Provo, Utah (Nov. 2, 2010) – In preparation for the 2010-11 season, the Cougar women’s basketball team is slated to play two home exhibition games.
Thurs. Nov. 4 the squad hosts Ft. Lewis College at 6 p.m. On Tues. Nov. 9, they battle Mesa State in a 7 p.m. tip. Both games are free of charge.
The Cougars open up the season at No. 6 Duke on Nov. 13. The team’s home opener is on Nov. 20 against the University of Washington.
BYU enters the 2010-11 with four returning starters, including the team’s leading scorer Mindy Bonham (11.1), leading rebounder Kristen Riley (5.7), and the top assist (4.1) and steals (2.3) leader in Haley Hall.
The Cougars 23-10 overall record during the 2009-10 campaign was the fourth 20-plus season for coach Judkins and ranks third best during his nine-year tenure.
With an 11-5 MWC record, the team finished in second place in the league race after being picked to finish sixth. During conference play, the team went 7-1 at home. Overall, the Cougars ended the year 11-2 when playing in the Marriott Center.
During league action, BYU had a successful campaign sweeping the series against Air Force, CSU, UNLV, and instate rival Utah.
As the automatic qualifier from the MWC to the 2010 postseason WNIT, the team had an impressive showing advancing to the quarterfinal round (Elite Eight). After a 62-58 home victory over Pepperdine, BYU embanked on a six-day, three game schedule where they grabbed victory over ASU, and league foe Wyoming before falling to eventual champion California.
The BYU bench played an integral part in the team’s success during the 2009-10 campaign. In points, the reserves scored a total of 533 points to opponents 388. In the rebound category, bench players grabbed a total of 517 boards compared with 370 for the opponents.
Adding to the Cougar success last year was a very productive offense. The team scored at least 70 points in 13 games, compiling a 12-1 record with eight of those contests being played during the MWC race. And, in all games except three, at least two BYU players put up double figure points.
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Join the official BYU Women's Basketball Fan Club BLUE CREW by emailing eliza_diederich@byu.edu