Stan Plewe/Utah Tech Athletics

Women's Basketball 2/4/2011 9:21:45 AM Jeff Cluff, Coordinator of Internal Operations/Media Relations

WBB GAME NOTES: #10 Red Storm Travel to #12 Grand Canyon

PDF OF GAME NOTES

THIS WEEKEND-The #10-ranked Dixie State College of Utah women's basketball takes it's lone trip to the deserts Phoenix, AZ to take on the #12-ranked Antelopes of Grand Canyon University. This game will have huge PacWest title and West Region poll implications. The game is slated to tip-off at 3:00 PM MT inside the Antelope Gymnasium.

THE RECORDS-This a rematch of the battle that took place in Saint George just three weeks ago. The Red Storm derailed the Antelopes, last year's Pac West Champion 85-72. Grand Canyon is 17-2 overall and 5-1 in the PacWest and Dixie State is 16-1 overall and 6-0 in the PacWest. The Red Storm are 2-3 in Phoenix and will look to try and even not only the road series but the overall series as well. DSC lost its last battle inside Antelope Gymnasium 78-67 on 1/30/10. GCU owns the overall series at 6-5.

RED STORM WATCH - Having rattled off eight consecutive wins dating back to the loss on 12/11/10 against Alaska Anchorage. The Red Storm have the motor running at full speed ahead coming off a weekend in which they defeated BYU-Hawaii 87-52 and Chaminade 99-44. Dixie State's average margin a victory is 6th in the country at 19.5 ppg. But not so fast, the Antelopes are three slots in front of that at 21.5 per game. Johnna Brown (Las Vegas, NV/Centennial ) (16.4 ppg, 10.4 rpg) continues to lead the Red Storm offense by consistently producing near double-double numbers every time out. Adding to the depth of Coach Angie Kristensen's lineup is Breann Hill (Harrisburg, PA/McDevitt) who shoots 57.3 percent from the field and is averaging 15.5 ppg. Sheila Adams (Layton, UT/Layton) (12.8 ppg) continues to connect on the long range ball and has tallied 40 long balls and shoots at a clip of 37.4 percent. Erica Carlson (Tucson, AZ/Canyon del Oro HS) is tied for the 1st in the nation in blocks per game with 3.8 and will create a great presence inside. The Red Storm defense is averaging 11.1 steals per game and likes to put a lot of pressure up front on their opponents. Look for that ball pressure to lead to easy Red Storm baskets. Dixie State is averaging 79.4 ppg and is shooting a stellar 46.0 percent from the field and a solid 71.4 percent from the free throw line.

Red Storm Fast Break tidbits :
Carlson, had a stellar performance against Chaminade last Saturday. She had 11 points, 12 rebounds, eight blocks and six assists. She just missed the second only triple double in school history.

Career Scoring Ranks: #3 Johnna Brown (Las Vegas, NV/Centennial ) (569, 16 points behind #2 Deney Phommabout) #4 Shanae Vaifanua (Hurricane, UT/Hurricane) (547, 22 points behind #4 Johnna Brown (Las Vegas, NV/Centennial )) Leader is Jessica Carver with 788 career points.

Shanae Vaifanua (Hurricane, UT/Hurricane) with one steal this weekend will tie career leader Tanya Clark (Beaumont. CA/Beaumont) at 107 steals in her career. She will become the all-time steals leader with two.

SCOUTING GRAND CANYON - With the nations leading scorer Samantha Murphy at an amazing 25.2 ppg, leading by almost four points, the Antelopes have rattled off five consecutive wins with as much ease as the Red Storm. The last time they lost was in Saint George on 1/8/11. Holding at the #12-ranking in USA TODAY ESPN D2 coaches poll, the Antelopes are a serious threat. With many implications at stake, expect Coach Trent May to have his team ready to play. Murphy uses the help of Rosalyn Nelson (12.9 ppg) and Maylinn Smith (9.9 ppg) to keep their opponents honest. They average 81.1 ppg and are 3rd in the nation in margin of victory. They are comparable to the Red Storm in that they shoot the ball well and will try and do it early and often. The Antelopes shoot 36.4 percent from behind the arc and 44.1 percent from the field. They are also riding a nine game winning streak at home and Antelope Gymnasium has a great enviroment and is a tough place to play.

REGIONAL POLLS - Both the Red Storm and Grand Canyon are ranked in the regional polls. Despite winning two games last week, the Red Storm dropped one spot to #3 in this weeks poll. Grand Canyon is at number six and fellow PacWest member Hawaii Pacific is at #10.

LIVE STATS ON THE INTERNET - Fans can follow Red Storm home games through the DSC web site at www.DixieAthletics.com via SideArm Sports, a free service, which updates play-by-play and statistics throughout the game. All of Dixie State's home games are available to watch live through B2/America One network via the internet at www.DixieAthletics.com. DSC fans can also listen to every game both home and away, via DSC's web site.

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