University of Oklahoma Athletics

Pack the Place Pink Monday at 8

February 12, 2012 | Women's Basketball

 
  Aaryn Ellenberg
 Oklahoma (16-7) vs. No. 3 Connecticut (23-2)
 Date & Tip Time  Monday, Feb. 13, at 8 p.m. CT
 Location  Norman, Okla. | Lloyd Noble Center | Seating Views
 Tickets  $5, $8 and $15; Free to OU students with valid OU I.D.
 OU Athletics Ticket Office
 TV  ESPN2
 Radio  Sooner Sports Network
 Oklahoma City: KOKC 1520 AM | Live Audio
 Norman: KREF 1400 AM
 Webcast  ESPN3.com
 Live Stats  SoonerSports.com GameTracker
 Game Info  Game Notes (PDF)

THE GAME PLAN
Oklahoma hosts No. 3 Connecticut for its Sixth Annual Pack the Place Pink night as women's basketball raises awareness for the Kay Yow Cancer Fund and fighting women's cancers. The game will be televised to a national audience on ESPN2 with Pam Ward and Rebecca Lobo calling the action. The Sooner Sports Network radio broadcast with Brian Brinkley airs on KOKC 1520 and KREF 1400 AM in Oklahoma City and Norman.

Pack the Place Pink
Tickets | Promotions | Online Auction | Gameday Central

PLAY4KAY
It's Oklahoma's Sixth Annual Pack the Place Pink night, and Coach Coale and the Sooners would appreciate your support as they take on the Huskies and join in the fight against women's cancers.

All fans in attendance will receive a free pink T-shirt.

As part of college basketball's initative to raise awareness for cancer prevention, the OU women's basketball program is auctioning off 15 commemorative and game-used items from the Pack the Place Pink game via the official OU Athletics Online Auction.

All proceeds will be donated to the Kay Yow Cancer Fund. Bidding ends on Monday, Feb. 20.

OU Tickets Available
• Season Tickets are available for as low as $114. Tickets may be purchased online at SoonerSports.com or by calling the OU Athletics Ticket Office at 1-800-456-GoOU.
• Single-game tickets went on sale to the general public Nov. 1. Prices are $15 for reserved seating, $8 for general admission adults and $5 for general admission youths and senior citizens. OU students receive free admission when presenting a valid ID.

The Teams
• No. 3 Connecticut is 23-2 overall and 11-1 in Big East play. It's only losses have come from Baylor in Waco, 66-61, and in overtime at Notre Dame, 74-67.
• Oklahoma is 16-7 and in second place in the Big 12 with a 8-4 record in conference play. OU is not ranked in either poll.
• OU and UConn are playing for the third straight season in the midst of conference schedules. The Sooners have not beaten the Huskies in nine tries and last year suffered the worst loss in more than three decades, 86-45, in Hartford.

The Coaches
Sherri Coale is 352-162 (.685) in her 16th season at Oklahoma. She has been named the Big 12 Coach of the Year four times.
• Geno Auriemma is 793-126 () in his 27th season at Connecticut. He is a seven-time AP National Coach of the Year.

Next Game
• Oklahoma concludes its string of three games in five days, hosting Kansas State Wednesday, Feb. 15, at 7 p.m. at the Lloyd Noble Center in Norman, Okla. The game will be televised on the Sooner Sports Network.

 Connecticut Projected Starters
No.
 Name
Pos.
Ht.
Year
 2011-12 Statistics
3
 Tiffany Hayes
G
5-10
Sr.
 15.6 ppg, 5.9 rpg
5
 Caroline Doty
G
5-10
RS-Jr.
 6.5 ppg, 2.1 rpg
14
 Bria Hartley
G
5-7
So.
 14.2 ppg, 4.0 rpg
34
 Kelly Faris
G
5-11
Jr.
 6.6 ppg, 5.0 rpg
31
 Stefanie Dolson
C
6-5
So.
 10.2 ppg, 6.1 rpg

 Oklahoma Projected Starters
No.
 Name
Pos.
Ht.
Year
 2011-12 Statistics
10
 Morgan Hook
G
5-10
So.
 10.6 ppg, 4.1 apg
3
 Aaryn Ellenberg
G
5-7
So.
 15.3 ppg, 2.9 rpg
25
 Whitney Hand
G
6-1
RS-Jr.
 12.6 ppg, 6.6 rpg
53
 Joanna McFarland
F
6-3
Jr.
 8.2 ppg, 7.9 rpg
4
 Nicole Griffin
C
6-6
So.
 5.9 ppg, 4.0 rpg

PREVIEWING CONNECTICUT
No. 3 Connecticut is the fifth ranked team to visit the Lloyd Noble Center this season, and the eighth the Sooners have played. Oklahoma is 3-4 against ranked teams in 2011-12, with two losses coming to No. 1 Baylor.

The Huskies feature a lineup that spreads the wealth, coupling the nation's top assist-per-game offense with the No. 1 scoring defense. Dominated by guard play, there are four players who have attempted at least 75 3-pointers and six players with 100 or more rebounds.

Senior Tiffany Hayes leads UConn, averaging 15.3 points and a 43 percent 3-point field goal clip. Hayes has scored one-quarter of her points at the free throw line where she has connected on 92 of 118 attempts (78 percent).

Sophomore guard Bria Hartley adds 14.2 points per game and leads the team with 107 assists.

Freshman sixth-man Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis scores 14.0 points per game and is the team's leading 3-point shooter with 2.5 makes per game.

Sophomore center Stefanie Dolson also averages double-figure scoring, contributing 10.2 points per game, and is the team's leading rebounder (6.1).

 
 Sooner to Watch 

Whitney Hand | RS-Jr. | Guard
Hand has led the Sooners in scoring in the past two games with a 20-point effort at Baylor and 17 against Missouri. The 6-1 guard has been OU's leading scorer since Big 12 play began with 13.9 points per game and has averaged 6.3 rebounds and 3.3 assists in the span. In her last three games, Hand has 12 assists and just two turnovers.

   

ENTERING THE BLOCK PARTY
Sophomore Nicole Griffin is among OU's top 10 in both single-season and career blocks. The 6-6 center has 44 blocks this year (after just 26 her freshman season), which already ranks as they ninth best single season behind just two Sooners who own the top eight -- Courtney Paris and LaNae Jones.

Griffin's 70 career blocks also ranks ninth in OU's annals, currently trailing No. 8 Ashley Paris by 12. Griffin's nine blocks versus Texas (Jan. 21) were the most by a Sooner since Courtney Paris had 10 against Texas Tech on March 1, 2006.

MAGIC NUMBER IS 67
Oklahoma is 12-0 when scoring more than 66 points in a game. The Sooners are 4-7 when only reaching 66 or fewer. Connecticut has allowed its opponents to score just 44 points per game.

Additionally, in situational statistics, OU is 13-1 when its bench players outscore the opponent's bench, 12-2 when it has more rebounds, and 14-2 when it holds its opponent to 40 percent or fewer on field goal success.

HAND VOTED ACADEMIC ALL-DISTRICT
Oklahoma's Whitney Hand was voted to the Capital One Academic All-District 7 Women's Basketball First Team, announced Thursday by the College Sports Information Directors of America. As a first-team all-district selection, the Sooner co-captain will be eligible for consideration as an Academic All-American.Hand graduated with a 3.76 GPA in health and exercise science in December. The Sooners have had 13 Academic All-District women's basketball players under the 16-year tutelage of Sherri Coale. Four have been voted Academic All-Americans.

COALE CLOSING ON VICTORY NO. 500
Sherri Coale guided Norman High School to two state championships and a 147-40 record in seven years before becoming the Sooners' head coach. In the college ranks, Coale has 352 victories in 16 seasons, leaving her just one shy of 500 in her career as a head coach.

TWO SOONERS ON NAISMITH WATCH
Sophomore Aaryn Ellenberg and redshirt-junior Whitney Hand were among the 51 women's college basketball players on the Naismith Trophy Early-Season Watch List released Nov. 29. Ellenberg has averaged 15.3 points for Oklahoma this season. Against Liberty, the 5-7 guard set an OU record by making a 3-pointer in a 23rd consecutive game, which extended to 29. Hand has totaled 12.6 points and 6.6 rebounds per game as she recently crossed 900 career points.

Ellenberg, Hand Rising Up Charts
Redshirt-junior Whitney Hand and sophomore Aaryn Ellenberg are closing on Oklahoma's top 10 career 3-point records. Ellenberg is No. 5 all-time with 148 career 3-pointers, trailing No. 4 Carin Stites by four. Hand is No. 9 with 135 career 3's, trailing No. 8 Stacey Dales by one.

 

 

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