DENVER - The University of Denver women's basketball team (15-10, 7-5 SBC) continues Sun Belt Conference play this week, hosting the Louisiana-Monroe Warhawks (13-13, 7-6 SBC) on Wednesday at 7 p.m. MT at Magness Arena.
BROADCAST INFO
Fans can follow the game live via Pioneer Vision, Live Stats and CoverItLive all through www.DenverPioneers.com.
THE SERIES
Denver is 8-3 all-time against Louisiana-Monroe. After dropping a 65-41 decision on February 25, 2009, the Pioneers have won the last four meetings, including a 55-54 win over the Warhawks earlier this season.
SCOUTING LOUISIANA-MONROE
The Louisiana-Monroe Warhawks come into their meeting with the Pioneers after dropping a 52-55 loss to Arkansas-Little Rock on Feb. 13. The Warhawks have a 13-13 overall record and a 7-6 conference record. Junior Larrie Williams leads the team with 11.3 ppg and a field goal percentage of 49.6. Junior Kassie Courtney has tallied a 34.3 three-point field goal percentage with 108 three-point shots attempted. Senior Sannisha Williams has pulled down an average of 7.3 rebounds per game. Senior Priscilla Mbiandja leads the Warhawks in free throws with an 81.3 free throw percentage. Elizabeth Torres has posted a total of 133 total assists, averaging 5.1 assists per game.
PIONEER LEADER BOARD
With only four games remaining in the 2010-11 regular season, junior Kaetlyn Murdoch leads the Pioneers with 415 points (16.6 ppg) and 181 rebounds (7.2 rpg). The forward is also shooting an impressive 60.6 percent from the field, ranking her fourth in the nation and first in the SBC. A stand-out shooter from the free-throw line, senior Brianna Culberson is posting an 86.4 shooting percentage from the line (51-59), ranking her second in the SBC. Culberson is second on the team with 351 points (14.0 ppg) and 161 rebounds (6.4 rpg). Senior Britteni Rice is third on the team with 347 points (13.9 ppg) and is second in the SBC with a .430 three-point field goal percentage. Sophomore Emiko Smith continues to provide the assists for the Pioneers, averaging 5.9 per contest so far, ranking her second in the SBC and 12th in the nation.
Denver is averaging 63.6 points per game and is shooting 45.6 percent from the field as a team, while holding its opponents to 59.9 points per game and a 39.0 shooting percentage from the floor. Denver's
45.6 field-goal percentage ranks them 14th in the country and first in the SBC, while its 0.91 assist-turnover ratio ranks them first in the SBC and 43rd in the nation.
DENVER IN THE SBC
With their 7-5 Sun Belt Conference record, the Pioneers are in second place in the West Division, behind Arkansas Little Rock (11-0). Junior Kaetlyn Murdoch leads the Pioneers in conference games with 16.5 ppg, while grabbing 7.4 rpg and shooting 62.9 percent from the floor. Senior Brianna Culberson is averaging 15.6 ppg on 56.9 percent shooting from the field, while also grabbing 6.9 rpg. Sophomore Emiko Smith is averaging 6.6 apg, while senior Britteni Rice is third on the team with 13.5 ppg. Denver is averaging 61.8 ppg on 47.6 shooting from the field, while its opponents are being limited to 56.8 ppg on 35.9 percent shooting.
1000-POINT CLUB
Prior to the start of the 2010-11 season, only 18 former Pioneers have amassed more than 1,000 points in their careers at DU, with DU Hall-of-Famer Linda Raunig leading the way with 1,901 points (1977-81). In the Pioneers 63-27 win over San Jose State (12/11/10), senior Britteni Rice became the 19th Pioneer to reach 1,000 points as she scored 18 points. Rice currently has 1,201 career points. Junior Kaetlyn Murdoch became the 20th Pioneer to score 1,000 points as she scored 20 points against UTEP (12/22/10). Murdoch currently has 1,206 career points. Senior Brianna Culberson became the 21st Pioneer to reach 1,000 career points when she scored 17 points against Middle Tennessee (1/23/11). Culberson now has 1,079 career points.
HONORING DAVIS JAMES JOHNSON
Throughout the 2010-11 season the DU women will be wearing a "DJJ" patch on their jerseys in memory of Davis James Johnson, the four-year-old son of Coach Johnson and his wife Laura, who passed away unexpectedly this spring due to an undiagnosed precondition known as intestinal malrotation, which caused a catastrophic twisting of Davis's small intestine. "It has been tough because of how close he was to the team," says Coach Johnson. "They are grieving, too. This patch will be a nice way for them to show how much they care for Davis and my family." Members of the coaching staff and support staff will be wearing pins with the initials "DJJ" to show their support as well.
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