Playing at one of the toughest arena's in college basketball, BYU lost a close call to New Mexico 58-52, Thursday. The loss drops the Cougars to 10-6, 1-2 for the season. New Mexico improves to 13-4, 2-1.

Jennifer Leitner, a junior, led the Cougars with 15 points on 6-6 shooting from the foul line and contributed eight rebounds. Senior Stacy Jensen scored 12 points. Erin Thorn and Melanie Pearson chipped in 8 points a piece.

The first half was played close, but the Lobos took the lead as BYU went scoreless during a seven minute drought. The Cougars scored seven points in the final two minutes of the half to bring the score within five, 30-25.

"You can't have big droughts on the road in conference play and expect to win," said head coach Jeff Judkins.

The Cougars went cold in the second half making only 25 percent from the field, shooting 7-28. Free throws were the difference in the game as the Lobos had 26 attempts compared to only 14 for BYU.

"I was pleased with our defensive effort," said Judkins. "We had good looks but missed a lot of open shots."

Three New Mexico players scored in double figures led by Mandi Moore's 12 points and nine rebounds.

BYU shot 33 percent from the field for the game but only 26 percent from behind arc. New Mexico shot only 34 percent from the floor and 30 percent from the behind the arc. The Cougars committed 17 turnovers and only had seven assists.

The Cougars continue their conference road trip on Saturday at Air Force (4-11, 0-2) at noon MT. The next home game for the Cougars is Saturday, January 31 with a 7 p.m. tip-off at the Marriott Center.

In the first week of MWC action, the Cougar women's basketball team went 1-1 with a loss to CSU and a win over Wyoming. This week more MWC games are on the schedule as the BYU team travels to Albuquerque and to Colorado Springs for meetings against UNM and Air Force on Jan. 17 and 19.

Tip off: BYU (11-4, 1-1) @ New Mexico (12-4, 1-1), 7:00 p.m.(MST)

Arena: The Pit

Tip off: BYU (11-4, 1-1) @ Air Force (4-10, 0-1), 1:00 p.m. (MST)

Arena: Clune Arena

BYU's Probable Starters

Pos. # Name Ht. Yr. PPG RPG

F 21 Jennifer Leitner 6-1 Jr 11.4 8.1

F 31 Lisa Osguthorpe 6-0 Sr 6.1 3.7

F 23 Chanell Rose 6-0 Jr 4.4 2.5

G 11 Erin Thorn 5-10 Jr 18.3 4.5

G 22 Stacy Jensen 5-6 Sr 10.6 2.9

Cougar Players Off The Bench

Pos. # Name Ht. Yr. PPG RPG

F/G 12 Melanie Pearson 6-1 Sr 9.7 2.8

F 51 Danielle Cheesman 6-2 Fr 7.7 3.0

F 45 Lisa Hansen 6-5 Jr 3.1 2.7

G 25 Kali Taylor 5-11 Fr 1.7 0.4

F 20 Brittany Larson 6-0 Jr 2.0 1.1

F 50 Heather Cheesman 6-1 So 2.7 1.1

G 05 Amy Lewis 5-6 Jr 0.6 0.8

Quickie BYU Stats

l Shooting from the field - .468 (415-886)

l Shooting from the free-throw line - .712 (178-250)

l Shooting from the three-point arc - .453 (134-296)

l Averaged 76.1 points per game

Last Game Recap

BYU opened the MWC with a disappointing 17-point loss to CSU on Jan. 10 after senior guard Staci Jensen scored a season high 20 points in the game followed by 13 from junior forward Jennifer Leitner. The Cougar team bounced back on Saturday afternoon with an 81-65 victory over Wyoming. In that game All-American Erin Thorn scored 23 points to lead all scores. Thorn had six of 10 three pointer attempted in the game. Freshman Danielle Cheesman came off the bench for her strong performance including 10 points in a 17-minute span. Jennifer Leitner led BYU in the rebound category with a team and game high 12 boards, 10 of them on defense.

BYU Notes

The 2001-02 team returns four starters and eight letterwinners from last season. And after the opening week of league play, All-American Erin Thorn continues to be the team's leading scorer with an average of 18.3 points a game. The team's leading rebounder is junior forward Jennifer Leitner who's averaging 8.1 boards a game. She's also averaging 11.4 points a game. Senior guard Stacy Jensen leads in the assist category with an average of 4.9 per game. Jensen is the other Cougar scoring in double digits, contributing 10.6 points a game.

2001-02 Season Highlights

TEAM

4 Points - 94 vs Washington State 11/24/01

4 Field Goals Made - 36 vs Washington State 11/24/01

4 3 PT Field Goals Made - 20 vs Arkansas Pine-Bluff 12/14/01

4 Free Throws Made - 21 @ USC 11/29/01

4 Rebounds - 43 @ SMU 12/8/01

4 Assists - 32 vs Washington State 11/24/01

4 Steals - 14 @ Weber State 12/01/01

INDIVIDUAL

4 Points - Erin Thorn, (29) vs Arkansas Pine-Bluff 12/14/01

4 Field Goals Made - Erin Thorn, (10) @ Weber State 12/01/01

4 3 PT Field Goals Made - Erin Thorn, (9) vs Arkansas PB 12/14/01

4 Free Throws Made - Jennifer Leitner, (8) @ USC 11/29/01

4 Rebounds - Jennifer Leitner, (13) @ UCLA 11/27/01

4 Assists - Stacy Jensen, (8) vs Washington State 11/24/01

4 Steals - Erin Thorn, (5) vs Washington State 11/24/01

Scouting New Mexico

The Lobos went 1-1 in league play last week the same way the Cougars did. New Mexico lost to UNLV at home 53-62 and then rebounded with a 64-43 win at Air Force. Center Jordan Adams leads the Lobos in scoring with an average of 17.1 points a game. She and Chelsea Grear top the list in the rebound category with an average of 6.5 boards a game each. Mandi Moore is the other player scoring in the double digits, as she contributes 10.0 points and 4.2 rebounds a game. New Mexico is shooting 43 percent from the field and 75 percent from the free throw line. They shoot 30 percent from behind the arc. After 16 games to date, the Lobos are scoring 70.2 points a game, allowing opponents just 57,3 points a game.

Series Record: 32-12 for BYU. Since the two teams became part of the MWC the teams are 2-2. At the Pit the Cougars are 10-10 winning there last season 79-72 on February 10. Prior to last year's win, BYU last won at the Pit in 1994. Last season the Lobos won at the Marriott Center 78-70 on March 1.

UNM Probable Starters

Pos. # Name Ht. Yr. PPG RPG

F 30 Chelsea Grear 5-10 Jr 9.9 6.5

F 42 Lindsey Arndt 6-1 Fr 6.6 6.0

C 40 Jordan Adams 6-3 Jr 17.1 6.5

G 12 Molly McKinnon 5-8 Sr 8.3 2.2

G 21 Mandi Moore 5-7 Fr 10.0 4.2

Scouting Air Force

The Air Force Academy women's basketball team opened its league schedule last week, suffering a home loss at the hands of New Mexico 43-64. The Falcons are 4-10, 0-1 on the year. They host Utah on Thursday night before playing BYU on Saturday afternoon. Head Coach Ardie McInelly is in her first season at the helm of the Air Force team that returns all five starters. Sophomore forward Amoy Jackson is currently leading the team in scoring averaging 11.4 points and grabbing 5.6 rebounds a game. Latoya Howell tops the list in the assist category, tallying 52 to date with an average of 3.71 a game. The Falcons shoots 34 percent from the field, 76 percent from the free throw line and 25 percent from behind the arc. Opponents are scoring 67.3 points to the Air Force's 59.5 per game.

Series Record: 6-0 favoring the Cougars. BYU has won all six previous meetings between the two schools.

Air Force Probable Starters

Pos. # Name Ht. Yr. PPG RPG

F 24 Amoy Jackson 5-10 So 11.4 5.6

F 25 Rozalyn Russ 5-8 Sr 6.2 2.2

F 35 Samantha Clifton 5-11 Sr 3.3 4.7

G 05 Latoya Howell 5-4 Fr 6.9 1.8

G 22 Alison Tomlinson 5-6 Sr 3.5 1.3

Head Coach Jeff Judkins

Jeff Judkins, an assistant during the 2000-01 season is this year's head coach for the Cougar women. Judkins, a longtime University of Utah coach and player takes over the BYU program with a proven record of success dating back to his high school days at Highland HS in Salt Lake City.

An all-state selection in basketball, football and baseball, Judkins went on to play for Utah from 1974-78. While playing for the Utes, he helped the team win one conference championship and two berths in the NCAA Tournament. He was a second-team academic All-American and three-time first-team District VII academic selection. Judkins earned three first-team All-WAC honors and was a member of the 1977 United States World Games team that captured the gold medal.

He played five years in the NBA for the Boston Celtics, Portland Trailblazers, Detroit Pistons and the Utah Jazz. He was a second-round pick by the Celtics in 1978, the same year the Celtics selected Larry Bird with the sixth pick overall.

After his NBA career, he returned to the U of U in 1989, and remained with the men's program for 10 years. Judkins, a Salt Lake City native, graduated from Utah in 1978 with a degree in health and physical education. He is a member of the Utah Sports Hall of Fame and the Crimson Club Hall of Fame.

He and his wife Mary Kay, are the parents of five children: Jessica (20), Jordan (19), Jenna (16), Jaime (13), Jaxson (10).

Coach Judkins Quotes

(On Cougars) We're playing very good basketball right now. Hopefully the tough road schedule we had earlier this season will pay off as we start league play on the road. We need to go into these road games with some confidence. These games are going to be extremely tough and we've got to come back with a 1-1 record, it's a must for us.

(On New Mexico) They have one of the biggest players in our league in Jordan Adams. She's a dangerous player because she can score from a lot of different positions. We've got to be able to handle their pressure. I think the fact that we won there last year will give our team some confidence because I know that playing at "The Pit" is no easy task for any team.

(On Air Force) We'll have to attack their zone and be very patient on defense. This is a game we have to win. I know that last year we went in there and did not play very well and this year we won't be able to do that.

This Week's Travel Plans

The Cougar team departs for Albuquerque on Delta flight #2103 on Jan. 15 at 8:25 p.m., arriving at 10 p.m. While there the team will stay at the Albuquerque Marriott, 2101 Lousiana Blvd, NE, 505-881-6800, 505-888-2982, fax. On jan. 18 the team heads to Colorado Springs on United flight #258 via Denver, arriving at 4:19p.m.BYU will stay at the Radisson Inn, 8110 N. Academy Blvd., 719-598-5770, 719-598-3434, fax. The team returns on Jan. 19 from Colorado Springs on Delta flight# 3940 at 7:14 p.m., arriving in Salt Lake City at 8:45 p.m.

Up Next

One more road game is on tap for the Cougars after trips to New Mexico and Colorado. The team goes north to Salt Lake City to battle MWC foe and instate rival Utah on Jan. 26. The game will be played at the Huntsman Center and is scheduled for a 3 p.m. tip off. It will be broadcast live on KJZZ. BYU's next home game is on Jan. 31 against SDSU.

2001-02 WOMEN'S BASKETBALL - NUMERICAL ROSTER (Tentative)

No. Name Ht. Cl. Pos. Exp. Hometown/School

11 Erin Thorn 5-10 Jr. G 2V Orem, UT/Mountain View H.S.

12 Melanie Pearson 6-1 Sr. G 3V Irvine, CA/Woodbridge HS/UCLA

20 Brittany Larson 6-0 Jr. F 2V Chicago, IL/New Trier HS

21 Jennifer Leitner 6-1 Jr. F 2V Chico, CA/Pleasant Valley HS

22 Stacy Jensen 5-6 Sr. G 3V West Jordan, UT/West Jordan HS

23 Chanell Rose 6-0 Jr. F 2V Orem, UT/UVSC

25 Kali Taylor 5-11 Fr. G HS Lyman, UT/Wayne HS

31 Lisa Osguthorpe 6-0 Sr. F 3V Orem, UT/Mountain View HS

45 Lisa Hansen 6-5 Jr. C 2V/RS Bakersfield, CA/Centennial HS/UCSB

50 Heather Cheesman 6-1 So. F 1V Orem, UT/Mountain View HS

51 Danielle Cheesman 6-2 Fr. F HS Orem, UT/Mountain View HS

HEAD COACH: Jeff Judkins (1st Year)

ASSISTANT COACHES: Alli Bills, Trent Shippen

ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANT: Jonas Chatterton

2001-02 Walk-On Players:

05 Amy Lewis 5-6 Jr. G Jefferson City, Montana/Jefferson City HS

24 Shauna Tuft 6-0 So. F 1V Mesa, Arizona/Highland HS

30 Melissa Brown 5-8 So. G 1V University Place, WA/Curtis HS

32 Aspen Casper 6-0 Jr. F 1V Central Point, Oregon/S. Medford HS