THIS WEEK: San Francisco opens the 2012 Zappos.com West Coast Conference Tournament Wednesday at the Orleans Arena in Las Vegas. Eighth seeded USF will face ninth seeded Loyola Marymount Wednesday at 3 p.m. The game will provided via live streaming on WCCSports.com.
LOOKING AHEAD: The winner of the USF/LMU game will face Pepperdine Thursday at Noon.
WINSTON, ALE EARN ALL-LEAGUE HONORS: Taj Winston and
Rheina Ale have earned All-West Coast Conference honors, as announced by the league office Tuesday. Winston was named All-Freshman, while Ale was awarded All-WCC honorable mentions accolades. The honor marks the second time the senior has earned the honor. She was previously bestowed the award as a sophomore during the 2009-10 season. Winston, a native of Long Beach, Calif, appeared in eight league games, earning seven starts before suffering a season ending injury. During the span, the guard averaged 10.9 points and 3.6 rebounds per game. She also added 13 assists, eight blocks and nine steals. The all-freshman honor marks the seventh time a Don has earned the honor and the first time since Heidi Heintz was named to the team in 2007. The award was discontinued from 1996-2004. Ale earned honorable mention honors after starting all 16 WCC contests. The senior from Carson, Calif. average 14.0 points with 4.0 rebounds. She also added 33 assists and 30 steals. The honorable mention nod marks the 19th accolade in program history. In total, the Dons have earned 50 All-WCC honors.
WINSTON NAMED COLLEGE SPORTS MADNESS WCC FRESHMAN OF THE YEAR: Taj Winston, a freshman guard from Long Beach, Calif., has been named the West Coast Conference Freshman of the Year by College Sports Madness. In addition,
Rheina Ale was named to the league's third team by the online sports publication.
KHLOK NAMED PRIMETIME PERFORMER OF THE WEEK: For her efforts in the Dons upset over then-No. 23 BYU, junior guard
Mel Khlok has been named a national Primetime Player of the Week for the week of February 13. Khlok finished the game with 12 points and seven assists.
DONS SHUT DOWN BYU, EARN BIG PROGRAM WIN: February 16, the USF Dons recorded a big upset of then-No. 23 Brigham Young, 71-64, in Provo, Utah. The win marked the first win over a ranked opponent for USF since the Dons defeated then-No. 7 Kentucky at War Memorial Gym in November of 2003. The win marked the first time in 16 years San Francisco defeated a nationally-ranked opponent on the road. The last road win over a ranked foe was in 1996 when the Dons defeated then-No. 13 Duke at Cameron Indoor in the 1996 NCAA Tournament to advance to the Sweet Sixteen. The win also marked the first program win for USF over BYU (22-5, 10-3). The two teams have meet a total of eight times, dating back to the 1980 season.
SINGLETERRY EARNS ALL-ACADEMIC HONORS FOR THIRD STRAIGHT SEASON: Vania Singleterry, a senior on the University of San Francisco women's basketball team, has earned West Coast Conference All-Academic honors, for the third consecutive season, as announced by the league office Monday. Singleterry becomes the sixth Don in program history to earn the accolade in three consecutive seasons. Singleterry earned the honor thanks to a 3.57 cumulative grade point average while pursuing a degree in Exercise Sports Science. This season, the senior from Murietta, Calif. has appeared in 28 games, averaging 4.1 points and 3.1 rebounds per game. Singleterry joins former Dons Valerie Gillon, Andrea Kagie, Sarah Wanless, Carey Sauer and Dominique Carter as three-time selections from San Francisco.
KHLOK BREAKS OUT FOR CAREER NIGHT: Junior
Mel Khlok exploded into the single game record books two weeks ago against the Gaels. Khlok finished the evening with 32 points and six steals. The last time a San Francisco Don scored 30 or more points in a game was in 2008, was when Dominique Carter scored 35 points at Saint Mary's. Khlok's 32-point effort ranks as tied for seven in the single-game record books. Khlok shot 10-for-12 from the field, including going 6-for-7 from 3-point range. The junior from Sacramento fell one three shy of the school record of 7, marking the second time this season a member of the Green and Gold has done so.
Katy Keating hit six 3-point baskets at UC Davis earlier this season. Khlok's shooting average, .833, during the game ranks tied for eighth in the record book. The record, shooting a perfect 1.000 with a minimum of eight attempts, has been accomplished twice, including once by senior
Rheina Ale. Khlok's six steals is highest single game mark for USF since Ale nabbed six at San Diego last season. The school, War Memorial Gym, and West Coast Conference record for steals in a game is 11 and held by Teri Hunt. At BYU, Khlok continued to set career-highs, dishing out seven assists.
SAN FRANCISCO LAUNCHES NEW MULTI-MEDIA CAMPAIGN: The University of San Francisco Athletics Department, in conjunction with GAGA Sports and Entertainment have launched the Dons Insider (http://insider.usfdons.com), offering registered users exclusive videos, news, and a chance to win a BMW from BMW of San Francisco. Dons Insider is the premier destination for exclusive USF Dons news, player insights, student and staff videos, contests, discounts to games, and much more.
ALE JOINS ELITE COMPANY: Senior
Rheina Ale joined an elite group of Dons at Colorado. With 1:26 remaining in the first half against the Buffaloes, Ale went to the line for two free throws. After missing the first, the native of Carson, Calif. sank the second to become the 19th player in USF women's basketball history to score 1,000 or more points. The captain entered the game with 990 career points. Ale reached the illustrious mark in 95 career games played. Her team-high 23 points against the Buffaloes also moved Ale into the all-time scoring ranks with 1,013 to rank 17th in program history. She now holds spots in five all-time USF career categories. Currently, Ale boasts 1,316 career points, recently passing Melinda Harrison (1985-89), Valerie Gillon (1993-96) and Teri Hunt (1984-87) to crack into the top-10 and sit in ninth place.
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 on the opening weekend to launch herself into a tie for third. At UC Davis, Keating tallied 18 points thanks to six baskets from deep. The mark fell one short shy of the single game school record, but narrowed the difference between her and second place. To date, Keating has hit 166 3-point baskets. The school record for career 3-point field goals made is 205, held by Shay Rollins (2005-09).
SAN FRANCISCO POSTS HIGH AND LOW MARKS: San Francisco women's basketball has amassed some lofty numbers this season, hitting highs – and lows – that haven't been reached in years. Against Sacramento State, the Dons posted 35 field goals for a .538 shooting percentage. USF hit 35 or more FGs last, on December 1, 2010 at Sacramento State, when they also hit 35 baskets. Also against the Hornets, USF dished out 20 assists, marking the first time since December 29, 2010 they hit the 20 –assist mark. Last season, USF dished out 26 against Academy of Art. The last time USF shot .538 or better was against Cal Poly when the Dons shot .558 in San Luis Obispo in December of 2008. The USF Dons hit some pretty notable numbers at San Jose State, sinking 25 free throws. 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. Wednesday, November 30, at Colorado, the Dons also posted some lofty and low numbers. San Francisco grabbed 12 steals while only committing nine turnovers. The dozen steals marks the most since USF grabbed 14 on February 14, 2009 at Gonzaga. The last time the Dons had nine or fewer turnovers was when USF committed nine mishaps against Loyola Marymount, March 5, 2010, during the West Coast Conference Tournament.
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. It's a great place to catch up on links, news and everything else to do with USF women's basketball.
