Dec. 22, 2009

LOGAN, Utah -

GAME #11Utah State (5-5) at Southern Utah (3-9)Wednesday, Dec. 23, 12:00 p.m. • Logan, Utah • Centrum Arena (5,300)Radio Broadcast: 1390 AM •  www.UtahStateAggies.com

TIP OFF - Utah State women's basketball defeated Weber State by its second-largest winning percentage on Dec. 21. The Aggies improved to 2-1 against instate rivals after the 21-point win over the Wildcats, 72-51. USU was led by junior guard Alice Coddington's WAC-record 13 steals in the win. Both Coddington and senior center Lydia Whitehead added double-doubles in the win. USU now will face its only instate rival on the road, traveling to Southern Utah on Wednesday, Dec. 23 to take on the Thunderbirds at Noon.

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THE OPPONENT - In its last game, Southern Utah used counter runs all night to chip into the Idaho State lead, but eventually the runs were not enough as the Thunderbirds fell 61-48 on Dec 21. The loss drops the T-Birds to 3-9 on the season.

Southern Utah was held without a double-digit scorer for the first time of the season as Thorley led the T-Birds with nine points. The true freshman added nine boards, narrowly missing the first double-double of her career. Challis Pascucci led all players with 14 boards during the night. Idaho State was paced by Chelsea Pickering with 14 points and a team-high five steals. Turnovers proved to be the Thunderbirds' demise as 26 giveaways by SUU led to 29 points for the Bengals.

Head coach Raegan Pebley's first game as an Aggie was in Cedar City, as the Thunderbirds defeated USU, 79-60 on Nov. 21, 2003. It was Utah State's first game since March 7, 1987. The Aggies lost the first two meetings with the Thunderbirds, but have won the last three, including a 52-37 win last season in Logan.

Utah State vs. Southern Utah (Under Coach Pebley)2003    L, 79-60 (Logan)2004    W, 89-68 (Cedar City)2007    W, 58-34 (Cedar City)2008    W, 52-37 (Logan)

CODDINGTON BREAKS WAC RECORD FOR STEALS - Junior guard Alice Coddington set a new Western Athletic Conference record with 13 steals in the Aggies win over Weber State on Dec. 21. Her previous career high was eight against Idaho State on Dec. 5. The 13 steals was also a Utah State record. She broke Carol Garrison's record of 12 steals against Northern Arizona in 1981. It was one shy of tying the NCAA record for steals in a game. The last player in the nation to reach 13 steals was IUPUI's Jernisha Cann against Gardner Webb on Nov. 24, 2007. The last player to reach 14 grabs was Georgia Tech's Jillian Ingram against Virginia Tech on Feb. 20, 2008. The 13 steals also bested the Western Athletic Conference record by two. Nevada's Cherlanda Franklin had 11 steals during the 2007-08 season and BYU's Tomika Young had 11 during the 1991-92 season.

HOME SWEET HOME - Utah State improved to 4-1 at home with a win against Weber State on Dec. 21. The Aggies lost their first game at home with the, 61-48, loss to BYU on Dec. 19. Utah State has wins against Utah, Montana Western and North Dakota State. The Aggies have 37-point win over Montana Western and a 21-point win over Weber State.

READY FOR THE NEW YEAR - Utah State will be ready for the holidays to be over as the Aggies are 2-4 in the month of December. USU's wins in December are a 58-46 win over North Dakota State and a 72-51 win over Weber State. The Aggies have two more games remaining in this month at home against Utah Valley (Dec. 31). USU has one road game on the road against Southern Utah (Dec. 23).

CLOSING OUT THE DECADE - As the Aggies prepare to close out the decade, it has been a monumental one as it is their first decade back since the reinstatement. Utah State is 63-118 in the first decade of the 21st century. USU started playing basketball during the 2003-04 season. The Aggies best season of the decade was last season's 16-15 finish.

AMONG THE TOP IN THE WAC - Senior Lydia Whitehead moved up to fourth this week in the WAC in rebounding. The center has 73 total rebounds this season for an average of 7.3 rebounds per game. She has 28 offensive and 45 defensive this season. Junior guard Alice Coddington is now tops in the league in steals after the 13-steal performance, averaging 3.40 steals per game. The junior has 34 steals in 10 games. Junior guard Amber White is still in the top 15 in scoring. She stands 13th in the WAC in scoring, averaging 11.4 points per game. She is the only Aggie averaging in double digits on the team. Coddington is close averaging 9.9 ppg.

WHITEHEAD IS WHITE HOT - For the fourth time this season, senior center Lydia Whitehead had double-digits in rebounds. She has reached the double-digit mark the last two games. In the games against WSU and BYU, Whitehead had 10 rebounds. She also added 12 rebounds against San Francisco on Nov. 22 and 10 against Pepperdine on Dec. 4.

PRIMETIME PLAYERS - This season, Utah State was on television two times. The game against Utah on Nov. 13 was on the CW30. Another game against an instate rival will also be on television for Aggie fans to enjoy. USU's match up with BYU on Dec. 19 was also on the CW30. Talent was Rob Flygare doing play by play with Brooks Hansen as the color commentator.

AGGIES SET RECORD IN WIN AGAINST BISON - Utah State's 11 blocks against North Dakota State set a new USU record. Both Nicole Johnson and Banna Diop swatted five shots each, while TJ Goddard added one block. The previous record was 10 blocks against Northern Arizona in 1984.

Tahara Williams OFF THE BENCH - Senior guard Tahara Williams has been solid off the bench this season as part of the Aggies very productive bench. USU has scored 30% of its points off the bench this season led by Williams. Williams scored a career-high 15 points in the win against Weber State on Dec. 21. She added seven points against BYU on Dec. 19. In the last two games, Williams has averaged over 25 minutes per game off the bench as her playing time has increased.

JOHNSON FIRST IN THE WAC IN BLOCKS - Senior forward Nicole Johnson had one block in USU's loss to BYU on Dec. 19. With the one block, Johnson now has 102 career blocks which places her second all-time behind Jessica Freeman who had 127 from 2003-06. Johnson now needs 25 more blocks to tie Freeman. Last season, the senior had 56 blocks.

As a team, Utah State has an impressive 42 blocks in eight games this season, averaging 4.20 bpg. This week, Johnson is first in the WAC in blocks per game, averaging 1.70 bpg. She has 17 blocks in 10 games for the Aggies.

IN THE WINS... - In Utah State's five wins this season, the Aggies have won all of them by at least six points. Three of the four wins have been by at least 12 points (Weber State, North Dakota State and Montana Western). Utah State has out-rebounded its opponents in three of the four wins this season. USU has also shot better from three in four of its five wins this season.

AS WHITE GOES SO DO THE AGGIES - Junior guard Amber White has led or had a share of the lead Aggies in scoring in six of the Aggies 10 games. USU is 3-3 in games in which White is the leading scorer. White scored a career-high 25 points in the Aggies season-opening win over Utah. Despite getting into early foul trouble against Idaho State on Dec. 12, White ended the game with 14 points. She scored a team-high 13 points in USU's win over North Dakota State on Dec. 14.

SHARP SHOOTING AGGIES - There are two Aggies in the top 10 in the WAC in three-point shooting. Freshman guard TJ Goddard is still first in the league in three-point field goal percentage (.536). Junior guard Alice Coddington is sixthth, shooting .370. As a team, USU is fourth in the WAC from beyond the arc (.353). The Aggies have made 48 three pointers so far this season.

UP NEXT - The Aggies will take on Southern Utah on Wednesday, Dec. 23 at Noon. Following the match up with the Thunderbirds, USU ends the 2009 portion of the of the schedule against Utah Valley on Dec. 31 at 7 p.m. In all, the Aggies will have faced five schools from the Beehive State, Utah, BYU, Weber State, Southern Utah and Utah Valley. So far this season, the Aggies are 2-1 against instate schools with a wins against Utah and WSU and a loss to BYU.

GETTING INVOLVED - Every Utah State player capable of playing saw time in the Aggies win over Montana Western on Nov. 28. There were 12 different Aggies that scored of the 13 that played. Only freshman guard Pualei Furtado didn't score, but she contributed in different ways adding four rebounds and two steals in her first action of the season. Redshirt-freshman Banna Diop scored a career-high 13 points in a career-high 21 minutes. USU scored more points off the bench than the Montana Western did in the game with the Aggies edging the Bulldogs 35-34. Senior guard Tahara Williams started her first game as an Aggie and scored a career-high six points. Junior forward Stacey Howard had a career-high nine rebounds off the bench for Utah State.

AGGIE INCENTIVE PLAN - Utah State continues its Aggie Incentive Plan which allow fans to earn points for attending women's basketball games. Fans can earn 10 points for attending the game against Utah on Friday. Aggie fans can accumulate points throughout the season and earn prizes like USU water bottles, clothing and a USU women's team autographed basketball. Attend as many USU women's basketball games as possible and accumulate points, for a chance to win great prizes!!

Upcoming EventsPoint Breakdown for Each Game12/31/09 vs. Utah Valley        7:00 p.m. - 10 points
Non-Conference Weekday Games - 10 pointsNon-Conference Weekend Games - 4 pointsConference Weekday Games - 5 pointsConference Weekend Games - 2 points
Prizes for Points Accumulated20 points - USU Water bottle40 points - USU T-Shirt60 points - USU Sweatshirt80 points - USU Women's Team Autographed Basketball

CAREER DAY- A trio of juniors had career days for Utah State in the Aggies' win against Utah on Nov. 13. Guard/forward Amber White scored a career-high 25 points in the win. Her previous high was 10 points in a loss to Fresno State last season. Guard Alice Coddington also had a banner day, scoring a career-high 18 points. Her previous high was 12 points against San Jose State last season. Forward Stacey Howard also added a career-high seven points. Last season, she set a career-high with five points against UNLV.

ADMISSION - Admission to Utah State's women's basketball games is $5 for adults, $1 for youth. Fans can buy a women's sport pass for $75 which will gain admittance to women's basketball, volleyball and gymnastics. Contact the USU Athletics Ticket Office at (435)797-0305 or at 1-888-U-STATE-1 (1-888-878-2831) for more information or visit the Utah State athletic web site at www.UtahStateAggies.com.

This season, Utah State introduces the Aggie Incentive Plan which allow fans to earn points for attending women's basketball games. Fans can earn 10 points for attending the game against Utah on Friday. Aggie fans can accumulate points throughout the season and earn prizes like USU water bottles, clothing and a USU women's team autographed basketball. Parents of Jr. Aggies will also receive free admittance to the game against Utah. Aggie women's basketball will also welcome schools on Dec. 14 for School Day against North Dakota State at 12 p.m. With the Aggie Incentives Plan fans can attend as many USU women's basketball games as possible and accumulate points, for a chance to win great prizes!!

SEASON OPENER - The Aggies win against Utah on Nov. 13 was Utah State's first season-opening win since Nov. 17, 1981 with a 78-59 win against Southern Utah in Cedar City. It was the third season-opener that the Aggies have won since 1974.

LAST TIME OUT - Behind a 13-steal performance from junior guard Alice Coddington, the Utah State women's basketball team convincingly defeated instate rival Weber State, 72-51, Monday at the Dee Glen Smith Spectrum.

Coddington's 13 steals was one shy of the NCAA record. The last player in the nation to reach 13 steals was IUPUI's Jernisha Cann against Gardner Webb on Nov. 24, 2007. The last player to reach 14 grabs was Georgia Tech's Jillian Ingram against Virginia Tech on Feb. 20, 2008. The 13 steals also bested the Western Athletic Conference record by two. Nevada's Cherlanda Franklin had 11 steals during the 2007-08 season and BYU's Tomika Young had 11 during the 1991-92 season.The Utah State record was 12 steals sets by Carol Garrison against Northern Arizona in 1981.

Coddington added 13 points for her first double-double of the season. The record-breaking steal came with 5:24 remaining in the game. USU was led by senior guard Tahara Williams who scored a career-high 15 points in 28 minutes of action. Senior center also added a double-double for the Aggies with 14 points and 10 rebounds.

Weber State's Caitlin Anderson scored a game-high 17 points for the Wildcats. Tonya Schnibbe added 10 points for WSU in the loss.

With the win Utah State evens out its record at 5-5. Weber State drops to 6-7 with the loss. The win was only its second of the month for USU, but it was also the second its last three games.

Once again, the Aggies got help from the bench, outscoring the Wildcats 37-7 in bench points. USU also scored 36 points in the paint. Utah State outscored Weber State 12-2 in second chance points.

TURNING 22 - The 2009-10 season marks the 22nd year of women's basketball at USU, and just the sixth since the program was restarted prior to the 2003-04 season. The women's hoops program at USU had been disbanded following the 1987 season due to budget cuts. USU is playing in its fifth season in the Western Athletic Conference (WAC) after playing its first two seasons in the Big West Conference.

AGGIES ON THE RADIO/WEB - Utah State games can be heard on KLGN (1390 AM) in Logan with Evan Nyman calling the play-by-play. They can also be heard on the web by going to the Utah State Athletics home page at www.UtahStateAggies.com and cling on the Yahoo Sports link in the right hand column.

GAMETRACKER - Fans can follow Aggie home games through the USU web site at www.UtahStateAggies.com via GameTracker, a free service, which updates play-by-play and statistics throughout the game.

LAST TIME AGAINST SOUTHERN UTAH - A 10-0 spurt put Utah State ahead early and the Aggies never relinquished the lead, beating Southern Utah, 52-37, in a women's basketball Beehive state battle Saturday night at the Dee Glen Smith Spectrum.

With its largest victory of the season, USU improved to 5-5 overall, while SUU falls to 4-7. The Aggies have beaten the Thunderbirds in the last two meetings.

USU finished home non-conference action with a 4-3 action.

It was a balanced scoring attack for Utah State as senior guard Ana Pares netted a game-high 10 points, the only player in double-figures for either team. Junior forward Nicole Johnson tied a season-high with nine points to go with a team-leading seven rebounds, while senior guard Danyelle Snelgro added seven points. Snelgro and sophomore guard Alice Coddington each dished out six assists, a new season-high for Snelgro as well as swiping a season-high five steals. Johnson also added three blocks.

Southern Utah was led by Challis Pascucci's nine points and a game-high 13 rebounds, while Anne Westwood-Higbee and Cassie Platt tossed in seven points each.

NEWCOMERS - This season, the Aggies welcome five newcomers this season, including LaCale Pringle-Buchanan a junior guard from College of Southern Idaho and fellow junior forward Ashlee Brown, a transfer from UC Santa Barbara. Due to transfer rules, Brown will have to sit out the 2009-10 season. Utah State also added three freshman guards from all around the country. Jenna Johnson is freshman guard from Wasilla, Alaska, while Pualei Furtado is a freshman guard from Kaneohe, Hawaii. Devyn Christensen is another freshman guard from Caldwell, Idaho.

ON THE INTERNET - All of Utah State's home games are available to watch live through Utah State TV via the internet at www.UtahStateAggies.com. USU fans can also listen to every game both home and away, via USU's web site.

COACH PEBLEY - Head coach Raegan Pebley is entering her seventh season as head coach at Utah State, which is the longest tenure in the program's history. Five games into the 2007-08 season, Pebley overtook the lead for the most games coached in Utah State history (116). She has now coached 181 games for the blue and white and has 63 wins as Aggie head coach which is first ahead of Fern Gardner (55) on the all-time win list.

UTAH STATE VS. WCC CHALLENGE - Utah State concluded its tour through the West Coast Conference. Pepperdine was the third WCC team that USU has faced when the Waves defeated the Aggies on Friday, Dec. 4. at the ASU Classic. USU is 1-2 against the West Coast Conference this season with a road win against Portland on Nov. 16 and a loss to San Francisco on the road on Nov. 22.

SPANNING THE GLOBE - The 2009-10 Utah State team is an international group. There are Aggies from three different countries and all across the United States. Juniors Stacey Howard and Alice Coddington hail from Australia, while redshirt freshman Banna Diop hails from Senegal. The players from the states hail from one end to the other. Pualei Furtado is from Hawaii, while fellow freshman Jenna Johnson is from Alaska. But there is only one player from the Beehive State, senior center Lydia Whitehead hails from Nibley, Utah.