Feb. 21, 2008

WACO, Texas -

Complete Release in PDF Format

#9/9 Baylor (22-3, 10-2) vs. RV/NR Iowa State (16-9, 5-7)

Saturday, Feb. 23 - 11:00 a.m.
Hilton Coliseum (14,356) - Ames, Iowa

BAYLOR AND IOWA STATE
The two reigning Big 12 Conference players of the week, Jessica Morrow and Kelsey Bolte, meet on the court when No. 9 Baylor plays at Iowa State on Saturday, Feb. 23, at 11:00 a.m. In addition, the Big 12's top 3-point shooting team (Iowa State) matches up against the leagues top 3-point shooting defensive team (Baylor) when the two teams tangle.

Baylor, 22-3 on the season and 10-2 in Big 12 action, is coming off a 79-59 win over 10th-ranked Oklahoma while the Cyclones, 16-9 on the year and 5-7 in league play, enter the contest after a Wednesday loss at Texas A&M (60-46).

With four conference games remaining, Baylor sits atop the Big 12 standings, tied with the Kansas State Wildcats at 10-2. The Wildcats, currently ranked No. 15, had sole possession of first place before their Wednesday night home loss to 11th-ranked Oklahoma (68-65). Oklahoma State and Oklahoma each sit one game back at 9-3. Baylor has posted victories over Oklahoma (twice) and Kansas State but loss to Oklahoma State and still has league games left against Iowa State, Colorado, Texas A&M and Oklahoma State.

Saturday's game, a nationally televised contest, will be broadcast on Fox Sports Network. Veteran sportscasters Mark Neely and Debbie Antonelli will provide play-by-play and color analysis, respectively.

OVER THE AIRWAVES

Television - Fox Sports Network

Television Talent:
Mark Neely (Play-by-play)
Debbie Antonelli (Color analyst)

Internet Feeds
Webcast: None

Audio: Live audio stream at BaylorBears.com

Radio: KRZI/ESPN 1660 AM, Waco

Radio Talent:
Rick May, play-by-play
Lori Fogleman, color analyst

BAYLOR LADY BEARS

IN THE POLLS
9 - Associated Press
9 - USA Today/ESPN Coaches

PROBABLE STARTERS
P-1 Jessika Bradley - So., 6-3 - 4.7 ppg, 4.2 rpg
G-3 Jessica Morrow - Jr., 6-0 - 12.4 ppg, 4.3 rpg
P-14 Rachel Allison - Jr., 6-1 - 13.3 ppg, 8.6 rpg
G-20 Angela Tisdale - Sr., 5-7 - 15.1 ppg, 2.3 apg
G-21 Kelli Griffin - Fr., 5-8 - 2.4 ppg, 1.5 rpg

TOP RESERVES
G-5 Melissa Jones - Fr., 5-10 - 5.3 ppg, 5.3 rpg
P-11 Danielle Wilson - So., 6-3 - 11.0 ppg, 6.7 rpg

IOWA STATE CYCLONES

IN THE POLLS
RV - Associated Press
NR - USA Today/ESPN Coaches

PROBABLE STARTERS
G-4 Alison Lacey - So., 6-0 - 14.6 ppg, 3.87 rpg
G-11 Kelsey Bolte - Fr., 6-1 - 10.3 ppg, 5.4 rpg
G-15 Heather Ezell - Jr., 5-9 - 9.7 ppg, 3.1 rpg
F-32 Amanda Nisleit - Jr., 6-1 - 4.2 ppg, 4.6 rpg
F-44 Jocelyn Anderson - Jr., 6-4 - 6.3 ppg, 5.0 rpg

TOP RESERVES
G-10 Denae Stuckey - So., 5-8 - 4.2 ppg, 4.6 rpg

BAYLOR ON NATIONAL TELEVISION
The Baylor-Iowa State game marks the Lady Bears' ninth appearance on national television this season with the Lady Bears posting a 6-2 record in those games.

This marks Baylor's fourth straight national television broadcast and fifth in the last six games.

Baylor is making it's sixth appearance on Fox Sports Network (FSN) in addition to making single game appearances on ESPN2, ESPNU and CSTV.

LADY BEAR LEADERS
With 25 games under their belt, the Lady Bears boast four players averaging double-digit scoring. Leading the way is the squad's lone senior, All-Big 12 candidate Angela Tisdale, with 15.1 a contest, while junior Rachel Allison, another All-Big 12 candidate, manages 13.3 points and a team-leading 8.6 rebounds a game. Junior guard/forward Jessica Morrow follows with 12.4 a contest and sophomore post Danielle Wilson manages 11.0 points an outing.

In addition to Allison's 8.6 boards, two other players haul down 5.3 or more rebounds an outing. Wilson manages 6.7 a game while freshman Melissa Jones manages 5.3.

SENIOR LEADERSHIP IN THE CLUTCH
Baylor's lone senior, point guard Angela Tisdale has shown that in the clutch, she can get it done.

- In Baylor's 59-56 win over No. 13 Texas A&M, Tisdale missed her first 10 3-point attempts, but made her only trey of the day with 38 seconds left to give the Bears a one-point lead and Baylor went on to win.

- On the road against No. 11 Oklahoma, an 84-73 victory, Tisdale scored a career-high 35 points and helped put some distance between the Lady Bears and Sooners when she scored seven points in an 8-1 run midway through the second half. After sinking a 3-pointer from the top of the key, she scored a basket in transition off Melissa Jones' steal and then hit two free throws that extended Baylor's lead to 66-59 with 8 minutes remaining.

- In Baylor's one-point win over No. 25 Texas (61-60), Tisdale scored 19 points, including a game-winning 3-pointer with 19 seconds left.

MORROW FOURTH LADY TO EARN BIG 12 PLAYER OF THE WEEK HONORS
Baylor's Jessica Morrow was named Phillips 66 Big 12 Women's Basketball Player of the Week while for games of Feb 12-17. Morrow was honored for the first time this season and second time in her career. Morrow becomes the fourth Baylor player to receive player of the week honors this season joining sophomore post Danielle Wilson (Dec. 28), Rachel Allison (Jan. 7), Angela Tisdale (Jan. 21). In addition, Baylor is the only school to have more than two different honorees this season.

Morrow averaged 19.5 points, 7.0 rebounds, 2.5 assists, 1.5 blocks and 1.5 steals in Baylor's two games last week, a road loss at Texas and a home victory over 10th-ranked Oklahoma. Morrow's averages for the week were well above her week-beginning 11.7 points and 4.0 rebounds per game. In addition, she shot 45.7 percent (16-35) from the floor and was 5-of-8 from the free throw line.

The 6-0 junior guard led all scorers against the Longhorns with a 19-point performance while hauling down seven rebounds and registering a steal. Against Oklahoma, Morrow poured in 20 points and added seven rebounds, four assists, three blocks and two steals.

Over the past six games, the Humble, Texas, native has averaged 16.1 points an outing, raising her scoring average from 10.8 to 12.2 during that span.

ALLISON NAMED TO MIDSEASON NAISMITH TROPHY LIST
Junior Rachel Allison was among 31 players named to the 2008 Naismith Trophy midseason list recently announced by the Atlanta Tipoff Club. The women's list, which includes 31 candidates because of a tie, was voted on by the Atlanta Tipoff Club's Board of Selectors, comprised of leading basketball journalists, coaches and administrators from around the country. The board based its criteria on player performances this season, and the list was narrowed down from the preseason list of 50 candidates who were announced at the beginning of the season.

A Big 12 Player of the Week selection this season, Allison, a 6-1 forward, averages 13.3 points and a team-leading 8.6 rebounds a game. The Jonesboro, Ark., native ranks among the league leaders in rebounding (3rd), steals (10th), free throw percentage (13th) and scoring (16th).

DEFENSE
Superior defense as well as a balanced offense has led Baylor to a 22-3 season mark. The Lady Bears rank among the NCAA's leaders in several defensive categories: No. 6 - field goal percentage defense (.342) and blocked shots (6.1), No. 18 scoring defense (54.7) and No. 61 - steals (10.3).

Among Big 12 defensive categories (all games), the Lady Bears are No. 1 in scoring defense, field goal percentage defense, blocks and in 3-point field goal percentage defense. In league games only, Baylor ranks No. 1 in field goal percentage defense (.362) and in steals (10.00); No. 2 in 3-point field goal percentage defense (.256) and scoring defense (57.9).

TISDALE JOINS ELITE GROUP
With her 18-point performance against Rice, senior point guard Angela Tisdale became the 24th Lady Bear to score 1,000 career points. She now has 1,224 career points to her credit.

In Baylor's 84-73 victory over 11th-ranked Oklahoma, Tisdale poured in a career-high 35 points, 15 of which came from 3-point range. She is now No. 3 on Baylor's career 3-point list (149) and ranks No. 18 on the Baylor all-time scoring list.

TISDALE CLAIMS TOP SPOT ON BAYLOR ASSIST CHART
With her nine assists against Texas Tech on Jan. 9, Angela Tisdale became Baylor's all-time assists leader. Her 459 career assists surpassed former Lady Bear Chelsea Whitaker's school-record of 457, Tisdale has since extended that mark to 466.

ALLISON'S GOT A NOSE FOR THE BALL
Despite being the shortest of Baylor's posts, 6-1 junior Rachel Allison leads the Lady Bears in rebounding at 8.6 a game. She has hauled down 215 rebounds this season, including a career-high tying 14 at Oklahoma State. In addition, she has registered a team-leading 48 steals, 30 assists and 15 blocks on the year.

In five of Baylor's last six games, Allison has hauled down 10 or more rebounds a game, averaging 11.2 rebounds an outing: Texas (10 & 11), Kansas State (12), Oklahoma State (14), Texas Tech (12) and Oklahoma (8).

BAYLOR'S BLOCK MACHINE
With her 23 blocks over the past seven games, sophomore post Danielle Wilson now has 150 career blocks and ranks No. 2 on Baylor's career list. She needs just 10 rejections to surpass Steffanie Blackmon's (2001-05) top mark of 159.

In addition, Wilson owns two of the Big 12's top marks this season in blocks when she rejected nine shots against Oregon and seven at 11th-ranked Oklahoma. In fact, four of Wilson's seven against Oklahoma came in the second half with the Sooners' two-time All-American Courtney Paris as the victim.

She has blocked 64 shots which ranks No. 3 in the conference in block average at 2.7 a game, that mark also ranks her No. 13 nationally.

In Baylor's 61-60 homecourt victory over Texas, the Longhorns had a chance at winning the game, but Kathleen Nash's shot with 3.4 seconds left was blocked by Wilson, her only block of the game.

Last year in her rookie campaign, Wilson blocked a school-record 86 shots.

BAYLOR QUICK HITS
- In five of the last six games, Rachel Allison has hauled down 10 or more rebounds a game, averaging 11.2 rebounds an outing: Texas (10 & 11), Kansas State (12), Oklahoma State (14), Texas Tech (12), Oklahoma (8).

- Over the past six games, Jessica Morrow has averaged 16.1 ppg: Missouri (16), Nebraska (10), Texas (16 & 19), Kansas State(16), Oklahoma State (24, season high), Texas Tech (8), Oklahoma (20). In Baylor's three losses this season she has averaged 19.7 ppg.

- The trio of Danielle Wilson (64), Jessika Bradley (29) and Jessica Morrow (28) have combined for 121 of the team's 152 season blocks.

- Jessika Bradley, making just her second start of the season, recorded her second career double-double with 10 points and 10 rebounds against 10th-ranked Oklahoma.

- Over the past three games Baylor has shot 52-of-83 (.627) from the free throw line.

- In Baylor's 22 victories this season posts Rachel Allison (13.9), Danielle Wilson (11.7)and Jessika Bradley (5.2) have combined to average 30.8 points a game while in Baylor's three losses they have averaged 16.3 points; Allison 8.7, Wilson 6.3 and Bradley 1.3.

- Versus Baylor's eight ranked opponents this season, Angela Tisdale averages 17.5 points a game while Jessica Morrow manages 16.0 a contest. - Baylor's current 16-game home win streak ranks No. 5 nationally.

- Entering the 2007-08 season, Baylor ranked No. 7 on the NCAA's Winningest Teams During the Last Five Years list with 135 victories. Schools ranking ahead of the Lady Bears are: Duke (159), Tennessee (159), Connecticut (157), LSU (151), North Carolina (149) and Stanford (141).

- Baylor ranks among the top eight in all four RPI rating services: No. 6 in collegerpi.com, No. 7 in both College Basketball News and NCAA and No. 8 in Jeff Sagarin. This ranks No. 1 among Big 12 schools while the Big 12 ranks No. 1 in all RPI listings as a conference.

- The contest versus Oklahoma marked Baylor's eighth game versus a ranked opponent in 2007-08; Baylor is now 6-2 versus ranked teams. It defeated then-No. 12 California (69-56), lost to then-No. 5 Stanford (87-63), downed then-No. 13 Texas A&M (59-56), twice triumphed over 11th/10th-rated Oklahoma (84-73, 79-59), beat 25th-ranked Texas (61-60), defeated #18 Kansas State (63-49) and lost at Oklahoma State (77-67).

- Baylor ranks in the top 25 in NCAA Division I statistics in nine categories as of games through Feb. 17: No. 5 in home court win streak (16); No. 6 in field goal percentage defense (34.2), scoring margin (+19.4) and in blocked shots (6.1); No. 11 in won-lost percentage (88.0); No. 17 in rebounding margin (+7.1); No. 18 in scoring defense (54.7), No. 23 in scoring offense (74.1) and No. 24 in field goal percentage (.450).

- Danielle Wilson's 2.7 blocks per game rank her No. 13 nationally.

- BU is 107-20 (.843) since the start of the 2004-05 season with 17 of the 21 setbacks coming at the hands of nationally ranked opponents. Of Baylor's last 16 losses, 15 have come to ranked opponents.

BAYLOR IN THE NCAA STATISTICS
Through games of Feb. 17, the Lady Bears rank among the NCAA's top 25 in nine team statistical categories:
No. 5 - Home court win streak (16)
No. 6 - Field goal percentage defense (.342)
No. 6 - Scoring margin (19.4)
No. 6 - Blocked shots (6.1)
No. 11 - Won-lost percentage (.880)
No. 16 - Scoring defense (54.7)
No. 17 - Rebound margin (+7.1)
No. 23 - Scoring offense (74.1)
No. 24 - Field goal percentage (.450)

INDIVIDUAL RANKINGS
Danielle Wilson - No. 13, blocks per game (2.7)

SCOUTING THE CYCLONES...
The Iowa State Cyclones, 16-9 on the season and 5-7 in conference action, come into the game after suffering a Wednesday road loss to Texas A&M (60-46).

Bill Fennelly is 275-128 in his 13th year as the Iowa State Cyclones' head coach, he possesses a 441-181 record in his 20 seasons as a head coach. Coach Fennelly is 5-8 versus Baylor throughout his coaching career at Iowa State.

Iowa State is led in scoring by 6-0 sophomore guard Alison Lacey's 14.6 points. Freshman guard (6-1) Kelsey Bolte ranks second on the team in scoring at 12.7 and leads the team in rebounding at 5.6 an outing. Junior guard (5-9) Heather Ezell averages 10.3 points and ranks second on the squad in rebounding at 5.4.

The Cyclones are the Big 12's best 3-point team with a league-leading 189 made (7.6 per game). Baylor, which ranks No. 1 in the league in 3-point field goal percentage defense, can't concentrate on just one player as four Cyclones have drained 22 or more treys on the season. Lacey leads the way with 66, Ezell follows with 47, Bolte has 36 and Amanda Nisleit has drained 22 on the season.

SERIES RECORD...
Baylor leads the series versus Iowa State 8-5, including victories in six of the last seven contests and three straight overall. In her eight seasons at Baylor, Coach Mulkey has posted a 7-2 record versus the Cyclones and is 2-1 in Ames.

All told, Baylor is 2-3 in games played in Ames.