Dec. 1, 1999

LUBBOCK, Tex. - Texas Tech will play SMU on Saturday, Dec. 4 at 7 p.m. at the United Spirit Arena. It will be the 41st meeting between the two schools.

Scouting the Opponents
Southern Methodist enters the game with a 3-1 record after suffering its first loss of the season to Texas A&M, 73-69, last Tuesday in Dallas. In that game, junior D-dra Rucker scored a game-high 30 points and grabbed eight rebounds. Freshman Kaci Alexander was the only other Mustang to score in double figures with 13 points. Junior Katie Remke had team highs of 11 rebounds and three blocks, while senior Nici Johnson finished with five assists.

Rucker leads the team in scoring with a 19.8 average followed by senior Karlin Kennedy at 16.5 and junior Anika Calvert at 10.5. Remke is the top rebounder with a 10.0 average per outing, while having a team-high seven blocks on the year. Rucker also has dished a team-high 20 assists.

The Mustangs are shooting 47.7 percent from the field, 25.6 percent from three-point range and 69.9 percent from the free throw line.

Series Records
Texas Tech holds a 37-3 advantage over SMU and is 33-3 in the Marsha Sharp era. In the last meeting, the Lady Raiders were victorious 72-67 Nov. 23, 1998 in Dallas. The last time SMU won was Jan. 24, 1989 in a 70-63 triumph.

A Look Back
The City of Angels smiled on Texas Tech Monday evening as the 16th ranked Lady Raiders pulled off a 66-63 overtime win over the USC Women of Troy.

Freshman Plenette Pierson scored a career-high 21points that included a 14-foot jumper with one second left in regulation to tie the score at 59 and send the game into overtime.

The Lady Raiders struggled all evening long due to a stingy USC defense that caused 17 Texas Tech turnovers. Tech saw just one lead in the first half when Katrisa O'Neal stole the ball and drove the length of the court for a layup to give Tech a 23-12 lead. USC answered by scoring 12 straight points to take a 33-26 lead at the half. It was more of the same in the second half as USC's defense continued to cause problems for the Texas Tech offense. USC led by as much as nine points at one time in the second half fueled by 19 points by Denise Woods.

The momentum began to shift with 2:01 remaining in regulation after two free throws by O'Neal that led to seven straight Tech points.

In overtime, senior forward Keitha Dickerson scored four points before fouling out and the Lady Raiders were able to bring their season record to 4-0.

Pierson led all Tech scorers with 21 points. O'Neal tied her career high with 17 and senior Aleah Johnson finished with 10.

Probable Starters

Top Reserves

SMU Mustangs
Head Coach: Rhonda Rompola (158-83, ninth season)

Lady Raider Head Coach Marsha Sharp
One of the most respected and well-known coaches in Texas Tech history, head coach Marsha Sharp is 410-129 in her 18th year at the helm of the Lady Raiders. The 1999 Big 12 Coach of the Year, for the second consecutive year, has led the Lady Raiders to 12 NCAA Tournament appearances, including 10 consecutive, and five NCAA Sweet 16 appearances and the NCAA National Championship in 1993. 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. Sharp claimed her 400th career victory last season in the 83-71 win at Colorado on Feb. 24, 1999.

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.

Pierson Sets Another Career High
Freshman Plenette Pierson scored a career-high 21 points in the 66-63 overtime victory over USC Nov. 29. Pierson has now scored in double figures in all four of Tech's games this year.

Double Vision
Freshman Plenette Pierson recorded her second double-double of the year as she had 21 points and 10 rebounds in the triumph at USC Nov. 29.

O'Neal Matches Career High
Junior Katrisa O'Neal tied her career high of 17 points at USC Nov. 29. She has now scored in double figures in three of the four games this season.

Schmucker-Pharies Goes the Distance - Again
At USC Nov. 29, senior Melinda Schmucker-Pharies played all 45 minutes as she finished with seven points. Earlier this season, she also played all 40 minutes in the Lady Raiders victory over LSU Nov. 20. Schmucker-Pharies finished that game with a team-high five assists and tied junior Katrisa O'Neal with four steals each.

Double Digits
For the second time this year, Tech had four players score in double figures in the win at USC. Freshman Plenette Pierson scored a career-high 21 points, junior Katrisa O'Neal matched her career high with 17, while seniors Aleah Johnson and Keitha Dickerson had 11 and 10, respectively. In the Lady Raiders victory over Rice Nov. 23, the same four players score in double figures, O'Neal (17), Dickerson (16), Johnson (15) and Pierson (14).

Back-to-Back Double-Doubles
Senior Keitha Dickerson recorded her second double-double of the season and in consecutive games. She scored 11 points and grabbed 11 rebounds in the win over Southwest Texas State Nov. 26 and in the previous game against Rice Nov. 23, she scored 16 points and had 15 rebounds.

Johnson Making Her Mark
Senior Aleah Johnson scored a career-high 21 points in just 15 minutes of play against Southwest Texas State. Johnson was 10-for-11 from the field and 1-for-1 from the free throw line. She leads the Lady Raiders in scoring with a 17.3 average.

Everyone scores
In the game vs. Southwest Texas State Nov. 26, all 11 players scored in the game. Five Lady Raiders scored in double figures: senior Aleah Johnson (21), freshman Plenette Pierson (20), sophomore Tanisha Ellison (12), senior Keitha Dickerson (11) and freshman Jamie Nagle (10).

Schmucker-Pharies Dishes Out
Senior Melinda Schmucker-Pharies needs just four assists to tie Julie Lake for third on the Lady Raiders' all-time list for assists with 441.

Block Buster
Freshman Jamie Nagle made her collegiate debut against Southwest Texas State Nov. 26. The 6-7 center swatted three shots in 18 minutes of play, which was a Lady Raider game high.

Home Court Streak
The Lady Raiders currently hold a 17-home game winning streak after its first three home games of the season. Tech's streak ranks them fourth among NCAA Division I home-court winning streaks. Grambling currently has the number one streak at 56 games.

Sellout Crowd
Texas Tech's first game of the year and the first in the United Spirit Arena against LSU Nov. 20 was a sellout crowd of 15,050. It marked the second largest crowd for a Big 12 women's basketball game. The largest crowd was 15, 303 when Texas hosted Louisiana Tech on March 27, 1987.

A Look Ahead
Tech will play the USA National team on Sunday, Dec. 5 at 7 p.m. The Lady Raiders will then travel to New Mexico Dec. 8 for an 8 p.m. CST contest and return home on Dec. 15 to play Lamar at 7 p.m.

Cudnoski Tears ACL
Redshirt freshman Alison Cudnoski has again tore her anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in her right knee for the second time in a little over a year. Cudnoski and her doctors, coaches and family are currently weighing her options. Cudnoski sat out last season after tearing the ACL in the same knee in the first practice of the year.

Lady Raiders in the Polls
Since January 20, 1992, the Lady Raiders have been ranked in the Top 25 in the Associated Press poll and/or the USA Today poll, a total of 139 weeks. That includes the Nov. 29 rankings of 16th in both polls.

1999-2000 LADY RAIDER BASKETBALL
MISCELLANEOUS STATISTICS

Starting Lineups
1) Johnson, Dickerson, Pierson, Schmucker-Pharies, O'Neal: 4-0

Double-Figure Scoring Games: Johnson 4, Pierson 4, Dickerson 3, O'Neal 3, Ellison 1, Nagle 1

Double-Figure Rebounding Games: Dickerson 2, Pierson 2

Games Leading Tech in Scoring: Johnson 2, O'Neal 1, Pierson 1

Games Leading Tech in Rebounding: Dickerson 2, Pierson 2

Games Leading Tech in Assists: Schmucker-Pharies 3, Dickerson 1, O'Neal 1, Tarr 1

TECH FREE THROW SHOOTING IN FINAL 2 MINUTES

Big12 Preseason Polls
Coaches Poll

Media Poll

Poll Position
The Texas Tech Lady Raiders moved up to 16th in both the Associated Press and the USA Today/ESPN Top 25 polls for the week of Nov. 29.

Follow the Lady Raiders on the Radio
All Lady Raider basketball games can be heard live on the All Sports Radio Network on KFYO-AM 790 and KKCL-FM 98.1 locally. Listen to play-by-play by Ryan Hyatt, with color commentary by Crystal Boles and Kent Best as they go to the court with the Lady Raiders. Other affiliates carrying Lady Raider Basketball are:

KPUR-AM 1440 - Amarillo
KVRP-FM 95.5 - Haskell
KPET-AM 690 - Lamesa
KZZN-AM 1490 - Littlefield
KFYO-AM 790 - Lubbock
KKCL-FM 98.1 - Lubbock
KMND-AM 1510 - Midland
KKYN-AM 1090 - Plaineview
KRIL-AM 1410 - Odessa

1999-00 Double-Doubles

Plenette Pierson - 14 points, 10 rebounds
vs. Rice, Nov. 23
21 points, 10 rebounds
at USC, Nov. 29

Career Assists: Schmucker-Pharies on the move

Weekly Press Luncheon
Each Monday Marsha Sharp will conduct a weekly press luncheon in press conference room at the United Spirit Arena. Coach Sharp's press conference will begin promptly at 11 a.m. followed by coach James Dickey's at 11:30 a.m. Lunch will follow in the Athletic Dining Hall.

Lady Raider Firsts in the United Spirit Arena

Blocked Shot - Aleah Johnson, with 13:48 left in the game.

Big 12 Women's Basketball Teleconferences
Through the work of Premiere Technologies, Inc. the Big 12 will host four regular season women's basketball teleconferences during the season. The briefings will feature seven minutes with each head coach and will take place on selected Tuesdays beginning at 10 a.m. central time.

The Big 12 Tournament teleconference will be conducted Friday, March 3, at 10 a.m. and will feature all 12 head coaches previewing the league tournament. A fifth teleconference will be conducted on March 14, beginning at 10 a.m. central time, and will feature only the head coaches involved in post-season play.

Media wishing to dial into the conference call may contact (913) 981-5530. This number is for media use ONLY. You will be required to identify yourself with media affiliation when you access the call.

Women's basketball teleconferences are scheduled for Jan. 11, Jan. 25, Feb. 8 , March 3 and March 14. Following is a tentative schedule:

10:00 a.m. - Paul Sanderford, Nebraska
10:07 a.m. - Cindy Stein, Missouri
10:14 a.m. - Jody Conradt, Texas
10:21 a.m. - Sherri Coale, Oklahoma
10:28 a.m. - Marian Washington, Kansas
10:35 a.m. - Peggie Gillom, Texas A&M
10:42 a.m. - Sonja Hogg, Baylor
10:49 a.m. - Dick Halterman, Oklahoma State
10:56 a.m. - Deb Patterson, Kansas State
11:03 a.m. - Bill Fennelly, Iowa State
11:10 a.m. - Ceal Barry, Colorado
11:17 a.m. - Marsha Sharp, Texas Tech

Pronounciations
Tanisha Ellison - TAH-nish-ah
Aleah Johnson - ah-LEE-ah
Katrisa O'Neal - ka-TREE-sa
Melinda Schmucker-Pharies -
SCHMICK-er - FAIR-us

Lady Raiders By Height

5-5	Courtney Pastner
5-6	Katrisa O'Neal
5-9	Melinda Schmucker-Pharies
5-10	Kristi Washington
6-0	Keitha Dickerson
	Nikki Hendrix
	Amber Tarr
6-1	Tanisha Ellison
	Aleah Johnson
	Plenette Pierson
6-1	Alison Cudnoski
6-7	Jamie Nagle

Player Notes

#1 Courtney Pastner
Has played in two games...scored career-high six points vs. Southwest Texas State Nov. 26...grabbed two rebound and had a steal against SWT.

#3 Melinda Schmucker-Pharies
Has started all four games...leads the team in assists with 21...played all 45 minutes in win at USC Nov. 29... played all 40 minutes in the win over LSU Nov. 20...dished out a team-high 11 assists against Southwest Texas State Nov. 26...scored a season-high three points against SWT...had a season-high five steals against Rice Nov. 23.

#10 Kristi Washington
Has played in all four games...scored two points against LSU Nov. 20 and Southwest Texas State No. 26...grabbed three rebounds against LSU...had two assists against SWT and Rice Nov. 23.

#15 Aleah Johnson
Has started all four games...scored a career-high 21 points against Southwest Texas State Nov. 26 in just 15 minutes of play...scored 16 points against LSU Nov. 20...had 15 points against Rice Nov. 23...grabbed six rebounds vs. LSU...also had a block vs. LSU...scored 11 points at USC Nov. 29...had a career-high four steals at USC.

#24 Katrisa O'Neal
Has started all four games...scored a career-high 17 points vs. Rice Nov. 23 and matched that at USC Nov. 29...grabbed a season-high six rebounds vs. LSU Nov. 20 and Southwest Texas State Nov. 26...finished with four assists against Rice and SWT...had four steals against LSU.

#25 Keitha Dickerson
Has started all four games...has recorded two double-doubles this season...scored a season-high 16 points while grabbing a season-high 15 rebounds against Rice Nov. 23 and had 11 points and 11 rebounds vs. Southwest Texas State Nov. 26...allied four steals against Rice and at USC Nov. 29...had a season-high four assists at USC.

#32 Amber Tarr
Has played in all four games...tied her career high of six points against Southwest Texas State Nov. 26...has hit one three-point basket in games against LSU Nov. 20 and SWT...grabbed a season-high three rebounds against LSU and SWT...dished out a career-high seven assists vs. Southwest Texas State...had two steals vs. LSU.

#34 Tanisha Ellison
Has played in all four games...scored a career-high 12 points in the victory over Southwest Texas State Nov. 26...also grabbed a career-high six rebounds vs. SWT...had an assist against SWT...recorded a steal vs. LSU Nov. 20 and at USC Nov. 29.

#50 Nikki Hendrix
Made collegiate debut against Southwest Texas State Nov. 26...scored four points and grabbed three rebounds...also had a block vs. SWT.

#52 Alison Cudnoski
Has not played yet this season...tore her ACL in her right knee.

#54 Plenette Pierson
Has started all four games as a freshman...has mad an immediate impact as she has scored in double figures in all four games...scored a career-high 21 points at USC Nov. 29 and tied her career high of 10 rebounds in her second double-double...scored 20 points vs. Southwest Texas State Nov. 26...scored 14 points against Rice Nov. 23...had 12 points in collegiate debut against LSU Nov. 20...recorded a double-double against Rice with 14 points and 10 rebounds...had two steals against SWT...also had an assist vs. SWT...had her first block at USC.

#55 Jamie Nagle
Made collegiate debut against Southwest Texas State Nov. 26...came off the bench and scored 12 points vs. SWT in 18 minutes of action...also had three blocked shots, six boards and an assist vs. SWT.