December 23, 1998
NATIONAL RANKINGS – The Lady Tigers are ranked 11th in both the USA Today poll and Associated Press rankings as released December 21.
CLEMSON’S RECORD – Clemson is 10-0 this season after a 60-58 win over LSU at Myrtle Beach, SC on December 20. Clemson is 2-0 in the ACC and 6-0 at home this season.
THE SERIES – This will be the second meeting between Clemson and UNC-Greensboro on the basketball court. Clemson won the only meeting between the two schools 75-66 on March 1, 1993.
PROBABLE LINEUP CLEMSON LADY TIGERS, 10-0 Overall, 2-0 in the ACC Forward–#24 Nikki Blassingame, 6-3, SR, 10.9 ppg., 7.1 rpg. Forward–#50 Natasha Anderson, 6-2, SR, 13.7 ppg., 5.9 rpg. Center–#22 Erin Batth, 6-4, SO, 8.0 ppg., 6.6 rpg. Guard–#25 Itoro Umoh, 5-7, SR, 12.4 ppg., 6.9 apg. Guard–#33 Amy Geren, 5-11, SR, 16.5 ppg., 3.9 rpg.
Head Coach Jim Davis – 243-110 at Clemson, 262-118 career.
UPCOMING ACTION
Dec. 30 (Wed.) UNC-Greensboro 7:00 p.m. Jan. 2 (Sat.) Virginia 7:00 p.m.Jan. 4 (Mon.) at North Carolina 7:00 p.m. (ACC-TV)
Clemson Downs LSU, 60-58 – Itoro Umoh scored the game winner with 3.1 seconds remaining and Amy Geren scored a career high 29 points, leading Clemson to a 60-58 women’s basketball victory over LSU on Sunday, December 20. The contest was the second game of the ACC/SEC Doubleheader at the Myrtle Beach Convention Center. North Carolina downed Alabama in the first game. Clemson is now 10-0 for just the second time in its history. The only other time was in 1995-96, when Clemson had a record 11-0 to start the season. The victory was Clemson’s third this year against the SEC. Clemson defeated Mississippi and South Carolina earlier this year. All three wins have been on the road. Clemson’s senior class of four starters are now 8-1 against SEC teams in their careers. Geren led Clemson in scoring with 29 points, breaking her career high by one point. It was the second straight game she had led the Lady Tigers in scoring. She had 26 points in Clemson’s victory over South Carolina.
The native of Cleveland, TN was 7-10 from the field and 15-18 from the foul line. Her 15 made free throws were the third most in Clemson history for any Lady Tiger, most since 1985-86 when Melinda Ashworth had 18 against Virginia.
Umoh supported Geren with 10 points, six assists and three steals, including the game winner. Natasha Anderson scored nine points and had seven rebounds. LSU was led by April Brown, who had 18 points. Katrina Hibbert and Marie Ferdinand added 12 apiece. Clemson shot 50 percent from the field for the game, including 61 percent (11-18) n the second half. Geren made 15 of Clemson’s 16 free throws in the contest. Both teams had 29 rebounds and both teams had 18 turnovers.
The Clemson Lady Tigers took a 13-4 lead to open the game before LSU called timeout. But the LSU Lady Tigers made good use of the timeout and went on a 16-4 run to take a 20-17 advantage. LSU held a 30-26 lead at intermission and increased the margin to 41-30 in the first seven minutes of the second half. A pair of three-point goals by Hibbert were the keys to the streak.
CLEMSON DEFEATS SOUTH CAROLINA – Amy Geren scored 26 points as 14th-ranked Clemson beat South Carolina 84-67 Thursday, December 17. Geren shot 4-for-7 on 3-pointers as the Lady Tigers broke open a tight game with an early 8-0 run. Clemson made 81 percent (26-for-32) of their free throws and outrebounded South Carolina 45-32. “Anytime you can get a win over your in-state rival, you cherish it,” Clemson coach Jim Davis said. “I didn’t think we were on our ‘A’ game tonight. Their defense did a great job of taking us out of our offense.” The Lady Gamecocks (6-2) got 10 points and 10 rebounds from Annie Lester. Lisa Williams and Jocelyn Penn added 14 points apiece. Clemson’s Natasha Anderson had 17 points, while Erin Batth added nine points and 10 rebounds. Clemson led 36-22 at halftime.
Lady Tigers Defeats Dartmouth – Clemson gained its 19th straight home court victory over two seasons in defeating Dartmouth College 88-60 Monday, December 14, at Littlejohn Coliseum. The 12th-ranked Lady Tigers improved to 8-0 with the victory, while Dartmouth fell to 2-5. The school record 19-game home winning streak by Clemson ranks eighth best in the country among current home streaks.
Amy Geren led Clemson with 17 points, thanks in part to four three-point goals, while classmate Natasha Anderson added 16 points on 8-11 shooting. Nikki Blassingame added a double-11, 11 points and 11 rebounds, while Itoro Umoh had seven points and a game high eight assists. Joanie Mungro led the Clemson reserves with nine points. Dartmouth was led by Courtney Banghart with 16 points, while Liz Martin had a double-double with 13 points and 10 rebounds. Banghart had five three-point goals in the game.
Clemson shot 53 percent from the field for the game and won the battle of the boards, 46-33. The Lady Tigers had outstanding teamwork, picking up 25 assists against just 12 turnovers as a team. Clemson held Dartmouth to just 34 percent shooting for the game. Clemson and Dartmouth battled on nearly even terms for the first 13 minutes of the game. Clemson held just a 25-19 advantage after Banghart hit a three-point goal for Dartmouth. But, Clemson went on 15-6 run to close the half. Amy Geren had five points and Natasha Anderson had four in the streak.
Clemson went on a 17-9 run to open the second half in the first seven and a half minutes. Amirah Leonard scored five points in that streak in a reserve role for Jim Davis’s team.
Dartmouth reduced that 23-point lead to 15 with 8:30 left, but Geren continued to hit outside shots over the last five minutes to put the game out of reach. Clemson’s largest lead was a 29-point margin with 16 seconds left.
PRESEASON HONORS – Clemson’s Itoro Umoh is one of the pre-season Naismith Award Candidates. Teammate Amy Geren is a preseason All-America candidate as selected by Street and Smith’s Magazine.
HEAD COACH JIM DAVIS WINS 250th CAREER GAME – Clemson Head Coach Jim Davis won his 250th game with a 85-68 win over Florida State on February 27, 1998. During his NCAA Division I career, he has a 262-118 record. He has a 243-110 record at Clemson after 11 seasons. Davis spent one season, 1986-87, at Middle Tennessee State and compiled a 19-8 record with the Lady Raiders that season.
LADY TIGER LEADERS – Clemson is led in scoring by Amy Geren with a 16.5 ppg. average. Nikki Blassingame leads the team in rebounding with a 7.1 rpg. average. Itoro Umoh has 69 assists, and 19 steals to lead the team.
CLEMSON PLAYERS NAMED ALL – ACC-Clemson women’s basketball players Amy Geren and Itoro Umoh were named All-Atlantic Coast Conference as announced by the Atlantic Coast Sports Writers Association in 1997-98. Geren was named to the first team, while Umoh was named to the second team.
CLEMSON HEAD COACH JIM DAVIS WON 100TH ACC GAME – Clemson Head Coach Jim Davis won his 100th career regular season Atlantic Coast Conference game, (not including ACC Tournament games) with the 64-41 win over Wake Forest on February 15, 1998. Currently, Davis has a 103-67 record against ACC foes during the regular season. He is the fourth winningest coach in the history of the ACC with the 103 victories.
LADY TIGERS WON 12TH ACC GAME – Clemson won 12 ACC regular season games in the 1997-98 season. This broke the school record for most ACC wins in a single season by Clemson. The 1994 team had 11 ACC victories. The Lady Tigers won their 12th ACC game this season with an 89-58 win over Georgia Tech on February 22.
CLEMSON’S JIM DAVIS IS 8-4 IN OVERTIME GAMES DURING HIS CAREER – Head Coach Jim Davis is now 8-4 in overtime games during his career at Clemson. He has also guided the Lady Tigers to five straight wins in overtime games.
CLEMSON DEFEATED THREE TOP-10 TEAMS IN 1997-98 – With the 68-58 win over N.C. State on February 7, Clemson defeated three top-10 teams in 1997-98. Clemson defeated fifth-ranked North Carolina 77-63 on January 2. On January 5, Clemson defeated ninth-ranked Virginia 74-67. This was the first time in the school’s history that the Lady Tigers have defeated two top-10 teams in consecutive games. The North Carolina and Virginia games were 72 hours apart.
CLEMSON’S RECORD VS. RANKED TEAMS – Coach Jim Davis has defeated 37 top 25 teams since his arrival at Clemson in the 1987-88 season. At Littlejohn Coliseum, he has a 25-16 record vs. Associated Press Top 25 teams. This season he is 1-0 vs. top 25 teams.
CLEMSON’S DEFENSE – Under Coach Jim Davis, the Clemson Lady Tigers have held opponents to 50 points or less 48 times and have never allowed an opponent to reach the 100-point plateau. All 48 games have resulted in Lady Tiger victories. The Lady Tigers have only been held to 50 points or less twice during Davis’ tenure.
FIRST HOME GAME RECORD – Clemson now has a 21-3 record over the years when playing its first home game of the season. The Lady Tigers also have a 18-6 record over the years in season-opening games.
ALL-TIME HOME RECORD – Clemson has a 245-70 record when playing in Littlejohn Coliseum for a .778 mark. In 1997-98, the Lady Tigers had a 13-0 record at Littlejohn Coliseum. This was the first time in history the Lady Tigers had finished a season undefeated at home. Clemson has now won 19 games in a row in Littlejohn Coliseum and set the school record for most consecutive home wins. The previous school record of 17 consecutive home wins started on February 1, 1979, and ended on February 16, 1980.
100% GRADUATION RATE – Since the beginning of the women’s basketball program at Clemson in 1975-76, 100% of the players staying for four years have graduated.
GEREN IS CAREER LEADER FOR BEST FREE THROW PCT. – Amy Geren is Clemson’s career leader for best free throw percentage with an .844 mark. During her career she is 255-302 from the free throw line.
THREE-POINT WEAPON – Amy Geren is in third place on the Clemson career list for most three-point field goals scored in a career (164).
CLEMSON’S CAREER LIST FOR MOST 3PT GOALS MADE
Name Yrs Years GP FGA FGM1. Tara Saunooke 4 1991-95 121 586 2522. Kerry Boyatt 4 1989-93 121 450 1783. Amy Geren 3+ 1995- 103 440 164
UMOH AND GEREN MOVING UP CAREER SCORING CHART – Amy Geren is in 13th place on the Clemson career list for most points scored with 1,135. Itoro Umoh has 1,134 points and is 14th on the Clemson career list for most points scored.
POINTS SCORED
Rk. Name Yrs. Years GP Avg. Points 1. Barbara Kennedy 4 1978-82 127 24.5 3113 2. Janet Knight 4 1982-86 114 15.7 1795 3. Shandy Bryan 4 1989-93 126 12.9 1631 4. Karen Ann Jenkins 4 1985-89 111 13.6 1514 5. Mary Anne Cubelic 4 1979-83 119 12.6 1501 6. Tara Saunooke 4 1991-95 121 12.1 1462 7. Bobbie Mims 4 1976-80 126 11.5 1448 8. Kerry Boyatt 4 1989-93 121 11.8 1422 9. Donna Forester 2 1976-78 63 20.2 1270 10. Louise Greenwood 4 1985-89 112 11.3 1268 11. Cissy Bristol 5 1977-82 104 11.8 1229 12. Peggy Caple 4 1981-85 119 9.9 117313. Amy Geren 3+ 1995- 103 11.0 113514. Itoro Umoh 3+ 1995- 104 10.9 113415. Laura Cottrell 4 1993-97 119 9.3 1108
DAVIS IS THE FOURTH WINNINGEST COACH IN ACC HISTORY – Head Coach Jim Davis is the fifth all-time winningest coach in the history of the ACC with 243 victories. He is also fourth for most victories in ACC games with 102. He is also the third all-time winningest coach in the ACC by percentage, (.679). Davis is also tied for fourth for the best winning percentage in the ACC Tournament with a .600 figure (15-10).
CLEMSON TOUGH AT HOME IN 1997-98 – Clemson had a 13-0 record at home during the 1997-98 season. The Lady Tigers also averaged 2,504 fans per each game. The 13 wins set a school record for the first undefeated season at home. Clemson had 9,000 fans at the Duke game on 1-9-80. This is the fifth most fans ever to see a game in ACC history.
UMOH IS IN FIFTH PLACE FOR MOST STEALS – Itoro Umoh is in fifth place on the Clemson career list for most steals. Currently she has 221 steals and is also fourth all-time at Clemson for most steals per game with a 2.13 figure.
CLEMSON CAREER STEAL LEADERS
Name Yrs. Years GP S/G Steals1. Barbara Kennedy 4 1978-82 127 2.57 327 2. Ramona O'Neal 4 1985-89 117 2.44 286 3. Debra Buford 4 1977-81 127 1.88 2394. Bobbie Mims 4 1976-80 126 1.77 2245. Itoro Umoh 3+ 1995- 104 2.13 221
ITORO UMOH IS ONE OF CLEMSON’S BEST ALL-TIME PLAY MAKERS – Itoro Umoh is eighth on the Clemson career list for most assists with 346. She has averaged 3.33 assists per game during her career. This season she has had at least five assists in ever game. She had 10 assists in the N.C. State game on December 2 for her season high. Umoh is averaging 6.9 assists per game.
CLEMSON CAREER ASSISTS LEADERS Name Yrs. Years GP A/G Asts 1. Bobbie Mims 4 1976-80 126 4.89 617 2. Melinda Ashworth 4 1982-86 111 4.17 463 3. Susan Fehling 3 1983-85, 87-88 87 4.72 411 4. Drema Greer 2 1977-79 61 6.54 399 5. Mary Anne Cubelic 4 1979-83 119 3.29 392 6. Jennie Lyerly 4 1978-82 122 3.09 377 7. Dana Puckett 4 1990-94 117 3.18 373 8. Itoro Umoh 3+ 1995-98 104 3.33 346
LADY TIGER RANKINGS IN 1998-99
AP USA TodayPreseason NR NRNov. 16 NR NRNov. 23 NR NRNov. 30 25 24Dec. 7 15 14Dec. 14 14 12Dec. 21 11 11
FOUR CLEMSON PLAYERS ARE AVERAGING IN DOUBLE FIGURES – Natasha Anderson, Amy Geren, Itoro Umoh and Nikki Blassingame are all averaging in double figures in scoring. Geren is leads the team with a 16.5 ppg. average, while Andeson has scored 13.7 ppg. this season. Umoh has a 12. 4 ppg. average, while Blassingame has a 10.9 ppg. average. Ironically all four players are seniors and have played in at least 103 games each during their respective careers.
PLAYING TIME FOR EVERYONE – Clemson has nine players who are averaging in double figures in minutes played this season. Itoro Umoh leads the team in minutes played with a 29.5 minutes per game average.
CLEMSON OFF TO A GREAT START – Clemson has a 10-0 record to start the 1998-99 season. This is the second best undefeated start ever for the Lady Tigers. The Lady Tigers had an 11-0 record to start the 1995-96 season and set the school record for the best undefeated start.
CLEMSON HAS SHOT 50% IN FOUR GAMES THIS SEASON – The Lady Tigers have shot 50% from the field in four games this season. Clemson shot 55% from the floor against Wofford and 52% from the floor against Maryland on December 5. Against Dartmouth, the Lady Tigers shot .529 from the field. In the win over LSU, Clemson shot 22-44 from the floor for a .500 figure.
LADY TIGERS SHOOTING .415 FROM THREE-POINT LINE – Clemson has shot 40% or better from the three point line in six games this season. This year Clemson is 30-72 from the three point line for a .417 figure.
LADY TIGERS WINNING THE BATTLE OF THE BOARDS – Clemson has outrebounded its opponents in eight of the 10 games this season. Clemson has outrebounded its opponents by a 11.1 margin this season.
CLEMSON SHOOTING .469 FROM THE FIELD – Clemson is shooting 299-638 from the field for a .469 figure. The Lady Tigers have three players who are shooting 50% or better from the floor. Natasha Anderson (.523), Amy Geren (.568), and Nikki Blassingame (.566), are all shooting over 50% from the field.
1998-99 CLEMSON LADY TIGER BASKETBALL SCHEDULE Record: 10-0 Overall; 2-0 in the ACC
Date W-L Site Opponent Score11-14 W H UNC-Asheville 93-2611-16 W A Mississippi 76-5411-18 W H Furman 69-4311-20 W H Wofford 101-5911-30 W A Winthrop 65-5412-2 W H * N.C. State 88-6712-5 W H * Maryland 89-4812-14 W H Dartmouth 88-6012-17 W A South Carolina 84-6712-20 W N1 Louisiana State 60-58
Date Day Opponent Time Dec. 30 (Wed.) UNC-GREENSBORO 7:00 p.m. Jan. 2 (Sat.) * VIRGINIA 7:00 p.m. Jan. 4 (Mon.) * at North Carolina (TV) 7:00 p.m. Jan. 7 (Thur.) * FLORIDA STATE 7:00 p.m. Jan. 10 (Sun.) * at Georgia Tech (TV) 12:30 p.m. Jan. 14 (Thur.) * at Duke 7:00 p.m. Jan. 17 (Sun.) * WAKE FOREST (TV) 12:30 p.m. Jan. 21 (Thur.) * at N.C. State 7:00 p.m. Jan. 24 (Sun.) IOWA STATE (ESPN2) 12:30 p.m. Jan. 28 (Thur.) * at Maryland 7:30 p.m. Jan. 31 (Sun.) * at Virginia 2:00 p.m. Feb. 3 (Wed.) * NORTH CAROLINA 7:00 p.m Feb. 7 (Sun.) * at Florida State 2:00 p.m. Feb. 11 (Thur.) * GEORGIA TECH 7:00 p.m. Feb. 14 (Sun.) * DUKE (TV) 12:30 p.m. Feb. 18 (Thur.) * at Wake Forest 7:00 p.m. Feb. 26- (Fri.- $ ACC TOURNAMENT TBA Mar. 1 Mon.) *Denotes ACC Game.
(TV-SportSouth, Home Team Sports, Sunshine Networks) N1 – at Myrtle Beach, SC $ – at Charlotte, NC
April 18, 2024
April 17, 2024
