Wahine's next opponent in a shooting zone
By Ann Miller
Advertiser Staff Writer
Brigham Young comes here in a zone of its own for tomorrow's second-round Women's National Invitation Tournament game against the University of Hawai'i.
Friday at Corvallis, the Cougars came out hot and only got hotter in a 78-63 victory over Oregon State. With all-conference guards Erin Thorn and Stacy Jensen anchoring the onslaught, BYU buried 61 percent of its shots, and 69 percent from beyond the arc.
"They can shoot," said Oregon State assistant Stephanie (Osburn) Norman, who worked for UH coach Vince Goo a decade ago. "I have never seen anything quite like that. They hit 8-of-9 (3-pointers) in the first half and kept it going.
"We only had nine turnovers and shot 40 percent. You just shake your head. ... It was one of those shockers. We were not prepared to deal with it."
It was BYU's first victory in a national tournament under fourth-year coach Trent Shippen, who has taken the Cougars (19-12) to the postseason the last three years. A week ago, they nearly won the Mountain West, upsetting 16th-ranked Utah in the semifinals -when they overcame a 40-20 halftime deficit — and falling to Colorado State (59-56) in the final.
When UH and BYU play tomorrow (7 p.m.) at Stan Sheriff Center, it will be their first game since the Cougars broke away from the Western Athletic Conference in 1999. The Wahine have never seen Thorn — the 2000 MWC Freshman of the Year — and hope they don't see BYU shoot 60 percent.
Norman said her conversation with Goo after Friday's game came with a "buyer beware" warning.
"I don't think they can shoot like that again," Norman said, "but against us you'd think they were an NCAA team and not WNIT. And you would think they were on a roll. It's going to be a very difficult game for Hawai'i because BYU's perimeter scoring is something else."
Shippen characterizes Thorn as "the catalyst." She averages better than 15 points a game — second in the MWC — and went for 36 against Arizona. Thorn is ninth nationally in 3-point shooting (3.0 per game) and second in conference scoring.
She is also streaky. Weakened by illness, she didn't score in the Colorado State game. And, not surprisingly, the Cougars are not shooting at a 60-percent pace. Normally, they hit 43 percent of their shots and 40 from beyond the arc, where they rank 14th nationally.
"Friday might have been our best shooting performance for a full game," Shippen said, "but a couple other games have been similar. It was definitely good timing."
As good as it was, Shippen was more excited about his team's defense. The Cougars shut down Pac-10 Player of the Year Felicity Ragland, mixing man, zone and triangle-and-two defenses.
"They either had great tapes or great scouting," Norman said. "They knew exactly what we were running."
Goo considers BYU a "lot better" defensive team than Santa Clara, the Wahine's first-round victim Thursday. The Cougars' guards — Norman calls them "an arsenal" — are also an improvement
Janka Gabrielova will probably start on Thorn. "What makes Janka a good defender," Goo said, "is she doesn't stop on you. She just goes.
"We've defended guards well most of the year. But usually in our conference, teams had one good shooting guard. BYU has two or three who can score, and four or five good shooters."
OVER AND BACK: Wahine center Dainora Puida tweaked her right knee in Thursday's game and hasn't been running in practice. Coach Vince Goo still expects her to start. Puida has double-doubles in her last four games. ... The first 50 children to enter the arena tomorrow will receive the 2001 version of the "20 Win Pin" from the Rainbow Wahine Booster Club. The pins originated four years ago, to honor Goo's 200th victory in his 10th year as coach. This is the fourth version of the pin, after 1997 (21-8), '98 (24-4) and 2000 (20-9). ... WAC champion Texas Christian won its NCAA first-round game yesterday. The Horned Frogs, seeded 11th in the Mideast, upset sixth-seeded Penn State, 77-75. The Nittany Lions, who reached the Final Four a year ago, are ranked 22nd nationally. TCU plays sixth-ranked Louisiana Tech in the second round. ... Hawai'i is among the Top 15 in three national statistics — field-goal percentage defense (fourth at .347), free-throw percentage (10th at .763) and scoring defense (15th at 58.7). ... The annual Wahine Basketball Banquet will be April 8, at Waikiki Beach Marriott. Cost is $37, with kids half price. Call 956-4507 for information or to make reservations.
