Feb. 4, 2010

Complete Release in PDF Format

FORT COLLINS, Colo. -- Colorado State plays its first of two games over a four-day stretch, and its third road tilt over a four-game period. CSU looks to avenge a narrow, 64-61 loss to the Cowgirls at Moby Arena Jan. 5.

After winning three of four from Jan. 9-23, the Rams also want to bust out of their longest losing slide of the season, three games, bidding for their first win since an impressive 67-60 triumph Jan. 23 over New Mexico, who beat No. 20 TCU Saturday.

CSU also bids for its first regular-season win over the Cowgirls since Jan. 28, 2005, a span of 10 games, although Kristen Holt's Rams did end the Cowgirls season in the 2009 MWC tournament. CSU's last win in Laramie was Feb. 23, 2002, a 64-62 overtime thriller, and looks to halt a seven-game streak at the A-A.

The game will be broadcast live on AM 1410 KIIX. Brian Roth calls the action while Matt Wozniak provides color analysis. Live game audio will also be available via Rams All-Access subscription on CSURams.com.

Rams vs. Cowgirls series...   CSU's last win in Laramie was Feb. 23, 2002, a 64-62 overtime thriller, with Tom Collen at the helm. Neither of the ensuing three coaches have won at the A-A (seven games), after the Rams won at Wyoming seven straight years (1996-2002).

Saturday's meeting between Colorado State and Wyoming marks the 78th overall game between the two schools.

Colorado State holds a 41-37 advantage in the all-time series, but is 16-19 when travelling to Wyoming. The last time the Rams were able to overcome the Cowgirls was on March 10, 2009, in the first round of the Mountain West Conference championship.

On the road in conference...   After earlier victories at Air Force and at UNLV, CSU can win its third conference road game Saturday. The last time the Rams won three conference contests in enemy arenas was the 2001-02 season, when they knocked off five MWC foes away from Moby.

Last meeting...    The Colorado State women’s basketball team fell 64-61 on Jan. 5, 2010, to its border rival, Wyoming, thanks to an 11-point first half deficit the Rams were unable to overcome.  The Rams (8-6, 0-1 MWC) outshot, outrebounded and outplayed the visiting Wyoming Cowgirls in the second half, and had a chance to win the game at the buzzer but the shot by freshman Meixandra Porter didn’t fall. 
 
Wyoming junior guard Aubrey Vandiver (16), sophomore forward Emma Langford (15) and junior forward Hillary Carlson (14) combined to score 45 of Wyoming’s 64 points, to put the Rams away despite shooting under 40 percent.

About Wyoming...    The Cowgirls are fifth in the conference and sixth in the nation in three-point field goals per game, making an average on 8.6 per contest. They are fourth in the country in three-point field goal average, shooting 40 percent from beyond the arc, and rank first in the nation in fewest turnovers per game (12.3).
 
Hillary Carlson, Aubrey Vandiver and Emma Langford are the top three scorers for Wyoming. They average 14.7, 13.6 and 11.8 points per game, respectively. Defensively, Vandiver leads the team in rebounds per game with 9.2, which is tied for second best in the MWC.

Last time out...    The Colorado State Rams (11-10, 3-5) extended their losing streak to three as they lost a heartbreaker, 68-65, to the Utah Utes (13-8, 4-4) Wednesday at Moby Arena.

It was a tough competition, including 10 lead changes, and the Rams battled until the end. With 30 seconds left to play and the Rams trailing 66-65, a forced foul put Utah’s Janita Badon at the charity stripe. After missing two free throws, Utah was able to grab its own rebound, clinching the victory.

Colorado State ran neck-and-neck with Utah for most of the game, but was unable to regain the lead.

Freshman Chantel Kennedy started her fifth consecutive game for the Rams and totaled 28 minutes of play. Kennedy now has 31 offensive rebounds, 30 defensive rebounds, and 27 steals on the season.

The Rams had three players score double digits on the night. Kim Mestdagh led the way for Colorado State with 23 points and nine rebounds, while fellow sophomore Natalie van den Adel and junior Bonnie Barbee contributed 10 points apiece.

Rebounding extremes... 
Colorado State ranks second in the Mountain West in overall rebounds with 822 this season. The team is averaging 39.1 per game. The Rams rank fifth in the conference in offensive rebounds, pulling down an average of 13.3 per game. The Rams are 8-3 this season when outrebounding their opponents.

Building a program of excellence... 
The Rams, now 11-10, are sitting in seventh place in the Mountain West Conference. With eight games remaining, the Rams have already surpassed their win total from last season. CSU hasn't won 11 games in one season since the 2004-05 campaign, when the team went 15-13 and finished in fifth place.

From the line...    Junior guard Zoi Simmons is second in the conference in free-throw percentage (.820). In the Rams' final non-conference game this season vs. South Dakota, Simmons hit six free throws in the final minute, when the Rams were clinging to a one-point lead and had not made a field goal since the 6:49 mark, to ice the win. She was 8-8 on the afternoon.

Heimstra well-balanced...   In 21 games this season sophomore forward Meghan Heimstra has scored a total of 184 points and has 176 rebounds. She leads the team in rebounds per game with 8.6 and is third in points with 8.8 per game. Defensively, the sophomore averages 5.9 boards per game, which puts her in second in the conference. Heimstra has four double-doubles this season, and she recorded a career-high 14 rebounds in the Jan. 5 game vs. Wyoming.

Mestdagh sets record highs...   Sophomore Kim Mestdagh leads the Mountain West in both scoring and three-point field goals made. In 21 games this season, Mestdagh has 357 points, averaging 17.0 per game. She has hit 63 three-pointers, averaging 3.0 per game.

In the Rams' matchup vs. South Dakota on Jan. 2, Mestdagh recorded six steals, a career high, season team high, and tied for first in the conference this season. Mestdagh’s 30 points Dec. 6 vs. Southern Illinois were the most by a CSU player in a 40-minute regulation game since Becky Hammon poured in 30, March 14, 1999, to lead the Rams to an 86-70 win over Southwest Missouri State in the second round of the NCAA tournament, in front of 8,741 Moby Arena fans. Sara Hunter had 41 in a 101-96 overtime loss vs. San Francisco on Nov. 13, 2007. Hammon scored 30 or more in eight games that season.

Additional TV matchup...   The Colorado State women's basketball contest at BYU in Provo, Utah, on Feb. 17 will be televised on BYU-TV live at 7 p.m. MT and then re-aired on The Mtn. Feb. 18 at 8 p.m. MT.

This marks the fourth game the Rams will be televised this season, not including the Mountain West Conference championships in March.

Rams TV games...   

1/05/10 vs. Wyoming (The Mtn.) 6 p.m. (live)
1/27/10 at TCU (The Mtn.) 5:30 p.m. (tape delay)
2/09/10 vs. Air Force (The Mtn.) 6 p.m. (live)
2/17/10 at BYU  7 p.m.   (live BYU-TV; tape delay The Mtn.)

Coors Light Coaches’ Show...   The Coors Light Basketball Coaches’ Show airs Mondays at 7 p.m. MT, live from the Stonehouse Grille in Old Town Fort Collins, and will continue throughout the season until March 1.  Shows air live on the Colorado State Sports Network’s Flagship, KLZ (560 AM).  A complete schedule can be found on the bottom of Page 4 of this release. 

Up next...Colorado State will look for its fourth-straight win over the Air Force Falcons on Tuesday. Tipoff is scheduled for 6 p.m. MT. The game will be televised live on The Mtn.