Completed Event: Women's Basketball at Eastern Kentucky on March 19, 2026 , Loss , 58, to, 72
Final Score
Women's Basketball
58
at Eastern Kentucky
72
The University of Utah Athletics
Utah Women's Basketball Notes
2/17/2004 12:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Feb. 17, 2004
SALT LAKE CITY -
Complete Release in PDF Format
Download Free Acrobat Reader
COMING UP:
The league-leading Utah women's basketball team (19-4, 9-0), ranked in the Top 25 (No. 25) for the first time since Jan. 4, travels to Albuquerque, N.M., for a 7 p.m. game at New Mexico (14-7, 6-2) this Thursday, Feb. 19, at the Pit. The game will be televised live on College Sports Television (CSTV). Satellite coordinates for the game are as follows: Galaxy 1R, Transponder 22, Band: L-Band. The game will also be broadcast live on KALL-700 AM in Salt Lake City and on the Internet at www.utahutes.com.
A QUICK LOOK AT UTAH:
Utah won its 26th consecutive home game with a 59-45 win over former associate head coach Joe Legerski's Wyoming Cowgirls Saturday. The Utes shot 48 percent from the field and 58 percent from three-point range on the game. For the second game in a row, the Utes were out-rebounded by an opponent, this time 26 to 22. Utah had a season-high four blocked shots and forced 19 Cowgirl turnovers while committing 12. Sophomore All-America candidate Kim Smith led the Utes with 13 points, five rebounds, two assists, two steals and a blocked shot. Sophomore Shona Thorburn added 11 points, five rebounds and five assists, while junior Lana Sitterud finished with 11 points, all scored in the first half. Senior Kelsy Stireman finished with eight points, five rebounds, three assists, two steals and a block.
On the season, Utah is led by Smith, who averages 16.0 points and 7.4 rebounds, and Thorburn, who adds 11.6 points, 5.5 rebounds and 3.7 assists per game. As a team, Utah is holding opponents to 52.9 points per game and has an average margin of victory of 13.3 points.
SCOUTING THE OPPOSITION:
New Mexico routed Air Force 79-31 at home last Saturday. The Lobos shot 56 percent from the field and 46 percent from three-point range on the game. New Mexico also out-rebounded the Falcons 41 to 26. Junior point guard Mandi Moore led the Lobos with 20 points, 11 rebounds and nine assists, just shy of a triple-double. Fatima Maddox, Melissa Forest and Lauren McLeod added 12, 11 and 10 points, respectively.
The Lobos are led this season by Arndt, who averages 10.0 points and 7.0 rebounds per game. As a team, New Mexico is shooting 40 percent from the field and holding opponents to just 33 percent. The Lobos also out-rebound opponents 41.7 to 35.9.
SERIES SHORTS:
Utah leads the all-time series with the Lobos 39-11. The last time the two teams met, on Jan. 25, Utah won 52-43 in Salt Lake. The Utes are 26-0 at home, 12-11 away and 1-0 at a neutral site vs. New Mexico.
AP TOP 25 POLL FEB. 16, 2004
Rank School 03-04 Total Last (first-place votes) Record Points Week1. Texas (33) 23-2 1,159 1 2. Connecticut (14) 20-2 1,139 2 3. Tennessee 21-2 1,074 3 4. Duke 20-3 1,021 4 5. Purdue 21-2 1,005 5 6. Louisiana Tech 19-2 891 6 7. Penn State 19-4 885 8 8. Kansas State 19-3 868 9 9. Texas Tech 21-4 744 7 10. Stanford 18-5 673 11 11. Minnesota 19-4 650 10 12. DePaul 22-2 645 13 13. Colorado 19-4 606 12 14. Auburn 20-5 602 14 15. LSU 20-4 575 16 16. North Carolina 18-5 459 15 17. TCU 20-4 364 22 18. Georgia 17-7 300 19 19. Baylor 18-6 277 18 20. Michigan State 19-5 272 17 21. Houston 20-3 239 25 22. Miami 18-4 151 NR 23. Boston College 18-5 136 NR 24. Oklahoma 16-6 110 NR 25. Utah 19-4 97 NR
Others receiving votes: SMS 81, Florida 61, Ohio State 57, Virginia Tech 29, Notre Dame 23, West Virginia 22, Villanova 14, George Washington 13, Montana 9, Marquette 6, Arizona 6, UT-Chattanooga 5, USC 3, Santa Barbara 2, N.C. State 1, Nebraska 1.
ESPN/USA TODAY POLL FEB. 17, 2004
Rank School 03-04 Total Last (first-place votes) Record Points Week1. Connecticut (29) 20-2 985 1 2. Texas (10) 23-2 963 2 3. Tennessee 21-2 923 3 4. Duke 20-3 871 4 5. Purdue 21-2 850 5 6. Louisiana Tech (1) 19-2 778 6 7. Penn State 19-4 741 8 8. Kansas State 19-3 714 9 9. Texas Tech 21-4 660 7 10. Stanford 18-5 607 11 11. DePaul 22-2 560 13 12. Minnesota 19-4 541 10 13. Colorado 19-4 531 12 14. LSU 20-4 467 16 15. North Carolina 18-5 418 14 16. Auburn 20-5 363 18 17. Georgia 17-7 318 17 18. Houston 21-3 265 21 19. TCU 20-4 255 22 20. Michigan State 19-5 254 15 21. Miami (Fla.) 18-4 204 23 22. Oklahoma 16-6 169 24 23. Boston College 18-5 139 25 24. Baylor 18-6 126 20 25. Virginia Tech 17-6 59 19
Others receiving votes: Southwest Missouri State (21-2) 38; Chattanooga (22-2) 37; Utah (19-4) 23; Ohio State (15-8) 20; Montana (20-4) 18; Notre Dame (15-8) 17; Arizona State (15-8) 13; Villanova (17-5) 13; Arizona (18-7) 11; Florida (16-7) 10; George Washington (18-5) 8; West Virginia (18-6) 8; Southern California (14-9) 7; Liberty (17-6) 6; Vanderbilt (16-7) 4; Loyola Marymount (19-5) 2; Miami (Ohio) (16-6) 2; Creighton (15-7) 1; Rutgers (14-9) 1.
MWC STANDINGS:
Conference Overall W L Pct. W L Pct.UTAH 9 0 1.000 19 4 .826UNLV 6 2 .750 17 4 .810 New Mexico 6 2 .750 14 7 .667 Colorado State 4 5 .444 13 9 .591 Wyoming 4 5 .444 8 14 .364 BYU 3 6 .333 13 10 .565 San Diego State 2 6 .250 7 14 .333 Air Force 0 8 .000 3 18 .143
MWC LEADERS:
As a team, the Utes rank in the top half of nearly every statistical category. Utah leads the conference in scoring margin (+13.3), field goal percentage (.453), three-point field goal percentage (.405), rebounding defense (30.8), assists (15.3), turnover margin (+2.7), three-point field goal average (7.0) and assist/turnover ratio (1.2), and ranks second in scoring defense (52.9), and third in rebounding margin (+3.5), scoring (66.3), field goal percentage defense (.387) and free throw percentage (.714).
In conference games only, the Utes rank in the top half of every statistical category but scoring, rebounding, blocked shots and offensive rebounds.
Individually, sophomore Kim Smith ranks second in scoring (16.0), third in defensive rebounds (4.9) and three-point field goal percentage (.424), fourth in three-point field goal average (1.7) and field goal percentage (.511), fifth in rebounding (7.4) seventh in offensive rebounds (2.5) and ninth in free throw percentage (.704). Sophomore Shona Thorburn ranks third in assist/turnover ratio (1.7), fourth in assists (3.7), eighth in three-point field goal average (1.4) and three-point field goal percentage (.348), 11th in scoring (11.6) and 14th in rebounding (5.5). Senior Kelsy Stireman ranks third in steals (2.2), fourth in assist/turnover ratio (1.5) and seventh in assists (3.3), while senior Carley Marshall is seventh in field goal percentage (.462). Sophomore Julie Wood leads the league in three-point field goal percentage (.500) and ranks sixth in three-point field goal average (1.5), while senior Mandie Little is sixth in field goal percentage (.497). Junior Lana Sitterud is 12th in three-point field goal percentage (.317).
RANKING NATIONALLY:
In NCAA statistics through Feb. 16, Utah ranks third nationally in three-point field goal percentage (.405) and turnovers per game (12.6), fourth in scoring defense (52.9), 11th in winning streak (9) and personal fouls per game (14.3), 16th in won-lost percentage (.826), 18th in three-point field goal average (7.0), 21st in scoring margin (13.3) and 24th in field goal percentage (.453).
LIVE BY THE THREE, DIE BY THE THREE:
Utah, which is shooting 41 percent from three-point range this season, has connected on 30 or more percent of its treys in all but four games (UC Santa Barbara, Oklahoma, Weber State, UNLV) this season, with two of those four games resulting in losses for the Utes. Utah has shot 50 percent or better from downtown eight times this season and won those games by an average of 22.6 points.
HOME SWEET HOME:
Utah, 10-0 at home this season, has won 26 games in a row at the Huntsman Center, dating back to the 2001-02 season. That is tied with Louisiana Tech and Western Illinois for the second longest home win streak in the nation behind Texas (32).
Last year, Utah went a perfect 13-0 at home. It was the ninth time Utah recorded an undefeated home season in the program's 30 years of existence. The Utes' last home loss came on Jan. 31, 2002, when the team fell 79-71 to UNLV.
WINNING THE REBOUNDING BATTLE:
Utah has out-rebounded its opponent in all but seven games this season (UC Santa Barbara, Fresno State, Oklahoma, Oregon State, Brigham Young, Colorado State and Wyoming), and three of the Utes' four losses came when they were out-rebounded by their opponent.
TAKING CARE OF THE BALL:
Utah, which currently ranks third nationally in turnovers per game, has only committed more turnovers than its opponent on three occasions (Washington State, Northern Arizona and Montana) this season. The Utes have committed 10 or fewer turnovers in six games and 15 or fewer in 17 of 23 games this season.
CONSISTENCY IN THE STARTING LINEUP:
Utah is the only team in the Mountain West Conference to have the same five players start every game this season. The Utes start three seniors - Mandie Little, Carley Marshall and Kelsy Stireman - and two sophomores - Kim Smith and Shona Thorburn. Stireman has started all but two games on her career (111 of 113), while Smith and Thorburn have started all 54 games since coming to Utah.
STEADY SMITH:
Sophomore Kim Smith has reached double digits scoring in 51 of 54 games on her career at Utah. She also has one or more treys in 48 of 54 career games. This season alone, Smith has at least one three-pointer in 20 of 23 games and has pulled down five or more rebounds in 21 of 23 games.
THORBURN DOES IT ALL:
Shona Thorburn, who ranks second on the team in scoring and rebounding, has reached double figures scoring 13 times this season and has scored five or more points in all 23 games. The guard also has at least one assist in 22 of 23 games, one three-pointer in 17 of 23 games and five or more rebounds in 12 of 22 games.
MARSHALL AND LITTLE DEPENDABLE INSIDE:
Senior post players Mandie Little and Carley Marshall have come up big for the Utes this season. Marshall has shot 50 percent or better from the field in 14 games, while Little has done the same in 13 of 23 games. In addition, Marshall has four or more rebounds in 15 games and Little has four or more boards in 13 of 23 games this season.
STIREMAN RUNS THE POINT, DEFENDS WELL:
Senior point guard Kelsy Stireman has at least one steal in 19 of 23 games this season. She grabbed three steals in four games, four steals in four games and nabbed a career-high seven steals against Weber State. She also has three or fewer turnovers in 18 of 23 games and at least one assist in 21 of 23 games.
SITTERUD COMING UP HUGE:
Junior captain Lana Sitterud has been huge in some of the Utes' recent wins. Against Wyoming, she scored 11 points, all in the first half, on 67 percent from the field and 75 percent from beyond the arc. Against CSU, she scored 15 points on five three-pointers, including three in a row, to cut the Ram lead to two and get Utah back into the game. On Feb. 8 at UNLV, Sitterud, defending RanDee Henry, held the junior to just six points on 1-of-11 shooting. It was the first time all season that Henry didn't reach double figures scoring. At Brigham Young, sophomore Ambrosia Anderson had 17 points and nine rebounds in the first half. Utah made some adjustments, putting Sitterud on Anderson, and the Cougar was held to just five points and four rebounds in the second half.
WOOD DEADLY FROM DOWNTOWN:
Sophomore Julie Wood, the MWC leader in three-point shooting, is a definite threat from long range. Of her 41 baskets this season, 35 are from downtown. Additionally, all five of her double-digit scoring games came when she made three or more three-pointers.
SMITH ON PACE TO REACH 1,000 POINTS THIS SEASON:
Forward Kim Smith currently has 367 points on the year. Combined with her 540 from last season, the sophomore currently has 907 career points. With a minimum of six games left this season, at her current pace, Smith would finish the season with 463 points, giving her 1,003 points on her career and making her the 18th Ute and just the second sophomore ever to reach 1,000 points.
SMITH NAMED MWC PLAYER OF THE WEEK FOR FEB. 2-8:
Kim Smith was named MWC Player of the Week for Feb. 2-8, marking her first career award. In a 56-29 victory at San Diego State, the All-America candidate tallied her seventh career double-double with 16 points and 13 rebounds, while also picking up two blocks and two steals. In a 72-55 victory at UNLV, Smith tallied 20 points and 10 boards. She connected on all five free throw attempts vs. the Rebels and collected two assists and a steal. For the week, Smith averaged 18 points, 11.5 rebounds, 1.5 steals, 1.5 assists and 1.0 blocks, while shooting 52 percent from the field (13-of-25) and 88 percent from the free throw line.
UTES PICKED TO WIN MOUNTAIN WEST:
Utah was selected as the unanimous favorite to win the 2003-04 MWC crown. The Utes received all possible first-place votes to repeat as MWC regular-season champions (coaches cannot vote for their own team).
SMITH, THORBURN NAMED PRESEASON ALL-MWC:
Sophomore Kim Smith was tabbed as the MWC preseason Player of the Year and sophomore Shona Thorburn was also named to the preseason all-conference team. Smith earned Top Returning Player honors following a freshman campaign that saw her named MWC Player and Newcomer of the Year (a conference first), Kodak honorable mention All-America, and a Freshman All-American by both Full Court Press and womenscollegehoops.com. She is one of 35 players and just three sophomores nationally named to the Wade Trophy watch list.
Thorburn, a second-team all-conference pick last year, ranked sixth in the league in scoring, averaging 14.7 points per game. She led Utah in assists (3.3 per game) and minutes played (36.5) last season.
UTES ON THE RADIO:
All but two of Utah's remaining games this season (Feb. 21 and March 6) will be broadcast on KALL-700 AM. Anchoring the broadcast team is KALL-700 AM Sports Director Brad Stone. In his 14th year with the station, Stone is the host of the Ute men's basketball and football game broadcasts. Color commentary for Utah home games is done by Utah's all-time leading scorer, Julie Krommenhoek. Utah's 2003-04 road games are called by Chris Tunis, who served as the president of the National Sportscasters and Sportswriters Association from 1999-2001. The Feb. 21 and March 6 games can be heard live on the Internet at www.utahutes.com.
INTERNET AUDIO/VIDEO BROADCASTS:
All Utah women's basketball home games are available to be seen and heard on the Internet. To get to the game broadcasts, go to http://155.99.112.235/wbball/ or go to the women's basketball page at www.utahutes.com and click on "Watch/Listen to Utah Home Games Live." To watch/listen to the broadcasts, you are encouraged to a have high-speed internet connection. You will also need to have QuickTime Player installed on your computer. QuickTime Player is free software available at http://www.apple.com/quicktime/download/. Although this is an Apple product, it can be loaded onto both Apple and PC machines.
UTES MAKE FIVE TELEVISION APPEARANCES:
Utah is making a school-record five regular-season appearances on television this season. MWC women's basketball will make its debut on College Sports Television (CSTV) when New Mexico hosts Utah this Thursday, Feb. 19. ESPN2 televised the New Mexico at Utah match-up on Jan. 25, and will also broadcast the title game of the MWC Tournament. Fox Sports Net regionally televised Utah's wins at CSU on Jan. 17 and at UNLV on Feb. 8, and will also broadcast the BYU at Utah game on Feb. 28. CSTV will also televise the MWC Tournament semifinal games on March 12.
UP NEXT:
The Utes travel to Colorado Springs, Colo, where they will face Air Force at 2 p.m. this Saturday, Feb. 21.
Players Mentioned
G
/ Women's Basketball
F
/ Women's Basketball
G
/ Women's Basketball
G
/ Women's BasketballUtah: 66, Cincinnati: 73 | Big 12 Tournament | Utah Basketball Postgame Press Conference
Wednesday, March 11
Utah: 75, Baylor: 101 | Utah Basketball Postgame Press Conference
Sunday, March 08
Utah: 78, Colorado: 92 | Utah Basketball Postgame Press Conference
Wednesday, March 04
Utah: 81, Colorado: 67 | Women's Basketball Postgame Press Conference
Sunday, March 01