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Rice University Athletics
Women's Basketball: Game Notes - Cornell
12/20/1999 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Rice (5-3) vs. Cornell (6-2)
Tuesday, Dec. 21, 1999, 7 pm (CST), Autry Court (5,000), Houston. Non-conference game.
Radio/Internet
Internet only (www.ktru.org) with Craig Ackerman.
Television
None.
Series
First meeting.
Contacting Cornell
Head Coach: Marnie Dacko (Southern Conn. St.). Career: 45-66. At Cornell: Same. Women's Basketball SID: Jeremy Kniffin.
On The Web
Rice: www.RiceOwls.com
Cornell: www.athletics.cornell.edu
WAC: www.wac.org
Probable Starting Lineups (1999-2000 scoring, rebounding averages)
RICE LADY OWLS (5-3, 0-0 WAC)F 23 Kim Smallwood 4.6p, 5.0rF 33 Kirra Jordan 13.9p, 7.6rF/C 22 Kenya Tuttle 6.2p, 6.1rG 21 Kim Lawson 5.6p, 1.0rG 25 Marla Brumfield 12.1p, 4.4rTip Off
Cornell Big Red (6-2)F 21 Kristie Riccio 10.8p, 3.1rF 50 Jumana Salti 8.7p, 10.9rC 11 Christine McMillan 5.3p, 3.1rG 12 Breean Walas 14.5p, 3.0rG 32 Deborah Stevens 13.9p, 5.6r
Tuesday's game marks the first between Rice (5-3) and Cornell (6-2) The game marks the fourth straight at Autry Court for the Lady Owls, where they have posted a 3-1 record this season Cornell is 3-1 on the road this season and played their first game since Dec. 4 on Sunday, a 72-56 win at Texas Southern Rice last played on Dec. 11, defeating Texas-Pan American 83-42...
Meet the Coaches
Rice: Cristy McKinney (North Carolina State, 1979) is in her seventh season as the head coach of the Rice women. During her tenure at Rice, McKinney has posted a 99-79 overall record which brings her total as a head coach to 126-107. Last season, McKinney guided the Rice women to their second-straight NCAA post-season appearance, advancing to the quarterfinals of the 1999 Women's National Invitation Tournament. She has led the Rice women to six of their seven best finishes in league play. McKinney is assisted by seventh-year assistant coach Wooly Hatchell (South Carolina, 1982), fourth-year assistant Shanice Sandford (Oklahoma State, 1993) and third-year assistant Shane Brown (Eastern Kentucky, 1991). Cornell: Marnie Dacko (Southern Conn. St., 1978) is in her fifth year as the coach of the Big Red, recording a 46-66 ledger. Dacko is aided by Michele Savage and Mary Ciuk.
About the Big Red
Breean Walas leads the Big Red in scoring, averaging 14.5 a game and has dished out 29 assists over eight games. Deborah Stevens is Cornell's assist leader with 31 this season and is right behind Walas offensively, with 13.9 points a game. Also averaging in double digits is Kristie Riccio, who is posting 10.8 an outing. As a team, the Big Red are shooting .444 (194-437) from the floor. Defensively, Jumana Salti is responsible for over 20 percent of Cornell's 41.3 rebounds a game, averaging 10.9.
Rice Recap
Senior Kirra Jordan opened the scoring for the Lady Owls, making her first three free throws to notch her 1,000th career point and give her team a 3-0 lead. The Rice women pushed their early lead to nine before the Lady Broncs closed the gap to 15-10 with 8:32 to play in the half. The Lady Owls responded by breaking the game open with 22 unanswered points over the next 6:16 and never looked back. Jordan led all scorers and rebounders in the game with 19 points and 10 boards for her second consecutive double-double. Senior Marla Brumfield was right behind her with 18 points, 15 coming in the first half, and led Rice with five assists and six steals. The pair combined to shoot 14-21 from the floor as the Lady Owls made 41.9 percent (31-74) of their shots for the game. Jenny Cafferty, also a senior, rounded out Rice's list of double-digit scorers, chipping in 10 points, all in the second half. Defensively, the Lady Owls forced a season-high 34 turnovers while snagging 15 steals, which equals their season best. Rice also controlled the boards, 45-36, including grabbing 20 off the offensive glass, and produced four blocked shots.
Millennium Milestone
With three consecutive free throws to start the scoring for the Lady Owls against Texas-Pan American, senior Kirra Jordan became just the 11th player at Rice to eclipse the 1,000-career points mark. After opening her final campaign with 905 points, Jordan has led the Rice women in scoring this season, totaling 111 over eight games, and bringing her career total to 1,016. With her 19 points against the Lady Broncs, Jordan moved up to eighth among Rice's all-time scorers, just two spots below teammate Marla Brumfield's 1,318. Pat Krieger remains the most prolific scorer in program history, tallying 1,851 points from 1979-1982.
Approaching the Century Mark
Head coach Cristy McKinney will be looking for her 100th win at Rice when the Lady Owls take the court on Tuesday. Now in her seventh season at the helm for the Rice women, McKinney has amassed a 99-79 record, including a 58-21 mark at Autry Court. She has a 126-107 record in nine years as a head coach.
In the WAC...
The Lady Owls are continuing to prove their defensive prowess in the WAC. After leading the conference the last two seasons, the Rice women are again tops in the league in turnover margin, forcing 3.25 more turnovers a game than they relinquish. The team also leads in scoring defense, giving up 59.2 a game, and in three-point field-goal percentage defense, holding its opponents to just .250 from behind the arc. Individually, senior Jenny Cafferty is tops in the the league in three-point shooting percentage, hitting .467 (14-30), and is seventh in three-pointers a game (1.75). Seniors Kirra Jordan and Marla Brumfield also appear prominently in the conference standings. Jordan is third in rebounds (7.6), fifth in blocked shots (1.0) and seventh in scoring (13.9). Brumfield is sixth in both assists (4.25) and steals (2.75), 10th in blocked shots (0.5) and 17th in scoring (12.1).
Conference History
SInce the start of the 1999-2000 season, senior Marla Brumfield has moved into the top 10 of two WAC all-time lists. She currently ranks sixth in steals wtih 244, 11 behind Julie Krommenhoek of Utah (1994-98). Tamika Stukes of New Mexico (1994-98) is the WAC's all-time steal leader with 354. Brumfield is also 10th in free throws made with 319. Wyoming's Amy Burnett (1991-95) remains the WAC record holder with 597 made free throws in her career.
Home Sweet Home
Autry Court has proven to be a decided advantage for the Rice women over the last three seasons, as they have posted a 35-8 record including this year's 3-1 mark. When the Lady Owls are in unfamiliar territory, they have posted a 27-27 record over the same time.
Campaign Trail
Senior Kirra Jordan has already begun her campaign for post-season honors after returning to the power forward position, where she earned all-WAC honors as a sophomore. After spending last year playing small forward, Jordan is leading the Lady Owls with 13.9 points and 7.6 rebounds a game. She is shooting .484 (44-91) from the floor and .767 (23-30) from the charity stripe. The Missouri City native is also responsible for eight of Rice's 20 blocks this season, including three swats against both Illinois State and Memphis. Jordan has been her team's leading scorer in four games and top rebounded in five games, including double-doubles in the Lady Owls last two games.
Gene Hackerman Rice Invitational Review
Michigan was crowned the 1999 Gene Hackerman Rice Invitational champions after defeating Rice 63-47 in the tournament's championship game. The Wolverines were led by Alayne Ingram's 19 points and LeeAnn Bies 18 points and 10 rebounds. Senior Kirra Jordan led the Lady Owls with 18 points (9-14 from the floor) and 11 rebounds. She was also second on the team with three assists. Massachusetts defeated New Mexico State in the consolation round, 65-38. Jennifer Butler led the Minutewomen with 15 points and 10 boards as her team out-rebounded the Roadrunners 51-33. In the first round of play, Michigan dispatched of New Mexico State 84-55, shooting .564 (31-55) from the floor, while Rice held off a late UMass rally and won 59-58. Michigan's Bies headed up the all-tournament team with MVP honors. Others receiving all-tournament recognition were Ingram (Michigan), Jordan (Rice), Marla Brumfield (Rice), Butler (UMass), and Melanie Maynes (New Mexico State).
Injury Update
Last week, sophomore LaToya Brown was diagnosed with a stress reaction in her right tibia and will miss the next two weeks. She is scheduled to be reevaluated the first week of January. Brown missed four games last season after suffering a hamstring pull at Colorado State.
Senior Record Watch
Now in their fourth year in the Blue and Gray, seniors Marla Brumfield, Jenny Cafferty, and Kirra Jordan are already a major part of the Rice history books and are looking to improve on their current standings and break into new record lists. Brumfield currently ranks in the top 10 in nine career categories, including third in steals (244), fourth in field goal attempts (1,213) and field goals made (471), and fifth in free throws made (319) and free throws attempted (468). She is also currently the sixth most prolific scorer in Rice history with 1,318 points. Against Texas-Pan American, Jordan became just the 11th player at Rice to score 1,000-career points, bringing her total to 1,016, which ranks eighth all-time. Jordan has also moved up to fifth all-time in blocked shots with 67, and she ranks seventh in field goals made (403). She has also moved into the top 10 in free throws made, where she ranks eighth with 196. Despite missing most of her junior season with an injury, Cafferty ranks seventh all-time in three pointers made (63), needing five more to tie for sixth, and eighth in attempts (176).
TV Time
The Lady Owls have had two of their Western Athletic Conference home games picked up by Fox Sports-TV. The Tulsa game has been moved to Sunday, Feb. 13 at 2 pm, while the Hawaii match-up is now scheduled for Sunday, Feb. 20 at 3:30 pm.
WAC Picks
In October, the Rice women were picked to finish third in the upcoming Western Athletic Conference season by league coaches, receiving 38 points. Rice is coming off a 20-12 season in which it finished third in the WAC Mountain Division with a 9-5 mark. Last season, the Lady Owls advanced to the WAC tournament semifinals before earning a berth in their second-straight WNIT. Hawaii is predicted to win the WAC crown this year, receiving 45 points and five first-place votes from the league coaches. Rainbow Wahine coach Vince Goo returns 10 letterwinners and four starters from last year's squad, which tied for third in the WAC Pacific Division with a 9-5 conference mark, 17-10 overall. SMU was a close second to Hawaii in the poll, receiving 43 points and two first place votes. The Mustangs finished second in the Mountain Division during the regular season with a 11-3 record, 20-11 overall, and claimed the 1999 WAC tournament title.
Team Points1. Hawaii (5) 452. SMU (2) 433. RICE OWLS 384. TCU (1) 335. Fresno State 226. UTEP 197. Tulsa 178. San Jose State 7
Recovery Ward
Coach Cristy McKinney has three Owls available to her this year after they missed all or most of last season with injuries. Senior Jenny Cafferty returns to the Rice lineup after missing most of last season with costochondritis. Cafferty is one of the Owls' top three-point shooting threats, ranking in the top-10 at Rice in career three-pointers made, attempted and three-point shooting percentage, despite averaging just over 13 minutes a game. Recovering from reconstructive knee surgery are sophomore Daneesh McIntosh and freshman Sarah Bracken. McIntosh saw playing time in four games before suffering a torn ACL in early December, forcing her to miss her sophomore season while receiving a redshirt. Bracken had surgery over the 1998 Thanksgiving break and is making for her first appearance in a Rice uniform this year.
Landmark Season
With their 62-60 overtime victory at Baylor, Rice reached the 20-win mark for the second consecutive season and only the third time in school history. In 1997-98, the Owls finished the year with a 21-9 mark, tying the school record for wins in a season. The only other time Rice has posted 20+ wins was in the 1981-82 season when the Owls finished 21-8 in their final year of AIAW competition. The 32 games played in 1999 also marked the longest season in Rice history.
In the 1999 WNIT
Rice's 65-58 win against Miami marked the program's first-ever national post-season tournament victory. With the 62-60 overtime win at Baylor, the Lady Owls moved into the quarterfinals of the Women's National Invitation Tournament, where they fell to eventual WNIT champion Arkansas 76-70 in Fayetteville, Ark. Last year marked the second consecutive time the Rice women received a bid in the WNIT, and the first time for a Rice basketball team, men or women, to host a national post-season tournament. In 1998, the Lady Owls made their first post-season appearance since joining the NCAA when they lost in the first round of the WNIT at Oklahoma State, 75-52.
