Northwestern University Athletics
Women's Basketball Meets Minnesota
1/20/2000 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Jan. 20, 2000
NORTHWESTERN WOMEN?S BASKETBALL (5-10, 2-3 Big Ten) vs. Minnesota (7-9, 1-5 Big Ten)
DATE/TIME: Thursday, Jan. 20, 2000/7 p.m.
SITE: Sports Pavilion (Minneapolis, Minn.)
TELEVISION: None
RADIO: WNUR (89.3 FM)
ABOUT NORTHWESTERN
The Wildcats are looking to snap their two-game losing skid tonight as they take on the Golden Gophers. NU fell to Wisconsin last Wednesday, 74-60. Tami Sears tabbed a team-high 17 points and nine boards, while Dana Leonard added 16. On Sunday, the ?Cats fell to Indiana in another game determined by second-half runs following a competitive first half. Leonard led the team in the 77-53 loss with 17 points, including four three-pointers. Sears was the only other ?Cat in double figures with 14 points and nine boards. She is currently leading the team, averaging 11.9 points and 6.5 boards per game.
ABOUT MINNESOTA
The Gophers lost at Iowa a week ago tonight, 51-80. Cassie VanderHeyden led Minnesota with 13 points, while Moneeke Bowden tallied 11 points and six rebounds. Erin Olson added 10 points and five assists for the Gophers. On Sunday, Minnesota fell to Purdue in West Lafayette, 77-60. VanderHeyden led the Gophers with a game-high 17 points, while Bowden added 15 points and seven caroms. Lindsay Lieser also reached double figures with 14 points, including three three-pointers.
THE SERIES
Northwestern owns a 28-10 all-time record against the Golden Gophers. Last season Northwestern fell to the Gophers at Welsh-Ryan, 70-68, and defeated Minnesota at the Sports Pavilion, 66-53. The Wildcats are 10-5 against the Gophers in Minneapolis.
NOTABLES
? The game time of Northwestern?s home contest with Indiana on Wednesday, Jan. 26, has been changed to 7 p.m.
? It will be a homecoming of sorts Thursday night as Leslie Dolland plays in her home state of Minnesota for the first time as a Wildcat. The freshman center is from Bloomington. Dolland has started in 13 of the Wildcats? 15 games, is averaging 5.4 points and 4.7 boards per game, and has six blocks and 10 steals on the season.
? Fifth-year senior forward Kristina Divjak made her first appearance on the court in two seasons when she checked into the game against Penn State. Divjak played for six minutes, scoring two points and pulling down a rebound. She last played on Nov. 25, 1998.
? Freshman guard Emily Butler is the only Wildcat to start in all 15 contests this season.
? Northwestern is tied for fifth in the Big Ten with a 2-3 record.
? Bill?e Russell is seeing more playing time and has quickly become the first player off the bench for the Wildcats. Russell has played in four of the five Big Ten games and is averaging 14.0 minutes, 2.3 rebounds and 1.8 points per game.
? Junior guard Dana Leonard is getting a new perspective on the game, as she has come off the bench in the last three Wildcat outings. Leonard has jump-started the offense and was the leading scorer with 17 points in the Wildcats? loss to Indiana. She had 16 points in the loss to Wisconsin, 10 points in the win over Michigan State and 12 against Iowa.
THIEVES AMONG US
Northwestern recorded a season-high 11 steals against Indiana Sunday afternoon. Dana Leonard had four while Leslie Schock added three and Nicole Daniels chipped in two. Emily Butler and Leslie Dolland pilfered one apiece.
CLEARING THE GLASS
The frontcourt tandem of Leslie Schock and Tami Sears has caused trouble for Wildcat opponents this season on the glass. Schock and Sears have torn down a combined 187 boards this season. Sears leads the team, averaging 6.5 boards per game, while Schock pulls down 6.0 per game.
