March 17, 2010
MWC Women's Basketball Press Release No. 19 
MWC SENDS RECORD-TYING SIX TEAMS TO POSTSEASON
The Mountain West Conference will send a record-tying six women's basketball teams to the 2010 postseason. San Diego State and TCU were tabbed to represent the Mountain West Conference in the 2010 NCAA Tournament, while BYU, New Mexico, Utah and Wyoming will make appearances in the Women's National Invitational Tournament (WNIT). The six postseason representatives ties the all-time mark originally set in 2006.
MWC TOURNAMENT RECAP
San Diego State won its first-ever MWC Tournament title with a 70-60 (overtime) win over Utah. SDSU's Quenese Davis scored a game-high 22 points on her way to earning Tournament MVP honors. Jené Morris added 21 points for the Aztecs, while Taryn Wicijowski led Utah with 19 points. San Diego State opened its tournament with a win over Wyoming (60-51) before upsetting No. 2 seed BYU (77-47) in the semifinals. The Utes advanced to the championship game after defeating Air Force (63-40), New Mexico (51-45 OT) in the first-round and quarterfinals, respectively, and top-seeded TCU (69-57) in the semifinals. Utah is the first team to play two overtime games in MWC Tournament history.
NATIONAL HONORS
San Diego State's Jené Morris and TCU's Helena Sverrisdottir were announced as regional finalists for the 2010 NCAA Division I State Farm Coaches' All-America Basketball Team. Morris and Sverrisdottir were named to the Region 7 Team, which puts them in the running for the 10-member All-America Team. Sverrisdottir, the 2009-10 MWC Player of the Year, led the Horned Frogs to their first MWC regular-season title and is averaging 13.5 points, 6.5 rebounds, 5.2 assists and 2.2 steals per game on the season. Morris helped lead San Diego State to its first MWC Tournament title and second consecutive NCAA Tournament berth. On the season, she is averaging 16.4 points, 3.0 assists, 3.0 steals and 2.6 rebounds per contest.
NCAA TOURNAMENT FIRST ROUND MATCH-UPS
No. 8 seed Dayton (24-7) vs. No. 9 seed TCU (22-8), 2:30 p.m. ET (ESPN2)
Saturday, March 20
Thompson-Boling Arena in Knoxville, Tenn.
TCU and Dayton will be meeting for the first time ever. TCU is making its ninth NCAA Tournament appearance in 10 years, where the team holds a 5-9 all-time record. Dayton is making its first-ever appearance in the NCAA Tournament. The winner of the TCU vs. Dayton contest will face the winner of the No. 1 seed Tennessee (30-2) vs. No. 16 seed Austin Peay (15-17) game on Monday, March 22.
No. 11 seed San Diego State (21-10) at No. 6 seed Texas (22-10), 6 p.m. CT (ESPN2)
Sunday, March 21
Frank Erwin Center in Austin, Texas
San Diego State and Texas will be meeting for the third time. The Aztecs and Longhorns split the previous two games in their series, with the Aztecs winning the last meeting (60-55) on December 30, 2008. The Aztecs return to the NCAA Tournament for the second straight year and eighth time overall. SDSU is 4-7 all-time in NCAA Tournament play.
WNIT FIRST ROUND MATCH-UPS
SMU (20-10) at New Mexico (18-12), 7 p.m. MT
Wednesday, March 17
The Pit/Bob King Court in Albuquerque, N.M.
New Mexico (18-12) is making its fifth appearance in the WNIT and 13th straight postseason tournament showing overall. The Lobos are 9-4 all-time in the WNIT. UNM will compete in its second straight WNIT, where it advanced to the Elite Eight last season. SMU is making its 11th postseason appearance since 1983, and third consecutive trip to a postseason tournament. The Mustangs are making their fourth appearance in the WNIT, with a 2-3 record all-time in the tournament.
Pepperdine (20-11) at BYU (20-9), 7 p.m. MT
Thursday, March 18
The Marriott Center in Provo, Utah
BYU and Pepperdine have split their previous two encounters, with the last meeting in 1983. The Cougars hold a 3-4 record in the WNIT with their last appearance coming in 2005. The Waves are making their first postseason appearance since the 2006 NCAA Tournament, and have earned their first WNIT berth since 2004. This is Pepperdine's fifth appearance in the WNIT, where it holds an 0-6 record all-time.
Nevada (17-15) at Wyoming (19-11), 7 p.m. MT
Friday, March 19
The Arena Auditorium in Laramie, Wyo.
The Cowgirls are returning to the WNIT for the first time since 2007, when they won the WNIT National Championship. This year's postseason appearance marks the fourth postseason tournament berth in the last seven seasons for Wyoming. This will mark the second WNIT appearance for Nevada. The Wolf Pack also went to the WNIT in 2007 falling to the Cowgirls in the first round. Nevada is 4-7 all-time against Wyoming.
Utah (22-11) at St. Mary's (CA) (21-9), 2 p.m. PT
Sunday, March 21
McKeon Pavilion in Moraga, Calif.
Utah will be making its fifth WNIT appearance overall and first since the 2007 season where the Utes fell to Illinois in the second round. The Utes are 3-6 all-time in their four appearances in the WNIT. This will be the third WNIT appearance for Saint Mary's. The Gaels are 1-2 all-time in the tournament.
SAN DIEGO STATE'S JENE MORRIS SETS ALL-TIME MWC STEALS MARK
San Diego State's Jené Morris' first of four steals in the Aztecs' 73-71 win over BYU on Feb. 24 set the all-time Mountain West Conference mark for career takeaways. Morris surpassed former record-holder Sequoia Holmes (UNLV, 2004-08) and now stands as the Conference leader with 286 career steals. Her 3.11 steals per game is second all-time in the MWC record books. Morris currently leads the MWC this season with 3.0 steals per game, which also ranks 16th in the nation as of March 14.
WYOMING'S AUBREY VANDIVER NAMED TO ACADEMIC ALL-DISTRICT TEAM
Wyoming's Aubrey Vandiver has been selected to the ESPN the Magazine Academic All-District VII Team. This is the second academic all-district accolade for Vandiver, as she was a third-team honoree during the 2008-09 season. Vandiver, a two-time Academic All-MWC and MWC Scholar-Athlete selection, is carrying a 3.65 grade-point average in Spanish.
NEW MEXICO'S AMY BEGGIN NAMED FINALIST FOR LOWE'S SENIOR CLASS AWARD
New Mexico's Amy Beggin was selected as one of 10 finalists for the 2009-10 Lowe's Senior CLASS Award for NCAA Division I women's basketball. The annual honor is given to senior student-athletes who excel both on and off the court and have notable achievements in four areas of excellence - classroom, character, community and competition.
An acronym for Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in SchoolTM, the Lowe's Senior CLASS Award focuses on the total student-athlete and encourages students to use their platform in athletics to make a positive impact as leaders in their communities. The finalists were chosen by a media committee from the list of 30 women's candidates who were announced in October. Fan balloting is now available on the award's official Web site, http://www.seniorCLASSaward.com, as well as through text messaging. Fans can text WBBALL to 74567 to vote for the women's finalists. The winner will be announced during the 2010 NCAA Women's Final Four in April.
