NEXT OUTING: San Francisco travels to Seattle for the Holiday weekend, to take part in the Seattle University Holiday Tournament. The Dons will face host, Seattle, Friday night at 8 p.m. Saturday, depending on the outcome of Friday night will play either Loyola-Chicago or Akron at 6 or 8 p.m.
LAST OUTING: Katy Keating nailed six three's but her attack from deep wasn't enough as the Dons dropped a 64-50 decision to UC Davis at The Pavilion in Davis, Calif.
LOOKING AHEAD: The Dons will continue it's road swing, traveling to Boulder to face Colorado next Wednesday. The game will air live on Root TV at 6 p.m., PST.
KHLOK ON A ROLL: Junior guard
Mel Khlok has enjoyed a break out season so far in the opening five games. The native of Sacramento has posted 10-plus points in all five games this season, including a career-high mark of 19 against Northern Colorado. Prior to this season, Khlok had recorded six career contests with 10 or more points. As a sophomore, she tallied three, the same amount as her freshman year. This season, Khlok has also established a career high in steals with three.
ALE POSTS CAREER NIGHT: In her only collegiate game against her little sister - freshman Kristen Ale from Cal Poly -
Rheina Ale tallied a career night. Against the Mustangs, the senior guard went off for a career-high 27 points with a dozen rebounds for her first career double-double. The 27 points also marked the first time in her career the native of Carson, Calif. has posted 20-plus points in consecutive games. At San Jose State, Ale posted a team-high 23 points as the Dons earned their first victory of the 2011-12 season.
KEATING BOOSTS HER SPOT IN THE RECORD BOOK: Thanks to an attack from deep over the opening weekend of play, senior
Katy Keating as propelled herself into third place in the all-time USF record book for 3-point baskets made. Keating, who entered the season with 113 baskets from beyond the arc, tallied five 3-point baskets against the Matadors and four more against the Spartans last weekend to launch herself into a tie for third. Against Cal Poly, Keating hit two more, to give her sole possession of third place with 124 3-pointers. She is currently 13 baskets shy of second place with 133 career baskets from deep.
AZZI NOMINATED FOR NAISMITH MEMORIAL HALL OF FAME: Jennifer Azzi, head coach of the University of San Francisco women's basketball team, has been nominated for the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, as announced over the weekend. The Class of 2012 ballot marked the first time Azzi was eligible to be nominated for the Hall. Azzi is one of two NCAA Division I women's basketball head coaches to be nominated this season. Teresa Weatherspoon, head coach at Louisiana Tech, is in her third season with the Lady Techsters. In 2011, Azzi's collegiate and National Team coach, Stanford's Tara VanDerveer, was inducted into the Hall. To become a finalist for the Hall, a candidate must receive seven of nine votes from a screening committee – five of seven for women – during a vote in late-January or early-February. Results are scheduled to be announced February 24, 2012 during All-Star weekend in Orlando. Candidates that make the cut will be judged by a separate committee in late-February or early-March and need at least 18 of 24 votes to be inducted. Inductees will be announced at the 2012 Final Four in New Orleans.
SAN FRANCISCO POSTS HIGH MARKS: The USF Dons hit some pretty lofty numbers at San Jose State, sinking 25 free throws and shooting at a 49.1% clip. The last time San Francisco hit 25 or more free throws was in 2007, when it sank 29 against Cal Poly at War Memorial Gym. Oddly enough, the last time USF shot .490 or better was, also, against Cal Poly when the Dons shot .558 in San Luis Obispo.
DONS INK THREE FOR 2012-13: Wednesday, head coach
Jennifer Azzi announced the signing of three to National Letters of Intent. Joining the Dons on the Hilltop next fall will be Taylor Proctor - a 6-0 forward from Colorado Springs, Colo., Zhane Dikes - a 5-9 guard from Las Vegas, Nev., and Bryn Stark, a 6-0 forward from La Jolla, Calif.
JENNIFER AZZI ERA: This season marks the second season as women's basketball legend
Jennifer Azzi as head coach. Azzi, who was named to the helm of the program in April of 2010, brings an unprecedented wealth of basketball experience to the program. The 2009 Women's Basketball Hall of Fame inductee played five seasons in the WNBA, was a founding member of the American Basketball League (ABL), played overseas and enjoyed an All-American collegiate career at Stanford. Internationally, Azzi was a member of the USA Basketball Senior National Team from 1990-91 and 1993-98. A key member of the United States gold medal-winning 1996 Olympic Team that concluded a perfect 60-0 season with an 8-0 record during the Olympic Games in Atlanta, Azzi played on 13 USA National Teams, compiling a mark of 114-14. She also medaled three times at the World Championships, claiming gold in 1998 and 1990, while earning a bronze in 1994.
NEW FACES THIS SEASON: The Dons welcome five newcomers to the squad this season, as Azzi turns to them to bring new breath into the program. Leading the pack is freshman guard,
Jamie Katuna. Katuna joins the San Francisco program as the most highly regarded newcomer in program history. At the conclusion of her high school career, the native of Longmont, Colo. was named the Gatorade State Player of the Year and was selected as a Parade All-American. Joining Katuna as freshmen on the Hilltop this year will be
Taj Winston,
Aundrea Gordon,
Alicia Scafidi and
Madisen Irwin.
DONS RETURN SEVEN FROM A YEAR AGO: USF will welcome back seven letter winners from last season's squad. The veterans account for over just half of the Don's scoring efforts in 2010-11. Leading the way are seniors
Katy Keating and
Vania Singleterry. Keating paces the group with 8.9 points per game last year. She also led all returning Dons with 4.1 rebounds per game. Thanks to a strong effort during league play, Singleterry finished her junior season with 7.3 points per game and 4.1 boards. Joining the Senior duo as veterans will be senior
Rheina Ale, Juniors
Whitney Daniels,
Bailey Barbour and
Mel Khlok, as well as freshmen
Savannah Erskine and
Alexa Hardick.
ALE GAINING GROUND: Senior guard
Rheina Ale enters the 2011-12 season looking to gain ground in the USF career-record books. The native of Carson, Calif., currently holds two spots in the career top-10 record books. Ale sits third in free throw %, shooting at a .799 (255-319) clip from the line, Carey Sauer (1999-04) holds the record, shooting 87.4% (382-437). The two-time captain, Ale, is fourth all-time in 3-pointers made, with 123. Against UC Davis, Ale hit two baskets from deep to bypass Amy Touli ('89-'93), who was in fourth with 122. Touli started the season in third, but has been passed by both Ale and
Katy Keating this season so far.
RETURNING TO THE SIDELINES: Returning with head coach
Jennifer Azzi this season on the bench will be associate head coach Katy Steding and assistant coaches Molly Marrin and
Blair Hardiek. Steding, an Olympic gold medalist and a NCAA National Champion at Stanford University, joined the Dons in 2010 from Columbia University. Prior to coaching the Lions, Steding spent a season as an assistant coach for the Atlanta Dream of the WNBA and seven years at Warner Pacific. Hardiek came to the Hilltop after a year at San Francisco State and a four-year playing career at Missouri. Marrin, who is in her fourth year at USF, is entering her ninth season as an assistant coach at the Division I level – all as the recruiting coordinator.
FOLLOW THE DONS ONLINE: Fans, make sure to become a friend of the University of San Francisco women's basketball team on Facebook! The Dons' Facebook page features photos, videos and much much more from behind the scenes of the season. Its a great place to catch up on links, news and everything else to do with USF women's basketball.
USF BASKETBALL RETURNS ONLINE: USF women's basketball returns online for the 2011-12 season with all games available on USFDons.com. Join
George Devine for the play-by-play in his 16th year behind the mic for the Dons. Other features on USFDons.com include live stats with live play-by-play and streaming video of all home games courtesy of Yahoo Broadcast. This season's online video stream will feature a new look featuring multiple camera angles from throughout War Memorial Gym.
FOLLOW THE DONS ON YOUR SMART PHONE!: This season, all USF women's basketball home games will be available for live streaming on your computer - and one your mobile phone! For stats away from your monitor, please visit USFStats.com. The link will also feature live video from all of the Dons' home games this season!
TICKETS TO SEE THE DONS PLAY LIVE: For season tickets and single game tickets to the rest of the Dons' home games this season, please visit USFDons.com and click on Tickets. Last year the Dons ranked season in the West Coast Conference for home attendance, averaging over 1,000 fans each home game.
