GEORGE FOX WOMEN'S BASKETBALL
Overall 9-6: Home 3-2, Road 4-3, Neutral 2-1 / NWC 4-2: Home 2-1, Road 2-1
HIGHLIGHTS:
* Bruins Survive 17-Points-in-a-Minute Outburst to Defeat PLU
* Bruins in National, NWC Stats: GFU Ranked 28th in Free Throw Pct.
* Upcoming Previews: at Linfield, Willamette
THIS WEEK:
Tue., Jan. 21, 6:00 pm - at Linfield College (9-5, NWC 3-2), McMinnville, Ore.
Fri., Jan. 24, 6:00 pm - at Willamette University (6-8, NWC 0-5), Salem, Ore.
LAST WEEK - 2-1:
Jan. 14 - George Fox 65, at Lewis & Clark 51
Jan. 17 - Puget Sound 70, at George Fox 64 (ot)
Jan. 18 - at George Fox 57, Pacific Lutheran 55
NORTHWEST CONFERENCE: George Fox (9-6, NWC 4-2) won 2 out of 3 NWC games during the week and is tied with Puget Sound and Whitworth for 2nd, one game behind Pacific Lutheran. The Bruins handed PLU their first NWC loss Saturday. For the latest NWC standings and stats, go to www.nwcsports.com.
COACH SCOTT RUECK (Oregon State '91) has a record of 124-45 (.734) through Jan. 20 in his 7th season as a head coach, all at George Fox. He notched his 100th career win last season when the Bruins defeated Northwest 78-68 on Dec. 1 in the PLU Parkland Chevrolet Classic in Tacoma, Wash. He was Northwest Conference "Coach of the Year" in 1999-2000 and "Co-Coach of the Year" in 2000-01. Against this week's opponents, he is 10-3 vs. Linfield (6-1 in Newberg, 4-2 in McMinnville), and 9-3 vs. Willamette (6-0 in Newberg, 3-3 in Salem).
BRUIN BITS:
* Bruins Survive Frantic Final Minute of Phenomenal Shooting by PLU:
Has any team ever been hotter than the Pacific Lutheran Lutes were during the final minute of the George Fox Bruins' 57-55 win on Jan. 18 in Newberg? Trailing by 12 at 50-38 with less than a minute to play, the Lutes connected on every shot, hitting 5 3-pointers and a layup to score 17 points in the space of 52 seconds. The Lutes fouled immediately after every made basket, sending the Bruins to the line, in an effort to get the ball back, but the home team hit 7-10 free throws to remain ahead. The Lutes' Mallory Mann intentionally missed a free throw with 3.1 seconds left in hopes of getting the rebound for a chance to tie, but the Bruins' Darby Cave grabbed the critical carom and quickly passed it out as the clock ran out, preserving the hard-fought victory.
* First Double-Double for Clark:
Liz Clark posted her first career double-double when she scored 15 points and grabbed 10 rebounds, leading the Bruins to a 57-55 win over Pacific Lutheran on Jan. 18 that pinned the first Northwest Conference loss of the season on the Lutes ...
* Personal Bests:
Kellie Thomas posted a new career high with 20 points in leading the Bruins to a 65-51 win at Lewis & Clark on Jan. 14 ...
* Bruins in NCAA National Stats:
Thru games of Jan. 12, the George Fox Bruins as a team were ranked 28th in the nation in Free Throw Pct. (.727) ...
* Where Bruins Rank in NWC Stats (thru Jan. 19):
Scoring Offense - 4th (63.4)
Scoring Defense - 4th (59.9)
Scoring Margin - 4th (+3.5)
Field Goal Pct. - 3rd (.404)
3-Pt FG Made - 3rd (4.60)
3-Pt FG Pct. - 5th (.300)
Free Throw Pct. - 2nd (.726)
FG Pct. Defense - 3rd (.363)
3-Pt FG Defense - 5th (.280)
Rebound Offense - 1st (42.3)
Rebound Defense - 2nd (35.5)
Rebound Margin - 1st (+6.7)
Assists - 2nd (14.47)
Turnover Margin - 9th (-2.47)
Assist/TO Ratio - 3rd (0.77)
Steals - 8th (7.53)
Blocks - 3rd (2.93)
Kellie Thomas - 8th in scoring (12.0), 6th in FT% (.769), 12th in 3-pt FG% (.301), 5th in 3-pt FG made (1.47), 11th in assists (2.53, T), 12th in steals (1.60), 9th in blocks (0.53, T)
Darby Cave - 11th in scoring (11.7), 8th in rebounds (6.7), 1st in FG% (.555), 14th in FT% (.733), 9th in blocks (0.53, T)
Kim Leith - 18th in scoring (10.5), 4th in FT% (.775), 10th in 3-pt FG% (.333), 9th in 3-pt FG (1.27), 6th in assists (2.73, T), 14th in blocks (0.40)
Liz Clark - 23rd in scoring (8.7), 7th in rebounds (7.1), 4th in 3-pt FG% (.432), 14th in 3-pt FG (1.07), 12th in steals (1.73)
Amy Fitch - 11th in assists (2.53, T)
Sarah Myhre - 15th in rebounds (5.3)
Emily Ruggles - 6th in blocks (0.73)
* Bruin Honors This Season:
Lady 'Yote Classic All-Tournament Team - Liz Clark, Kim Leith
THIS WEEK (Previews):
Tue., Jan. 21, 6:00 pm - at Linfield College (9-5, NWC 3-2), McMinnville, Ore.
Northwest Conference game .... The Wildcats are the Bruins' Yamhill County rivals from McMinnville, Ore. ... George Fox leads the all-time series with Linfield 30-17 since 1981 ... The Bruins have won the last 6 meetings, including 2 wins last year, 59-46 on Jan. 12 in Newberg and 71-51 on Jan. 25 in McMinnville ... Linfield's last win in the series was 76-55 on Jan. 7, 2000, in McMinnville ... The Wildcats are 7th in the NWC in scoring (60.6), 2nd in defense (55.6), 3rd in scoring margin (+5.0), 8th in FG% (.366), 5th in FT% (.712), 7th in rebounds (38.3), 8th in rebound margin (-2.8), 9th in 3-pt FG (2.43), 7th in assists (11.50), 1st in steals (12.50), and 2nd in blocks (3.79) ... Melissa McBride is 12th in the NWC in scoring (11.6), 10th in FT% (.750), 11th in steals (1.79), 6th in 3-pt FG (1.36) ... Monica Schwing is 17th in scoring (10.6), 8th in FG% (.439), 7th in FT% (.766), 7th in blocks (0.64) ... Shae Wright is 30th in scoring (7.7), 9th in rebounds (6.6), 2nd in blocks (2.29) ... Heidi Jurgens is 10th in assists (2.71) ... Leah Moore is 15th in FT% (.733), 1st in steals (3.36) ...
Fri., Jan. 24, 6:00 pm - at Willamette University (6-8, NWC 0-5), Salem, Ore.
Northwest Conference game .... The Bearcats are located in Salem, Ore. ... George Fox leads the all-time series with Willamette 29-12 since 1981 ... The teams split last year, the Bruins winning 75-46 on Dec. 5 in Newberg and the Bearcats 53-51 on Feb. 9 in Salem ... The Bearcats are 5th in the NWC in scoring (62.0), 8th in defense (62.6), 8th in scoring margin (-0.6), 6th in FG% (.367), 8th in FT% (.622), 2nd in rebounds (40.9), 4th in rebound margin (+2.6), 7th in 3-pt FG (3.57), 8th in assists (11.14), 2nd in steals (12.29), and 8th in blocks (1.36) ... Rosie Contri is 9th in the NWC in scoring (11.9), 16th in rebounds (5.3), 3rd in assists (3.29), 6th in steals (2.07) ... Deanna Lund is 10th in scoring (11.9), 13th in rebounds (6.1), 7th in FG% (.439) ... Simmie Muth is 15th in scoring (11.0), 4th in assists (2.86), 2nd in steals (3.00) ...