Red-hot Cowgirls rout Falcons

Juniors Hillary Carlson, left and Jade Kennedy

UW-AFA game stats

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by Richard Anderson
Wyoming Sports.org

The Wyoming Cowgirls don't really want to know how they can make just one 3-pointer in a game and follow it up with 20 threes.

They'll just go with the flow, something that was evident Saturday in the 98-37 rout in the Arena-Auditorium.

What they do know is Saturday was an enjoyable experience ... to say the least.

“We all played really well, so we all had a lot of fun," said cowgirl junior post Hillary Carlson with a smile.

It wasn't just the starters who had a good time -- all of the Cowgirls got in the game and scored.

“I think we were 1 for 9 against Utah, so it was really nice to come out and hit threes,” said seldom used freshman guard Sara Wilson. “It is a lot easier at home, you have your fans behind you. We just had a fun night. It’s fun to hit threes.”

The Cowgirls (4-3 MWC, 13-6) had one of their best shooting nights in school history, hitting 75 percent from the field (37 of 49), including 20 of 30 3-pointers. The 20 3-pointers are a school record, with the previous mark at 14.

“I thought the game was determined in the first half. You don’t go into the game with a plan to shoot 84 percent in the first half,” said head coach Joe Legerski. “I thought our execution was tremendous. We found Hillary on the inside, everyone stepped up and knocked down shots on the perimeter with 20 three-point field goals, it shows the focus and effort from everyone. I’m probably the most pleased with the fact that we had 34 assists on 37 field goals made.

“Jade Kennedy did a great job almost recording a triple-double with 15 points, seven rebounds and nine assists. There were so many players that stepped up. Our young players, Leah Fitzgerald, Chaundra Sewell, Bec Campigli and Sara Wilson, each showed great composure and the ability to execute.”

Not only did every Cowgirl who played score, all but two had assists in the game.

“Getting an assist is almost as fun as scoring because it is fun to be like a team, just sharing the ball and everybody is having fun,” Wilson said.

Carlson, who hit all 10 of her shots in the first half, shot just once in the second half, playing six minutes. She finished with a game-high 21 points. Legerski began clearing his bench with a minute left in the first half and his starters played sparingly in the second half.

“I think coming from a game like that (Utah loss), we were a little more pumped up, wanting to win,” Carlson said.

Wilson came off the bench and scored 17 points for Wyoming, hitting 5 of 6 3-pointers. She had previously scored 12 points in six games this season. Kennedy finished with 15 points and nine assists and Randi Richardson added 12 points.

From one 3-pointer to 20 in a matter of one game, the Cowgirls just did what they do best -- shoot.

“In practice, we knew that it would be open, so our emphasis in the game was to look for Hillary, and she got a lot of easy looks,” Kennedy said. “The 3-point shot would be open, so I guess we came in focused to shoot the three.”

And Legerski maintains all of the time that for most of his players, if the shot is there, they better shoot.

"Coach just gets on you when you are open and don’t shoot,” Wilson said. “When you are open, you just shoot it and hopes it goes in, I guess.”

Wyoming used scoring runs of 16-0 and 25-7, leading 52-14 at halftime. Wyoming was 20 of 23 from the field, hitting 10 of 13 3-pointers in that first half.

As the score indicated, there was little letdown in the second half for the Cowgirls, regardless of who was in the game.

“With Air Force, they are the type of team that will never give up. That’s just how they are trained,” Kennedy said.

Raimee Beck led Air Force (0-7, 3-17) with nine points.

Wyoming also held the Falcons to just 25 percent shooting from the field (15 of 61).

The Cowgirls return to action on Tuesday, facing UNLV in Las Vegas.

Cowgirls fall short on the road

SALT LAKE CITY -- A good start was exactly what Wyoming coach Joe Legerski wanted to see on the road Wednesday night at Utah.

The finish was what did in the Cowgirls, as Utah rallied for a 54-47 win.

The Cowgirls (3-3, MWC, 12-6) led for much of the first half and 25-20 at the break. But Utah (3-3, 12-7), used an 18-4 run to begin the second half and never looked back. Wyoming got the game within three points late, but Utah scored the final four points to secure the win.

Wyoming had two players in double figures, led by Hillary Carlson with 18 points, six blocks and four rebounds. She was followed by Emma Langford with 12 points and six rebounds, while Kristen Scheffler added eight points. The Cowgirls were 18-of-49 (.367) fro the field and 10-of-14 (.714) from the free throw line.

“Hillary was big for us tonight with 18 points and really carried us to start the game,” said Legerski. “She was also a big part of our comeback, which is what you need from an All-Conference player and she showed that.”

Utah was led by Kalee Whipple with 25 points and 10 rebounds, while Janita Badon added 10 points and eight boards. Whipple has now scored 119 points in her last five games against the Cowgirls. The Utes were 21-of-63 (.333) from the field and out rebounded Wyoming, 40-37.

The Cowgirls return home Saturday at 2 p.m. when they host Air Force.

Cowgirls have tough task at Utah

By Richard Anderson
Wyoming Sports.org

After the dust clears is an old sports cliché that just might come into play in Mountain West Conference women’s basketball this season.

Other than Air Force, the conference has taken turns in beating each other up this season.

TCU and BYU stand on top of the league with 4-1 records, with San Diego State at 4-2. Wyoming and Colorado State are 3-2 each, followed by New Mexico at 3-3 and Utah at 2-3.

To further complicate things, just last week, BYU fell to Wyoming, but knocked off San Diego State. The Aztecs beat Utah, then the Utes beat Air Force. Colorado State beat UNLV and New Mexico and TCU beat UNLV.

The week before, Utah beat New Mexico, but New Mexico beat Wyoming. The Cowgirls beat TCU, but the Lady Frogs beat San Diego State. The Aztecs beat UNLV, but the Lady Rebels beat Utah. The Utes beat Air Force and BYU also beat CSU.

The Cowgirls, who travel to Salt Lake City to face Utah (7 p.m.) on Wednesday, have the distinction of beating the top two teams -- BYU and TCU.

What does all of this mean? Other than Air Force, it is anybody’s game, especially on the home court.

“It’s going to make for a great conference race,” Wyoming coach Joe Legerski said. “Every night you have to be ready to play. You take a look a this schedule, it is difficult just to find wins. I think that is the biggest challenge. There are no nights off. You see teams everywhere having an opportunity to win, and what you are seeing is teams defending their home court. If we can find three or four wins on the road, that will go a long way to finish in the top of the league.”

Utah is 9-1 on its home court this season.

“What you try to do is go in (on the road) and play the best basketball that you can, and hopefully you are still in the game with four minutes to go and maybe the ball bounces your way,” Legerski said.
　
The Cowgirls, 12-5 overall, are coming off a big 69-54 victory over the BYU Cougars last Tuesday night. Three Cowgirls are scoring in double-figures, led by junior Aubrey Vandiver with 14.5 points and 9.5 rebounds. She is followed by fellow junior Hillary Carlson with 14.1 points and a team leading two blocks per game, while sophomore Emma Langford is adding 12.3 points and 3.5 assists.

“I’m excited to get back out on the court,” Legerski said. “I thought we played extremely well against BYU, we shot the ball well, but we were also at home. We were able to defend our home court.”

Utah is 2-3 in league play and 11-7 record overall. They are led by Kalee Whipple, who is averaging 15.4 points and 5.6 rebounds. She is followed by Taryn Wicijowski with 14.4 points and 7.1 rebounds.

Whipple, who scored a career-high 32 last year against the Cowgirls, is averaging about 21 points a game against Wyoming in the last two seasons.

“Kaylee Whipple is a first-team all-conference player and she seems to play very well against us,” Legerski said. “It is a game where we are going to have to make sure that we slow their top players down and make sure we don’t let anyone else have a big night."

UW-Utah Series

This is the 66th meeting between the two teams. Utah leads the series 57-8. Wyoming did sweep Utah in 2007. The last time the two teams met was Feb. 8, 2009, as the Utes defeated the Cowgirls 64-57 in Salt Lake City.

Cowgirls light it up from the outside

John McKnight photo/Wyoming's Randi Richardson drives past a BYU player on Tuesday.

UW-BYU game statistics

By Richard Anderson
Wyoming Sports.org

When the Cowgirls shoot the basketball to their ability, the results speak for themselves.

That wasn’t always the case in the first half. The second half was a different story.

Wyoming shot 55 percent from the field and hit seven 3-pointers in the final 20 minutes and rolled past Brigham Young 69-54 Tuesday night in the Arena-Auditorium.
With Wyoming, sometimes it is not always about making shots, but making big shots from across the board. Six Cowgirls hit 3-pointers and the team finished 12 of 27 from beyond the arc.

One by one late in the game, each big shot was a dagger in the Cougars back.

“Tonight, it was uncharacteristic for us for us to shoot 31 percent in the first half," Wyoming coach Joe Legerski said. “One thing I think was happening that we’ve made such a point about our rebounding, which in turn made our shooting suffer a little bit. We talked at half time about whoever was shooting the basketball that was their job. To come out and shoot 55 percent in the second half, we did a good job.”

Maybe the two biggest shots of the game came when the score was tied at 40-each. Randi Richardson stepped up and hit a 3-pointer -- her second of the second half -- and Aubrey Vandiver followed with a trey to put the Cowgirls up 46-40.

They never tailed again.

“That gave us some momentum to close out the game,” Legerski said.

Vandiver led the way with three 3-pointers, with Kennedy, Richardson, Langford and Kristen Scheffler adding two each. Carlson was 1-of-2, with her miss rolling around the rim several times before shooting out.

Hitting their 3-pointers helps the Cowgirls with their inside-outside game.

“It definitely helped out,” Langford said. “We’d get the ball inside to Hillary, then we would kick I it out to hit a three. It really completes our game when we get other options. We hit some big threes tonight.”

Even seldom used freshman post Chaundra Sewell attempted a 3-pointer, although she was not successful.

“We work a lot on our threes in practice,” Langford said. “It pays off. We hit our shots tonight, so that was good.”

Of the Cowgirls who see playing time, Legerski said they all have the ability to shoot the 3-pointer.

"What we talk about is some players, maybe the light is a little greener for them than for other players," Legerski said. "Kristen Scheffler can shoot anywhere on the floor that she wants to shoot from. What we talk about is you need to shoot the ball when you are open. If you're not open, you give the ball up and you go screen. to get that kind of even performance from the 3-point line, that makes it very difficult to guard players. We need to continue to shoot the ball well from three."

The Cowgirls had a handful of shots go in as the shot-clock was winding down, including a few big 3-pointers. Each time that happens, it can somewhat demoralize the defense.

“It’s hard playing defense when you play hard, fighting through screens and they get a three,‘ Langford said. “I think we did a good job of executing and shooting well at the end, they went down.”

As has been the case this season, Legerski said that the biggest stat that he looks at is having 17 assists on 21 field goals.

“This team does a great job of sharing the basketball,” he said. “They worry about Wyoming winning rather than individual totals.”

Although the Cowgirls took 27 3-pointers, Legerski said they were aggressive taking the ball to the basket. It resulted in them making 15 of 23 free throws.

“When the shot clock was winding down, we were going hard to the basket and getting fouls to be able to get to the free-throw line,” he said. “It was good to see people stepping up at the end.” 　

Wyoming rolls late behind balanced attack

John McKnight photo
Wyoming freshman Chaundra Sewell looks to make a move Tuesday against BYU. At left is junior Aubrey Vandiver, who scored 19 points and grabbed 14 rebounds.

By Richard Anderson
Wyoming Sports.org

Anything less than a double-double for Aubrey Vandiver is almost unexpected.

Emma Langford is going to get her points, as will Hillary Carlson. For the Wyoming Cowgirls to be successful, balance is the key. That was the case as the Cowgirls rallied in the second half to give Wyoming a big 69-54 win over Brigham Young 69-54 Tuesday in the Arena-Auditorium.

Vandiver scored 19 points and grabbed 14 rebounds for her 10th double-double of the season, Langford added 17 and Carlson nine.

Players like Jade Kennedy (six points), Randi Richardson (seven points) and Kristen Scheffler (11 points) were equally important, especially down the stretch.

"We're not going to win with three players scoring," Wyoming coach Joe Legerski said. "There's no doubt that Hillary, Aubrey and Emma are the ones who get the bulk of the shots. tonight, we had 24 points from Kristen, Jade and Randy. We win by 15 and without those three stepping up, we don't win this basketball game.

"I thought that Randi did a tremendous job in the second half and when Kristen Scheffler steps on the floor, the crowd just gets excited. She is the player who can create for herself and make big shot after big shot."

The Cowgirls (3-2 MWC, 12-5) trailed by seven in the first half, but used strong outside shooting to pull past the Cougars. Wyoming hit 12 of 27 3-pointers in the game (from six players), including 7 of 11 in the second half.

Vandiver hit just four field goals in the game, but three were 3-pointers. She was also 8 of 11 from the free-throw line.

"I thought Aubrey was excellent, there is no way around it," Legerski said. "We're starting to get to the point where we just go, 'it's another double-double.' It's a double-double. she's amazing, five assists, she just controls the game. I gave her a rest for a minute, she plays 39 minutes and she really played well at the end."

Haley Hall and Alexis Kaufusi both scored 11 points for the Cougars (3-1, 12-4).

BYU's full-court pressure bothered Wyoming at times, and the Cougars had the upper hand for much the first half, before the Cowgirls cut the lead to 30-27 at halftime.

Richardson came out with four quick points to begin the second half to give the Cowgirls their first lead since early in the game. The two teams traded leads until the Cowgirls got consecutive 3-pointers by Richardson and Vandiver to break a 40-40 tie with 10 minutes to play. Wyoming outscored BYU 23-14 the rest of the way.

Wyoming not only did a good job of getting back i n the game in the first half, but closing strong.

“I think it was really important to close out the half strong; we didn’t want to let them get it up to five,” Vandiver said. “We played really great defense in the second half, people hit big shots and more importantly, we hit the free throws down the stretch.”

The Cowgirls shot just 31 percent from the field in the first half, but hit 55 percent of their shots (11-of-20) in the second half. Wyoming also had 17 assists (out of 21 field goals).

Wyoming will now have a couple of days off before preparing for Utah Jan. 27 in Salt Lake City.

Cowgirls return home with BYU

By Richard Anderson
Wyoming Sports.org

The Wyoming Cowgirls have had to play beyond their years, so to speak, opening Mountain West Conference play with three of four games on the road against three of the top programs in the league.

That won’t change in many ways Tuesday night when the Cowgirls host Brigham Young, beginning at 6 p.m. in the Arena-Auditorium.

The pesky Cougars are suddenly on top of the league at 3-0 (12-3 overall), thanks to ball-hawking pressure defense that could spell trouble to a young squad.

For the Cowgirls, 2-2 and 11-5, head coach Joe Legerski’s biggest concern is his team keeping its emotions in check.

“BYU is very talented. They are going to come out and press us, which is something different for a BYU team,” Legerski said. “They have made some changes fundamentally with how they are playing this season, and playing very well. We have to keep our composure to attack their pressure and not let their pressure frustrate us into more turnovers than what we are used to doing.”

On the season, the Cougars are averaging 10.6 steals a game and holding their opponents to just 54.8 points a game.

BYU is showing improvement this season, coming off last year’s 8-8 and 18-11 season, The Cougars are led by Mindy Bonham, who is averaging 11.7 points and 4.2 rebounds. She is followed by Coriann Wood with 10.9 points and a team-leading 5.9 rebounds.

Legerski said that they have some challenges defensively, but he thinks the team is buying into playing as a group.

“When I talk about challenges individually, we may not be the quickest on the floor, but as a team, we’re starting to rotate, challenge shots, and more importantly, give teams one shot and out,” he said. “We need to concentrate winning the rebounding battle every night out, just to give us a better chance to come away with the victory.”

A 2-2 league start isn’t bad for a young team that spent most of its time on the road to begin league play. In fact, Wyoming and BYU lead the league with total road games to date with nine each.

“You take a look at this young team and they keep getting better each and every night out,” Legerski said of the Cowgirls. “We do stumble along the way, but I think that is more to the opponent that we are playing rather than to what we may not be able to do. This conference is just loaded with talented teams, so every night when you step out on the court, you have to play at your highest level just to be at your basketball game. It will be no different with BYU coming to Laramie.”

Junior Hillary Carlson leads the Cowgirls at 14.4 points and 2.1 blocks per game. She is followed by junior Aubrey Vandiver with 14.2 points and a team-leading 9.2 rebounds, while sophomore Emma Langford is adding 12.0 points and 3.6 assists a game.

Balanced scoring has been, and will always be, the key for the Cowgirls, Legerski said.

“We keep talking that Hillary, Aubrey and Emma cannot carry this team to victory; they can get us there, but they are not going to push us over the top,” he said. “In the TCU game, I thought Kristen Scheffler was excellent in that two-minute span where she made three 3-pointers. You out in a layup by Aubrey and all of the sudden you have an 11-point lead, which is what we needed.

“It is very important for Jade (Kennedy) to step up … I liked the way Jade shot the ball in New Mexico. We need Randi (Richardson) to step up. We need everyone to help contribute. When you take a look -- even with BYU coming in -- their players average between 8-to-12 points. A very balanced team. I think with the more balance you have with your team, you’re not concerned with somebody having an off evening.”　

Game notes: Tuesday’s game is the lone contest this week for the Cowgirls, who return to action Jan. 27 at Utah … Carlson ranks first in blocks and sixth in scoring while being ranked second in field goal percentage and third in free-throw percentage in the Mountain West Conference. Vandiver ranks among the Top 15 in points, rebounds, steals, field goal percentage and 3-point field goal percentage, while Langford is ninth in assists and 14th in scoring ... This is the 67th meeting between the two teams. BYU leads the series 46-20. The last time the two teams met was March 4, 2009, as the Cowgirls defeated BYU 57-55 in overtime

Carlson named MWC player of the week

Richard Anderson photo

UW junior Hillary Carlson looks to make a move last week against TCU.

By Richard Anderson
Wyoming Sports.org

Wyoming junior Hillary Carlson has been named the Mountain West Conference Women’s Basketball Player of the Week.

Carlson led the Cowgirls to a 1-1 record in conference play last week, including an upset victory over No. 22 TCU. The Cheyenne native tallied a career-high 29 points, along with 11 rebounds, three blocks and a steal in the 73-67 win over the Horned Frogs.

Carlson was 8-for-13 (.615) from the field and 11-for-15 (.733) from the free throw line. She went on to record nine points against New Mexico in a tough 74-61 loss. Carlson added two rebounds, two assists and two blocks, while shooting 2-for-2 from behind the arc and making 3-of-4 (.750) from the charity stripe.

“Hillary has really become a dominating force offensively for us,” Wyoming coach Joe Legerski said. “People are starting to have to scout towards Hillary because you are not going to be able to slow her down. To get 29 and 11 rebounds against TCU, she just carried this team in the second half when we didn’t have a lot of scoring going on. We just decided to get the ball to Hillary and she did well and answered. You can see the confidence grow in each game.”

Against TCU, Carlson scored 12 straight points for the Cowgirls in the second half when the rest of the team struggled.

Carlson leads the team in scoring at 14.4 points a game and blocked shots (2.1 bpg) and is second in rebounding at 5.9 boards a game. She is shooting .500 (81-of-162) from the field and recently has been shooting well from the outside, hit 10 of 19 3-point attempts.

The biggest impact that Carlson is having on this team is in field goal percentage, Legerski said.

“This is one of the best teams that I have been associated with shooting from the field, at a 43 percent clip,” Legerski said. “That has so much to do with Hillary inside, she shoots the ball so well. More importantly, people on the perimeter get open looks because of Hillary. It just makes life a lot easier for all of us.”

This is Carlson’s first career weekly honor and the first for a Cowgirl this season.

“I think everybody is excited when we get a little bit of individual recognition because they know we have to be able to have success as a team to get individual honors,” Legerski said. “To be able to be recognized, I think that is a tremendous compliment, not only to Hillary, but to her teammates as well.”