natalie Ritchie who had 15 points each. Texas Tech shot 37.7 percent (26-of-69) from the field while OU shot 59.0 percent (36-of-61). However, TTU outrebounded the Sooners, 43-37.

CAUFIELD IS 3 THEFTS SHY OF CLAIMING SCHOOL RECORD
Junior All-America candidate LaNeishea Caufield (Ada, Okla.) is three steals shy of becoming Oklahoma's all-time pocket picker with 278 career steals. The record is 280 held by Jacquette Hurley (1983-86). Caufield currently leads the nation in thefts with 4.7 per outing.

Caufield has collected five steals in seven of OU's last eight games including a career-best nine at Nebraska on Feb. 7. She also has been the team leaders in thefts in 19-of-23 games this season. The Oklahoman tops the team in points per game with 17.7.

University of Oklahoma Athletics

No. 10 Oklahoma Prepares For Kansas State

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