March 22, 2009

2009 NCAA Division I Women’s Basketball Championship
First Round
Evansville vs. Texas A&M
Sunday, March 22, 2009
Joyce Center o Notre Dame, Ind.

GAME NOTES

• Today’s game marked the first ever meeting between Evansville and Texas A&M.
• Today’s game against Texas A&M marked Evansville’s second NCAA Tournament appearance and the fourth post-season appearance in program history.
• Texas A&M has now appeared in six NCAA Tournaments.

TEXAS A&M

• Takia Starks became Texas A&M’s all-time leading scorer. Starks’ 19 points today give her 1,942 for her career, passing Lisa Branch (1939).
• Texas A&M’s 43 points off of 30 Evansville turnovers marked the most points off of turnovers this season. The previous high was 41 points off of 26 turnovers against Southern Methodist (12/7/08).
• Evansville’s 30 turnovers today marked the most turnovers forced by the Aggies all season.
• Dainelle Gant’s 21 points today marked her third 20-plus point performance in the NCAA Tournament.
• Tanisha Smith’s 20 points today set a new career high. Smith’s previous career high was 19, coming against Baylor (1/21/09).
• The Aggies recorded a season high 18 steals against the Purple Aces. The previous season high was 17 against Penn State and Texas State.
• The Aggies had ten players tally at least one steal against Evansville.
• Freshman reserve forward Adaora Elonu (Houston, Texas) and her older brother Chinemelu Elonu, a starting junior forward/center for the Aggie men’s basketball team, are the only known brother-sister basketball combination who will be playing simultaneously in the NCAA Men’s and Women’s Basketball Division I Championships.

EVANSVILLE

• Evansville was the only team, men’s or women’s, to earn an NCAA bid with a sub-.500 record this season.
• Texas A&M went 0-4 from three-point range in the game. It marked the second time Evansville has held an opponent without a three-point field goal this season (Wichita State 1/31/09).
• Shannon Novosel’s 14 points today set a new career post-season high. Her previous career post-season high was nine against Kansas (3/24/08).
• Evansville out-rebounded the Aggies 40-37 in the loss. Robyn Jennings led all players with ten rebounds.