Marquette University Athletics
Women's Basketball Set For Conference USA Tournament
3/5/2003 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
March 5, 2003
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It's win or go home time for Marquette and the other 13 schools competing in the 2003 Conference USA Women's Basketball Tournament. Marquette qualified for the postseason as the ninth seed and will play the tournament hosts, Memphis at 6 p.m. in the first round of the tournament on Thursday, March 6. The winner will meet the league's regular season champion, Charlotte, at 6 p.m. on Friday, March 7.
Marquette won eight road games this season and has experience away from Milwaukee. However, MU was just 3-4 on the road in league play and lost at Memphis earlier in the year, 80-71 on Jan. 24. Should MU advance, it would be its second meeting of the year with Charlotte. The 49ers defeated MU, 70-56, on Feb. 16.
Marquette had an early exit from last year's tournament. The Golden Eagles were knocked off by Saint Louis, 43-40, in the first round of the tournament. Last year was the first time that MU didn't qualify for the quarterfinal round.
Looking for Two in a Row
Marquette would need four wins in four days to claim the Conference USA championship and earn a berth to the NCAA Tournament. The Golden Eagles were last in the NCAA Tournament in the the 1999-2000 season. Marquette had a five game winning streak earlier in the year in the non-conference season, but MU won two in a row just once this season in league play. Marquette did not win two games over a weekend once this season. Conversely, MU did not lose two games in a weekend this season.
They Can Shoot the Rock
Freshman guard Carolyn Kieger (Roseville, Minn.) and junior guard Kelly Schwerman (Waukesha, Wis.) are on pace to become the no. 1 and no. 2 ranked single-season three point shooters in Marquette history. Heading into the league tournament, Kieger is hitting 41.5 percent (22-of-53) of her attempts and Schwerman is making 41.2 percent (42-of-102). Schwerman is among the league leaders in three-point percentage. The league's standards are one made per game, whereas MU's records are based on two attempts per game.
Better Put a Hand in Their Faces Marquette owns the league's best three-point shooting percentage, heading into the league tournament. MU finished the regular season at 37.7 percent, and is on pace to be the best three-point shooting team in school history. MU hit 32.2 percent in the 1993-94 season to set its previous yearly high. The season total is currently the 15th best total in the nation.
Can't Guard Them on the Free Throw Line
Marquette also owns the league's best free throw shooting team at 77.2 percent. That too is expected to be a new school record for a season. Marquette record was previously 73.7 percent in the 1992-93 season.
Klug Becomes On the Verge of Becoming MU's Most Accurate
Senior forward Rachel Klug (Cedar Grove, Wis.) had moved into the top spot among Marquette's most accurate field goal shooters, but currently sits in second place all time, trailing by 79 hundredths of a percent. Klug has hit 325-of-603 shots for her career for 53.897 percent. Lisa Oldenburg, Marquette's current leader, hit 53.976 (638-of-1,182) percent of her field goals from 1997-2000. Coming into this season, Klug was a 53.1 percent field goal shooter, but lacked enough attempts to qualify for the list. The minimum number of attempts to make the list is 400. Klug is leading the team this season with a 51.0 percentage. Her career total was as high as 56.5 percent earlier this season.
Alsdurf Ties Career High - Twice
Sophomore guard Katie Alsdurf (Forest Lake, Minn.) paced Marquette to a 79-76 win over Louisville. Alsdurf had 20, setting a career high. Two days later, she scored 20 again, this time in MU's 69-62 loss at Cincinnati. During the two game span, Alsdurf was 15-of-27 (55.5 percent) from the floor and was 8-of-11 (72.7 percent) from three-point range.
Golden Eagles Set Season Marks Against Louisville
Marquette's hot shooting performance on Friday, Feb. 21 at Louisville set some season best marks. MU shot 8-of-9 from three point range in the second half, leading it to its best shooting output of the season. MU hit 56.3 percent for the game.
Sophomore forward Katie Alsdurf (Forest Lake, Minn.) scored 20 points on the night, setting a career best. Sophomore forward Lesley Juedes (Ripon, Wis.) tied her career high with 11 points.
Well Balanced, All Around Performance
Seemingly everyone contributed in some way in Marquette's 84-68 win over East Carolina. Despite the obvious 18 points from sophomore Katie Alsdurf (Forest Lake, Minn.) and 14 from senior Rachel Klug (Cedar Grove, Wis.), other players got involved in many ways. Junior Kelly Schwerman (Waukesha, Wis.) set a season high with four assists. Sophomore Lesley Juedes (Ripon, Wis.) may have been just 1-for-7 from the floor, but she came up big pulling down a career-best nine rebounds. Senior Rashida Gales (Burnsville, Minn.) had an all-around good game. She tossed in a season high 11 points and also provided a season high two blocked shots.
Golden Eagles Get Votes
After a win against Tulane and a loss to Southern Miss on Feb. 7 and 9, Marquette received votes in the ESPN/USA Today/WBCA College Basketball Top 25. Marquette was awarded two points. It was the first time this season that Marquette has received any sort of recognition in either major national poll. The last time Marquette received votes was the poll of Jan. 29, 2002, in which it received six points. MU received five points in the first poll of the season in 2001-02, issued Nov. 5, and three points in the Jan. 14, 2002 poll. The last time Marquette was ranked in either poll was 24th in both polls on Feb. 28, 2000.
Just Missed
Marquette had valiant come-from-behind effort slip away in an 82-79 overtime loss to Southern Miss. MU led at the half by one, despite a 56.5 percent shooting half by the Lady Eagles. Southern Miss led by as many as nine in the second half before MU's run which gave it the lead by one with 5:51 left. USM regained the lead, but Marquette tied to force overtime. The Lady Eagles were 9-of-12 from the line in the OT for the win. Freshman guard Carolyn Kieger (Roseville, Minn.) set a career high with 23 points in the loss.
Forcing the Turnovers
Marquette forced 27 turnovers to Tulane in a 59-47 win. In doing so, MU recorded 16 steals. Freshman guard Carolyn Kieger and sophomore forward Katie Alsdurf had six steals in the game. The pair combined for 11 turnovers against South Florida earlier in the season, with Alsdurf securing six and Kieger grabbing five. MU has forced 15 or more turnovers 15 times this season.
O'Grady Has Career Day Against Houston
Knowing Houston phenom Chandi Jones was going to get her points, Marquette would need to neutralize the rest of the team for a shot at victory. While MU was able to do that, what wasn't expected was the performance from junior guard Katie O'Grady (Chicago, Ill.). O'Grady had a career performance, scoring a career-high 29 points and grabbing a career-best six rebounds. She was one free throw short of tying the school record for free throws made in a game. Her 13-for-14 performance was also one shy of MU's record for perfection. Had she made her final free throw to go 14-for-14, she would have tied the school record in that category as well.
O'Grady's 29 point performance came off the bench. She has become the first player off the bench after starting the first 13 games of the season. Since moving to a role as a reserve, O'Grady has hit 40 percent of her shots and averages 9.5 points per game. It took her a while to get adjusted to the role, scoring just six points in the first three outings, but she responded with 10, 12 and 29 points in the next three. She followed with 13 against Tulane, marking the first time in her career she scored 10 or more on three consecutive occasions.
Golden Eagles Successful From Free Throw Line
Marquette is most successful when it gets to the free throw line. The Golden Eagles are hitting a robust 77.2 percent this year, but the team has success when it gets to the line most often. Against Houston, Marquette shot a season high 44 free throws, taking five more free shots than shots from the field. In its 14 wins, Marquette has shot 296 free throws (21.1 per game), while only taking 217 (18.1 per game) in its losses. MU opponents have shot fewer attempts in MU's wins, but have gone to the line more in the losses. The continuing theme seems to be just getting to the line. Marquette is shooting virtually the same percentage in wins (78.3 percent) as it is in losses (75.1 percent).
No Place Like Home
Fortunately for Marquette, there is no place like home. The road has been much kinder to the Golden Eagles. MU finished 5-7 in Milwaukee, going 4-5 at the U.S. Cellular Arena, 0-2 at the Bradley Center and 1-0 at Wisconsin Lutheran. MU's loss at the Bradley Center to DePaul on January 12 stopped a 10-game, seven season win streak at that building. The last time Marquette lost five or more at home for a season was the 2000-01 season. MU was 9-7 at home that year, including a 1-1 record in the Conference USA Tournament. Prior to its first loss at home that season, Marquette owned a 23-game home win streak. Since the streak ended, MU has gone 20-18 at home.
Marquette finished the year hitting 39.6 percent at home, 33.3 percent from three point range and is 75.7 percent from the line. The Golden Eagles average 64.1 points per game at home. Away from Milwaukee, MU is shot 42.9 percent, 40.9 percent of its threes and is hit 78.5 percent from the line. MU averages 70.9 points per game on the road.
Alsdurf Key In Win Over SLU
Sophomore forward Katie Alsdurf (Forest Lake, Minn.) didn't get into a rhythm until late in MU's 68-65 overtime win over Saint Louis, but when she did, she made every point count. Alsdurf's first points came with 11:34 in the second half - a three pointer. That bucket tied the game for the first time. A three with 2:47 in regulation tied the game for the fourth time and a running layup with 12 seconds tied the game a fifth time. In overtime, Alsdurf hit a pair of free throws and a three-pointer in MU's 15 point barrage.
Waking Up in the Extra Session
Against Saint Louis, Marquette's five-minute overtime period was nearly as productive as its second half. MU scored 15 in the extra session after just 21 points in the previous 20 minutes. In the overtime, MU missed just one shot, going 4-of-5 from the floor, hitting a three pointer and making 6-of-6 from the free throw line.
Marquette is 2-1 in overtime games this year. MU defeated Georgia State, 79-75 in double OT earlier in the year. Likewise, MU's production was up from the second half. Marquette scored 22 in the 10 extra minutes against GSU, compared to 23 in the previous 20. Marquette is 14-of-29 (48.3 percent) in overtime this season from the floor. The Golden Eagles are 17-of-19 (89.5 percent) from the line this season in overtime as well. MU has outscored opponents 47-43 in overtimes this year.
Schwerman Gets Involved in Many Ways
Since moving into the starting lineup against South Florida, junior guard Kelly Schwerman (Waukesha, Wis.) has added a number of things to the Marquette arsenal. She scored 10 points against South Florida. Against Memphis, she set a career high with nine rebounds and tied season bests, leading the team with three assists and two blocked shots. She added 13 points in Marquette's 68-65 win over Saint Louis and had 13 in the loss to Charlotte. In the win over Louisville, she hit five threes and added 16 points to MU's cause. Since becoming a starter, Schwerman is 37-for-80 (46.3 percent) from the field and is averaging 9.8 points per game. Her performance is highlighted by a pair of 5-for-10 performances against Louisville and Cincinnati. She also went 5-for-10 against UAB.
To The Line ... Katie O'Grady, Shooting Two
Junior guard Katie O'Grady (Chicago, Ill.) is at her best when she gets to the free throw line. Eight of her career 14 games with 10 or more points have come when she has shot six or more free throws in the game. Her career best 29 point game against Houston came when she shot 14 free throws, going 13-of-14. Two other times in her career has she shot 10 or more free throws. She was 9-of-12 in a C-USA Tournament win against Charlotte in her freshman year. She had 15 that game. She scored 12 points against Saint Louis last season, going 10-of-10 from the line.
C-USA Opponents Get Defensive
After jumping out to a blistering start, C-USA teams have put the clamps on the Marquette offense. Through its first 12 games, all non-conference, Marquette averaged 71.5 points per game. In the conference season, opponents clamped down on Marquette, allowing just 64.5 points per game, a drop of 7.0 points per game. Marquette's shooting was down as well, hitting just 39.0 percent in Conference USA games as opposed to 41.4 in all games. The Golden Eagles allowed 68.0 points per game and a 40.5 shooting percentage in C-USA play.
Record Road Win Streak Comes to an End
Prior to its loss to Memphis on Jan. 24, Marquette had won six games in a row away from its homes in Milwaukee, marking the first time in school history that such a feat has happened. Marquette had won five in a row four previous times, 1997-98 and once each from 1991-92 to 1993-94. Marquette is currently 8-3 away from Milwaukee this year.
Kieger on Pace to be MU's Best Single Season 3-Point Shooter
Currently at 41.5 percent (22-of-53), freshman guard Carolyn Kieger (Roseville, Minn.) is on pace to better MU's single season mark. That total is held by Kristen Maskala, who hit 40.4 percent of her threes in the 1991-92 season. The minimum attempts to qualify for the career total is 50. Now that she has eclipsed that mark, she is also be eligible to be on the all-time list. Kristi Johnson is the career leader at 39.2 percent from 1998-2002.
Kieger also on Pace to Set Free Throw Precision Mark
Not only is she money from 19-feet-9, she's also exceptional from 15-feet. Freshman guard Carolyn Kieger (Roseville, Minn.) is set to break Marquette's single season free throw percentage mark. Through the regular season, Kieger hit 88.0 percent from the line (88-of-100), the 15th highest total in the NCAA. The current free throw mark is held by Kristin Maskala in 1993-94 when she was 116-of-137 from the line for 84.7 percent.
Senior center Rachel Klug (Cedar Grove, Wis.) is also on pace to join the single season leaders. Her season total of 81.5 percent would place her third.
Doing What's Needed to Win
Marquette held South Florida to a season low 41 points in its 62-41 win. MU held the Bulls to 18 points in the first half, a low for a half in either half for the season. Two players stepped up defensively in the MU win, setting then career highs in steals. Carolyn Kieger had five steals and Katie Alsdurf had six steals. Marquette forced a season high 30 turnovers to the Bulls in the win.
Among the Best in the Nation
Marquette, the nation's fourth best free throw shooting team heading into the DePaul contest, got off to a great start from the line against Memphis. MU started 17-for-17 before finishing 25-of-28 from the line. MU had a mini-slump heading into the Memphis game. Combined, MU shot 22-of-37 from the line (59.5 percent) against UAB and South Florida to drop from 76.8 percent to 75.0 percent on the season. MU has improved to 77.8 percent, the league's best total.
Through 23 games, MU is 367-of-472 from the line this year. Despite its earlier drought, which also included 50 percent performances each against Wis.-Green Bay (5-of-10) and Wisconsin (8-of-16), Marquette is still well above its totals from last year. In 2001-02, Marquette was 70.8 percent from the line. Freshman guard Carolyn Kieger (Roseville, Minn.) leads the team and is second in the conference with 87.7 percent. That total is the 24th best in the nation.
Twice this season has a player gone 10-for-10 from the line. Senior center Rachel Klug shot that against Saint Francis (Pa.) as part of a 26-point effort. Kieger (Roseville, Minn.) went 10-for-10 against Georgia State, scoring 16. Katie O'Grady (Chicago, Ill.) was one free throw away from adding to that perfect group. She hit her first 13 against Houston, before missing her last to go 13-of-14. Klug also went 8-of-8 against DePaul. Twelve times this season has Marquette hit over an 80 percent clip from the charity stripe, with a season high of 90.9 percent coming against Chicago State and Iowa State.
The Alsdurf Factor
Sophomore Katie Alsdurf (Forest Lake, Minn.) moved into second on the team in scoring thanks to a couple of games in which she led the team in scoring. Alsdurf is currently at 11.9 points per game, coming off a team high 20 point outings against Cincinnati and Louisville. She also tallied 18 against Notre Dame, 16 against Iowa State and 15 against South Florida.
Perimeter Defenses Get Better
In the six outings prior to Marquette's contest with Wis.-Green Bay, the Golden Eagles had been riding an incredible wave of accurate three-point shootings. From the La Salle contest on Dec. 16 through the Wisconsin game on Jan. 5, Marquette shot above the 35.0 percent mark in each game. UWGB stuck to Marquette defensively and held the Golden Eagles to a 23.5 percent night from three-point range. MU rebounded to shoot 35.3 percent against DePaul, but fell to 23.1 against South Florida and hit just 27.3 percent against UAB. MU shot a miserable 1-of-12 (8.3 percent) against Memphis and struggled to a 2-for16 clip against TCU. Prior to the mini-slump against UWGB, Marquette posted a school record 72.7 percent from behind the three-point range, hitting 8-of-11 against Wisconsin. MU broke one of the longer standing records on the books as the previous mark of 71.4 stood since February 15, 1992.
The Golden Eagles continued their hot shooting against Iowa State, making 46.2 percent of attempted threes, going 6-of-13. MU shot 42.9 percent (9-of-21) from three point range against Notre Dame. Against Sacred Heart, Marquette hit 54.5 percent (6-of-11). The Golden Eagles hit 10-of-23 threes against Virginia Commonwealth (43.5 percent) and started the string with a 7-of-19 outing against La Salle (36.8). In those six games, Marquette was 46-of-89 from behind the arc for a 51.6 percentage. Leading the pack is freshman guard Carolyn Kieger (Roseville, Minn.) who is making 22-of-53 (41.5 percent) on the year. For the season, Marquette is hitting 37.7 percent from behind the arc.
Stepping Up
Sophomore forward Lesley Juedes (Ripon, Wis.) tied a career best against DePaul with 11 points. She came off the bench for 17 minutes and hit 3-of-4 of her three point attempts and went 4-of-8 from the field. She had 11 one other time in her career, last season at Alaska. She also posted seven points off the bench against Memphis and she set a career high with nine rebounds against East Carolina.
Dropping Below 70 for the First Time This Season
Head coach Terri Mitchell promised that her team was going to be more active this year and take more opportunities. She held true to her promise. Through 13 games, Marquette averaged 70.4 points per game. Last year through 13 games, MU was scoring 61.1 points per game. The last time Marquette averaged 70 or more through 13 games was during the 1998-1999 season season (72.7 ppg). However, Marquette fell below the 70 points per game mark for the first time this year after the South Florida game. MU is currently scoring 67.7 points per game.
Familiarity of the Starters
The Marquette starting lineup remained consistent for the first 13 games season. The quintet of guards Carolyn Kieger and Katie O'Grady, center Rachel Klug and forwards Katie Alsdurf and Crystal Weaver had been on the court at the opening tip of each game through that point. Last year, Marquette had used five different starting lineups by the 13th game and used eight during the course of the year. Kelly Schwerman moved into the starting lineup replacing O'Grady against South Florida. She scored nine points in her season starting debut. Katie Alsdurf volunteered to step out of the starting lineup so Rashida Gales could start on senior day.
The Hot Start
Marquette owns an 8-4 non-conference record. The Golden Eagles were off to their best start since an 9-3 mark in the 1999-2000 season. Marquette's 8-4 beginning marked the third best start in school history, second to a 10-2 mark in 1999-2000 and 1997-98.
Counting on Klug
Senior center Rachel Klug (Cedar Grove, Wis.) has had one of the best starts in recent Marquette history. Klug scored in double figures in 16 of MU's first 19 games, scoring 15 or more points 10 times this year.
She has five 20-plus point efforts on the season. With a 20-point effort against La Salle, it marked the eighth time in Klug's career she scored 20 or more points, and she has now been over the 10-point mark 39 times in her career. Against Georgia State, she also recorded her fourth career double double with 11 rebounds to go with her 20 points. Klug set another career high on January 2 against Iowa State, as she scored 28 points. This season, she has three double doubles, 11 games with 14 or more points and three with more than 10 rebounds.
One Assist Away
Freshman guard Carolyn Kieger (Roseville, Minn.) had one of the best all-around games in Marquette history against La Salle. Kieger seemed to be around the ball constantly, was accurate with her shot and unselfish with her game. She was one assist away from a triple-double. She finished the game with 16 points, 11 rebounds, and nine assists. While game-by-game records are incomplete before 1980, it seems as if there has never been a triple double recorded in MU women's basketball history.
Against Sacred Heart, Kieger tied her career high with nine assists. She was much farther away from the triple double in that contest however as she had seven points and five rebounds.
When Schwerman Hits 10 or More off the Bench
Five times this season has junior Kelly Schwerman (Waukesha, Wis.) hit scored 10 or more points off the bench. Each time, Marquette came away with a win. Against Wisconsin, Schwerman scored 13 against the team that recruited her. Schwerman scored 12 off the bench against Chicago State and tossed in 10 against Georgia State. She scored 12 against La Salle and followed that up with a career high of 17 against Virginia Commonwealth. Schwerman is fourth on the team in scoring with 8.4 points per game. She is second on the team in three-point percentage, with a total of 41.2, and she is practically unstoppable from the free throw line, hitting 73.9 percent of her attempts. Last season, Marquette was 5-0 when Schwerman came off the bench for 10 or more points. Combined with this year's total, Marquette is 10-0 when Schwerman comes off the bench to score 10 or more. She did score 11 against UAB in the 68-54 loss, but that was in a starting effort. Marquette is 2-5 when she scores 10 and is in the starting lineup.
Weaver Makes Presence Known
One of the quietest players in the Marquette lineup, junior forward Crystal Weaver (Kentwood, Mich.) has provided MU with several key contributions on the inside. Weaver is one of MU's smartest players and keeps the Golden Eagles out of trouble. She has the second fewest amount of turnovers (39) amongst MU players averaging 15 minutes or more per game. She is solid on her shot, making 45.1 percent on the year. She has two double doubles, one of which came in a 12 point, 11 rebound effort against Iowa State in which she started the game 5-for-5 from the floor. She returned to the double-figure scoring column with an 11 point performance against Houston.
Double Take
Marquette played its first double overtime game in two years on December 7 against Georgia State. MU had previously played two double overtime games in school history, losing both. Senior center Rachel Klug (Cedar Grove, Wis.) scored MU's first eight points in the second overtime before fouling out, setting up the Golden Eagle victory. Three players in the game played more than 40 minutes - Klug with 43, junior forward Crystal Weaver (Kentwood, Mich.) in 42 and freshman guard Carolyn Kieger (Roseville, Minn.) with 41. In all, Marquette owns a 9-12 record in overtime games. In all, head coach Terri Mitchell is 6-3 in overtime games for her career.
Moving Past the .500 Mark
Heading into the 2000-01 season, Marquette women's basketball owned a 346-346 all time record. With a .500 winning percentage all-time, the team last season did nothing to change that fact with a 14-14 record. Heading into this season MU had an all time record of 360-360, exactly .500. Currently, MU has cleared the .500 hurdle and has an all-time record in its 28th season of 374-372 (50.1 percent).
Spreading it Around
Freshman Carolyn Kieger (Roseville, Minn.) had four assists in her collegiate debut. She continued to find open players against Wis.-Milwaukee, dishing a season high six assists. She improved her assist-to-turnover ratio against UWM, turning over the ball just twice against the Panthers. She then set a career high with seven against Georgia State. She bettered that mark with nine against La Salle and tied it against Sacred Heart. She averages 4.3 assists per game. She finished the regular season with 112 assists, the second best total for an MU freshman.
Five Game Win Streak Comes to an End
With a 75-68 loss to Notre Dame, Marquette had a season long win streak come to an end at five. The last time Marquette won five in a row was last season, when the Golden Eagles won six games in a row in Conference USA play. In the 1999-2000 season, Marquette won eight in a row and had three five game win streaks. The 1997-98 season was the highlight of all win streaks, as MU won 13 in a row. In history, Marquette has won five in a row 20 times.
Strength of Schedule Always Difficult
Marquette owns the 43rd best overall and 52nd best non-conference schedule according to the Richie Summerville/WBCA preseason RPI release. The Golden Eagles have the fourth-toughest strength of schedule among C-USA teams according to the release. TCU has the nation's fourth most difficult schedule. Tulane was ranked 28th in the preseason strength of schedule and DePaul was 36th.
Marquette's 2002-03 schedule contained four teams ranked in the preseason USA Today/ESPN/WBCA Top 25. Notre Dame was ranked 10th in that poll. Iowa State owned an ranking of 18. C-USA schools TCU and Cincinnati were ranked 19th and 21st respectively.
Currently, Marquette is ranked 79th in the RPI provided by Palm Sports Resources and its strength of schedule is ranked 65th. Wis.-Green Bay was the highest ranked team in the RPI that MU has faced this year. The Phoenix were ranked 26th, but since fell to 43rd. Notre Dame finished with the highest RPI of MU opponents at 26th.
Balanced Attack
Against Wis.-Milwaukee, all 12 players played and no single MU player played more than 27 minutes. In addition, 11 of the 12 players scored and 10 hit field goals. All but one player grabbed a rebound as well. Eight players logged assists and seven different players grabbed a steal in the 73-53 victory.
Against Sacred Heart, 11 of the 12 Marquette players scored, including a season high of nine from freshman Dawneshia Smith (Milwaukee, Wis.). The same 11 players grabbed rebounds against the Pioneers. Eight players recorded assists, including nine from freshman guard Carolyn Kieger (Roseville, Minn.).
It's Crowded In Here
Marquette's home attendance is on the rise. The Golden Eagles are averaging 1,391 fans per game through 12 games this season. MU was bolstered by two of its largest crowds ever. Against Saint Francis (Pa.) 1,937 fans came to watch. On December 31, Marquette set a regular season attendance record with 3,686 coming to watch the teams play. That crowd was also MU women's basketball's largest crowd at the U.S. Cellular Arena. Only one other time has Marquette had a larger crowd. That came in the 1995 Great Midwest Conference championship game when 3,879 people came to the Bradley Center for that game. Last season, an average of 1,443 attended each home game, with four of the top 15 crowds in school history occurring. MU is also a good draw on the road. The Golden Eagles played in front of 7,556 at Iowa State and played in front of 6,572 at Wisconsin.
Tournament Champions
For the first time since the 1999-2000 season, Marquette won a regular season tournament title. The Golden Eagles claimed the championship of the Hyatt Regency Atlanta Invitational. MU won the OSU classic in November of 1999 in its last tourney win. Freshman guard Carolyn Kieger (Roseville, Minn.) was named the tournament's MVP. She averaged 15.5 points in the victories over Chicago State and Georgia State. She also had seven assists and seven rebounds in the win over Georgia State. Senior center Rachel Klug (Cedar Grove, Wis.) was also named to the all-tournament team. She scored 20 against Georgia state and had six points in limited action due to foul trouble against Chicago State.
Winning the Tip
Marquette was on a win-streak of sorts, having won the opening tip 10 times in a row, before TCU secured the jump ball to start that game. Marquette is 9-7 when it wins the opening possession and was 5-5 in its jump ball win streak.
What Getting the First Possession Means
Despite winning the possession so often, Marquette hasn't used it as an advantage. Marquette has scored first this season on just six occasions.
Kieger Tabbed as "Freshman of Impact"
Carolyn Kieger was named as one of women's college basketball's "Freshmen of Impact" by Women's College Hoops.com (womenscollegehoops.com). She was listed as an honorable mention selection.
The publication states that Kieger "is a true point guard and could be the one to get Marquette back in the big dance." Players were selected as a "Freshman of Impact" based on the anticipated contribution that the student-athlete will make to her team as a first-year player. Kieger was selected as one of 39 newcomers out of nearly 1,000 NCAA Division I freshmen for this season.
