Cowgirls host red-hot UNLV tonight in Laramie
* University of Wyoming Athletics media relations release
LARAMIE -- The Wyoming Cowgirl basketball team returns home for just the second time this month after completing a recent three-game road swing, including 5-of-6 games overall on the road.
The Cowgirls welcome conference-leading UNLV to the Arena-Auditorium for a 6:30 p.m., tip-off Feb. 24. Wyoming closes with its final three regular season games in Laramie.
Thursday’s contest will be broadcast live on the Mountain West Network and can be heard on the Cowgirl Radio Network with Keith Kelley on the call.
ABOUT THE COWGIRLS
Wyoming (12-11, 8-6 MW) had its four-game winning streak snapped last time out in a 56-45 loss at Colorado State last Thursday.
The Cowgirls struggled from the field against the Rams, shooting a season-low 27.4-percent from the field. Tommi Olson led the way with nine points for the Cowgirls in the loss while Allyson Fertig and Alba Sanchez Ramos each added eight. Fertig also grabbed a game-high 13 rebounds and tallied a pair of blocks on the night.
The Cowgirls, who enter Thursday having won 6-of-8 in the last month, are allowing opponents to score at just under 55 points per game over that eight-game span and have held a pair of opponents, Air Force and Boise State to just 47 points.
Senior Quinn Weidemann is now just a bucket shy of becoming the 27th member of the 1,000-Point Club in program history. For her career, Weidemann ranks ninth all-time at Wyoming with 180 made 3-pointers while her 40.4-percent career 3-point percentage ranks fourth-best all-time.
Weidemann also ranks 20th in program history with 226 career assists.
Olson, meanwhile, is 13th in program history with 144 career steals and is 16th in career assists at UW with 255. Olson ranks seventh in the nation this season with an assist-to-turnover ratio of 2.88 and is sixth in the Mountain West averaging 1.78 steals per game.
McKinley Bradshaw continues to lead the Cowgirls in scoring and ranks eighth in the league averaging 14.6 points per game. In conference-only contests, Bradshaw is averaging 15.5 points per contest, a mark that ranks sixth in the league.
Bradshaw’s career-high of 33 points at San Jose State Feb. 14 is tied for the seventh-most in a single game in program history.
SCOUTING UNLV
League-leading UNLV enters Thursday’s contest on a 12-game winning streak, having last lost Jan. 3 at New Mexico.
The Lady Rebels rank second in the Mountain West in scoring at 76.3 points per game and is first in scoring margin (+12.3). UNLV also ranks second in the league in field goal percentage (45.2-percent), 3-point percentage (35.5-percent) and opponent 3-point percentage (30.1-percent). The Lady Rebels’ near-41 rebounds per game is tops in the league.
Essence Booker leads UNLV and ranks third in the conference in scoring at 15.6 points per game. Reigning Mountain West Freshman of the Year Desi-Rae Young is fifth in scoring at 15.5 points a contest. The duo combines to be the third-highest scoring tandem in the league.
Young’s 8.3 rebounds per contest ranks third in the MW while her 54.6-percent shooting is second-best in the conference. Booker ranks second in the Mountain West in free-throw percentage at 91.3-percent.
Alyssa Durazo-Frescas leads UNLV with 52 made 3-pointers, which ranks sixth in the league and is shooting 43-percent from beyond-the-arc. Booker leads the squad with 100 assists and 39 steals while Keyana Wilfred has a team-best 12 blocks.
SERIES HISTORY AGAINST UNLV
Wyoming narrowly leads the all-time series with UNLV, 27-26. Thursday’s meeting will be the first in Laramie against the Lady Rebels since early 2019, a 90-62 UW victory. The Cowgirls are 14-6 all-time at home against UNLV and have won seven-straight meetings against the Lady Rebels in the AA.
In seven career games against UNLV, Weidemann is averaging 12.6 points per contest and is shooting 53.6-percent from the field and 51.6-percent from beyond-the-arc.
10 Of The Most Famous Wyomingites In History
- 10 Of The Most Famous Wyomingites In History