Jan. 24, 2005
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Gophers and Lions Highlight Week's Slate of Games
This Sunday, Minnesota will attempt to do something that No. 24/23 Purdue and No. 8/8 Michigan State could not do last weekend. The Gophers are looking to do something no team has done this season and no League team has done since February 10, 2002: win at Penn State. Sunday's matchup in State College will be the Lady Lions' 10th against a ranked team this season, but their first as a ranked team since November 21. The 1 p.m. ET tip-off will be televised on FSN Chicago, FSN North and FSN Pittsburgh.
Big Ten Nearly Lands Six Teams in Coaches Top 25 Poll
In this week's national polls (AP / USA Today/ESPN/WBCA Coaches Poll), the Big Ten was just seven votes shy of being represented by six teams in the Coaches poll, while four squads are ranked by the AP. Ohio State is No. 3/3, while Minnesota is No. 10/12 and Michigan State is No. 11/11. Penn State jumped back into the polls for the first time since November 28 at No. 22/23, while Purdue is ranked No. 24 by the Coaches and is receiving votes along with Iowa in the AP poll. The Hawkeyes fell seven votes shy of the No. 25 spot in the Coaches poll.
Four League Stars Named to Midseason Wooden Watch
Four Big Ten student-athletes have been selected among the top 20 women's basketball players to the Wooden Award Midseason All-America Team selected by the John R. Wooden Award National Advisory Board. Michigan State's Lindsay Bowen, Minnesota's Janel McCarville, Ohio State's Jessica Davenport and Penn State's Tanisha Wright were named to the second annual Midseason Team on January 24. In March, the Wooden Award Committee will release the official voting ballot, consisting of the top 10-15 players.
Five League Squads Rank Among Nation's Top 15 RPI
In the latest WBCA/Summerville RPI Ratings, the Big Ten ranks third in Conference RPI average (.599) and fifth in overall RPI (.581), while five League teams rank among the nation's top 15. Michigan State holds an overall RPI rating of .664, which is fifth best in the nation, followed by No. 6 Ohio State (.659) and No. 7 Penn State (.654). Minnesota (.640) is 13th and Iowa is 15th (.637). In overall strength of schedule, Penn State is second at .686, while Purdue is fourth (.655) and Northwestern is ninth (.646).
A Grand Old Milestone
Eleven Big Ten student-athletes are currently members of the 1,000-point club, including two -- Indiana's Cyndi Valentin and Iowa's Jamie Cavey -- that eclipsed the mark just last week. The following is a list of the current players who have accomplished the feat in their career and a few Big Ten student-athletes who are quickly approaching the 1,000-point mark.
Player, School - Total
Tanisha Wright, PSU - 1,781
Janel McCarville, MINN - 1,588
Angelina Williams, ILL - 1,432
Caity Matter, OSU - 1,347
Jess Strom, PSU - 1,283
Tabitha Pool, MICH - 1,227
Tiffanie Guthrie, ILL - 1,213
Kelli Roehrig, MSU - 1,146
Sarah Kwasinski, NU - 1,181
Lindsay Bowen, MSU - 1,090
Jamie Cavey, IOWA - 1.021
Cyndi Valentin, IND - 1,014
Kristin Haynie, MSU - 993
Liz Shimek, MSU - 913
Big Ten Women's Basketball Attracting More Fans in 04-05
Big Ten Women's Basketball is attracting more fans nationwide than last year. Currently, the League boasts an all-game total of 613,496 fans through 163 games, which is over 44,000 better than last season's 163-game total. The Conference is also chasing its record-breaking marks for home attendance, which were set last year.
ALL Games Total Avg. Diff. Games Total Avg. Diff.
2003-04 163 569,317 3,493 247 1,089,833 4,412 +648
2004-05 163 613,496 3,764 +271 --- --- 3,764
HOME Games Total Avg. Diff. Games Total Avg. Diff.
2003-04 100 450,946 4,509 +29 150 *778,125 *5,085 +605
2004-05 100 447,950 4,480 --- --- 4,480
*Big Ten Record
Six League Teams Rank in Top 25 in Attendance
In the latest unofficial attendance rankings compiled by the University of Wisconsin, six Big Ten teams average in the nation's top 25. Purdue is fifth with an average of 8,406, while Minnesota (7,979) is sixth and Penn State (7,668) is seventh. Wisconsin (5,802) ranks 13th, followed by No. 16 Michigan State (5,218) and No. 23 Iowa (3,989). Ohio State ranks just outside the top 25 in 28th at 3,639.
A 20 Year Reunion Worth Attending
Twenty years ago, the University of Iowa and Ohio State packed Carver Hawkeye Arena to make women's basketball history. On February 3, 1985, the Hawkeyes shattered the NCAA and Big Ten Conference attendance records when 22,157 fans squeezed into the 15,500 seat venue. The Hawkeyes lost the game to Ohio State, 56-47. The 20-year-old mark is currently the 10th highest attendance total in League history, as it is technically listed at 14,821 -- the amount of paid attendance. The 22,157 total attendance mark is still over 5,000 more than the League's official top-mark of 17,142, set on January 20, 2002, when Wisconsin traveled to Minnesota.
Over Half of League Games to be Televised
During the 2004-05 Big Ten season, 47 of the 88 League games are scheduled to be televised, including 15 contests before national or regional audiences. FSN Chicago will air 12 Conference games, while ESPN2 has broadcasted two and CBS has aired one. This week's Indiana at Illinois game will be seen on FSN Chicago, while Sunday's Minnesota at Penn State matchup will be aired by FSN Chicago, FSN North and FSN Pittsburgh.
Big Ten Ranks Among NCAA Leaders
In the latest NCAA report (1/18/05), issued each week on Tuesdays, seven student-athletes and seven teams rank in the top 15 in their respective categories. Indiana's Cyndi Valentin is eighth with a .895 free throw percentage, while Penn State's Jess Strom ranks 15th at .881. Ohio State's Caity Matter is 10th overall with a .467 three-point field goal percentage, while teammate Jessica Davenport ranks 14th with 3.0 blocks per game. Minnesota's Janel McCarville is 15th in rebounds with 10.3 per game. Ohio State is first in field goal percentage (.522), while Penn State ranks second in free throw percentage at .793, followed by OSU in third at .787.
Celebrating 10 Years of the Big Ten Tournament in Indy
Celebrating its 10th year of the Big Ten Tournament in Indianapolis, the League office will highlight 10 great Tourney moments throughout the season, which began on the first day of Conference play, December 30. Over the 10-week period, bigten.org will feature a new moment every Thursday leading up to March 3 -- the opening day of the 2005 Big Ten Tournament at Conseco Fieldhouse in Indianapolis. For this week's moment, check out bigten.org or page nine.
Roar of the Lion: A Return to the Top of Big Ten Scoring?
In three of the last four years, a Penn State student-athlete has led the Conference in overall scoring. Kelly Mazzante led the League in 2000-01 (19.7 ppg), 2001-02 (25.1) and 2002-03 (22.2), before yielding to Purdue's Shereka Wright last season as she averaged a Conference-best 21.4 points per game. Currently, Penn State's Tanisha Wright leads the League with an average of 20.2.
Anderson and Walker the Next Mazzante/Whalen???
Wisconsin's Jolene Anderson and Michigan's Ta'Shia Walker are currently among the ranks of Big Ten greats Kelly Mazzante of Penn State and Lindsay Whalen of Minnesota. In the past five years, the Big Ten has not had two freshmen pair each average over 13.5 points in all games since the 2000-01 season when Mazzante and Whalen began their collegiate careers. But this year, Anderson and Walker are currently above the 13.5 mark, as the Badger rookie is fourth in the League at 17.3 points per game, while Walker stands at 13.5 ppg. In fact, not since the 2000-01 season has any freshman averaged over 13.5 points. Currently there are three freshmen ranked in the top 30 in scoring this season, which is a first since the 2001-02 campaign. The League had just two in each of the 2002-03 and 2003-04 seasons. The following is a breakdown of the League's leading freshmen scorers in the top 30 annually the past five years:
See a detailed breakdown of the freshmen play over the past five years by downloading the weekly release PDF
Double-Digit Dandies
Currently 20 Big Ten student-athletes have double-figure scoring streaks. this season. Penn State's Tanisha Wright have scored 10 or more points in each of the Lady Lions' 18 games this year.
Big Ten Records Successful Non-Conference Season
While Conference action is now upon us, the Big Ten will still have a few non-conference games this season prior to the NCAA Tournament. The League is currently 85-40 in non-conference action with a winning percentage of .680. In 2003-04, the Big Ten finished 98-42 for a .700 winning percentage.
Wolverines Join National Sports Celebration
The Michigan women's basketball program will be an active participant with National Girls and Women in Sports Day (NGWSD) when the Wolverines host Minnesota on February 6 (2 p.m.) at Crisler Arena. The 2005 NGWSD celebration will take place on February 9 on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., with the celebration game taking place three days earlier in Ann Arbor, Mich. NGSWD is sponsored and supported by six national organizations which serve girls and women, including Girl Scouts of the USA, which is partnering with Michigan through Girl Scout of the Huron Valley Council to bring this event to Ann Arbor.
