Cowgirls Travel to Boise State for Saturday Road Tilt

* University of Wyoming press release

LARAMIE -- The Wyoming Cowgirl basketball team hits the road Saturday for a 1 p.m., contest at Boise State. The Cowgirls, who are in search of the season sweep over the Broncos, begin a pivotal four-game stretch with Saturday’s road game.

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The game will be broadcast live on the Mountain West Network and can be heard across the Cowgirl Radio Network with David Settle on the call.

ABOUT THE COWGIRLS
Wyoming (14-8, 9-2 MW) is looking to even its record on the road this season at 5-5 with a win Saturday. The Cowgirls are coming off a 62-47 win their last time out, Wednesday night against Utah State in Laramie.

UW, who led from start-to-finish in the victory, was led by Allyson Fertig’s 13 points, eight rebounds and two blocks. Malene Pedersen also ended in double figures with 10 points on 4-of-7 from the field. Emily Mellema had a solid all-around game as she closed with nine points, five boards and, along with Mckinley Dickerson, a team-best four assists.

Wyoming was led off the bench by Maren McKenna and Marta Savic, who scored nine and seven, respectively. The Cowgirls outscored the Aggies 21-8 in points off turnovers in the win and had a 20-2 advantage in second-chance points.

In conference play, a trio of Cowgirls are averaging 10-or-more points per game. Fertig continues to pace UW with 13.5 points and 8.4 rebounds per game while shooting a league-leading 63.7-percent from the floor.

Mellema, meanwhile, is averaging 10.4 points per, and has a team-leading 11 steals while her 29 assists are second-most on the squad. Pedersen is at 10.1 points per contest and is 19-of-21 from the free-throw line. Tess Barnes continues to lead the way in 3-pointers made with 23 in 11 Mountain West games. Ola Ustowska, has a team-best 36 assists (3.3 APG) in league action.

UW is averaging more than six assists per game than its opponents in conference play this season and has a near-plus-four rebounding margin.

The Cowgirls average 62.7 points per game on a league-leading 47-percent shooting overall. Cowgirl opponents are scoring just 54.5 points per game and are shooting under 39-percent from the field and 29-percent from 3-point range.

SCOUTING BOISE STATE
Boise State boasts the No. 1 scoring defense in the league this season, allowing just 57.2 points per game. Bronco opponents are shooting just 36.4-percent overall from the floor and 28.8-percent from 3-point range. Boise is scoring over 63.6 points per game this season and is shooting just over 40-percent from the field.

The Broncos have been deadly from 3-point range this year, shooting 36-percent from beyond-the-arc. Boise State has a plussix rebounding margin and are averaging 6.4 blocks per game and nearly 15 assists a contest.

Natalie Pasco leads Boise State in scoring at 14.2 points per game and is shooting 44.5-percent from 3-point range while making 2.7 a game. Mya Hansen is second on the team in scoring (8.3 PPG), assists (73) and steals (23).

Abby Muse, who is the reigning Mountain West Defensive Player of the Year, leads the team with nine rebounds and 3.3 blocks per game, which ranks first in the league. Mary Kay Naro is averaging a team-leading 4.7 assists per game. That mark ranks third-best in the MW.

SERIES HISTORY AGAINST BOISE STATE
Wyoming trails in the all-time series with the Broncos, 16-18. The Cowgirls won the earlier meeting this season with Boise State, 61-47 in the Mountain West-opener. Wyoming, who won last season’s meeting in Boise, is looking for just its fourth-ever win on the road in the series.