Provo, Utah (Jan. 02, 2001) After having a comfortable 15-point lead with six and half minutes left in the game, BYU's women's basketball team did not get another basket. And the visiting Nebraska team took advantage of it, picking up the three-point 56-53 win, Tuesday.

The loss brings the Cougars record to 7-5 on the year while the Huskers improve to 8-5.

"We didn't execute at the end of the game and nobody wanted to win," said a disappointed Trent Shippen after the loss. "We definitely didn't get in a rhythm at the end, we were tentative, scared and didn't have anyone come out who wanted to win the game for us."

BYU got off to a quick start and had build up a 14-point lead midway through the first half of play and enjoyed a comfortable 11-point 29-18 advantage at the break. The Cougars continued their strong play in the early goings of the second half but lost the momentum at the 6:46 mark and could not recover.

Junior guard Stacy Jensen led all scores with a season-high 17 points and four rebounds. Jensen also tallied four assists and three steals in the game. Heather Cheesman continued her off-the bench role with 11 points and five boards. Chanell Rose, who got her second start of the year contributed with six points and two rebounds. BYU shot 36 percent from the field and just 45 percent at the line. The Cougars had 20 turnovers and were outrebounded by Nebraska 40 to 35.

Casey Leonhardt led the Huskers in points with 14 and a team-high seven rebounds in the contest. Margaret Richards came off the bench for 12 points and four rebounds for Nebraska who shot 46 percent from the field and 56 from the free-throw line.

The Cougars have the rest of this week off to prepare for MWC action which begins on the road on Jan. 11 and 13 with games against SDSU and UNLV. The first home conference game for BYU is on Jan. 18 against Wyoming.

After getting back on a winning note with a decisive 114-point victory over SMU, the Cougar women host Nebraska (7-5) who are making their first ever appearance at the Marriott Center. Tip off is set for 4:30 p.m.

BYU Probable Starters - 2000-01 stats

l 31 Lisa Osguthorpe - 6-0 Jr, F (5.7 ppg, 5.2 rpg)

l 44 Caroline Beus - 6-1 Sr, C/F (7.7 ppg, 5.7 rpg)

l 23 Chanell Rose - 6-0 So, F (5.3 ppg, 3.4 rpg)

l 11 Erin Thorn - 5-10 So, G (18.4 ppg, 5.2 rpg)

l 22 Stacy Jensen - 5-6 Jr, G (8.4 ppg, 3.0 rpg)

BYU Players Off The Bench - 2000-01 stats

l 04 Kaly G. Shippen - 5-6 Sr, G (4.8 ppg)

l 14 Julie Whetten - 5-8 Fr, G (4.9 ppg, 1.4 rpg)

l 15 Jorja Cox - 5-11 Sr, F (1.8 ppg, 1.5 rpg)

l 20 Brittany Larson - 6-0 So, F (2.1 ppg, 1.2 rpg)

l 50 Heather Cheesman - 6-1 Fr, F (9.2 ppg, 5.1 rpg)

Quickie BYU Stats - 2000-01 Season

l Shooting from the field - .420 (288-686)

l Shooting from the free-throw line - .736 (162-220)

l Shooting from the three-point arc - .416 (87-209)

l Averaged 68.8 points per game

Season Highlights To Date

TEAM

l Most points scored in a game - 90 @ Washington State on 11/30/00

l Most field goals made - 32 @ Washington State on 11/30/00

l Most three-pointers in a game - 12 vs SMU on 12/30/00

l Most rebounds made in a game - 49 vs SMU on 12/30/00

l Most assists made in a game - 22 vs SMU on12/30/00

l Most steals made in a game - 14 @ Idaho State on 12/28/00

INDIVIDUAL

l Most points ina game - Erin Thorn (36) @ Arizona 11/18/00

l Most field goals made in a game - Erin Thorn (12) @ Arizona 11/18/00

l Most three-pointers made in a game - Erin Thorn (8) @ Arizona 11/18/00

l Most free-throws made in a game - Heather Cheesman (9) @ Gonzaga 12/02/00

l Most rebounds made in a game - Heather Cheesman (9) @ Gonzaga 12/02/00

l Most assists made in a game - Julie Whetten (7) vs UCLA 11/25/00/ and Erin Thorn (7) @ Idaho State on 12/28/00

l Most steals made in a game - Erin Thorn (6) vs Northern Iowa on 12/07/00 and Stacy Jensen (6) vs Idaho State on 12/28/00

l Most blocked shots in a game - Caroline Beus (2) @ Washington State 11/30/00

Last Game Recap

The Cougars picked up a first-ever win over former WAC foe SMU to finish 2000 with a 72-58 victory over the Mustangs in the Marriott Center. Erin Thorn led all scores with her 22 points and four defensive rebounds. She also had six three-pointers. BYU shook up the starting line-up in the game, starting Chanell Rose #23 in place of redshirt freshman Heather Cheesman. Rose contributed with six points and three rebounds. Cheesman came off the bench in her new role with 12 points and seven rebounds. Junior guard Stacy Jensen put in 11 points and was credited with a team high six assists in the game.

Scouting Nebraska

The Huskers are making their first appearance in the Marriott Center Tuesday, Jan. 2 although they have played the Cougars five previous times. Nebraska comes to Provo with a 7-5 record and a solid 82-63 win over East Carolina on Dec. 30 in Lincoln. Senior Casey Leonhart leads her team in both scoring and rebounding with 13.6 ppg and 5.8 rpg. Others contributing in scoring for the Huskers include guard Shannon Howell who tallies 9.6 ppg and forward Monique Whitfield who's picking up an average of 8.2 points and grabs 5.7 boards a game. Nebraska is shooting 46 percent from the field and 69 percent at the free-throw line. They are holding opponents to just 64.2 points a game and 37 percent shooting from the field.

Nebraska Probable Starters

#25 Stephanie Jones - F 6-2, So (6.3 ppg, 4.8 rpg)

#44 Monique Whitfield - F 6-1, Sr (8.2 ppg, 5.7 rpg)

#55 Casey Leonhardt - C 6-5, Sr (13.6 ppg, 5.8 rpg)

#33 Shannon Howell - G 5-10, Fr (9.6 ppg, 2.4 rpg)

#20 Amanda Went - G 5-9, Sr (8.2 ppg, 3.0 rpg)

Series Record: 3-2 favoring Nebraska

Last Meeting: In last year's contest it was BYU who walked away with an 81-57 win in Lincoln.

Did You Know....Cougar Family Connections

Kaly Gillette Shippen (#04) is coach Shippen's sister-in-law. She married his younger brother Ty Shippen who walked on to this year's men's basketball team.

Chanell Rose (#23) is BYU's men's assistant basketball coach Dave Rose's daughter. She transferred from playing one year at neighboring Utah Valley State College.

As of Dec. 16 Utah transfer Trent Whiting became eligible to play on the men's team. His wife Amber who is a transfer from Weber State is part of the women's team. She'll be redshirting this season.

Head Coach Trent Shippen

Trent Shippen enters his fourth season at the helm of BYU's women's basketball program. The 22 wins last year are a first for the Cougar program since the 1992-93 season when BYU finished with a 24-5, 13-1 record and made its last NCAA Championships appearance.

This is Shippen's first Division I coaching assignment. Shippen came to BYU after a three year stint as head coach at Ricks College in Rexburg, Idaho. While at Ricks, he led his 1995 team to a fifth place finish in the NJCAA Tournament, and was voted Region 18 Coach of the Year. He was also the recipient of the Alberta Lee Cox Sportsmanship Award at the 1995 NJCAA Tournament. He played college hoops at Ricks College and at Colorado State University. At Ricks he earned All-Region 18 honors as a sophomore and was a member of the 1983-84 Viking team that placed sixth at the NJCAA Tournament in Hutchinson, Kansas.

During his career at CSU he helped the Rams place third in the NIT Tournament in 1988, where Shippen set the Madison Square Garden single-game record with six three-pointers. The following year he helped CSU win the league title, advance to the second round of the NCAA tournament, was selected Academic All-WAC, and averaged 7.6 points and 2.9 assists.

Shippen File

BYU

2000-01 8-4 RICKS COLLEGE

1999-00 22-8 1994-95 33-3

1998-99 16-13 1995-96 19-11

1997-98 15-14 1996-97 19-12

Totals 61-39 (.610) Totals 71-26 (.731)

BYU Home Practices/Media Interviews

While at home the Cougars practice daily from 3:30 p.m. to 6 p.m. at the Marriott Center. Coach Shippen and players are available for interviews prior to or at the conclusion of practice. All interview requests must be done in advance by contacting the basketball media relations director, Norma Collett via phone or e-mail. Phone: 801-378-4908; e-mail: norma_collett@byu.edu. There are no interviews 24-hours prior to a game.

Ahead for the Cougars

The Cougars open MWC play on the road with games at SDSU and UNLV on Jan. 11 and 13. BYU's next home game is on Jan. 18 against Wyoming.

- BYU -