No. 19 Baylor Presents Next Big 12 Obstacle For Wildcats
Jan 26, 2004 | Women's Basketball
(#9/10) Kansas State (13-3, 4-1) vs. (#19/24) Baylor (16-3, 4-2)
Game #17
January 27, 2004 - 7 p.m. (CT)
Bramlage Coliseum (13,340)
Manhattan, Kan.
Television: Metro Sports
Radio: Mid America Sports Network (Steve Webster, play-by-play, Missy Decker Heidrick, color analyst)
Internet: Audio and web broadcast on www.k-statesports.com
Series History: K-State leads 8-5
Nearly halfway through the Big 12 Conference schedule, the ninth-ranked Kansas State women’s basketball team (13-3, 4-1) faces its second top 25 league opponent in No. 19/24-ranked Baylor (16-3, 4-2) on Tuesday, Jan. 27 at 7 p.m. (CT) in Bramlage Coliseum. The game will be televised locally on WIBW (Topeka) and Metro Sports (Kansas City) with Ben Boyle (play-by-play) and Stan Weber (color analyst) calling the action. Fans may also access a live webcast of the game via Powercat Passport at www.k-statesports.com.
TOUGH TWO-GAME STRETCH AHEAD
Kansas State returns to its two-game-a-week routine playing host to Baylor and No. 15/15 Oklahoma (13-4, 3-3) on Jan. 31, which will be one of the toughest stretches of Big 12 play for the Wildcats mid-season. Parity within the league has been seen with upsets of top 10 teams by unranked opponents this past weekend, including Oklahoma State’s double overtime win over No. 3 Texas Tech (88-87) and Nebraska’s 18-point victory over the Wildcats (81-63) on Jan. 24. K-State is 1-0 against Big 12 opponents ranked in the top 25 this season (beat No. 14 Colorado, 76-69, on Jan. 10).
SCOUTING REPORT ON BAYLOR
The Bears are winners of two straight, having won at Oklahoma (74-67) on Jan. 24 and defeated KU (85-66) on Jan. 21. Last week, top scorer Sophia Young, a 6-foot-1 sophomore post, was named Big 12 Conference Player of the Week after guiding the Bears to a victory over No. 3 Texas and a one-point loss at No. 2 Texas Tech. She averaged 19.0 points and 7.0 rebounds against both schools. Two of Baylor’s three losses this year have come against common 2003-04 K-State opponents (Penn State, Colorado and Texas Tech). BU is currently tied with Nebraska for fourth in the latest Big 12 standings with 4-2 marks, while the Wildcats are third.
PROBABLE STARTING LINEUP
No. Name 2003-04 Stats
33 Sophia Young (F, 6-1, So.) 16.9 ppg, 8.6 rpg
45 Steffanie Blackmon (F, 6-2, Jr.) 14.4 ppg, 6.5 rpg
2 Chelsea Whitaker (G,5-9, Jr.) 5.1 ppg, 2.7 rpg
10 Jessika Stratton (G,5-10, Sr.) 9.7 ppg, 2.7 rpg
32 Ebony Jackson (G, 5-5, So.) 6.3 ppg, 1.4 rpg
SERIES HISTORY
One of the oldest series against any Big 12 conference opponent, K-State leads 8-5 all-time versus Baylor. Both teams first met back in 1972, with the Wildcats taking a 66-48 victory in Houston, Texas. K-State has won the last three consecutive meetings (regular season and postseason combined in 2002-03) and holds home court advantage in the series, going 3-0 when playing in Manhattan. Last year, the Wildcats went 3-0 versus the Bears winning by an average margin of 14.3 points.
LAST TIME OUT
Kansas State's 11-game win streak dating back to a 60-41 win over Northern Illinois on Dec. 2 was snapped at Nebraska on Jan. 24. The Huskers held the Wildcats to a season-low 33.3 percent shooting from the field and won 81-63. It was K-State's first lopsided game since an 88-62 loss to Old Dominion in the Sweet 16 of the 2002 NCAA Tournament and first in Big 12 regular season play since a 79-58 loss at Colorado on Feb. 23, 2002. The Wildcats had only lost twice to an unranked conference opponent in the last three consecutive Big 12 regular seasons before the Nebraska upset.
FASTEST TO 1,500
Junior Kendra Wecker is 36 points away from becoming the second fastest Wildcat to reach 1,500 career points. She has scored 1,464 career points to date in just 84 career games played. Nicole Ohlde reached the 1,500-point marker in her 85th career game last season at Baylor on Feb. 8, 2002.
Player Career Games
1. Nicole Ohlde 85
2. Tammie Romstad 100
3. Diana Miller 103
4. Nadira Hazim 104
5. Brit Jacobson 110
6. Eileen Feeney 112
OHLDE INCHES CLOSER TO REBOUND RECORD
Nicole Ohlde is 25 boards away from becoming the school’s all-time leading rebounder with 899 rebounds to date. Former Wildcat Carlisa Thomas (1983-87) has held the record for the last 17 years and led the Wildcats in rebounding throughout her four-year career at K-State. Kendra Wecker currently ranks ninth with 678 rebounds to date.
Player Rebs.
1. Carlisa Thomas (1983-87) 923
2. Nicole Ohlde (2000-Present) 899
3. Eileen Feeney (1976-80) 783
4. Tammie Romstad (1978-82) 779
5. Diana Miller (1987-91) 747
6. Laurie Miller (1975-79) 726
7. Shanele Stires (1992-95) 701
8. Kristie Bahner (1987-91) 698
9. Kendra Wecker (2002-Present) 678
10. Angie Finkes (1996-00) 627
