Blue Demons and Badgers Clash in Championship Game
11/27/2005 12:00:00 AM | WOMEN'S BASKETBALL
Game #5
#17/17 DePaul (4-0) vs. Wisconsin (4-0)
Hawaiian Airlines Rainbow Wahine Classic Championship Game
Stan Sheriff Center - Honolulu, Hawai'i
Nov. 27, 2005 - 5:30 HT (9:30 p.m. CST)
Game Notes
Live Audio (Wisconsin broadcast with subscription fee)
HONOLULU, Hawai'i - DePaul takes on Wisconsin in the championship game of the Hawaiian Airlines Rainbow Wahine Classic. The Blue Demons opened the eight-team tourney with a 64-49 win over Eastern Michigan on Friday followed by an 84-71 victory against Texas A&M in Saturday’s semifinal. This is DePaul’s second appearance in the tournament as they finished fifth in 2002.
The Blue Demons opened the season with a pair of victories in the DePaul Invitational last weekend against Harvard and UNLV. DePaul enters this weekend ranked No. 17 in both the Associated Press and ESPN/USA Today/WBCA Coaches’ Top 25.
Rainbow Wahine Classic History: The Blue Demons finished fifth in the 2002 edition and won two of three games. North Carolina handed DePaul an 82-66 decision in the first game before the Blue Demons responded with a 92-73 win over Fordham and a 55-44 decision over Denver. With the two wins on Saturday and Sunday, the team finished in fifth place.
With the two victories in this year’s tournament, the Blue Demons are 4-1 all-time in the tournament. Following the North Carolina loss in 2002, DePaul has reeled off 12 straight regular-season tournament victories.
Three-Fifty on to Four Hundred: Head coach Doug Bruno earned his 350th coaching victory at DePaul in the win over UNLV on Nov. 19. In his 20th season with the Blue Demons, he holds a record of 352-210. In 22 seasons of coaching women’s basketball, he has a 392-240 record.
One Thousand: With 13 rebounds against UNLV, Khara Smith became the fourth player in school history with 1,000 career rebounds. She joins Diana Vines, Mfon Udoka and Debra Robinson in the DePaul record books. She enters Sunday’s game with 1,028 career boards and joins Vines as one of two players in school history with at least 1,650 points and 1,000 rebounds. She passed Robinson against Eastern Michigan is ranked third in school history in career rebounds. Smith needs 20 rebounds to move into second all-time ahead of Mfon Udoka (pronounced Oom-fon U-dough-kuh) with 1,047 rebounds.
Noting the Blue Demons: DePaul returns nine players and four starters from last season’s 26-5 team that advanced to the NCAA Tournament’s second round... the nine returners accounted for 85 percent of the offense a year ago while the four starters were responsible for 62 percent of the points... DePaul also returns 91 percent of the rebounding with the nine players combining for a .477 field goal percentage... Claudette Towers has started three of the first four games this season... she entered her senior season with four career starts... Ciara Johnson made her first collegiate start against Eastern Michigan... a Rainbow Wahine Classic title would be DePaul’s fifth straight in-season tournament championship... they won the Moran Realty Classic in 2002, 2003, 2004 and Blue Sky Restaurant Classic in 2004... they opened this season with a DePaul Invitational championship... the Blue Demons have scored at least 50 points in a half twice this season... it occurred 11 times during the 2004-05 season... the Blue Demons have posted 17 consecutive regular-season wins... in three of four games this season, DePaul has combined to shoot better than .500 from the field... Khara Smith has three straight double-doubles and 57 in her career.
Wisconsin Preview: The Badgers knocked off Idaho State, 85-73, and Hawai’i, 77-67, to advance to the championship game. Janese Banks and Jolene Anderson leads the Badgers offensively with 19.8 points and 17.5 points per game, respectively. Head coach Lisa Stone is in her third season with Wisconsin and holds a 26-33 record with the Badgers.
The Series: Wisconsin leads the series, 3-2, with Sunday serving as the first meeting since a 82-76 Badger victory in the second round of the 2000 WNIT.
Against the Big Ten: DePaul is 29-49 all-time against Big Ten programs. Following the Wisconsin game, the Blue Demons host No. 19/24 Purdue on Dec. 3 and make the short trip to Northwestern on Dec. 22.