Women's Basketball Takes On Western Kentucky In NCAA Tournament

March 14, 2000

MILWAUKEE -

COMING UP The Marquette women's basketball team (22-6) opens play in its record fourth-consecutive NCAA Tournament this Sat., March 18, when the Golden Eagles battle Western Kentucky in Durham, N.C. Marquette enters the tournament as the East Region's #7 seed, its highest-ever seed in the "Big Dance", while the Lady Toppers are the #10 seed. Tip-off time is scheduled for 4 p.m. (CT) in host Duke's Cameron Indoor Stadium. The first round game will be broadcast live from Durham on WISN - 1130 AM, starting with the pregame show at 3:45 p.m.

The second-seeded Duke Blue Devils host #15 Campbell in the site's other opening-round contest. The winners of those two Saturday games will meet in a second round game in Cameron Stadium on Mon., March 20, at 7:35 p.m.

ABOUT MARQUETTE After their season-high eight-game winning streak, the Golden Eagles closed the regular season and opened postseason with a two-game losing streak. It marked the first time all season that Marquette had lost two games in a row. With their highest seed ever, the Golden Eagles look to improve on their 1-5 all-time NCAA Tournament record.

Marquette is currently shooting 43% from the field, 29% from behind the arc and 68% from the free throw line. Marquette's opponents have converted 36% of their field goals, 31% of their attempts from three-point land and 66% of their free throws. Marquette's field goal percentage defense ranks among the Top 10 in the nation.

The Golden Eagles are out-scoring opponents by 7.3 points per game, 69.9-62.6, and are outrebounding their opponents by 5.0 rebounds per game, 42.6-37.6.

After starting the same lineup for 38 straight games dating back to the first game of the 1998-99 season, the Golden Eagles trotted out six different lineups over the first seven contests of the new year. However, Marquette has returned to its "normal" lineup - G- Kiesha Oliver and Kristi Johnson, F - Lisa Oldenburg and Heidi Bowman, C- Abbie Willenborg . Those five account for 84% of the points (58.9 ppg) and 66% of the rebounds (28.1 rpg) this season. That lineup has been the most consistent one for Marquette this season, having compiled a 16-6 mark in 22 games.

Willenborg paces Marquette with averages of 16.3 points and 9.3 rebounds per game. Oldenburg leads the Golden Eagles with 1.6 blocks and 2.0 steals per game, and shoots 55% from the field. Bowman converts 77% of her free throws. Johnson shoots 34% from three-point land while dishing out 3.0 assists per contest.

ABOUT WESTERN KENTUCKY After opening the season with a 5-6 mark, head coach Steve Small's Lady Toppers go into the NCAA Tournament with a 21-9 overall record after winning 16 of their past 19 contests. They suffered a slim 97-94 loss, on a three-pointer with one second remaining, to third-ranked Louisiana Tech in the Sun Belt Conference Tournament championship game this past Saturday. Western finished second to Louisiana Tech during the regular season.

The high-powered Lady Toppers feature a versatile lineup led by senior Jamie Britt. The muscular senior forward/guard from Bowling Green, Ky., does a little bit of everything for WKU, averaging 15.6 points, 7.0 rebounds and 2.5 assists per game. Junior ShaRae Mansfield, a 6-2 junior, paces the Lady Toppers with 18.5 points and 10.5 rebounds per game. Senior guard Jamie Walz adds 15.7 points, 5.2 rebounds and 3.5 assists per game. Sophomore guard Natalie Powers chips in with 10.6 points and 4.4 rebounds per game.

After 12 years as an assistant at Western Kentucky, Small is in his third season as the head coach at the Bowling Green, Ky., school. The 1970 graduate of Campbellsville College has amassed a 68-25 (.731) head-coaching mark.

Western Kentucky is appearing in its 14th NCAA Tournament. The Lady Toppers have reached the Sweet 16 six times, the Final Four in both 1985 and 1986, and played Stanford in the national title game in 1992.

This will be the first ever meeting between Marquette and Western Kentucky.

A LOOK AT THE SECOND ROUND

DUKE Following a loss to Purdue in the NCAA Championship game a year ago, coach Gail Goestenkors has steered her Blue Devils back into their seventh NCAA Tournament this season. Duke goes into first round play with a 26-5 record overall. The Blue Devils tied with Virginia for the ACC regular-season championship and defeated rival North Carolina 79-76 on Mon., March 6, to secure their first-ever ACC Tournament title.

The Blue devils are led by ACC Player of the Year Georgia Schweitzer, a 6-0 swing player who averages 15.5 points, 3.8 rebounds and 3.3 assists per game while shooting 41% from three-point land and 77% from the line.

CAMPBELL Coach Wanda Watkins leads the Lady Camels into their first-ever NCAA Tournament as the #15 seed after Campbell claimed the Trans America Athletic Conference Tournament title with a 66-49 victory over Georgia State this past Saturday. The Lady Camels enter NCAA play with a 22-8 overall mark.

All-TAAC performers April Cromartie and Sara Moore lead the Lady Camels. Cromartie, a sophomore post player who was named the TAAC Tournament Most Valuable Player, averages 17.9 points and 9.5 rebounds per game. Moore is a 5-9 junior guard who posts 12.4 points, 4.8 rebounds and 2.8 assists per game.

IN THE POLLS Marquette was held out of both polls for the second consecutive week, but was one of the top teams receiving votes in both the USA Today/ESPN Coaches' Poll and the AP Poll.

Several Marquette opponents continued to receive national recognition this week: Notre Dame is #5 in the AP and #6 in the coaches' polls, while C-USA foe Tulane is #22 in the AP and #21 in the coaches' poll. Drake is receiving votes in both polls, while Wisconsin got one vote in the AP poll.

POSTSEASON HONORS For the second time in three seasons, Terri Mitchell was named the Conference USA Coach of the Year at the league's annual pre-tournament banquet last week. The award, which is part of the postseason awards voted on by league coaches, sports information directors and media members, was also bestowed upon Mitchell following the 1997-98 C-USA season.

Joining Mitchell in receiving accolades were each of her seniors. Center Abbie Willenborg was named to the All-C-USA First Team for the third straight season and Lisa Oldenburg made her third consecutive appearance on the All-C-USA Second Team. Guard Kiesha Oliver received her first-ever postseason honor when she was named to the All-C-USA Third Team.

HEAD COACH TERRI MITCHELL Now in her fourth season as head coach, Terri Mitchell is 86-31 (.735) at the helm of the Golden Eagles. She led the Golden Eagles to their first-ever national ranking and outright C-USA regular-season championship this season, and has Marquette poised to set a new single-season record for victories. Marquette's 22 wins this season make Mitchell the first head coach in the program's history to earn 20 wins or more in each of her first four seasons. She also is the first coach in the program's history to lead the team to a regular-season title, four-consecutive 20-win seasons and three straight appearances in the NCAA Tournament. She garnered C-USA Coach of the Year accolades for the second time in three seasons.

Last year, Mitchell took Marquette to its highest-ever seed in the NCAA Tournament and a 21-8 mark. She was named the Conference USA Coach of the Year following the 1997-98 season after leading the Golden Eagles to a 22-7 mark and a second straight NCAA Tournament appearance.

In her debut season of 1996-97, Mitchell led Marquette to a 21-10 record, an 11.5 game turnaround from the Golden Eagles' 8-20 season the year before. The jump marked the largest improvement by a first-year head coach in NCAA Division I that year.

A 1989 graduate of Duquesne, where she was also a four-year letterwinner for the Duchesses' basketball team, Mitchell started her coaching career as a graduate assistant at Arizona State during the 1989-90 season. After a one-year stint as the Director of Camps and Promotions for Future Stars International, Mitchell came to Marquette as an assistant coach in 1991. She served as an assistant at the university until she was named head coach on June 6, 1996.

Mitchell is assisted by Tracey Tarkington, Jon Cain, Michelle Nason and special assistant Kelly Johnson.

GOLDEN EAGLES ON THE AIR Select Marquette women's basketball games this season have been carried live on the Marquette Basketball Radio Network by WJYI-1340 AM and WISN-1130 AM this season.

Kent Sommerfeld and Kareeda Chones will call the action for the Golden Eagles' first round game at the NCAA Tournament on WISN. A second round game, on Mon., March 20, will most likely be carried on WJYI.

QUOTING TERRI MITCHELL: "We didn't want to end the season like we did (with two straight losses). And getting our highest seed ever has been one of our goals since the beginning of the season. This team is hungry - they want to go beyond where they have before. However, with how we've played the past two games, we have to take it one game at a time. Western Kentucky just lost in their conference championship game and is a traditional power, so we know we're going to have a tough game."

FOR MORE INFORMATION Contact Marquette assistant sports information director Josh Sutter at (414) 288-6980 or at: joshua.sutter@marquette.edu