The No. 22-ranked University of Minnesota Duluth women’s basketball team (10-2) highlights the field at the 2004 Red Lion Classic, slated to begin tomorrow at 2 p.m. Central Time on the Metro State College campus in Denver, Colo. UMD battles Metro State (9-1) in Wednesday’s opener, then challenges Colorado School of Mines (6-2) at 4 p.m. Central Time on Thursday. The games will be UMD’s final non-conference matchups of the 2004-05 regular season.
ALL-TIME SERIES• UMD’s games against Metro State and Colorado Mines will be the first in program history. Both Metro State and Colorado Mines are members of the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference. Teams in the NCC have complied an 8-4 record against teams in the RMAC thus far in 2004-05.
ON THE AIR• Neither of UMD’s games at the Red Lion Classic will be broadcast.
Tune to the FAN 560 on Monday nights at 6 p.m. for the UMD Basketball Coaches Show, hosted by Brian Dennish.
THE COACH•
Karen Stromme (St. Olaf, 1982) is in her 21st season with UMD. The six-time Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference Coach of the Year has amassed a 430-177 (.708) career record and led UMD to seven NCAA tournament appearances. Under Stromme’s guidance, UMD has posted 15 20-win seasons and never suffered more than 14 losses in a single year.
A NEW ERA• The 2004-05 season marks the Bulldogs’ first as a member of the NCC. Previously, UMD was a member of the NSIC. The Bulldogs’ 25-year run in the NSIC included 11 conference titles and 10 of the last 16. The Bulldogs claimed three straight NSIC titles on two separate occasions (1988-91 and 1997-00) and posted a 14-1 record in the NSIC Tournament, winning the championship in every season except 2001-02.
MORE ABOUT UMD AND THE NCC• Against teams currently in the NCC, the Bulldogs have notched a 46-71 all-time mark. They have enjoyed the most success against Minnesota State, (24-16) and the least against North Dakota (3-24).
WHEN DOES IT START?• UMD’s first NCC game is slated for Jan. 6, 2005. The Bulldogs will host Minnesota State University, Mankato at 6 p.m. in what will be the 15th game of the year for UMD.
CSTV NATIONAL ACCOLADES• Junior All-American Lindsey Dietz was named CSTV’s National Student-Athlete of the Week on Dec. 20 after leading UMD to its first national ranking of 2004. A math major, Dietz maintains a 4.0 GPA.
1,000-POINT CLUB• Lindsey Dietz became the 15th member of UMD’s 1,000-Point Club on Nov. 19. Her climb to 1,000 was the second fastest in school history behind only Dina Kangas, the NCAA’s all-time leading Division II scorer.
DOMINATING DIETZ• Lindsey Dietz has posted six double-doubles thus far, including one in UMD’s last game, a Dec. 18 win over Winona State University.
THE FORCE FROM MORRIS• Sophomore Katie Winkelman has continued her emergence as a dependable UMD regular, averaging 8.8 PPG, second-best among all Bulldogs. She is the team leader in steals with 20 and is tied for the team lead in blocked shots with four. Winkelman, who is among UMD’s best outside shooters, has displayed a flair for playing with her back to the basket as well recently, giving a glimpse of her potential versatility.
REMEMBER ME?• UMD’s last game came on Dec. 18, giving the Bulldogs a 10-day break in the action.
NOT SO NEUTRAL• UMD has a better winning percentage in neutral-site games (1.000; 3-0) than in home-court games thus far (.750; 3-1). The Bulldogs are 4-1 on the road (.800).
LAST GAME• The No. 22-ranked Bulldogs improved their record to 10-2 with a 72-37 home win over Winona State University on Dec. 18.
Sophomore forward Katie Winkelman finished as the game’s top scorer with 14 points and also added five rebounds for the Bulldogs, who crushed the Warriors with a defensive effort that caused five shot clock violations and 23 turnovers.
“We wanted to work on controlling the pace of the game, playing up tempo and playing aggressive UMD defense,†said Winkelman. “Our guards really worked their point guards hard coming up the court so they didn’t have many easy shots.â€
In all, ten Bulldogs recorded steals including two each for junior Amy Lulich and freshman Alissa Pauly.
WINNING CLOSE ONES• UMD increased its average margin of victory to 6.9 points with the 35-point win over Winona State. Prior to that, UMD had enjoyed just two victories of 10 points or more.
STREAKING• UMD has rode winning streaks of four and five games thus far. The Bulldogs will carry a two-game home-court winning streak into their NCC opener against Minnesota State on Jan. 6.
TOUGH INSIDE• UMD is out-rebounding its opponents by a 7.3 rebound-per-game margin. Lindsey Dietz leads the charge with 8.0 RPG. Bulldog co-captain Tasha Martin, a 5-8 guard, is second with a 5.3 RPG average.
NCC AGAINST THE OPPOSITION• NCC teams are 65-20 against non-NCC teams thus far in 2004-05.
FROM THE LINE• As a team, UMD sports a .761 mark from the free-throw line. Lindsey Dietz is 86-for-106 (.811), the seventh-best figure in the NCC. Seven Bulldogs are shooting better than 72 percent from the line.
SECRET WEAPON• In addition to being one of UMD’s best defenders, 5-9 junior Laura Sylvester has also proved to be a accurate offensive threat. She is a team-leading 60 percent from 3-point range (6-for-10) and 21-for-44 (.477) from the field. Her field goal percentage ranks fourth among all Bulldogs. Her minutes pro-rated to a full 40-minute game, Sylvester would average 8.9 PPG.
BULLDOG BITS• UMD has played on its home court just four times this season … Tanysha Scott is the only Bulldog averaging more than 30 minutes per game (31.8). Her 3.75 assists per game rank seventh overall in the NCC … Lindsey Dietz is the NCC’s No. 2 scorer, averaging 21.0 PPG. Dietz’s 8.0 rebounds-per-game average also ranks second overall in the NCC. Dietz’s .543 field goal percentage ranks fourth in the NCC overall. She leads the NCC in offensive rebounds per game with 4.17 … Among NCC teams, only North Dakota (+10.9) is outrebounding its opponents by a wider margin than UMD (+7.2) … UMD’s .761 free-throw percentage leads the NCC … Opponents are shooting .446 against UMD thus far, the highest such figure among all NCC teams … UMD’s 14 blocks are the fewest of any NCC team … The Bulldogs’ assist-to-turnover ratio (0.80) is the lowest in the NCC … Four Bulldogs are currently averaging 8.0 points per game or more: Lindsey Dietz, Katie Winkelman, Tasha Martin and Tanysha Scott … Of Bulldogs with more than 20 3-point attempts, only Tasha Martin boasts a 3-point percentage of .360 or better.
