Dec. 15, 1997
Lady Rebels to Play Next Three Home Games at the Thomas & Mack Center
Lady Rebel Basketball This Week:
Wed., Dec. 17 Northern Arizona at UNLV (Radio-Tape Delay) 5:00 p.m. PST
Game held at Thomas & Mack Center (18,500), Las Vegas, Nev.
Sat., Dec. 20 UNLV at South Florida (Radio-Live) 2:00 p.m. EST
Game held at Sun Dome (10,044), Tampa, Fla.
Both Games will be broadcast on KSFN - 1140 AM by Bob Blum
The UNLV women's basketball team will be back in the Mack as it hosts Northern Arizona on Wednesday, Dec. 17 at 5:00 p.m. PST at the Thomas & Mack Center (18,500). It will mark the first of three straight home games in the T&M for the Lady Rebels. The game will precede the Runnin' Rebels game with Chicago State. UNLV will then hit the road as it travels to Tampa, Fla., to play South Florida in the Tampa Bay Shootout on Saturday, Dec. 20 at 2:00 p.m. EST. The Lady Rebels game with the Bulls at the Sun Dome (10,044) will be followed by USF's men's basketball team facing Michigan State. The Northern Arizona game may be heard on KSFN-1140 on a tape delayed basis, while the South Florida game will be broadcast live. Bob Blum will call the action.
The Lady Rebels
The Lady Rebels (0-7) lost last week on the road to intrastate rival Nevada, Reno (72-54). It was UNLV's only game of the week. Junior forward Angalete Dye leads the team with a per-game average of 10.2 points and 10.3 rebounds, while senior guard Taneisha Gossett is second on the team in scoring with 9.7 ppg. The Lady Rebels return seven players from last year's squad that recorded an overall record of 4-23, finishing seventh in the WAC's Pacific Division at 2-14. UNLV will participate in the Mountain Division this season because of the WAC's rotating quadrants. Head Coach LaDonna McClain is in her second season at UNLV and eighth overall as a head coach.
The Opponents
Northern Arizona (3-3) defeated UC Irvine (68-56) in its last game on Dec. 6. NAU will play at Loyola Marymount on Monday, Dec. 15 before heading to Las Vegas. The Lumberjacks are led by senior guard Jenny Shayani who is averaging 14.5 ppg. Senior forward Tina Douglas-Pedersen leads the team in rebounding with 7.0 pg. The Lumberjacks have four players averaging double figures in points. NAU finished the 1996-97 campaign with a record of 17-11, coming in fourth in the Big Sky at 10-6. Head Coach Meg Sanders is in her second year with the Lumberjacks.
South Florida (3-5) lost at Notre Dame (73-50) in its only game of last week. USF will host Cleveland State on Thursday, Dec. 18 before hosting UNLV. The Bulls are led by junior forward Sonya Swick who is averaging 13.0 ppg and 6.3 rpg. Senior forward LaTonya Greer is second in scoring with 12.1 ppg. USF finished the 1996-97 campaign with a record of 9-18, tying for eighth in Conference USA at 5-9. Head Coach Jerry Ann Winters is in her second year with the Bulls.
Series History
UNLV leads the series with Northern Arizona 9-0. UNLV won the last meeting, 82-32, in Flagstaff during the 1990-91 season. UNLV defeated NAU, 80-59, the last time the two played in Las Vegas during the 1986-87 season. The Lady Rebels are 5-0 vs. the Lumberjacks at home. UNLV has never faced South Florida in women's basketball. This will mark their first meeting.
Possible Lady Rebel Starters
No. Player Pos. Ht. Yr.-Exp. Hometown/Last School 1997-98 Statistics
00 Amy Wunderlich F 6-0 Jr.-2L Norco, Calif./Norco HS 8.7 ppg, 5.6 rpg
20 Karen Webster G 5-8 Jr.-2L Bellevue, Wash./Sammamish HS 4.4 ppg, 2.3 apg
21 Angalete Dye F 6-1 Jr.-2L Vacaville, Calif./Will C. Wood HS 10.0 ppg, 10.3 rpg
24 Toby Girard G 5-5 Sr.-1L Tempe, Ariz./Yavapai College 7.0 ppg, 1.7 apg
33 Taneisha Gossett G 5-9 Sr.-1L Phoenix, Ariz./Central Arizona Coll. 9.7 ppg, 5.6 rpg
Lady Rebels Off The Bench
No. Player Pos. Ht. Yr.-Exp. Hometown/Last School 1997-98 Statistics
11 Kristen Pool G 5-6 Jr.-JC Provo, Utah/Utah Valley State Coll. 7.7 ppg, 2.6 apg
15 Liz Wolfe C 6-3 Jr.-2L Coquitlam, B.C./Centennial SS 3.7 ppg, 4.1 rpg
30 Kedonica Qualls G 5-6 Jr.-JC Jonesboro, La./Kilgore (Texas) JC 1.5 ppg, 1.0 rpg
31 Brooke Ingalls F 6-0 Fr.-HS Redmond, Wash./Eastlake HS 2.2 ppg, 3.3 rpg
40 Tekeira Strambler F 5-11 Sr.-1L Midland, Texas/Central Arizona Coll. 2.0 ppg, 1.0 rpg
54 Eishia Brightwell F 6-1 Jr.-JC Lawrenceburg, Ind./Vincennes Univ. 2.6 ppg, 3.0 rpg
Atop the NCAA
Junior forward Angalete Dye ranked 11th in the nation in rebounding as of Dec. 8. Dye had averaged 11.3 rebounds per game through six games. NCAA statistics have not been released since then. She had also recorded the most rebounds of any player in the NCAA this season with 23 vs. Long Beach State. Mercy Aghado of St. Peter's was second with 22.
Leaders of the WACÂ
Junior forward Angalete Dye leads the WAC in rebounding with 10.3 per game. Brandi Ashby of Hawai'i is second with 9.3. Dye is also sixth in the WAC in blocks with 1.3 per game. Senior guard Taneisha Gossett is tied for 18th in blocks with 0.6 per game. Junior guard Kristen Pool is tied for 13th in steals with 2.4 per game. Gossett is tied for 17th in steals with 2.0. As a team UNLV is fourth in the WAC in rebounding with 42.0 per game. It is sixth in steals with an average of 11.3 per game.
Lady Rebels in the Mack
UNLV will play its next three home games in the Thomas & Mack Center. The Northern Arizona game will be the first regular season affair in the building for the Lady Rebels this season. It will also mark the 87th time the Lady Rebels have hosted a regular season contest in the building. UNLV is 68-18 over 14 years when playing in the Thomas & Mack Center. UNLV hosted two games in the building last year, losing to UCSB (101-77) on Dec. 30 and defeating Air Force Academy (85-62) on Feb. 20.
Lady Rebel Honors
Senior guard Taneisha Gossett was the only Lady Rebel selected to the Las Vegas Club Shootout All-Tournament Team. Gossett recorded two double-doubles in the tournament, which was held Dec. 5-6. She had 13 points and 12 rebounds vs. Youngstown State and 16 points and 13 rebounds vs. Middle Tennessee State.
Top-Ranked ScheduleÂ
UNLV has two opponents this season that are currently ranked in the top four. The Lady Rebels lost to Louisiana Tech (4th-USA Today/ESPN, 4th-AP) on Nov. 28 and are scheduled to face Connecticut (3rd-USA Today/ESPN, 3rd-AP) on Dec. 27. UNLV also has four teams on its schedule who are receiving votes for the polls. They are Colorado State, Hawai'i, New Mexico and Utah.
The Last Time
UNLV recorded its last win vs. Air Force (85-62) on Feb. 20, 1997. The Lady Rebels are in the midst of a nine-game losing streak dating back to last season. UNLV recorded its last road win at Long Beach State (64-63) during the 1995-96 season. The Lady Rebels have lost 23 straight games away from Las Vegas.
Next Week
UNLV will be back in the Mack as it hosts No. 3 Connecticut on Saturday, Dec. 27 at 7:00 p.m. The game will precede the Runnin' Rebels game with UCLA. The Lady Rebels will then host Loyola Marymount on Tuesday, Dec. 30 at 5:00 p.m., also in the Thomas & Mack Center. That game will precede the Runnin' Rebels vs. Nevada, Reno. The Lady Rebels will begin conference play on Jan. 1 at Wyoming.
Last Year
The Lady Rebels struggled last year in LaDonna McClain's first season in Las Vegas. UNLV recorded a record of 4-23 overall and 2-14 in WAC play. The Lady Rebels finished seventh in the Pacific Division, failing to qualify for the WAC Tournament at the Thomas & Mack Center.
Lady Rebel Returnees
The Lady Rebels return eight players from last year's roster. 6-1 junior forward Angalete Dye is one of the returning post players. She recorded career highs of 30 points and 13 rebounds vs. TCU, the last game of the 1996-97 season. One of three seniors, 5-5 guard Toby Girard ran the point last season. She averaged 8.9 ppg. Another senior, 5-9 guard Taneisha Gossett returns as the Lady Rebels' leading scorer, recording 10.7 ppg during 1996-97. Sophomore guard Sara Hoopes, the only local player on the team, redshirted last year and is currently academically ineligible. The final senior, 5-11 forward Tekeira Strambler saw limited action last season recording a career-best 16 points vs. Fairfield. Karen Webster, a 5-8 junior guard returns at the two-guard spot. She averaged 3.3 ppg last season. Liz Wolfe, a 6-3 junior center looks to be one of the more improved players on the team. Wolfe averaged 3.1 ppg and 3.7 rpg last year. The final returnee is 6-foot junior forward Amy Wunderlich. The most physical player on the team, she averaged 6.1 ppg and 5.0 rpg.
New Faces
The Lady Rebels have six new additions to the program, four coming from junior college programs and two out of high school. Eishia Brightwell, a 6-1 junior from Lawrenceburg, Ind., comes to UNLV from Vincennes University where she averaged 14.9 ppg, 6.9 rpg and 2.1 bpg. Rashmi Houston, a 5-9 junior guard from Pulaski, Tenn., played at Northwest Shoals Community College in Ala., where she averaged 14 ppg, 6 rpg and 4 apg last year. She injured her right ACL during practice prior to this season's opening game. She will have surgery and use this season as a redshirt year. Kristen Pool, a 5-6 point guard from Provo, Utah, attended Utah Valley State College averaging 6.0 ppg, 5.8 apg and 2.1 spg as the team won the conference championship with a 25-7 mark last year. Kedonica Qualls, the final junior-college transfer, is a 5-6 junior guard from Jonesboro, La. She went to Kilgore Junior College in Texas where she averaged 7 ppg, 5 apg and 3 spg last season. Brooke Ingalls is a freshman forward from Redmond, Wash. She attended Eastlake High School, averaging 13 ppg, 9 rpg and 5 apg her senior season. Tina Garcia is a freshman guard from Huntington Beach, Calif., who attended Mater Dei High School. She had reconstructive knee surgery during the summer and is finishing up her rehabilitation. Garcia will use this season as a redshirt year.
Head Coach LaDonna McClain
Head Coach LaDonna McClain (Missouri Southern, '87) is in her second season at UNLV with a record of 4-30. The fifth head coach in the 23-year history of the UNLV women's basketball program, she was hired in the spring of 1996 to replace former Head Coach Jim Bolla. In her first season with UNLV her team recorded a 4-23 mark. McClain came from Austin Peay State University in Clarksville, Tenn., where she headed that program for six seasons. APSU went 5-21 in her first season and she built it into the 1995-96 Ohio Valley Conference regular-season co-champions and tournament champions. She also led that team to its first-ever NCAA Tournament appearance. McClain is in her eighth season as a head coach and has a career record of 64-133.
Assistant Coaches
Coming from Austin Peay State University with McClain are second-year UNLV assistant coaches Sheryl Krmpotich (Xavier, '92), Marcus Payne (Southwestern, '87) and Carrie Daniels (Austin Peay, '96). Director of Basketball Operations Steve Corraro (UNLV, '95) is in his fifth season with the program.
Injury ReportÂ
Junior guard Rashmi Houston injured her right ACL during practice before the season started and will have surgery on it. She will use this season as a redshirt year.
Upcoming PromotionsÂ
For the Northern Arizona game - Dec. 17:
- UNLV women's basketball schedule cups will be given to the first 500 fans.
- Bring a can of food, get a free admission
