Saturday, February 25
Missoula, MT
2:05 p.m.
Montana State University
at
MONTANA
Freshman Jackie Elliott
Photo by: R. Dean Hendrickson
Cat-Lady Griz, Part II
2/24/2012 5:27:00 PM | Women's Basketball
The Montana State women’s basketball team will play just one Big Sky game this weekend, as it travels to Montana, Saturday, Feb. 25 for a 2 p.m. showdown with the Lady Griz in Missoula.
MSU-UM GAME NOTES (pdf)
ROAD WARRIORS:
The Montana State women's basketball team will play just one Big Sky game this weekend, as it travels to Montana, Saturday, Feb. 25 for a 2 p.m. showdown with the Lady Griz in Missoula.
WARM UP THE BUS:
Senior Katie Bussey is putting the wraps on a stellar career. Against Northern Arizona State last Thursday, Bussey set the new Big Sky Conference record for most three-point field goals with 242. Bussey also became one of three players in Bobcat history to surpass the 1600-point plateau. She move into second on MSU's all-time scoring chart with 1,648 career points. The total also ranks 12th all-time in Big Sky history.
GET SMART:
Montana State junior standout Rachel Semansky has earned Capital One Academic All-America Second-Team honors, the nation's highest academic accolade for student-athletes. Semansky, a native of Highwood, is among fifteen women's basketball players (the only Big Sky player) at the NCAA Division I level to achieve the recognition. Semansky sports a 3.95 grade-point average in elementary education.
PILOT OF THE AIRWAVES:
All Montana State women's basketball games - exhibition through postseason - will be carried live on KZMY My 103.5 FM. Tyler Wiltgen is in his fifth year calling the action. Wiltgen's pregame show begins 20-minutes prior to tip off.
FOR YOUR LISTENING/VIEWING PLEASURE:
Montana State women's basketball home and Big Sky Conference games can be seen via free video streaming at www.b2tv.com. In addition, games can be heard on the web by clicking the Bobcat Sports Radio Network button at www.msubobcats.com. Live stats are also available for home games at www.msubobcats.com or at each opponent's website in the case of away games. Saturday's game at Montana will be aired live on the CW with Ted Dawson handling play-by-play duties and Derek Buerkle adding color commentary. Check your local listings for channel.
TIME TO GET BUSSEY:
Prior to the season, Katie Bussey had established herself as Montana State's all-time three-point makes (175) queen. Bussey now can lay claim to the Big Sky all-time mark, surpassing Chelsey Warburton's (Weber State, 2004-07) record of 238 triples. Bussey's first shot at Northern Arizona a week ago Thursday gave her the all-time record. She went on to convert four treys against the Lumberjacks and her new total stands at 242. A two-time All Big Sky performer and the 2008-09 Big Sky Freshman of the Year, she is also moving up MSU's all-time scoring ladder. Her current total of 1,648 points ranks 2nd overall. She trails only Kathleen McLaughlin Howard (1,761). Last weekend, the native of Alamosa, Colo., paced Montana State in its win over Northern Arizona with 24 points. She also added four assists, four steals and three rebounds in 33 minutes of action. On Feb. 2, Bussey established a new Bobcat school-record and matched the Big Sky Conference record, pouring in 41 points against Idaho State in Pocatello.
THE PRIDE OF HIGHWOOD:
Junior Rachel Semansky, a first-team All Big Sky selection last winter, continued her strong 2011-12 campaign last week in Montana State's win at Northern Arizona. Against the Lumberjacks, she posted 11 points, while hauling down eight rebounds. Semansky has led MSU in rebounding in 15 contests and has recorded ten double-digit rebounding games. She ranks 11th on MSU's all-time rebounding list (644), and has her sights set on a top 10 spot, currently held by Natalie Smith (664, 1994-98). Semansky leads the team in all games shooting 52 percent and is top in rebounding at 9.0 per outing. The pride of Highwood recorded a career-high 30 points against the College of Idaho and hauled down a career-best 18 rebounds against NAU.
CHELSEA, LATELY:
Sophomore Chelsea Banis, who returned to the Bobcat roster this season after missing 15 Big Sky Conference games last winter due to a torn MCL, has played in 24 games this winter with 21 starts. The native of Fairfield averaged 9.5 points and 6.5 rebounds, while shooting 54 percent from the field as a freshman. Banis is averaging 9.3 points and 5.0 rebounds this year. Last Thursday in MSU's win over Northern Arizona, Banis was second on the team with 14 points, connecting on 5-of-9 from the floor and 4-of-4 from the line. In addition, she pulled down six boards and had a blocked shot.
DOUBLE A:
Sophomore Ashley Albert, a 6-foot-1 forward from Hamilton, Mont., returned to the Montana State lineup after missing all of the 2010-11 season with a torn ACL. As a freshman, Albert averaged 6.3 points and 3.0 rebounds, while shooting 42 percent. This season, Albert has been a steady performer for the Bobcats and is currently chipping in 12 points and 7.1 rebounds from her forward spot. Last Thursday, she posted her fourth straight double-figure scoring game with 12 points in MSU's win over Northern Arizona. Since moving to the four spot, Albert has averaged 14.5 points and 6.8 boards per contest. Albert's 11 boards versus Montana three weeks ago matched a career-high. Earlier this season, she posted a career-high 20 points against Big-10 foe Wisconsin. Overall, she has registered 18-of-26 games in double-figure scoring games. Albert is also second on the Bobcat squad with 37 three-pointers.
SWISHA:
Junior Latisha Adams has transitioned into a point-guard role this season, which gives the Bobcats added size at the spot. Last season, the 5-foot-9 native of Albuquerque, New Mexico, averaged 2.8 points, 1.9 rebounds and 1.8 assists. Adams recorded a career-high 11 points at Weber State on Jan. 17, 2011 and pulled down a career-high eight rebounds at Sacramento State. Last Thursday, Adams had five assists and four points against the Lumberjacks.
AUSHA BY-GOSHA:
In her second season, Ausha Cole is currently second in assist/turnover ratio at +1.9 in Big Sky play. She is also ranked sixth in assists and ninth in steals. Cole has started two of the last three games for the Bobcats. Against Northern Arizona on Thursday, Cole came off the bench and dished out seven assists, while adding five points and three steals. Earlier this season, Cole dished out a career-high 11 assists against the College of Idaho. She has notched 17 games with a positive assist/turnover ratio. As a frosh, Cole received her first start against CS Bakersfield playing 29 minutes and dishing out seven assists. MSU went 15-6 overall with Cole as the starting point-guard in 10-11.
PHONE HOME:
Jackie Elliott, a true freshman from Billings, has made five starts, including the last three games for the Bobcats. The Billings Central grad played 17 minutes in MSU's win over Northern Arizona. Against the Lumberjacks, she posted two points and added three rebounds and an assist. For the season, Elliott is averaging 3.2 points and 3.2 rebounds. Elliott had a season-best 14 points against UM-Western and a season-high nine rebounds in MSU's win over Utah State. She is averaging 15.1 minutes per contest.
ALL IN THE FAMILY:
Kalli Durham and the Bobcats have a long and storied family history on the Bozeman campus. Durham's grandfather (Lin), uncle (Mick) and cousin (Casey) played for the Montana State men's team. Uncle Mick served as the men's head coach at MSU for 16 years and is the current head coach at the University of Alaska Fairbanks. Father Mark is the current athletic director and former head men's coach at UM-Western. Last Thursday, she came off the bench to post 11 points against Northern Arizona, while pulling down two rebounds. She finished the game connecting on 2-3 from beyond the arc. Durham recorded a season-high 19 points, including a season-best four three-pointers against the College of Idaho.
ALLONS-Y CHATTE:
Destini French, a 6-foot-2 freshman center from Playa del Rey, Calif., is logging some playing time for the Bobcats after tearing her ACL/MCL her senior season at St. Bernard. French saw just one minute of action last week in Montana State's win over Northern Arizona. She had one foul against the Lumberjacks. French registered a career-high six points and hauled down four rebounds against the College of Idaho on Nov. 20, 2011.
SYMONE SAYS:
Symone Brown did not play last weekend. She saw her first action of the season against the College of Idaho and logged seven minutes. She pulled down two rebounds in the contest. Brown, a 5-9 guard who prepped at Richard Gahr High School, averaged 20.8 points and 5.9 rebounds per game as a senior. As a senior, Brown was selected to the CIF Division 3AA First-Team, as well as the San Gabriel Valley League First-Team; Long Beach Press Telegram Dream Team; and the Cerritos Community News First-Team.
MONTANA STATE
PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Katie Bussey
G, 5-9 Senior
Alamosa, Colorado
Bussey led Montana State to an 83-78 win over Northern Arizona, Thursday night (Feb. 16) on the road at the Rolle Activity Center. MSU now sports a 5-1 record away from Worthington Arena in Big Sky action. For the game, Bussey led all scorers with 24 points. Her first basket of the game, a three-pointer, set the Big Sky Conference record for most 3-pointers in a career. She ended the game with four triples, and her all-time league mark now stands at 242. In addition to her 24 points, Bussey also added four assists and four steals, while pulling down three rebounds in 33 minutes of play.
WELCOME BACK, ELMO:
Bobcat sophomore forward Emily Allen rejoined the team after sitting out the first semester for personal reasons. The native of Gold Coast, Australia made her presence felt right away in MSU's win over North Dakota in Worthington Arena prior to the Christmas break. Against UND she registered a career-high 11 rebounds, to go along with eight points. Last weekend, Allen played eight minutes in Montana State's win at Northern Arizona. Against the Lumberjacks, Allen pulled down four rebounds and did a stellar job on the defensive end of the court. On the season, she is averaging 1.6 points and 2.8 boards per game.
COLLEGEINSIDER.COM:
With their 77-76 loss to Sacramento State two weeks ago, Montana State dropped out of the 'other receiving votes' category in the collegeinsider.com Mid-Major Women's Top 25 poll. Idaho State is the only Big Sky team to crack the poll at No. 19. ISU's lone league loss came at the hands of the Bobcats. The No. 1 Mid-Major ranking belongs to Delaware with 770 points, after knocking UW-Green Bay from its hold on the top spot.
IT'S ALL ABOUT THE TEAM:
The Bobcats rank among the league's top five in 16 of the Big Sky's 21 statistical categories. MSU is ranked first in three-point field-goal percentage defense (.276), assist/turnover ratio (+0.9) and defensive rebounds (29.0).
POWER OUTAGE:
MSU's only hiccup so far this season is in its games against the 'so-called' power conferences. MSU finished 2-4 with wins over Colorado State (Mountain West) and Utah State (WAC) and losses to Oregon State (Pac-12), Wisconsin (Big 10), Illinois (Big 10) and #13 Georgia (SEC).
Bobcat Insider TV Show
Wednesday, January 26
vs. Seattle (Live Stream Video)
Saturday, December 18
Inside The Brick (Lexi Deden)
Thursday, November 04
Inside The Brick (Leia Beattie)
Tuesday, November 02
