After two exhibition victories, the Cougar women’s basketball team is set to begin the 2011-12 campaign.
BYU opens the season with a home game against No. 8 Duke on Friday, Nov. 11 at 7 p.m.
The game is the season opener for both teams and it marks the first time that the Blue Devils have played in the Marriott Center. The contest is scheduled to air live worldwide on BYUtv.
| 2011-12 Probable Starters* | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | Name | Pos. | Ht. | Yr. | PPG | RPG | |
| 33 | Haley Hall Steed | G | 5-4 | Sr | 8.5 | 3.3 | |
| 4 | Kim Parker | G | 5-11 | So | 5 | 2.5 | |
| 21 | Lexi Eaton | G/F | 5-11 | Fr | High School | ||
| 32 | Dani Peterson | F | 6-1 | Sr | 4 | 3.1 | |
| 35 | Kristen Riley | C | 6-3 | Sr | 8.9 | 5.4 | |
| 2011-12 Bench Players* | |||||||
| No. | Name | Pos. | Ht. | Yr. | PPG | RPG | |
| 2 | Stephanie Rovetti | G | 5-6 | Fr/RS | High School | ||
| 3 | Ashley Garfield | G | 5-11 | Fr | High School | ||
| 5 | Jennifer Hamson | C | 6-7 | So | 8.7 | 5.5 | |
| 10 | Alexis Kaufusi | F | 6-1 | Jr | 5.9 | 2.8 | |
| 12 | Stephanie Vermunt | G/F | 6-0 | So | 3.4 | 1.5 | |
| 14 | Mackenzie Nielson | G/F | 6-0 | Fr | High School | ||
| 30 | Kylie Brown^ | G | 5-7 | Fr | High School | ||
| 41 | Morgan Bailey | F | 6-2 | Fr/RS | High School | ||
| 50 | Valerie Nawahine^ | G | 5-7 | Fr | High School | ||
| 55 | Kari Ryser^ | G | 5-8 | Fr | High School | ||
| * Last year's stats | ^Indicated walk-on for 2011-12 | ||||||
DUKE Game Promotions
The game is FREE to everyone. There will be halftime activities for children and FREE photo booth for everyone.
Fans check out the women’s basketball team’s Facebook page: Here
2010-11 Stats Summary
--Shooting from field: (.427, 888-2081)
--Shooting from three-point line: (.331, 238-718)
--Shooting from free-throw line: (.681, 341-501)
--Average points per game: 69.3
--Average rebounds per game: 39.1
--Average assists per game: 19.1
--Average steals per game: 8.4
--Average blocks per game: 4.1
--Average turnovers per game: 14.1
About BYU
--The Cougars return two of the team's scorers in Kristen Riley and Haley Hall Steed. Riley enters the 2011-12 campaign with an 8.9 points average while Steed puts up 8.5 points per contest
--In the rebounding category, Riley tops the list grabbing 5.4 boards a game with sophomore center Jennifer Hamson averaging 5.1 rebounds.
--Steed returns as the team’s assists and steals leader with 168 and 62 respectively.
--Hamson tops the leader board in the field goal percentage category (.559, 90-161). She also has the most blocks on the team with 45.
Team Captains Selected
Seniors Haley Steed (Hall) and Kristen Riley were chosen by their teammates as co-captians for the 2011-12 season. It marks Steed’s fourth straight co-captain selection.
This Week’s Opponent
DUKE
Duke comes to Provo ranked No. 8 in the country in the preseason USA Today ESPN Div. I Coaches Poll after an impressive year finishing in the Elite Eight of last year’s NCAA tournament. The Blue Devils will make their first trip to Provo. They are the second highest ranked women’s basketball team to play in the Marriott Center. During the 2008-09 season, the Cougar women hosted then No. 1 ranked Connecticut on Nov. 25, 2008. Duke concluded last season with a 32-4 overall record and tied for first place in the ACC with a 12-2 mark. They return eight letterwinners including two starters from last year’s team. The two returning starters are sophomore Chelsea Gray, a 5-11 guard who averaged 8.7 points and 3.3 rebounds per game and Haley Peters a 6-3 forward who tallied 6.7 points while grabbing 3.6 boards a contest. Head coach Joanne P. McCallie enters her fifth year at Duke.
| 2011-12 Probable Starters* | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | Name | Pos. | Ht. | Yr. | PPG | RPG | |
| 12 | Chelsea Gray | G | 5-11 | So | 8.7 | 3.3 | |
| 33 | Haley Peters | F | 6-3 | So | 6.3 | 3.6 | |
| 01 | Elizabeth Williams | C | 6.3 | Fr | High School | ||
| 03 | Shay Selby | G | 5-9 | Sr | 3.8 | 1.5 | |
| 04 | Chloe Wells | G | 5-7 | So | 3.5 | 0.9 | |
Series Breakdown
Overall Series Record: Duke leads 2-0
BYU Record in Provo: 0-0
BYU Record in Durham: 0-2
BYU Record in Neutral Sites: n/a
BYU Record under coach Judkins: 0-1
BYU Record in Overtime Games: n/a
Longest BYU Win Streak: n/a
Longest Duke Win Streak: 1 (2010)
Largest BYU Margin of Victory: n/a
Largest Duke Margin of Victory: 20, 80-60 in 1987
Last Meeting
The Cougars traveled to Durham to open the 2009-10 season at Duke where they fought hard, but fell 54-69 to the Blue Devils after being down by just seven, 23-30 at the break. BYU’s Mindy Bonham led the team in scoring with 12 points followed by eight points each from Haley Hall and Coriann Fraughton. Hall also grabbed seven rebounds while teammate Jazmine Foreman dished out a team high five assists.
What’s Next
BYU begins a three-game road swing with games at Tulsa on Monday, Nov. 14, at Kansas State on Wednesday, Nov. 16, finishing at instate rival Weber State on Saturday, Nov. 19. The team is back in the Marriott Center on Nov. 23 hosting Wisconsin.