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Utah Women's Basketball Game #9 - TCU
12/10/2004 12:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Dec. 10, 2004
Game #9
University of Utah (6-2) vs. No. 23/25 TCU (7-2)
3 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 11, 2004 - Jon M. Huntsman Center (15,000)
Salt Lake City, Utah
Radio: Hot Ticket 700 AM
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Utah-TCU Fast Breaks
> This is just the fourth meeting on the hardwood between Utah and TCU in women's basketball.
> Utah leads the series 2-1.
> Both of Utah's victories came during the 1997 season, when the Utes and the Lady Frogs were both members of the Western Athletic Conference.
> Utah and TCU will renew the series as conference foes next year, when TCU joins the Mountain West Conference.
> TCU won the most recent meeting with Utah, taking a 54-51 victory in Fort Worth, Texas back on Nov. 22, 2002.
Utah Head Coach Elaine Elliott
University of Utah head women's basketball coach Elaine Elliott is in her 22nd season at the helm of the Ute program.
Elliott has a career record of 443-180. She is the winningest coach in Utah basketball history. Elliott has led the Utah women to 11 NCAA Tournament appearances, eight regular-season conference titles, three divisional crowns and five conference tournament championships. Elliott has been regarded for years as one of the best women's basketball coaches in the country. She has the longest tenure of any coach in the Mountain West Conference.
In 21 years, Elliott has had an astounding 20 winning seasons. She has been named her conference's coach of the year eight different times. Elliott has coached 28 first-team all-conference players and six players of the year.
Elliott was named the John and Nellie Wooden National Coach of the Year following the 2000-01 season.
TCU Head Coach Jeff Mittie
Jeff Mittie is in his sixth season with the TCU Lady Frogs and his 13th as a collegiate head coach. He has led TCU to four consecutive NCAA Tournament berths. He also led Missouri Western State to the NCAA Division II Tournament twice.
Mittie has an overall record of 268-111 in his 13th season as a collegiate head coach. He has a 117-52 record in his sixth season as the mentor of the TCU program. Mittie was 76-17 in three saeasons at Missouri Western and 75-42 in four saesons at Arkansas State, prior to joining TCU.
Utah Update
Utah ran out to a 17-point advantage midway through the second half Thursday night at Weber State. The Utes then withstood a barrage from the Wildcats, before escaping Ogden with a 66-59 victory.
Kim Smith tied for game-high honors with 23 points and grabbed a game-high 14 rebounds. It was her fifth double-double in eight games this season and the 16th of her career. Shona Thorburn added 16 points for the Utes, while Deanne Hanchett tacked on 13.
Utah shot better than 40 percent from the field for the second straight game in the WSU win.
The victory ran Utah's record to 6-2 and was the fifth straight for the Utes after they started the season 1-2.
With the win, Utah now holds a 125-36 all-time record in games against in-state opponents. The Utes won't face another in-state rival until Jan. 29, when they travel to Provo to face BYU.
Scouting TCU
TCU is ranked Nos. 23/25 in the latest national polls. The Lady Frogs won the Rainbow Wahine Classic -- a tournament in which Utah went 2-1 earlier this season. During that tournament, TCU defeated then-No. 3 Georgia and then-No. 14 Michigan State.
The Lady Frogs join the Mountain West Conference next season.
TCU won its seventh game of the season against just two losses Thursday, stopping Oklahoma 81-65 in Fort Worth. Lady Frog All-America candidate Sandora Irvin scored 32 points and pulled down 18 rebounds to lead TCU to the win over the Sooners.
Irvin averages 21.8 points and 13.7 rebounds per game. The Lady Frogs have two other players who average double-figure scoring -- Ashley Davis is scoring 12.1 points per game, while Adrianne Ross is at 11.8 points a contest. Ross has missed the last four games with injury, however.
Percentage Keeps Picking Up
Utah converted on just less than one-third of its field goal opportunities in three previous games away from the Huntsman Center.
Thursday night was the Utes' best shooting effort in a game away from home. Utah hit at a rate of .426 from the field at Weber State in a 66-59 victory.
That performance also pushed the team's overall field-goal percentage above 40 percent for the first time since the second game of the season. The Utes are now shooting .402 as a squad, compared to .444 last season.
Free for All
At least some of Utah's success this season can be attributed to its ability at the free-throw line and its ability to get to the charity stripe.
Utah has attempted 34 more free throws than its opponents this season. The Utes have also made 30 more of those tosses than their opponents.
That means Utah averages nearly four points per game more than its opponent at the line. The Utes' average scoring margin is +6.8.
Sho-Stopper
Junior guard Shona Thorburn is responding well to her move to the point this season.
Thorburn is the team's second-leading scorer and rebounder. She is ranked No. 2 in the Mountain West Conference in assists per game.
Perhaps more impressive are some of her percentages and averages. Despite bringing the ball down the floor and directing the offense, Thorburn has improved over last season in nearly every statistical category.
She is shooting .398 from the field, as opposed to .378 last year. Her three-point and free-throw percentages are also better. Thorburn's 7.5 rebounds per game are 2.1 more than last year.
Smith Assaults Scoring Chart
With her 23-point effort at Weber State Thursday, Kim Smith became the No. 12 scorer in Utah history. She now has 1,143 total points.
At her current pace, Smith should overtake Mila Rogers-Stender for the No. 11 spot in just two games. She should be knocking on the door of the No. 10 spot within six or seven games. She is currently on pace to finish the regular season in the No. 5 position.
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Players Mentioned
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