North Carolina State University Athletics
Women's Hoops Set to Compete in San Juan Shootout
12/19/2003 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Dec. 19, 2003
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico - NC State women's basketball enters the San Juan Shooutout with a 5-3 overall record. The Wolfpack will take on the 5-and-1 Eastern Michigan Eagles in the opening game of the venue. The two teams will meet for the first time when the ball tips at 11 a.m. eastern time on Saturday, Dec. 20. The Pack will then face the University of Puerto Rico-Mayaguez on Sunday at 2 p.m., and then Baylor (7-1) on Monday at 4 p.m.
The Wolfpack is coming off of two-straight wins at home - which extended its home winning streak to three. The Pack most recently defeated the Florida A&M Rattlers on Wednesday, Dec. 17. NC State defeated FAMU 72-65, supported by three players in double figures. Alvine Mendeng, Kendra Bell and Kaayla Chones all scored 11 points each. The previous win was against Indiana on Sunday, Dec. 14, 93-91. The Pack is led by 15.1 ppg from senior center Kaayla Chones, who also is leading the team in rebounds with 6.3 rpg. Junior point guard Kendra Bell is leading the team in assists with 19 total, and is third on the team in scoring with 8.0 ppg. Eight players have contributed 10 or more assists as the Pack spreads out the scoring contributions. Two freshmen are among the team's top five scorers. Forward Keisha Brown is adding 8.8 ppg, while forward Marquetta Dickens is knocking down 7.0 ppg. Chones, Brown and Bell are all shooting 50 percent from the floor, including a team-high 55 percent from Chones. She has scored in double figures all but one game, including a team-high 25 versus No. 24 Oregon. In addition, she has been the team's leading scorer six times. Mendeng leads the team in offensive boards, getting 17 total in eight games. With the completion of the San Juan Shootout, NC State will not play again until Dec. 29, when it travels to No. 1 UConn, who recently picked up its 600th program win.
The Eastern Michigan squad is coming off of two straight wins, both coming from the Mildred & Roger L. White Invitational on Dec. 5 and 6. This will be the team's first game since Dec. 6, accounting for 14 days without head-to-head competition. The Eagles defeated Northwestern 70-61 on the 6th and Florida International 52-42 on the 5th. Three players are averaging double figures for EMU. Sophomore forward Nikki Knapp leads the team with 15.8 ppg, while freshman Sarah VanMetre is close behind averaging 12.5 ppg. Knapp and VanMetre anchor the team in rebounding with 8.0 rpg. Junior guard Ryan Coleman is adding 11.2 points each game. Junior guard Erika Ford leads the team in assists with 35 total or 5.8 per game. The Eagles' lone loss came against No. 24 Michigan State, 79-52 on Dec. 28. Ford led the team in minutes played as a sophomore, averaging 35.4 per contest. Coleman was selected to the Preseason All-Mid-American Conference. Knapp is fresh off an All-Mid-American Conference freshman team performance and was a runner-up for Freshman of the Year last season after she finished with 11.5 ppg and 6.3 rpg. VanMetre was ranked among Indiana's Top 40 as a high school player in Noblesville, Ind. Head coach Suzy Merchant played basketball at Central Michigan and has since spent time as an assistant coach Oakland University; head coached at Saginaw Valley State and is currently in her sixth year at Eastern Michigan.
Baylor enters the Shootout having just recently broken a five-game winning streak. The Bears lost to Penn State, 63-74 on Dec. 9, before hosting Southeastern Louisiana on Dec. 15. Sophomore Sophia Young led Baylor to a 79-46 win with her game-high 18 points. Junior guard Steffanie Blackmon led game with eight rebounds. Young happens to lead the team overall with her 18.0 ppg and 8.8 boards a contest. Two others are averaging double figures as well. Blackmon stands ranked second with 16.6 ppg, while freshman forward Emily Niemann comes in third with 11.4 ppg. The Bears have been outscoring their opponents by an average of 29.1 ppg. Kim Mulkey-Robertson, who is now in her fourth season at the helm, is the head coach of the Bears.
