Texas Tech University Athletics
No. 10 Lady Raiders Take On No. 16 Longhorns
January 11, 2002 | Women's Basketball
Jan. 11, 2002
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Sunday's Game
No. 10/12 Texas Tech will take No. 16/17 Texas Sunday, Jan. 13 at 1 p.m. in Austin on Fox Sports Southwest. It is the 64th meeting between the two schools.
The Lady Raiders
Texas Tech is 9-4 on the year and 1-2 in the Big 12 after losing at Missouri, 82-71, last Wednesday. The Lady Raiders are led in scoring by sophomore Jia Perkins at 15.5 points a game and sophomore Natalie Ritchie at 12.2. Senior Amber Tarr is averaging 10.5 points. Freshman Cisti Greenwalt is averaging 8.3 rebounds per outing, while sophomore Casey Jackson is averaging 5.6. Perkins has team highs of 55 assists and 32 steals. Greenwalt is the top shot blocker with 32 blocks followed by sophomore Jolee Ayers with 12. Senior Tanisha Ellison is shooting 53.2 percent from the field and Ritchie is shooting 38.6 percent from three-point range. On the year, the Lady Raiders are shooting 41.5 percent from the field, 35 percent from the three-point arc and 62 percent from the free throw line.
Scouting the Opponent
Texas enters the game with an 11-2 overall record and 3-0 in the Big 12 after beating No. 5 Iowa State, 66-65, in Austin last Wednesday. In that game, senior Tracy Cook and sophomore Stacy Stephens each scored 16 points for the Longhorns. Senior Kenya Larkin added 13 points. Cook finished with nine rebounds, while Stephens tallied eight rebounds and five steals. Larkin dished out six assists.
On the year, Stephens paces the Longhorns in scoring with a 13.6 average followed by freshman Heather Schreiber at 13.2 and Cook at 12.3. Stephens is the top rebounder grabbing 9.1 boards per outing. Larkin leads the team in assists with 65, while Schreiber has a team-high 21 steals. Cook is the top shot blocker with 16 blocks. Texas is shooting 43.4 percent from the field, 35.5 percent from three-point range and 69.1 percent from the free throw line.
Jody Conradt is in her 27th year at the helm of the Longhorns, establishing a record of 660-188. She is also in her 33rd year as a head coach with an overall record of 777-250.
Series Record
It is the 64th meeting between Texas Tech and Texas with Texas holding a 46-17 advantage. In their last meeting, Tech defeat the Longhorns, 71-58, on March 7, 2001 in the quarterfinals of the Big 12 Conference Tournament in Kansas City, Mo. The Lady Raiders also won, 76-60, Feb. 24 in Austin last season, while Texas won the first game last year, 63-57, in Lubbock Feb. 10.
Last Time vs. Texas
March 7, 2001 - Jia Perkins scored 18 points as No. 11 Texas Tech beat Texas 71-58 in the quarterfinals of the Big 12 Conference Tournament.
Texas Tech advanced to the semifinals for the fourth straight year.
Plenette Pierson added 15 points for Texas Tech. Katrisa O'Neal and Natalie Ritchie each had 10.
Kaira White led Texas with 20 points. Tracy Cook scored 13 and Stacy Stephens 10.
The Lady Raiders used an 8-0 run with 7:57 left to overcome a seven-point deficit and held Texas to one field goal in the final eight minutes.
Kaira White ignited the 8-0 run with two 3-pointers as Texas took a 52-45 lead with 10:36 remaining. But Texas Tech outscored the Longhorns 15-4 in the final six minutes.
A Look Ahead
Texas Tech will return home to face Baylor Jan. 16. Tech will then head north to Iowa State Jan. 19. The Lady Raiders will host Oklahoma State on Jan. 23 and travel to Kansas State on Jan. 27 for a game on Fox Sports Net at 2 p.m.
Lady Raider Head Coach Marsha Sharp
One of the most respected and well-known coaches in Texas Tech history, head coach Marsha Sharp is 468-145 in her 20th year at the helm of the Lady Raiders. Entering the 2001-02 season, Sharp was the seventh active winningest coach among Division I coaches. She has led the Lady Raiders to 14 NCAA Tournament appearances, including 12 consecutive, and eight NCAA Sweet 16 and three Elite Eight appearances and the NCAA National Championship in 1993. Sharp led the Lady Raiders to three-straight Big 12 Conference regular-season titles (1998-2000) and two tournament crowns (1998, 1999). While in the SWC, coach Sharp and the Lady Raiders never finished below third, they won or shared the last five championships, and they captured three Post-Season Classic titles.
A 1974 graduate of Wayland Baptist University, Sharp was named the National Coach of the Year in 1993 and 1994. She also reaped SWC Coach of the Year honors seven times, five consecutively.
Last Time Out
(AP) - Kerensa Barr scored 19 points as Missouri defeated Texas Tech, 82-71, last Wednesday night. Evan Unrau and Natalie Bright added 16 points apiece for the Tigers, while Melanie Fisher had 12 points and eight rebounds.
Texas Tech (9-4, 1-2) trailed 34-32 at halftime but shot just 38 percent - 12-of-23 - in the second half, at one point leading 61-60 with 6:02 left before the Tigers pulled away with a 22-10 run down the stretch.
The Tigers connected on 54 percent of their second-half shots against a Lady Raiders team that struggled inside and never really found its touch for the second-straight game. In an 80-68 home loss Saturday to Oklahoma, Texas Tech missed 17 of its first 18 shots, fell behind 24-3 and never recovered, ultimately trailing by as many as 25 points in the second half.
Against Missouri, Texas Tech missed 15 of its 20 3-point attempts - going just 2-of-13 from behind the arc in the second half - and finished 26-of-60 overall from the field for 43 percent. The Lady Raiders also were outscored by nine points from the free-throw line and outrebounded 44-21.
The outcome had Lady Raiders coach Marsha Sharp shaking her head.
Jia Perkins had 20 points for Texas Tech on 10-of-17 shooting before fouling out with 4:30 left. Amber Tarr added 18 points despite missing seven of her 10 3-point tries.
Fisher was 9-of-9 from the free-throw line but struggled from the floor, missing 11 of her 16 attempts overall and both of her 3-point tries for a Missouri team that missed six of seven shots from behind the arc. Unrau and Fisher had eight rebounds each for Missouri. Bright also had seven assists.
Natalie Ritchie added 11 points for the Lady Raiders.
Big 12 Under Way
Texas Tech is 1-2 in the Big 12 for the third time in conference history. Tech started off the 1996-97 season 1-2 in league play after beating Baylor and then losing to Oklahoma State and at Colorado. The Lady Raiders finished that year 11-5 in the Big 12. During the 1999-00 season, Tech went 0-2 with losses at Iowa State and Oklahoma before winning its first league game against Colorado. Tech went on to win the seven-straight and finished conference play with a 13-3 record and tied for the league championship.
NCAA Stats
As of games through Jan. 7, freshman Cisti Greenwalt ranks seventh in the country in blocked shots per game with a 3.0 average, among all NCAA Division I players. Sophomore Natalie Ritchie is tied for 36th in three-point field goals made per game at 2.7. As a team, Texas Tech ranks 14th in field goal percentage defense at 35.8, 35th in scoring defense at 59.2, 36th in scoring margin at 12.8 and tied for 38th in won-loss percentage at 75.0.
Fifth Largest Attendance at USA
Texas Tech had its fifth largest crowd for a women's basketball game at the United Spirit Arena against Oklahoma with 14,437 spectators. Tech has sold out (15,050) the USA twice against LSU Nov. 20, 1999 and against Oklahoma Feb. 19, 2000.
Jackson Ties Career High Boards
Sophomore Casey Jackson tied her career high of nine rebounds against Oklahoma. Jackson also had nine boards earlier this season at Duke.
White Passes Up
Senior Candi White matched her season-high six assists against Oklahoma. White also had six assists this season against North Texas and Kansas.
Tarr on the Boards
Senior Amber Tarr tied her season-high seven rebounds against Oklahoma. Tarr recorded seven rebounds against North Texas earlier this season. Her career high is eight, which she had her junior year at Rice.
Big 12 Openers
Texas Tech is now 5-1 in Big 12 openers. Tech has won at Baylor twice, once at Missouri and lost once at Iowa State, while beating Missouri last year in Lubbock and Kansas this year.
Ayers Pours in Career High
Sophomore Jolee Ayers came off the bench against Kansas to record a career-high 22 points while adding 10 rebounds for her first double-double of the season. Ayers' previous career high was 17, which she had against Texas A&M last year.
Big Night for Greenwalt
Freshman Cisti Greenwalt had her third double-double of the season as she tallied a career-high 18 points and added 15 rebounds. Greenwalt's previous career high in points was 14 at Saint Peter's. Her career high in rebounds is 18, which she recorded at Saint Peter's.
Perkins Named Big 12 Player of the Week
Sophomore Jia Perkins was named the Big 12 Player of the Week for her performances during the holiday break from Dec. 18-Jan. 1. That included Tech's games at Saint Peter's, at Rutgers and against Vanderbilt. At Saint Peter's, Perkins recorded a career-high 32 points, connecting on 10-of 22 shot attempts and 12-of-14 free throws. At Rutgers, Perkins scored 19 points, grabbed eight rebounds and hit all six free throw attempts, while matching her career high of six steals. Against No. 3 Vanderbilt, she had an all-around game with 17 points, a season-high nine assists, six rebounds, three steals and a block. For the three games, Perkins averaged 22.7 points, 7.3 rebounds and 5.3 assists, while shooting 41.4 percent from the field and 85.7 percent from the free throw line.
Team High Percentages
Texas Tech finished the Kansas game with team highs of 50 percent from the field (32-of-64) and 57.1 percent from three-point range (4-of-7).
Season High for Tarr
Senior Amber Tarr poured in a season-high 23 points in Texas Tech's win over Vanderbilt. Her previous season high was 19 points at New Mexico. Tarr was just two points shy of tying her career high of 25 points, which she had last season against Southeastern Louisiana.
Ritchie Ties Career High
Sophomore Natalie Ritchie tied her career-high 21 points against Vanderbilt. Ritchie also matched her career high of five three-point baskets.
Perkins Keeps on Performing
Sophomore Jia Perkins had another good game for the Lady Raiders against Vanderbilt. Perkins recorded 17 points, six rebounds, a season-high nine assists, three steals and one block in 35 minutes of play.
Season Low Turnovers
Texas Tech committed a season-low six turnovers in its victory over Vanderbilt. Tech's previous low was eight against Southern Miss.
More Threes
Texas Tech tied its season high of 10 three-point baskets. Tech also had 10 threes against Southern Miss. The school record for the most three-pointers by a team in a game is 11.
Lady Raiders Dish Out
Texas Tech dished out a season-high 21 assists against Vanderbilt, including a season-high nine by sophomore Jia Perkins. Tech also matched that output against Kansas.
Perkins Paces Lady Raiders Again
Sophomore Jia Perkins led the Lady Raiders to victory again over Rutgers as she scored 19 points and pulled down eight rebounds, while adding four assists and tied her career-high six steals.
Ayers Assisting Teammates
Sophomore Jolee Ayers recorded a career high of five assists in Tech's win at Rutgers. Her previous career high was three assists, which she had done three times in her career.
Best Free Throw Outing
Texas Tech had its best outing at the free throw line at Rutgers. Tech shot 90 percent from the charity stripe, connecting on 9-of-10 attempts.
Top Five Teams
Texas Tech has faced three top five teams so far this season. The Lady Raiders beat then No. 3/3 Vanderbilt Dec. 29 and lost at then No. 4/5 Duke Nov. 11 and against then No.3/3 Oklahoma Jan. 5.
Perkins Pours in Points
Sophomore Jia Perkins poured in a career-high 32 points in Texas Tech's win at Saint Peter's. Perkins went 10-for-22 from the field and 12-for-14 from the free throw line. Her previous career high was 29 points against Purdue in the NCAA Sweet 16 last season.
Eight Lineups in 13 Games
Texas Tech has used eight different lineups in its 13 games this year. Senior Tanisha Ellison and sophomore Jia Perkins have started 12 games and senior Amber Tarr has started nine and sophomore Casey Jackson eight. Sophomore Natalie Ritchie has seven starts, while freshman Cisti Greenwalt has five and senior Candi White has three. Tech has used the same lineup in the four of the last five games (Ellison, Greenwalt, Perkins, Ritchie and Tarr) with a 3-1 record.
Television Games
The Lady Raiders will appear on national and/or regional television eight times this season. Tech's first game was against Duke Nov. 11 on ESPN and will play Wisconsin on espn2 on Feb. 17. Tech played Vanderbilt on syndication television throughout the United States. The Lady Raiders will face Big 12 foes Texas (home and away), at Kansas State, Colorado and at Oklahoma on Fox Sports Net. The rest of Tech's home games will be televised locally and throughout the state of Texas by the Texas Tech Television Network.
Lady Raiders in the Polls
Since January 20, 1992, the Lady Raiders have been ranked in the Top 25 in the Associated Press and/or the USA Today poll a total of 185 weeks. That includes this week's polls of 10th in the AP poll and 12th in the USA Today/ESPN poll.
Sharp One of the Elite
Head coach Marsha Sharp's .76461 winning percentage ranks her seventh best in the country among Division I active coaches. Entering the 2001-02 Sharp had a 458-141 career record according to NCAA standards. The NCAA does not include forfeits in the overall record, which was 459-141. Sharp won a game by forfeit during the 1988-89 season against Baylor.
