Nov. 27, 2002

Carbondale, Ill. -

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SIU Returns Home for Thanksgiving Holiday
Southern Illinois returns home to host Tennessee Tech on Saturday, Nov. 30, just two days after Thanksgiving. The Salukis, who are currently 0-2 on the season after a recent 79-53 loss at Kentucky (11/25), will square off against the Golden Eaglettes at 2:05 p.m.

Series History
SIU hasn't beaten Tennessee Tech since the 1996-97 season, as the overall series stands at 9-6, in favor of the Golden Eaglettes. The Salukis last defeated TTU by a score of 66-59 on Dec. 1, 1996. Since then, it has been all Tennessee Tech, as the Golden Eaglettes have won the last five straight.

"Three" Nice to us this Weekend
SIU went 0-of-21 from behind the three-point arc Monday night against Kentucky (11/25). As a result, the Salukis saw their 48-game streak of making at least one three-pointer come to an end. The Dawgs are currently shooting .167 (6-of-36) from three-point land after two games this season.

Valley Ball
SIU, a member of the Missouri Valley Conference, will face its third opponent from a different league this weekend when it takes on Ohio Valley Conference foe Tennessee Tech. The Salukis, who faced DePaul (Conference USA) and Kentucky (SEC) this season, are an impressive 104-27 all-time against OVC schools.

Halve it Your Way
Both of SIU's losses this season have come in the second half where the Salukis are being outscored 98-48. The Salukis, who are outscoring their opponents 65-50 in the first half, have lost halftime leads of four (34-30, vs. UK) and 11 (31-20, vs. DePaul) points in their first two contests.

Shaky Start
SIU has turned the ball over 50 times in its first two games this season. Twenty-four of those miscues have come in the first 12 minutes of the second half. The Salukis committed 11 turnovers in the first 9:28 of the second half against DePaul and 13 in a little over 12 minutes in the second half against Kentucky. Point guard Dana Pinkston has turned the ball over 16 times, including 10 against the Blue Demons.

Head Coach Lori Opp
Lori Opp (Western Illinois, '88) is 13-43 in her third year as head coach of the Southern Illinois University women's basketball program. Opp, a native of Havana, Ill., first joined the SIU women's coaching staff in 1998. Under then-head coach Julie Beck, Opp worked as an assistant coach for two seasons. Prior to that, she served as an assistant coach at Murray State, Eastern Illinois and Indiana State. Additionally, Opp is the sixth head coach in SIU's 42-year history.

Head Coach Bill Worrell
Bill Worrell (TTU, '68) is 335-146 all-time as head coach of Tennessee Tech. In 17 years at the TTU helm, Worrell has guided the Golden Eaglettes to 11 Ohio Valley Conference championships, including five straight dating back to 1997-98. A four-time OVC Coach of the Year, he has also led TTU to eight NCAA Tournament appearances.

About the Salukis
Southern Illinois enters Saturday's game at 0-2 after falling to Kentucky (79-53) Monday night in Lexington, Ky. Junior Katie Berwanger leads the Dawgs in scoring and rebounding averaging 12.0 points and 7.0 boards per game. She is followed by senior Molly McDowell who saw her points per game average slip from 15.0 to 8.5 after being held to just two points against the Wildcats.

About the Golden Eaglettes
Tennessee Tech stands at an even 1-1 on the season after losing to Middle Tennessee State (71-59) on Nov. 25. The Golden Eaglettes, who sport three freshmen in their starting five, are led by rookies Jenna Baltimore (G) and Courtney McFarlin (F). Baltimore is averaging 15.0 points per game, while McFarlin is scoring 14.5. In addition, McFarlin pitched in a season-high 23 points in a 74-56 win against East Tennessee State (11/22).

Berwanger Breaks Through
Junior forward Katie Berwanger posted a double-double 20 points, 10 rebounds Monday against Kentucky. Both totals marked new career highs for the native of Lake Zurich, Ill. In just her fifth start of her career, Berwanger shot 7-of-15 (.466) from the field and a near-perfect 6-of-7 (.857) from the free throw line. In addition, she scored eight of the Salukis' first 14 points of the game en route to becoming the team's leading scorer with 12.0 points per game.

Berwanger Breakdown
Katie Berwanger's career night at Kentucky was nothing short of impressive, as the 6-0 forward hit 4-of-9 field goals and 4-of-4 free throws for 12 points in the first half alone. Scoring eight points in the game's first 8:25, she also grabbed eight of her 10 rebounds on the offensive end of the floor. Additionally, Berwanger's double-double marked the first of her career.

Crutch in the Clutch
Junior center Tiffany Crutcher is averaging 7.0 points and 6.5 rebounds per game as the Salukis' fourth-leading scorer this season. After scoring just four points in SIU's season-opener against DePaul (11/23), Crutcher regrouped to post a second-best 10 points against Kentucky (11/25). Shooting 3-of-7 from the field and 4-of-6 from the free throw line, she also dished out one assist and had one block in 28 minutes of action.

McDowell on the Prowl
Senior Molly McDowell is the Salukis' second-leading scorer after two games this season. Averaging 8.5 points per game, McDowell needs just 119 points to hit the 1,000-point plateau in her career. Right now, she stands with 881 points.

Bench Breaker
SIU's bench has been outscored by a count of 51-34 after two games this season. The Blue Demon bench held a 29-18 advantage, while the Wildcat reserves posted a 22-16 mark.

Road Warriors
Saturday's game marks the second of two non-conference home games the Salukis will play this season. Following its matchup with Tennessee Tech, SIU will hit the road for the entire month of December. During their lengthy stretch, the Dawgs will visit Tennessee State (Dec. 4), Eastern Illinois (Dec. 7), Northwestern (Dec. 14) and Long Beach (Dec. 20-21) before returning home to open MVC play against SMS on Jan. 3.

The Dawg House
SIU has lost nine of its last 10 home games, including a most recent 69-60 loss to DePaul (11/23). Last winning against Northern Iowa (63-55) on Feb. 21, 2002, the Salukis are 152-82 all-time at SIU Arena.

Pleading the Fifth
SIU's 79-53 loss at Kentucky (11/25) marked the Salukis' fifth straight dating back to Feb. 23, 2002. Last year, the Dawgs lost 15 games which currently rank as the longest losing streak in school history.

Opp-eration MVC Tournament
One of the Salukis' main goals this season is to get back to the Missouri Valley Conference Tournament which is something that hasn't been done under the guidance of head coach Lori Opp. In fact, the last time the Dawgs made a trip to the league's postseason fling was in 1999-00 under then-head coach Julie Beck. Not to mention, SIU hasn't posted a winning record since Cindy Scott's Salukis went 18-10 in 1995-96.

Solid Schedule
In addition to an 18-game league slate, the Salukis will face teams from the Conference USA, Big Ten, SEC, Ohio Valley, Atlantic Sun, Sun Belt and Big West Conferences this season. SIU's non-league schedule features some tough competition as Long Beach State (16-13), DePaul (15-14), Belmont (19-9), Tennessee Tech (22-8) and Middle Tennessee State (16-13) each finished the 2001-02 campaign in the top half of their respective conferences.

The Last Time
Janet Holt exploded for 24 second half points which added to a total of 29 for the game to lead Tennessee Tech to a 82-75 win over Southern Illinois last year on Dec. 2, at the Eblen Center. SIU trailed by just two points (34-32) at halftime, before the Golden Eaglettes used a 20-8 run in the second half to come away with the win. The win also extended TTU's home winning streak to 12 games, which at that time, tied for 19th longest in NCAA Division I.

Cats and Dawgs
Kentucky held Southern Illinois to just 19 points in the second half as it posted a stunning 79-53 win Monday night at Memorial Coliseum. Tied 44-44 with 13:38 remaining in the game, Kentucky held SIU to a mere nine points, as it used a shocking 35-9 run to put the Salukis away. For SIU, the loss marked its second straight after holding a lead at the half. The Salukis also shot 0-of-21 from three-point range. Katie Berwanger posted a career-high 20 points and a career-high 10 rebounds to lead the Salukis, while Tiffany Crutcher followed with 10.

Salukis Announce 2003-04 Recruiting Class
Southern Illinois University head coach Lori Opp announced earlier this month that Julie Madura, Laura Cooper, Bernettra Grayer and Clarise Jones have signed national letters of intent to become Salukis in 2003-04. Madura (5-9, G), who hails from Schaumburg, Ill., joins SIU from Conant High School where she averaged between 11 and 13 points the last three years. A native of Xenia, Ill., Cooper (5-9, G) has been named all-conference three straight years at Flora High School. She made 78 three-pointers, while averaging 20 points per game last season. Grayer (6-2, F) joins the Maroon and White from Gary, Ind., where she attended West Side High School. A three-time all-conference pick, she comes from the same high school program as former Saluki standouts Kasia McClendon (1994-98) and Melaniece Bardley (1996-00). Jones (5-7, G), a native of Chicago, Ill., is currently a senior at Regina Dominican High School, where she enters her final prep year after being named Street and Smith's preseason All-American Midwest Honorable Mention.

Follow the Salukis Live on the Internet
All Southern Illinois University women's basketball home games this season can be followed live on the world wide web through SIU's internet gametracker. To activate the gametracker, go to the women's basketball page, click on schedule/results and hit the gametracker link for the game you want to follow.

MVC Scoreboard Phone
Once again this season, you can get the latest scores from around the Missouri Valley Conference by calling the Valley's scoreboard phone at (314) 997-9877. Scores and highlights from all league sports will be updated each night.

Valley Player of the Week
Each week a panel consisting of regional and national media will select a player of the week. Winners will be available by Mondays.

Weekly Coaches Briefings
The Missouri Valley Conference will conduct weekly coaches teleconferences, featuring the league's 10 women's basketball coaches, beginning Tuesday, Jan. 7. Conferences begin at 11:50 a.m. CST. To participate in the weekly coaches briefings, call 913-981-5509.