Arkansas back on the road at Auburn Thursday

November 7, 2014

TELEVISION: None

RADIO: Lady Razorback Radio Network (CST); 6:40 p.m. pregame; 7:07 tipoff

KABZ (103.7 FM), Little Rock (JIP-LIVE)

KBNV (90.1 FM), Fayetteville-Springdale (LIVE)

KXUA (88.3 FM), Fayetteville (LIVE)

KHOZ (900 AM), Harrison (LIVE)

INTERNET: LADYBACKS.COM; free audio stream.

ARKANSAS LADY RAZORBACKS (13-7, 2-6 SEC)

POSSIBLE STARTERS

F 14 Danielle Allen 6-0 SO Harrison, AR (Harrison) 8.6 5.3

F 33 Sarah Pfeifer 6-0 SO Ozark, AR (High) 9.0 3.8

G 4 Kristin Peoples 5-7 SO Westerville, OH (Brookhaven) 9.4 3.1a 2.2s

G 12 Sheree Thompson 5-10 JR McComb, MS (NW-Shoals) 6.1 3.1 3.0a

G 44 Adrienne Bush 5-8 SR Russellville, AR (High/SMS) 3.5 2.5

OFF THE BENCH

P 11 Kristina Andjelkovic 6-2 JR Belgrade, Serbia (Chipola JC) 2.2 1.6

G 15 Allison Singleton 5-5 SR Fort Smith, AR (Southside) 0.6 0.0

G 21 Rochelle Vaughn 5-9 JR Plano, TX (Plano West) 9.6 4.8 3.3a

G 22 April Seggebruch 5-10 SR Cissna Park, IL (Wabash Valley) 3.7 1.7

G/F 23 Melissa Hobbs 6-0 JR Woodward, OK (High/Colo.) 2.7 1.2

G 25 Brittney Vaughn 5-7 FR Plano, TX (Plano West) 4.0 2.2 1.8a

INJURED

F/P 1 Kristin Moore 6-1 JR Chicago, Ill. (John Hope) 6.3 5.9

P 55 Ruby Vaden 6-3 JR Osceola, AR, (High) 6.5 3.9

HEAD COACH: Susie Gardner (Second year at Arkansas, 29-19; eighth overall, 141-111)

AUBURN TIGERS (10-9, 1-5 SEC)

POSSIBLE STARTERS

F 34 Alexis Ogubie 6-2 FR Huntsville, AL (J.O. Johnson) 4.0 2.9

C 10 Marita Payne 6-5 JR Melbourne, Aust. (John Paul Col) 9.0 8.8

G 11 Nicole Louden 5-7 SR Paterson, NJ (Kennedy) 9.8 3.8

G 14 Louise Emeagi 6-1 JR Melbourne, Aust. (Sion Col.) 11.9 7.1

G 33 Natasha Bracket 5-9 SR Charlotte, NC (Providence Day) 15.9 4.7

OFF THE BENCH

G 3 Nitasha Brown 5-8 JR Daytona Beach, FL (Mainland) 5.4 1.6

G 21 Tiffany Presley 5-6 SR Birmingham, AL (Fairfield) 2.5 3.3

C 41 Aileen Rossouw 6-2 FR Plano, TX (Senior) 2.4 2.1

G 1 Tanesheia Thompson 5-6 SR Roanoke, AL (Gulf Coast CC) 2.3 1.8

HEAD COACH: Nell Fortner (First year at Auburn, 10-9; second overall, 27-20)

ABOUT THE GAME: Tough times for two teams at the bottom of the SEC standings as Arkansas travels to Auburn. The Lady’Backs had their run snapped on Sunday, while Auburn looks to catch another place in the SEC standings.

ABOUT THE LADY RAZORBACKS: Susie Gardner begins her second season at Arkansas with one of the most interesting rosters in the past decade. Arkansas returns four starters from a 16-12 team, and picks up two more potential starters that missed virtually all of 2003-04 with injury. At the same time, the Lady’Backs have only three seniors with a combined varsity experience of a season and a half at Arkansas. Defense dominated for Arkansas as the Lady Razorbacks early this season with one of the best starts in school history. At midseason, the Lady’Backs lost starting center Kristin Moore and retooling began on both offense and defense as conference play starts.

ABOUT THE TIGERS: Nell Fortner begins her first year on the Plains, replacing legendary Joe Ciampi at Auburn. The Tigers are off to a rocky start in SEC play, but also have a front-loaded league slate including games with all four of the league’s ranked teams. Auburn snapped a six-game losing streak last week with their first win of 2005 (and SEC play) by defeating archrival Alabama at Beard-Eaves. The Tigers have a similiar short roster to Arkansas, and a guard-oriented offense lead by Natasha Bracket (15.9 ppg) and Louise Emeagi (11.9 ppg). Fortner recently shook up the relatively stable starting five by bringing Alexis Ogubie in to start three games for Nitasha Brown.

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ARKANSAS‘ ESPN ACADEMIC ALL-AMERICA NOMINEES: For the first time in school history, the Lady Razorback basketball team has the University maximum three nominees. Redshirt sophomore Sarah Pfeifer, sophomore Kristin Peoples and junior Rochelle Vaughn are the nominees. The requirements for the ESPN Academic All-America team are a 3.20 cumulative GPA, second-year standing at the institution and starter or significant sub. Peoples, Pfeifer and Vaughn more than meet the criteria. All three are starters for the Lady’Backs, with industrial engineering major Pfiefer just edging biology major Peoples. 3.95 to 3.94. And yes, that means they each have exactly one "B" in their Arkansas careers. Vaughn turns in a 3.46 in communications, but is on an accellerated track with 109 of her 124 hours completed by the end of her junior year. By the way, Peoples and Pfeifer aren’t the average sophomores. In just three full semesters at Arkansas, Peoples has 83 hours in the degree bank (67% completion) while Pfeifer has 86 hours in her five semesters (70% completion). While three players is the school max, Arkansas had a fourth player with qualifying numbers — senior back-up guard April Seggebruch’s 3.77 in business marketing. Only one other time in school history has Arkansas nominated more than one player for Academic All-America in basketball — Amber Nicholas Shirey and Blair Savage were both nominees in the 1990-91 and 1991-92. The ESPN Academic All-America team — formerly known as the GTE (then Verizon)/CoSIDA Academic All-America team — is the longest running, most prestigeous and only Academic All-America team (CoSIDA holds that copyright).

CHANGE OF LINEUP IN THE WORKS: Susie Gardner tentatively plans to bring Rochelle Vaughn off the bench for the first time this season. Junior Sheree Thompson takes her place in the starting five. Thompson has started 12 games this season, but mostly rotating in the three, or guard-wing, spot for the Lady’Backs.

TRAINING ROOM REPORT: Kristina Andjelkovic has a double whammy. The junior post took an elbow to the nose during the Ole Miss game, and was set for an x-ray Tuesday to see if it was broken. She picked up a bruised left shin in a collision with Sarah Pfeifer at practice Tuesday. Sheree Thompson is nursing a strained right hamstring from the weekend, and while Kristin Peoples is feeling better Sarah Pfeifer is now a little under the weather. All players are expected to play on Thursday. Ruby Vaden is slated for her ACL surgery in the next week.

TWO TEAMS GLAD TO SEE FEBRUARY: Arkansas had a rough first month of 2005, losing five conference games and posting a 3-5 mark for a month filled with transition from back-to-back injuries. It could be worse — Auburn has won only one game in 2005 (at home to rival Alabama).

GONE, BUT NOT FORGOTTEN: The 2-3 match-up zone of the Ciampi era is gone with the Tigers favoring more man defense; however, last few years for Arkansas with Auburn haven’t exactly been the traditional pack-it-in games. Arkansas had become accustomed to facing man, and full-court, pressure as Auburn did not want repeats of some of the more infamous moments in Lady’Back three-point shooting history (most recently Wendi Willits, then India Lewis, raining in three-pointers).

SOME THINGS DON’T CHANGE: At the same time, Auburn averages 6.3 blocks per game.

NELL FORTNER — SECOND YEAR COACH?: If Coach Fortner’s career record sounds wrong, well, in many ways it is. Fortner spent three seasons as the head coach and general manager of the Indiana Fever, as well as the head coach of the U.S. Women’s National Team. With Team USA, she coached 10 American teams to a 93-14 overall record including gold at the 1998 World Championships and the 2000 Olympics. She also has a similar 101-14 three-year record with the U.S. senior women’s team — the best record in women’s USA basketball history. Her two year "career" only represents her time as a collegiate coach — one year at Purdue prior to her sojourn into Olympics and pro coaching and her one year currently at Auburn.

OFFENSIVE WOES WITH UM: Arkansas missed nine straight field goals during a nine-minute stretch in the first half, but defense kept the Lady’Backs in range, tying the game near the end of the half, 18-18. Unfortunately, the Lady’Backs went silent for a 9-0 run, seven to end the half, to allow Ole Miss to pull away. For the game, Arkansas shot only 29.5% from the field, mostly thanks to the 22.2% first half.

SERIES: The Tigers lead the series, 11-7, and have a commanding lead on the Plains with 6-1 over Arkansas.

LAST YEAR WITH AUBURN: #22 Auburn 71, Arkansas 44

Rochelle Vaughn had 12 points but Arkansas could not solve the Auburn defense in one of the worst offensive games of the year. Shameka Christon had only five points in the game as Auburn slowly pulled away from a 32-29 halftime lead. Arkansas hit only 20.7% from the field in the second half. For the second game in a row, UA struggled at the free throw line with 40%, but also could not find the line with a near school-record five attempts, two made and only one free throw in the second half.

LAST TIME AT AUBURN: Auburn 64, #8 Arkansas 36

A career high from freshman Sarah Pfeifer did little to take the sting out of the worst offensive performance of the season. Pfeifer had 15 to lead Arkansas while Natasha Brackett had 23, including 15 in the first half, to lead Auburn. Arkansas could not hold on to the ball in the first half and could not shoot the ball in the second, resulting in the fewest points scored against a SEC opponent in school history. It was the first time under 40 points for the Lady’Backs since the 1970s and only the fourth sub-40 game in school history.

HOMEBODIES: A lot of it is the schedule, but there are some remarkable differences between the Lady’Backs at Walton Arena and on the road. As a team, Arkansas shoots overall better at home, but not from three-point range. On defense, Arkansas has far more steals at home, but the same number of blocked shots. The turnover margin is dramatic, from +10 (thanks to the early season non-conference 40-plus games by opponents) to statistically even.

FG% 3P% FT% PPG OPP REB TO

HOME .391 .245 .575 71.0 59.4 -2.0 +10.4

ROAD .376 .272 .618 60.4 68.4 -8.6 +1.7

Among individuals, the most significant homebodies are Kristin Peoples, a 40.9% shooter averaging 12.3 ppg at home but only 10.3% for 4.3 ppg on the road, and Kristina Andjelkovic, 3.6 ppg at 54.2% at home versus 1.1 ppg and 28.6%. The top road warrior is Danielle Allen, who is the team’s leading scorer on the road at 10.9 ppg with 48% but hits 49% at home for 7.7 ppg.

COUNT IT OVER WHEN: Arkansas leads at halftime (9-0), scores over 80 points (4-0), holds the opponent under 35% from the field (6-0).

STILL THE ONE: Arkansas reigns for a seventh week atop the NCAA Division I steal rankings with 14.8 per game in the Jan. 24 report. North Carolina drew ever so close to passing Arkansas as the Lady’Backs are at 14.8 and UNC at 14.6, however, the Lady’Backs should get the benefit next week of a 12 steal game with UMKC.

NOTES ON PREVIOUS ARKANSAS GAMES

ARKANSAS‘ RPI HITS TOP 30: After defeating Oregon, the Lady Razorbacks moved to 27th in the WBCA/Summerville RPI in late December. At the time, the Lady’Backs was 1-1 against the RPI top 25 — win over Indiana, loss to Purdue — then 1-0 against top 50 teams (Oregon at #32).

GAME WINNERS: Arkansas has a four-game winning streak when it comes to last-minute contests. After failing to make the crucial score in the closing minute against Purdue, and in turn losing 55-51, Arkansas has used clutch plays to defeat Memphis, Western Kentucky, Indiana and Oregon. Emblematic of Arkansas‘ team concept, each of the four games had a different Lady’Back providing the defining moment. With Oregon, it was Sheree Thompson’s block of Gabrielle Richards’ three-point attempt with one second left. At Memphis, Sarah Pfeifer came off the bench for a run-stopping jump shot in the closing minutes. With Western Kentucky, Rochelle Vaughn’s 10-foot jumper in the lane sealed the game in the last seconds. Versus Indiana, Kristin Peoples stepped to the free throw line to sink the icing points.

TIES BEST 10-GAME START: With the win over Oregon, Arkansas ties the school mark for best 10-game start at 9-1. The Lady’Backs have reached 9-1 three other times in the program’s 28 year history, with the most recent coming in 2002-03. In 1994-95 Arkansas went to 10-1 and 1996-97 saw the best "and one" start going 13-1 before losing at Illinois.

ARKANSAS’ BRIEF RETURN TO ASSOCIATED PRESS POLL: For the first time since Week Five (12/15/03) of last year’s poll, the Arkansas Lady Razorbacks are among the also receiving votes for the Associated Press Top 25 on Dec. 27 (week 7). The Lady’Backs were in the preseason and first four weeks of last season’s poll after spending a complete year ranked in 2003-04. Arkansas jumps in with 15 votes after defeating the Oregon Ducks, who drop from near the top 25 to only six votes this week. The 15 votes puts Arkansas in the middle of the "alsos." Arkansas received no votes from the coaches. After losing at Georgia, the Lady’Backs dropped from the poll in week 8.

COULD BE AN UNFORTUNATE FIRST: Excluding preseason injuries like Sheree Thompson’s opening day ACL last season, Arkansas could face a first certainly in recent history, if not the first time in the 29-year-history of the program, should Ruby Vaden’s knee injury prove season ending. Arkansas lost Kristin Moore on Jan. 2 to a torn ACL, and if Vaden is out for the year it could be the first time for two starters to go down during the season.

NO PLACE FOR THE NON-CONFERENCE: The Indiana win tied the longest winning streak in Arkansas history at home against non-conference teams at 19 game, then broke the mark with Wichita State. After defeating Oregon, the Lady’Backs move the non-conference streak to 21 games, and wait for next year to continue the run. The last non-conference team to win at Walton Arena was Northern Iowa — ironic — on Dec. 7, 2001.

THE HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE: Remember, in the 12-year membership in the SEC, Arkansas‘ traditional finish is, unfortunately, ninth. Also, the Lady’Backs have never won more than seven conference games in a season.

THE ROAD NEVER TRAVELED: Arkansas is the only SEC team with the privilege of playing home-and-home with both of the league’s 2004 Final Four teams — LSU (the permanent travel partner) and Tennessee (our Eastern Division rotating partner for this two-year cycle).

SCHOOL RECORD SET FOR THREE-POINT ATTEMPTS: Arkansas broke the school mark for three-pointers attempted in a regular season game with 32 (out of 69 total field goal attempts) at UMKC. The previous mark was 29 against Alabama from Jan. 11, 1998, which was tied against Providence the following fall on Nov. 16, 1998. Arkansas also broke the school mark for three-point attempts in a half which was 16 against Tennessee on Dec. 29, 1996. The Lady’Backs cranked up 20 in the first half at UMKC. The seven made in the first half came within one of tying the school mark of eight (at Vandy, 1/21/01; and Providence, 11/16/98). The game record is 15 at the same Providence game. The Lady’Backs’ 12 is a season high for 2004-05.

TIE ME KANGAROO DOWN: It was like old times at UMKC for the Lady Razorback defense, forcing +14 turnovers and picking off 12 steals. It was one of the best margins since non-conference season in December, but the 19 points off turnovers — considering the 26 total miscues by UMKC — was a bit off the Lady’Back pace.

EVERYONE SCORES: Ten players touched the court against South Carolina, and all 10 scored against the Gamecocks. It was the first time for across the board scoring this season.

ALMOST EVERYONE BOARDS: Nine of the 10 players pulled down rebounds against South Carolina. The one player not getting a board — Kristin Peoples — gets a pass as she was the team leading scorer.

CHECK THE SCOREBOARD FOR BURN-IN: We don’t think there’s a screen saver on the scoreboard, but 51-37 stayed displayed at Walton Arena for 4:33 in the second half as the Lady’Backs and Gamecocks stalled offensively.

ARE CHICKEN TURNOVERS REALLY JUST A CHICKEN POT PIE?: South Carolina came into the game averaging 21 turnovers per game, and the Gamecocks left with an average day of 22 turnovers. Arkansas picked up 20 points off the turnovers, but it could have been much worse. The Gamecocks had 15 turnovers in the decisive first half, and gave up 18 of the 20 points.

A SERIES OF LOWS: Arkansas had its worst offensive game of the year at LSU with 45 points which led to the worst SEC loss for the Lady’Backs (46 points) since 1992 when Tennessee hung a 105-59 decision on the Lady’Backs at Knoxville.

ITS THE END OF THE STREAK AS WE KNOW IT: Miss State had the longest winning streak in the SEC when it came to Fayetteville, a school-record 12 straight, which Arkansas ended with an 83-71 decision.

CAREER DAY HELD AT WALTON ARENA: No less than five major career highs were notched against the Miss State Lady Bulldogs, with 21 points by Sarah Pfeifer leading the way. It bettered her 19 from earlier this year with La-Lafayette. Adrienne Bush got her best with 13 points, three more than at LSU last year. Kristina Andjelkovic tied her career high with eight points. Kristin Peoples had a career high seven rebounds and April Seggebruch notched a career high five assists.

GETTING HIGH ON THE BULLDOGS: Arkansas‘ 83 points was the most scored this year against a SEC opponent, and the most since putting up 83 with Western Kentucky in December. It was just three off the overall season best. Arkansas also shot a season high 50.8% from the field.

TURNOVERS DOG STATE: In the second half, Arkansas played 13 1/2 minutes with a single turnover and finished with only three for the half. Meanwhile, the Lady’Back defense forced seven turnovers from Miss State and the offense converted them into 14 points — a perfect 100% conversion rate as Arkansas scored after every Bulldog turnover in the second half. For the game, State had 15 turnovers leading to 21 Arkansas points.

GOLDEN RULE DEFENSE: Arkansas did unto Miss State what Tennessee did unto the Lady Razorbacks in the previous game. After experiencing two six-minute periods without scoring in the first half at Knoxville that proved decisive, Arkansas inflicted a 6:13 offensive coma on MSU during a 17-0 run to start the game, then added a 5:11 sleeper hold heading into halftime during a 14-3 run. The 6:13 ties for the second longest stop of the year, and is one second shy of the 6:14 Arkansas held Wichita State without scoring. As a part of the second drought, Arkansas held Miss State without a field goal for 6:21, and allowed a single field goal during the closing eight minutes (8:17 to be exact) of the first half. Three free throws and the lone three-pointer accounted for all of State’s scoring in that final eight.

2005 FIRST — A HALFTIME LEAD: Not once in SEC play, and not since Dec. 20, 2004, had Arkansas held a halftime lead. The 33-26 margin against Miss State was a major harbinger of hope for the first league win of the year.

BENCH WORST, STARTER BEST: The season low from Arkansas‘ usually productive bench — only 12 points — was offset by a season-high from the starting five — 71 — against Miss State.

COULD BE WORSE: While 12 off the bench was bad for Arkansas against MSU, the Lady Bulldogs managed only one point from the bench.

UNFORTUNATELY, THEY DON’T SCORE IT THAT WAY: Arkansas recovered its game, notably its offense, in the second half at Tennessee, leading to a 37-32 outcome in the closing 20 minutes. The Lady’Backs forced 14 second-half turnovers out of Tennessee to drive a +7 second half margin. Arkansas shot 41.9% from the field in the second half after hitting only 23.1% in the first half. On defense, Arkansas held Tennessee to only two field goals in the final 10 minutes of the game, but was unable to get closer than 16.

OFFENSIVE SLUMPS DOOM FIRST HALF AT UT: Arkansas got out of the gate in good shape at Tennessee, correcting a distinct problem in 2005, but hit the offensive doldrums twice. The Lady’Backs went 6:35 without scoring while UT went on a 10-0 run, then sealed their fate with a 6:44 lull during an 11-0 run.

TREYS COME AND GO AT OXFORD: A triple-trey run at the close of the first half cut Ole Miss’ lead to one points, part of a 6-of-13 first half from range. In the second half, Arkansas managed only one three-pointer in 11 attempts.

BOARD TO DEATH: The Lady’Backs pulled down close to the season average with 38 rebounds, but gave up 58 to Ole Miss. The Lady Rebels had 25 offensive boards, leading to a tremendous advantage of points in the paint, 44-38, and second-chance points, 22-9.

IT WAS FOUL: The Lady’Backs had a season high 31 fouls, and a high for foul trouble. Heading into the final minute of the game, six players had four fouls — but only one departed early as Sarah Pfeifer was forced to commit her fifth to send Ole Miss to the line. Along with Pfeifer, leading scorers Danielle Allen and Rochelle Vaughn were in jeopardy, along with Ruby Vaden, Kristin Peoples and Sheree Thompson. The result was an opponent free-for-all at the line with 43 attempts. Ole Miss did not take full advantage, hitting only 25 for a 58.1% day at the line.

WHO WOULD HAVE THOUGHT: Arkansas outrebounded Florida, 42-40, and had a commanding edge on the offensive glass, 24-18, only to give the advantage away through a -5 turnover margin and a -9 point points-off-turnovers. Yet, it was the first loss of the year when Arkansas outrebounded an opponent (6-1 to date).

LATE GAME SALE ON GATOR NUGGETS: After forcing only four turnovers from Florida in the opening 20 minutes, Arkansas turned the tables by extracting 13 in the second. But, the Lady’Backs got only seven second half points from the turnovers — below the desired 1:1. Meanwhile, Arkansas halved its mistakes — only 8 second half turnovers vs. 16 in the opening frame — but Florida scored 11 points off the 8 second half TOs.

A LITTLE TOO LITTLE, JUST A LITTLE TOO LATE: Trailing by 17 at halftime, Arkansas‘ defense turned the tables on the Gators to provide the offense an opportunity. The Lady’Backs outscored Florida, 30-25, in the second, but it wasn’t enough. Lack of timely scoring was the killer as the Lady’Backs held Florida scoreless the opening 3:35 of the second half but could only score three points. Down the stretch, Arkansas cut to within nine with 3:07 to play and held Florida without a field goal the final 4:01 of the contest. Unfortunately, Arkansas again only scored three points in the 3:49 of the game.

DEFENSE FLIPS GATORS TWICE: Get the reptile on it back, and it will struggle. Arkansas held Florida scoreless the opening 3:35 of the second half, then held the Gators without a field goal the final 4:01 of the game.

SHAKING UP THE STARTING FIVE: After a pretty consistent five for the non-conference slate, Susie Gardner made adjustments with Florida. Senior Adrienne Bush could get her second career start (at Memphis) with Florida as Gardner seeks a little more defensive pressure to open the game. Junior Ruby Vaden is penciled in to tip it off with Kristin Moore sidelined with injury. A 16-game starter as a sophomore (20 games played due to injury), it was Vaden’s first start of her junior season and first in 11 months (at Miss State, 2/1/04).

DOUBLE YOUR OFFENSE, DOUBLE YOUR FUN: Managing only 15 first-half points at Georgia, then 22 at Cincinnati, Arkansas doubled its offensive output for the second half. Arkansas had exactly double, 44, second half points to defeat the Bearcats; almost triple with 42 at Georgia.

BEARCATS GET HAIRBALL ON SCRAMBLE D: Susie Gardner called for the 2-2-1 scramble defense in the second half at Cincinnati, and the Bearcats went from seven turnovers at intermission to 24 for the game. The result was only 25 points for UC thanks to a 26-point turnaround (-7 for the first half and +19 for the second).

TALE OF TWO HALVES: Arkansas‘ offense sputtered at the start of the Georgia game, missing its first 12 shots and closing the opening 20 minutes with only 15 points and 21 percent from the field. In the second half, the Lady’Backs found their shot with over 50% from the field and matched Georgia point-for-point with 42.

GEORGIA INVOKES GOLDEN RULE WITH ARKANSAS: For the opening five minutes at Georgia, the 16th-ranked Lady Bulldogs did unto Arkansas what the Lady’Backs had done onto its first 10 non-conference foes. Holding Arkansas scoreless for a 12-0 start, Georgia had a 23-2 opening run that included 12 straight missed shots and for the half 15 turnovers.

THE LINE SHALL SET YOU FREE: After struggling mightily the past few games, Arkansas used one of its best quality games at the free throw line to defeat Oregon. The Lady’Backs shot 63.6% from the line, picking up 21 points from 33 attempts. Leading the way was Kristin Peoples with 10-of-12 — all of her points versus the Ducks.

BAH HUMBUG: Arkansas‘ defense ruined back-to-back best starts for opponents, first ending Louisiana-Lafayette’s all-time best start then sealing the Oregon Ducks’ fate in the top 25. The Lady’Backs got into their holiday-ruining spirit by stopping a 6-1 start by Memphis, a 3-1 start by Indiana and crushing Centenary after a record-setting first game by the Ladies.

ANOTHER DAY, ANOTHER DEFENSIVE MILESTONE: Sure, by one second, but Oregon went 3:14 before scoring their first points against Arkansas. That bested the 3:13 by Indiana.

MAKING DUCK PATE: Oregon came to Fayetteville ranked 11th in the nation in turnovers per game before facing Arkansas. The Lady’Back defense pressed the Ducks into a fine paste as Oregon committed more turnovers in the first half — 17 — than they averaged per game — 13.9 — to allow Arkansas a 31-15 halftime lead. It was the worst first half of the year for Oregon. The Ducks quacked it up a season-high 25 times, almost double their average and surpassing their previous season high of 21 against top 10 ranked Ohio State.

PG, PG, WHATCHA GONNA DO WHEN THEY COME FOR YOU: Arkansas‘ defense turned over three of the nation’s top point guards in the first 10 games of the season. Oregon‘s Connie Mizusawa arrived in Fayetteville No. 3 in the nation (7.8 apg) in assists and sporting a 4.8-to-1 assist-to-turnover ratio. Her last game was 8 assists to one turnover versus top 10 Ohio State. Arkansas forced Mizusawa into five turnovers and the senior managed a mere three assists as the Ducks committed a total of 26 turnovers with only 11 assists. Previous game, the nation’s No. 6 point guard, Louisiana-Lafayette’s Ashley Blanche (6.9 apg), became the fifth guard to commit nine or more turnovers. At the start of December, Arkansas forced Western Kentucky into 40 total turnovers, led by the nation’s No. 18 assist-maker, Tifany Zaragoza, with seven turnovers.

BETTER OFFENSE? IT’S ALL ABOUT THE DEFENSE: Arkansas turned the Ragin’ Cajuns into mild-mannered Franco-Americans thanks to a +13 turnover margin, a +8 rebound margin and a dominating +12 offensive rebound margin. The result was 29 more shots from the field for Arkansas that combined with 46.8% from the field more than neutralized ULL’s impressive 54.2% overall and 50% three-point shooting. Arkansas‘ the 12 picks against the Ragin’ Cajuns were highly effective. With a +13 turnover ratio and positive points off turnovers — 29 points off 24 turnovers — Arkansas proved once again that you don’t need a lot of spice to make a hot dish.

POINT OF CONTENTION: Arkansas turned one of the South’s better point guards, ULL’s Ashley Blanche, into another pastry chef with nine turnovers. It marked the fifth time this season the Lady’Backs forced an opponent point guard into nine or more mistakes. Arkansas also got eight turnovers out of Tiffany Washington, making Washington and Blanche the second-highest teammates this year (the Lady’Backs had nine each from Alabama State‘s Shaunte Thompson and Latoya Robinson).

OUR TEAM BEATS YOUR STARTERS ANY DAY: ULL learned the G’s D lesson when it took foul trouble before significant substitutions started in the second half. Meanwhile, Arkansas was 11 down the bench by halftime, and closed with nine players in double-digit minutes.

NO. 1 RANKING IN STEALS A FIRST: Arkansas has ranked No. 1 in the nation in field goal percentage (during the 1990-91 season) and free throw percentage (Christy Smith’s freshman season), but the top spot in a defensive category is an all-time first for the Lady Razorbacks regardless of this week’s change in stats. The Lady’Backs held on to both the team field goal (1990-91 season) and individual free throw (Smith, 1994-95) titles as the only times the team led the nation in a NCAA statistical category.

HISTORY IN THE MAKING: Susie Gardner won her first game at Memphis — only the second time in school history for the Lady’Backs to win at Elma Roane Fieldhouse — but the Lady Tigers achieved a minor milestone of their own: they forced Arkansas into more turnovers, 21 to 18.

BRINGIN’ IT FROM THE BENCH: For the second game in a row, Arkansas‘ bench provided serious offensive firepower. However, at Memphis, the subs outscored the starters — a first for this season — as three players came off the bench for double-digit games. One sub was a starter for the first seven games — Sheree Thompson. Thompson hit 5-of-6 from the field, pulled down six rebounds and dished out six assists. Sarah Pfeifer rolled into the game with what is becoming a routine 11 points in 19 minutes played. The surprise was Ruby Vaden with 7-of-9 for 14 points in 23 minutes.

BENCH THUNDER: Arkansas has rolled off the bench with its leading scorer and rebounder in the past two games. Almost half the points against Indiana were from the bench and 34 of 78 against Wichita State. For Wichita State, Sarah Pfeifer bettered her career-tying performance with Indiana by scoring 16 points with eight rebounds in only 15 minutes. Ruby Vaden brought nine rebounds from the bench against WSU, tying Kristin Moore for top honors.

QUOTE OF THE YEAR ON COACH G’s D: To date, this is the best from Wichita State‘s Jane Albright: "If we weren’t in the locker room away from them, they’d probably be guarding us right now."

WHEAT TURNOVERS: After a one-game hiatus, Arkansas returned to its steady diet of defensive turnovers against Wichita State. The Shockers gave up the ball 28 times leading to 29 Arkansas points and keyed the 40-18 halftime lead. Compounding WSU’s offensive woes was Arkansas half-court pressure that led to only 20% from the field.

YOU CAN’T SCORE IF YOU DON’T HAVE THE BALL: So far this season, Arkansas has trimmed the tall timber, most recently 6-7 sophomore Sarah McKay of Indiana. As a freshman, McKay thrashed the Lady’Backs with 9-of-11 from the field for 18 points at Bloomington. Against a smaller, but more defensively oriented, lineup this year, McKay did not score a single field goal, only shot the ball four times and her two points were a pair of free throws.

POINT GUARDS BEWARE: For the third time in five games, Arkansas forced nine or more turnovers from the opponent point guard. Twice this season, Arkansas has gotten a double out the opponent point guard — 10 by Idaho State‘s Camile Michaelson and 10 from Laura Kizyte of Centenary. The turnover low for an opponent point guard is seven (against seven assists) for Tifany Zaragoza of Western Kentucky.

NOT ALL THE OFFENSE WE WANT, BUT ALL THE OFFENSE WE NEED: Arkansas went a combined 11 minute stretch without a field goal in the middle of the Indiana game, but in the end it was the Hoosiers that could not produce in the crucial time to score final moments. First, the Hoosiers failed to take advantage of the Lady’Backs’ offensive lapse thanks to Arkansas‘ tenacious defense. During Arkansas‘ drought, Indiana closed the final 3:30 of the first half with one field goal and went the first 5:22 of the second half without a field goal. However, the coup de main was the last 88 seconds of the game as the Hoosiers had only one field goal and the Lady’Backs pulled ahead.

DEFENSE COMES IN DIFFERENT FLAVORS: Sometimes you want more than turnovers and Arkansas went toe-to-toe with a physical, larger Indiana lineup in the halfcourt. Holding Indiana to only 33.9% from the field and 22.2% in the second half, the Lady’Backs got the pressure turnovers when they counted in the closing minutes of the game.

POSSESSION IS 9/10THS OF THE LAW; 100% IN VICTORY: In the final nine minutes against Indiana, Arkansas did not make a turnover while the Hoosiers had seven. Those seven led to seven of the Lady’Backs’ final 15 points, including a 5-0 run that tied the game at 43-43 with 5:49 left.

TREYS AWAY: After games with neither team connecting from outside, the Indiana game was a three-point shooting contest. Arkansas won on percentage — 4-of-8 vs. 7-of-16 — and timeliness. Rochelle Vaughn pushed the team high to three made with her 3-of-5, but Kristin Peoples’ game-winner with 42 seconds left was the most important of all.

BENCH PLAY LEADS THE WAY: Sophomore Sarah Pfeifer came off the bench against Indiana to score a career high tying 13 points in 21 minutes at the high post while junior Ruby Vaden had her best rebounding game of the season with 10 boards and seven points in 25 minutes.

LESS PRESSURE, FEWER POINTS: Susie Gardner switched defensive tactics against Indiana, and the Hoosiers never got on track. While the move resulted in a season low for opponent turnovers (19), Indiana gave up the ball seven times in the final minutes when it counted. The defensive shift resulted in a dramatic drop in opponent field goal percentage and scoring as Indiana had the second-lowest point total — 50, the worst opponent half — 18 points, and the worst opponent field goal percentage — 33.9% — to date. In perspective, Arkansas‘ three opponent lows: 49, Alabama State; 50, Indiana; 52, Centenary.

COACH G’s D STRIKES AGAIN: Susie Gardner told everyone that would listen that this year’s team would need its defense to carry the day and drive the offense. For the third consecutive game, Arkansas pumped 40 turnovers from an opponent at Walton Arena and broke the school record for steals for the second time this year with 29 against Western Kentucky.

FIVE STARTERS, THREE STEAL HIGHS: Arkansas‘ five starters against Western Kentucky combined for 26 of the school-record 29 steals versus the Lady Toppers. Leading the way was Kristin Moore with a career shattering eight steals (previous of one several times) and Kristin Peoples with a career-tying six. Rochelle Vaughn was off her career best by two with five versus WKU. Sheree Thompson was next with four and Danielle Allen had her career high with three.

FROM A WHISPER TO A SCREAM: Arkansas shot only 25.6% (10-of-39) in the first half and dug itself a 15-point hole versus Western Kentucky. In the second half, 51.4% off 18-of-35 as the Lady’Backs outscored WKU 52-38 to swing the final margin 19 points. Arkansas missed its first seven field goal attempts of the game, then went a miserable 1-of-13. Sparked by Kristin Moore in the late first half, the offense began to turn and finish the game by shooting 27-of-61 after the poor start.

HAVE SOME BOILED TURNOVERS: After a 43 turnover average in the first two games, Arkansas proved its defensive pressure wasn’t a fluke by forcing 34 turnovers and picking up 19 steals from #13 Purdue in the opening round of the TAMU-CC tournament.

DEFENSE CLAMPS DOWN ON PURDUE: After giving up 42.4% in the first half and a 34-29 halftime deficit, Arkansas held #13 Purdue to only 27.3% from the field and a mere 21 second half points.

A GAME OF RUNS: Purdue and Arkansas traded leads and streaks in a defense-dominated matchup. The Boilermakers’ 15-3 shortly after tipoff was matched by 16-2 by Arkansas. After half, each went on mini-runs to lead by five points. Unfortunately for Arkansas, Purdue got the last run with a 6-0 burst in the final minute.

WE CALL IT AN OFFENSIVE COMA: Any time a team goes more than three minutes without scoring, that’s an offensive coma. Arkansas‘ field goal shooting lapsed with a layup by Kristin Peoples at the 8:23 mark left in the Purdue game as the Lady’Backs had only three free throws the rest of the game.

GIVING ALMOST AS GOOD AS THEY GET: Purdue had its own offensive coma against the Arkansas defense, going 4:16 down the stretch without a point to give the Lady’Backs the lead, 48-43. The Boilermakers went a total of 6:38 without a field goal — only a pair of free throws — which overlapped the start of Arkansas‘ game-ending drought.

WNBA TRYOUT: Defense dominates the American pro league, and that certainly was the case as #15 Purdue and Arkansas combined for one field goal in the final 4:45 of a 55-51 contest.

STEAL RECORD FALLS WITH CENTENARY: After almost taking the school record for steals against Alabama State with 24, the Lady’Backs turned around less than 36 hours later to break the record with 28 against Centenary.

TEAM EFFORT IN OPENER: Arkansas had scoring from 10 of 11 Lady’Backs that played against Alabama State and eight players led or co-led the team in a statistical category.

DIFFERENCE A HALF CAN MAKE: The Lady’Backs shot 21 free throws each half against Alabama State, but Arkansas hit only 38.1% from the line to start, then made 61.9% in the second.

THAT’S A FOUL START: Alabama State came within two of the Walton Arena mark for opponent personal fouls, and saw two starters leave early with five. It led Arkansas to the line for 42 free throws, one shy of the arena record.

WE LIKE INSECT TURNOVERS FOR MORE PROTEIN: The Alabama State Lady Hornets committed 45 turnovers against Arkansas in the season opener for both teams, breaking a 14-year-old Lady Razorback school record. The Murray State Lady Racers set the mark at 43 turnovers in December 1990. It also set a new Bud Walton Arena mark, surpassing the 40 committed by Southeastern Louisiana in 2000.

BUT IT’S WHAT YOU DO WITH THE TURNOVERS THAT COUNTS: Arkansas had a whopping +24 turnover margin against Alabama State, including a +14 first-half spread. But Arkansas led ASU by only four, 34-30, at halftime thanks to an inability to convert 24 Hornet mistakes into points. Arkansas had only 15 points off turnovers in the first half. That changed dramatically in the second as 21 Alabama State errors led to 23 Arkansas points.

NEAR MISS ON STEAL RECORD: The 24 steals against Alabama State by the Lady’Backs came within one of the Bud Walton Arena and two of the overall school record.

20 IN A ROW IN THE HOME OPENER: Arkansas‘ record-setting defensive effort against Alabama State gave the Lady Razorbacks their 20th straight home opener, and moved the record in the first home game to 28-1 all-time.

SMALLER, FASTER LADY’BACKS: Expect an emphasis on the open court this season from Arkansas, starting with preseason practices. Susie Gardner indicated the team will press more this year, and might start practice sessions working defense first to take advantage of the team’s enhanced conditioning and 14-player roster.

PLAYER NOTES

KRISTIN PEOPLES — #4

FLINT HILLS RESOURCES ISLANDER CLASSIC ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM

PEOPLES UNDER THE WEATHER: Kristin Peoples missed practice on Friday, and made a trip to the doctor with illness. She dressed and played against Ole Miss.

BREAKING OUT WITH A VENGANCE: Kristin Peoples didn’t let things go a third game as she notched one of her best all-around performances. Not only was the scoring there against Miss State — two off the career high with 16 points from 5-of-11 (2-of-5 3p) and 4-of-7 — the clutch shots were there as it was Peoples’ three-pointer that stopped the 17-0 run by MSU in the first half. She notched a career high seven rebounds in the game and had five assists against zero turnovers.

PEOPLES SILENT FOR SECOND GAME: Sophomore Kristin Peoples continues in a two-game mini-slump with no points at Tennessee. She was also shut out the game prior at Ole Miss.

HOMETOWN HERO: The box score listed 435 in attendance at Fifth-Third Arena, and it seemed well over half were in Cincinnati to see metro Columbus, Ohio, prep star Kristin Peoples. After a rough four-turnover start, Peoples gave the home fans what they wanted with a season and career tying 18 points and a team high 11 free throws. Peoples one three-pointer, but it was the shot that put Arkansas ahead for good midway through the second half — the Lady’Backs’ first lead since the opening minute — then defended her lead by sinking seven straight free throws. It was part of a 11-of-16 second half at the line for Peoples.

PEOPLES, VAUGHN NATIONALLY RANKED: They have led the SEC the first weeks of the season, and in the first issuance of the NCAA stats on Dec. 6, Kristin Peoples (15th) and Rochelle Vaughn (31st) were ranked in the top 50 in Division I for steals per game. They continued in the top 50 through the fourth week of the NCAA stats (Jan. 3).

CAREER BESTS ABOUND WITH WESTERN: Kristin Peoples tied two (points, 18; steals, 6), and Kristin Moore broke one (steals, 8) against Western Kentucky. Moore also missed her career scoring high by only two points with 17. Kristina Andjekovic set her early Arkansas bests with eight points and three rebounds. Danielle Allen broke her steal best with four.

PEOPLES NAMED ALL-TOURNAMENT AT TAMU-CC: Sophomore guard Kristin Peoples led Arkansas in scoring against Purdue and Idaho State, and was named to the Flint Hills Resources All-Tournament team. It is her first tournament honor of her career at Arkansas. Notable among her performance for the Thanksgiving event was five unanswered points — a three-point goal followed by a steal and two free throws when fouled on the ensuing breakaway — to ice the consolation title against Idaho State.

PEOPLES THE PLAYMAKER: Kristin Peoples had a then-season high 15 points against Idaho State, but more important hit five unanswered points in the last 90 seconds of the game to prevent any Bengal comeback. Pulling back within four points in the last two minutes of the game, Peoples cranked a three-pointer to give Arkansas a seven-point lead, 63-56. On ISU’s next possession, Peoples picked Christa Brossman for a steal and took off for the basket. Molly Hays’ foul saved the breakaway layup, but Peoples sank both free throws with 1:18 to play and a nine-point, 65-56, Arkansas lead.

GOOD NEWS, BAD NEWS FOR PEOPLES: Kristin Peoples had one of her best offensive games with 4-of-5 from the field, 2-of-2 from the trey and 4-of-5 at the line to lead Arkansas with 14 points against #13 Purdue. The downside was only two assists against a season-high nine turnovers.

KRISTINA ANDJELKOVIC — #11

TIES BEST WITH MISS STATE: Andjelkovic came off the bench for the majority of the Lady’Back bench points against MSU, hitting 3-of-5 from the field and 2-of-2 at the line for eight points in 16 minutes played.

SEASON, CAREER BESTS WITH WESTERN: Kristina Andjekovic was Arkansas’ top player off the bench against Western Kentucky, scoring eight points off 3-of-4 from the field with three rebounds and a steal in only 11 minutes played.

KEEP YOUR CH(K)RISTINA’S STRAIGHT: Joining Arkansas’ Kristins are a pair of Christina’s — two-sport freshman Christina Lawrence and junior college transfer Kristina Andjelkovic. While the first names sound the same, take a little time to work on your Serbian — an-JELL-koh-VITCH.

SHEREE THOMPSON — #12

IF YOU SEE ONLY ONE BLOCK THIS SEASON . . .: Arkansas had only one block against Oregon, but Sheree Thompson’s all-ball rejection with one second left to play proved the game-winner for the Lady Razorbacks.

DON’T BENCH HER (MAYBE): Sheree Thompson’s fast start on the year faded in games four through seven, resulting in the redshirt junior transfer losing her starting position at Memphis. The 5-10 open-court specialist responded by hitting 5-of-5 to start the game. Regaining her starting spot with ULL, Thompson picked up where she left off with 9-of-12 from the field, five assists and four steals and finished with a new season/career high of 20 points.

THE BASF OF GUARDS: Sheree Thompson doesn’t make the Arkansas defense, she makes the defense work better. In her first two games, the junior college transfer has shown exactly what Arkansas missed last season with her sidelined due to ACL surgery. Averaging 5.5 steals, 4.0 assists, 4.0 rebounds and 5.5 points in the first two games, Thompson’s open-court skills include the classic "things that don’t show up on the box score." Several times, her trap or her scramble move led to a turnover that either wasn’t creditable as a steal or went to the player who possessed the ball.

THOMPSON PICKS UP ANOTHER BEST: Sheree Thompson dished out eight assists for a new career high in the win over Idaho State, and with her nine points against the Bengals came close to her first double. The eight assists is a team best this season.

CLASS RECORD TIED FOR THOMPSON: Sheree Thompson’s eight steals — six in the first half alone — against Centenary tied the UA junior class record for steals. Angela Davis set the mark with eight back in 1991.

DANIELLE ALLEN — #14

OOOH, THAT’S HIGHLIGHT FILM STUFF: Danielle Allen had one block against Miss State, but when she packed the three-point attempt of Ebonie Ferguson into the band section midway through the first half it made the replay reel for the season. Allen broke from the lane before leaping at Ferguson, and caught the ball at full extension.

ALLEN GETS THREE CAREER MARKS AT OLE MISS: Sophomore Danielle Allen put up season and career highs for rebounds and points at Oxford, scoring 22 points with 10 rebounds. That adds up to her first-ever double-double at Arkansas. Allen’s 22 points also is the most this year for any Lady’Back, bettering her own 20 against Alabama State and the 20 scored by Sheree Thompson against La-Lafayette.

ALLEN SPARKS SECOND HALF: Sophomore Danielle Allen had a rough beginning in her first-ever SEC start, playing only 11 minutes with a missed shot in the first half at Georgia. In the second half, however, Allen called the jitters and hit 6-of-8 for all 12 of her points.

CAREER BESTS ABOUND WITH WESTERN: Along with several other players notching bests, Danielle Allen broke her steal best with four.

NOT A BAD 45 MINUTES: Through the first two games of her sophomore year, Danielle Allen has scored 29 points in 45 minutes played with 11 rebounds. Last year, in 27 games and 247 minutes, the 6-0 forward had 30 points.

CAREER HIGH BOARDS FOR ALLEN: With a near double-double of nine points and in rebounds, Danielle Allen broke her freshman best for rebounds (6) against Centenary.

30 POINTS IN A SEASON, 20 POINTS IN A NIGHT: By the end of the first half, sophomore Danielle Allen had more than surpassed her freshman season high of five points with eight against Alabama State. Five minutes into the second half, Allen scored eight of Arkansas’ opening 10 points, and had tripled her career best. With a total of 20 points off 9-of-11 from the field, Allen scored in one game 2/3rds of what she amassed in 27 games as a freshman.

THINGS YOU LEARN LATE OFTEN MATTER THE MOST: Missing from Danielle Allen’s press guide bio was her participation with USA Basketball at the 2002 Basketball Youth Development Festival. Allen played for the silver medal-winning South team, seeing action in all five games of the event.

ALLISON SINGLETON — #15

BIG NIGHT FOR ALLISON: Former manager and senior walk-on Allison Singleton got into the game at UMKC, her fifth contest of the year and her first time on the court since before Christmas. However, the 5-5 guard will never forget the Swinney Recreation Center as she hit the first points of her Lady’Back career, draining a three-pointer from deep in the left corner with 57 seconds left in the game. Singleton almost made her career high six as she rimmed out a second attempt in the closing seconds.

NOT YOUR AVERAGE RUDY STORY: While it’s true that Allison Singleton is living out her dream season as a senior after three years as a manager for the Lady’Backs, the 5-5 guard isn’t a Rudy-like last game of the season fluke for playing time. Seeing court time in two of the first four games this year, Susie Gardner looked down the bench for Singleton at crunch time late in the game against Idaho State for a defensive spark.

ROCHELLE VAUGHN — #21

VAUGHN SISTERS KEY OFFENSE AT UT: For the first time this season, both junior Rochelle and freshman Brittney had double-digit games against the same foe. Brittney’s previous season/career high was 10 at Georgia where Rochelle struggled mightily with zero points. Freshman Vaughn had 13 from the bench while junior Vaughn had 10 as a starter at Knoxville.

DIALING 2-9-9: Rochelle Vaughn may have struggled from the field, but she came very close to her third double-double the hard way — a season high nine assists and a near-season high nine rebounds. Unfortunately, Vaughn had only two points off 1-of-14.

21’S TWO 3’S EQUAL 1 L: Rochelle Vaughn hit back-to-back three-pointers to bring Arkansas within a point of Cincinnati midway through the second half. Sinking her only three-point attempts, Vaughn set the stage for Kristin Peoples’ later game heroics, and finished the game as Arkansas’ number two scorer with 10 points.

EFFICIENCY AT THE POINT: Rochelle Vaughn tied the team best for assists in a game against La-Lafayette with eight, but had the best assist-to-turnover ratio of the year with 8:1 — a big part of Arkansas’ 26-to-11 ratio.

VAUGHN GETS FIRST CONVENTIONAL DOUBLE: Rochelle Vaughn picked up her second career double-double with 13 points and 10 rebounds at Memphis. This is the first double of the year for any Lady Razorback. The junior guard made her first double the hard way with assists — 11 points, 10 assists vs. Georgia last year.

WKU GAME WINNER TO ROCHELLE VAUGHN: With the game tied at 79-79 against Western Kentucky, Rochelle Vaughn took a short pass from Kristin Peoples, cut into the lane and stroked the game winner with 16 seconds left in the contest.

TRIPLE IN SIGHT: Rochelle Vaughn got within striking distance of a triple-double in the Athletes in Action game, hitting 10 points with eight rebounds and six assists. She hit the eight rebound mark midway through the second half, making it seem she’d at least come away with the double. For her career, Vaughn has a double-double with points and assists, but has not had the rebound double. She had 11 points with 10 assists in last year’s win over Georgia.

APRIL SEGGEBRUCH — #22

SOMETIMES IT’S NOT THE SCORING THAT COUNTS: April Seggebruch didn’t make a shot (0-of-3) with Miss State, but she dished out a career-high five assists in only 10 minutes played.

TRIPLE TREYS: April Seggebruch and Melissa Hobbs teamed to hit three straight three-point shots down the stretch against Florida to bring Arkansas back for its final chance at the Gators. Seggebruch sandwiched her consecutive treys around a Hobbs’ long-ranger, leaving the Lady’Backs trailing by 10 with 3:49 to play.

ALL AROUND GAME FOR SEGGEBRUCH: April Seggebruch came off the bench for five points, but her near-career high five rebounds, career tying four steals and two assists gave the senior guard one of her better all-around performances in 25 minutes against Alabama State. Notable was her three-pointer, Arkansas’ final trey attempt of the night, which avoided a school-record tying mark for long range futility (Arkansas has been 0-for on threes in three games all-time).

MELISSA HOBBS — #23

CAREER HIGH, CHANGE FOR HOBBS: Melissa Hobbs had a landmark night at UMKC. First, the 6-0 guard scored her Arkansas career high with seven points and pulled down five rebounds. Second, the 6-0 Colorado transfer became a post player. As the tallest guard, Hobbs joins the post players as a convertion to the four-spot to help relieve the pressure inside due to the loss of two starting post players — Kristin Moore and Ruby Vaden — to ACL injuries.

REMEMBER, HOBBS ON ICE UNTIL DECEMBER: The Red-White Game was the last time fans will see Melissa Hobbs on the court until the Louisiana-Lafayette game on Dec. 16. The midterm transfer from Colorado is eligible after the end of the fall semester.

BRITTANY VAUGHN — #25

BRITTNEY GETS CAREER BEST: Freshman Brittney Vaughn provided some second half spark and spunk for the offense, scoring 13 points off 4-of-8 from the field and 5-of-7 at the line, at Tennessee.

SEPARATE YOUR VAUGHNS: Sisters Rochelle and Brittney Vaughn suit up for the Lady Razorbacks this season, and while freshman Brittney is wearing her junior sister Rochelle’s rookie season number (25) they are very different personalities on and off the court.

SARAH PFEIFER — #33

ANOTHER CAREER GAME: Sarah Pfeifer got a new career high with 21 points (8-of-12) against Miss State. The sophomore added six boards, three assists and two steals in her 29 minutes as a starter in the win over MSU.

DON’T DISRESPECT HER: As a freshman, La-Lafayette sagged off Sarah Pfeifer and dared her to shoot. It worked that night, but as a redshirt sophomore, Pfeifer took ULL’s defensive decision personally. "I felt like they were disrespecting me," she said after the game, and she stepped up to hit 9-of-12 attempts for a season/career high of 19 points.

EFFICIENCY IN THE POST: Sarah Pfeifer turned in 16 minutes against La-Lafayette and scored 19 points off 9-of-12 from the field.

SHOULDER LIMITS PFEIFER’S TIME: Redshirt sophomore Sarah Pfeifer is having trouble with her non-surgery shoulder, and the staff plans to limit her practice contact to enhance her playing time over the next weeks.

A ONE-TWO COMBO AT FOUR: Sarah Pfeifer came off the bench to score 17 points with seven rebounds against Everyone’s Internet as Danielle Allen had eight points and eight rebounds as the starter. The pair of sophomores could become a dynamic duo at the high post this season. In the Red-White Game, scoring was reversed with Allen turning in 23 points and Pfeifer had 12.

ADRIENNE BUSH — #44

BUSH TO RETURN FOR GRADUATE SCHOOL: Susie Gardner announced at the start of the spring 2005 semester that she has extended the opportunity for Adrienne Bush to return to the team in 2005-06, and the senior guard has accepted. An academic senior this season who graduates in May, Bush will enroll in graduate school this summer to maintain her fulltime status. She will remain a senior on the roster this season for consistancy, but will not participate in senior day this March.

TOTAL GAME WITH MSU: Adrienne Bush didn’t just get her career high with 13 points. She didn’t just get it with 5-of-6 from the field and 3-of-5 at the line. She had five rebounds, four on the offensive glass. She had two steals. All of it in 17 minutes as a starter in a game that she got the tip-off nod for her defensive stopping ability versus Tan White. When Bush was in the game in the first half, White had only one field goal. Foul trouble in the early second sent Bush to the bench, but her defense was a key in disrupting White, who had all of four points at half shooting 1-of-6 from the field.

BUSH CLOCKS SEASON HIGHS WITH UF: Senior guard Adrienne Bush scored seven points in 25 minutes played during her first SEC start.

EARLY BEST WITH WESTERN: After not playing since the season opener, Adrienne Bush worked her way into the Western Kentucky game and did more than create defensive mayhem. The senior guard known for her tough defense provided some timely offense with six points — 1-of-2 from the field and drawing three shooting fouls hit 4-of-6 at the line.

NOT THE START ON THE SEASON YOU WANT: Adrienne Bush didn’t last a minute in the season opener, hitting the court hard against Alabama State after some rough contact in the lane. The concussion she suffered sidelined her for the Centenary game and limited her practice time for the next week.

PLAYERS OUT FOR THE SEASON

KRISTIN MOORE — #1

MORE NEWS ON MOORE: Kristin Moore had surgery to repair the torn ACL in her right knee on Tuesday, Jan. 11. All went according to plan, and she is moving on to rehab work as soon as possible for a return next season.

MOORE OUT FOR ARKANSAS: Junior Kristin Moore suffered a knee injury with seven minutes left at Cincinnati, leaving the game as Arkansas’ top rebounder. Moore did not return to the game, and learned on the next Wednesday that she had torn the ACL on her right knee.

NEVER NERVOUS: Kristin Moore was 0-of-7 from the field, but neither the East Chicago, Ind., sophomore nor Susie Gardner worried for a moment when Indiana chose to foul Moore with 25 seconds to play. Leading by three, Moore stepped to the line and calmly stroked two perfect free throws for a 52-47 lead. Postgame, Gardner told the media she had substituted Moore for Ruby Vaden with 27 seconds left for that very reason.

MOORE ALSO BREAKS ARENA STEAL RECORD: Kristen Moore’s eight steals broke the previous mark of seven at Bud Walton Arena set by Stephanie Bloomer back in 1994 versus Oral Roberts.

CAREER HIGH STEALS, NEAR CAREER POINTS: While the rest of the team struggled in the first half with Western Kentucky, Kristin Moore kept Arkansas in striking distance with 4-of-5 from the field. In the second half, her steals and consistent play helped lead the comeback. By the end, Moore had 17 points — two off her career best — and a whopping eight steals.

THE QUIET ONE DOING HER QUIET THING: Arkansas’ leading rebounder through the first games of the season, Kristin Moore is providing a steady scoring hand and defensive ability in the new pressure system.

CHRISTINA LAWRENCE — #32

LAWRENCE TO PLAY VOLLEYBALL FULLTIME: After spending the fall practicing with the Lady Razorback basketball team, Christina Lawerence decided to devote full-time to volleyball at the end of the semester. Lawrence plans to return to volleyball practice during the spring semester to prepare for the 10-time SEC Western Division champion volleyball team’s spring tournaments.

PLAYING TIME IN SECOND GAME: Christina Lawrence signed to be a two-sport athlete at Arkansas, but a high school injury led to her redshirting the volleyball season this fall. She has touched the court in game two for the Lady’Back basketball team, picking up four minutes and some shots against Centenary.

RUBY VADEN — #55

VADEN OUT FOR THE SEASON: Follow-up examinations confirm that Ruby Vaden’s right knee injury was more than a serious sprain, but is a torn ACL. She joins fellow starting post player Kristin Moore with a torn ACL on the right knee, and both are out for the rest of the year. A date for surgery for Vaden will be set in the next couple of weeks.

VADEN SUFFERS KNEE INJURY AT LSU: Junior backup post player Ruby Vaden came to an awkward stop at the 8:32 mark of the first half, and suffered a serious injury to her right knee. She was stretchered off the floor and did not return to the game. Trainer Phill Vardiman had Vaden went for a MRI on Friday morning that revealed an ACL sprain. The level of significance of the sprain and future course of action has yet to be determined by team physicians as of Friday afternoon. Regardless, the preseason all-SEC post player is out indefinitely.

INTERESTING ZEROES: Kristin Peoples was scoreless for the first time this year going 0-for-6 at Ole Miss. Ruby Vaden had no shots or rebounds in her four minutes, picking up four fouls on defense.

VADEN HITS THE LINE AT GEORGIA: Junior Ruby Vaden had a to-date season high of 10 free throw attempts at Georgia, and unlike her previous high for free throws (0-of-9 at Memphis) Vaden hit six throws for half of her 12 points off the bench.

DARTH VADEN STRIKES: The Memphis Lady Tigers were helpless when Ruby Vaden went on an open-court scoring spree in the early second half. Following a Rochelle Vaughn fast-break three-pointer, Vaden hit four straight layups to push Arkansas to a 13-point lead with 15:20 in play. After a Danielle Allen layup, Vaden resumed her attack with two more layups. By the time she was through, Vaden had scored 12 points of a 19-2 run to build a 21-point, 51-30, lead with 13 minutes to play.

THE FORCE WAS NOT WITH HER THROWS: While Ruby Vaden rocked the Roane Fieldhouse on the fast-break, the 6-3 junior suffered at the free throw line. Her 0-of-9 night was part of a 8-of-23 evening for the Lady’Backs.

MODEL OF EFFICIENCY: Ruby Vaden came off the bench to score 18 points in only 13 minutes off 8-of-11 from the floor against Centenary.

VADEN VOTED PRESEASON ALL-SEC: Junior post Ruby Vaden was voted second team all-SEC in the first-ever SEC preseason all-conference team. Voted on by the coaches prior to the start of the annual media day, Vaden was one of 17 players named to the preseason squad.

RECRUITING CLASS OF 2005

AYANA BRERETON

Angleton, Texas, guard-forward Ayana Brereton has signed her National Letter of Intent to play women’s basketball at the University of Arkansas. Considered one of the top basketball athletes in the state of Texas, the 5-10 swing forward is ranked 14th among all Texas seniors according TexasHoops.com, she was one of three top 20 players to leave the state of Texas according to the recruiting website. She helped lead Angleton to the regional quarterfinals last season and a 26-5 record for head coach Melissa Hernandez. Her AAU team, the Houston Hotshots, came home this summer with a pair of national trophies, the 2004 BCI national championship and the AAU national championship runners-up. Brereton averaged 15 ppg and 7.8 rpg at forward for the Ladycats as a junior. Her sophomore season she averaged 13.7 ppg, 7 rpg and 2.4 steals as the Ladycats went 30-4 in 2003, captured the district championship and reached the state semifinals She was a double-digit scorer even as a freshman with 10 ppg and 6.3 rpg in 2002 for another state semifinal finish by the Ladycats. The most valuable player for Brazoria County last season, Brereton is a two-time District 24-4A defensive player of the year and three-time all-district. The district’s newcomer of the year her freshman season, she’s also a three-time academic all-district selection. Named to the Texas Girls Coaches Association 2004 all-state team and second-team all-state by the TABC as a junior, she’s a three-time all-region pick by TABC. Great two-sport athlete, Brereton was the Region III 4-A runner-up in both long jump and triple jump last year, and posted junior season bests of 18-7 _ for the long and 40-4 ¬ for the triple jump. At the UIL state meet, she was the state runner-up in the triple jump and third in the long. One of only two athletes to break the 40-foot mark at the state meet in the triple, it looked like Brereton had the state title until she was passed on the second-to-last round. Her triple jump best improved two feet last season, and she heads into the spring as one of the favorites to take the state triple jump title for Class AAAA.

BRERETON UPDATE: Ayana Brereton’s Lady Wildcats are off to a 17-8 start and lead District 24-4A with a 6-1 record midway through the season. She had 21 points in Angleton’s recent 81-35 win over El Campo.

WHITNEY JONES

Blytheville forward Whitney Jones signed with Arkansas on the final day of the early signing period. The 6-0 forward joins 5-10 swing guard Ayana Brereton of Angleton, Texas, in Gardner’s 2005 recruiting class. Averaging 21 ppg in the first games of her senior season, Jones turned in 17 ppg and 11 rpg as a junior for head coach Melissa Young at Blytheville. Jones comes from an athletic family, and becomes the first daughter of a Lady Razorback to sign at Arkansas in women’s basketball. Her mother, Diann Ousley Jones, was the first track and field national champion for the Lady’Backs, taking the national indoor 600-yard championship in 1979. Her mark of 1:21.22 remains the school record for the retired event. Jones’ oldest sister, Wendlyn, played in the Final Four last season for LSU and is a returning junior starter for the second-ranked Lady Tigers. Sister Audrey currently plays for Xavier of New Orleans. Jones ran track her sophomore season for the Chickasaws, finishing third in the 100 meters at the Eastern Conference meet in 2003.

JONES UPDATE: Whitney Jones has Blytheville off to a 12-6 start her senior year, averaging 19 ppg and 11 rpg. She’s already had some remarkable games, including a new career high of 33 points against Rivercrest. In league play, she had the first six rebounds of the game against West Memphis, closing with a double-double of 25 points and 10 rebounds. With Paragould, she had 21 points and 12 rebounds. Another notable game was Jonesboro where Jones dominated the lane for 15 points and 11 rebounds.

LESLIE HOWARD

Former University of Colorado starting guard Leslie Howard has transferred to Arkansas at midterm. The 5-10 Salem, Mo., guard started two games in the first four contests this season for the Colorado Buffalos before leaving the team and subsequently transferring to Arkansas at midterm. Howard enrolled at Arkansas for the spring 2005 semester, and will join the Lady Razorbacks on the practice floor today. She will be eligible to participate against outside competition after the close of the 2005 fall semester as a junior. Averaging 2.4 ppg as a freshman at CU last season, Howard shot 48% from three-point range and came on at the end of the season to be one of the top scorers from the bench. Playing in 20 games for the Buffalos, she had freshman highs of 11 points and four rebounds. Her pair of three-pointers were keys to the Buffs win over Kansas late in the conference season. This fall, Howard saw her minutes increase from 6.9 per game to 22.8 per game in the first four contests. Averaging 6.3 ppg and hitting 43% from three-point range, Howard notched a new career high of 14 points against Penn in the opening round of the Buffalos home tournament. She left the team after CU’s loss to LSU on Nov. 27 at the Coors Classic. Colorado was 22-8 last season, finished third in the Big 12 at 11-5 and played in the opening round of the NCAA tournament. During her high school days at Salem High, Howard averaged 21.3 ppg, 6.1 rpg and 4 apg her senior season to lead SHS to a 21-6 record. Salem’s all-time leading scorer with 2,152 points, she was named first-team all-state by the Missouri Sportwriters Association as well as all-region and participated in the state all-star game. Her junior season she also averaged 21.3 ppg, 21 ppg as a sophomore and 19.7 ppg as a freshman. Howard joins current Lady’Backs Melissa Hobbs and Adrienne Bush as midterm transfers into the Lady Razorback program. Hobbs and Howard were former teammates at Colorado.

MISCELLANEOUS TEAM NOTES

THERE IS NO PLACE LIKE HOME: Fayetteville, Ark., ranks as the 14th toughest road trip in Division I women’s basketball according to Louisiana Tech’s annual survey of home court winning percentage. Arkansas has a 79.94% winning mark in Fayetteville, and is the third toughest home court in the Southeastern Conference. Ruston, La., is No. 1 at 94.51%, followed by Knoxville, Tenn., at 91.37%. Oxford, Miss., is ranked 11th, and second in the SEC. Notable tough towns behind Fayetteville: Athens, Ga. (22nd), Springfield, Mo. (28th),

SOME THINGS NEVER CHANGE — STRENGTH OF SCHEDULE TOP 20: Arkansas’ schedule gets the #19 spot on the preseason RPI strength of schedule issued by Rich Summerville and the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association. Summerville’s RPI — considered for years one of the most accurate predictors of the NCAA committee’s own rating percentage index — has Arkansas at 19th thanks in part to the Lady’Backs facing the No. 1 RPI Tennessee Lady Vols and the #7 RPI LSU Tigers twice this season. In fact, half of the SEC is in the top 25: 1) UT, 5) Florida, 7) LSU, 9) Auburn, 18) Miss State, 19) Arkansas, 25) Alabama. Rounding out the league: 31) Vanderbilt, 37) Georgia, 39) Ole Miss, 48) South Carolina, 54) Kentucky.

PRESEASON SEC POLL HAS ARKANSAS TIED FOR NINTH: The Lady Razorbacks were voted ninth in the preseason media poll conducted at the annual SEC Media Days. There were 11 media voters that gave both Arkansas and Alabama 101 points each in the balloting. Tennessee was the near-consensus pick at No. 1 with nine first place votes and 13 overall. LSU had the other two first place votes and 23. Vanderbilt was third, Georgia fourth, Auburn fifth and Florida sixth. Ole Miss and Miss State tied for seventh at 80 each. Kentucky and South Carolina rounded out the poll.

SHAMEKA CHRISTON UPDATE: The 2004 SEC Player of the Year and 2004 WNBA Rookie Team member Shameka Christon has taken her game overseas. After helping the New York Liberty into the WNBA playoffs, Christon has joined the defending Women’s Division I champion of the Israeli pro league, Elizur Ramla. Christon is competing with fellow Liberty teammate Crystal Robinson. Four games into the Israeli league’s season (as of Nov. 15), Christon is the team’s No. 2 scorer with 16.2 ppg, turning in 29 to lead Elizur Ramla to a 44-point rout of Maccabi Ashdod on Nov. 15.

NEXT LUNCHEON JAN. 10: Susie Gardner hosts the Lady’Back basketball luncheons at the Clarion Inn in Fayetteville (I-540, exit 62). Luncheons are $8.50, and start at 11:30 a.m. The luncheons will be on Mondays during the season this year. Coach Gardner and the staff invites you out to learn more about the team. Other upcoming luncheon dates are Jan. 31, Feb, 14 and Feb. 28. Call Chris Pohl at 575-7312 or cpohl@uark.edu for more information.

IT’S ON LADYBACKS.COM: Video highlights from each pre-game press conference, after each game at Walton Arena and clips from the coaches’ luncheons can be viewed daily at LADYBACKS.COM. The premium video content is free during this first season of the new and improved LADYBACKS.COM for our ALL-ACCESS subscribers. We encourage media to sign up for the ALL-ACCESS package and to utilize the posted clips and quotes.

PHOTO PLATFORM ACCESS VIA LADYBACKS.COM: Media needing high resolution images — action and mug shots — of Lady Razorback athletes can download them via LADYBACKS.COM. Please contact Bill Smith or any member of the Women’s Communication Office for instructions on how to access the high resolution (1.5 – 2.0 mb) versions of all website images.

LADY RAZORBACK TV: The Women’s Athletics Department begins its second season with a department-wide television magazine hosted by the Lady Razorback head coaches. The show airs across the state at 11:30 a.m. on Saturday mornings. Lady Razorback TV airs in northwest Arkansas on KPBI, Fox 46-15, and in Little Rock on KWPF, the WB television affiliate. The show re-airs on Sunday mornings in northwest Arkansas on KFDF, UPN, at 11:00 a.m and in central Arkansas on KYPX, the Pax television affiliate, a 11:30 p.m. Lady Razorback TV is brought to you by Adidas, Tyson, CRI and the Lady Razorback Foundation.

TURN YOUR RADIO ON: Welcome back to the Lady Razorback Radio Network for the 16th consecutive season. All Arkansas women’s basketball games are broadcast home and road over the statewide LRRN, as well as on the internet via LADYBACKS.COM. Making his debut this season as the play-by-play voice of the Lady Razorbacks is Preston Lewis. Returning for his 16th year of color for the Lady’Backs is Bill Smith.

KBNV 90.1 FM Fayetteville/Springdale/Rogers/Bentonville

KXUA 88.3 FM UA student radio/Fayetteville

KABZ 103.7 FM Little Rock/Central Arkansas

KHOZ 900 AM Harrison

Check your local affiliate for updates on start times or occasional tape delays for local programing.