Orem, Utah (Dec. 16, 2006) -- When neighbors meet for a game they tend to play harder than they would against total strangers. BYU knew it was in for a battle against their Utah Valley counterpart UVSC. The Cougars were able to jump to the early lead and hold it for a final 71-57 score. UVSC never let up in the competition, but BYU cut short any run the Wolverines started.

"This is a good win for us," BYU women's head coach Jeff Judkins said. "It's hard to play here. UVSC is a very good team."

Both teams were charged up for this competition. No one needed to tell these teams to play hard. BYU started with the first points of the game on a layup by Dani Wright. BYU took a 9-4 lead after the first five minutes of the game. Melinda Johnsen contributed to the Cougars lead with a three pointer to make it 14-4. UVSC came back though, to close the gap to four, 13-17 with ten minutes left in the first half. The Wolverines would even get to within three but then BYU went back ahead seven with 7:48 on a Jennie Keele jumper. Shawnee Slade hit a pair to improve the lead to eleven, 18-29 at the 5:42 mark. Johnsen stopped a Wolverine charge with an interception and finished with a layup to make it 31-20 BYU with 4:21 left in the first period. UVSC closed the gap a little, but the Cougars played tough defense and kept the Wolverines from getting closer than nine. The half ended with BYU up 35-26.

"Shawnee (Slade) came in and gave us a great boost with her shooting," Judkins said.

At the half Slade lead all scorers with 13 points. Cassie King led all players with eight rebounds. BYU was 3-4 from the free throw line and UVSC was 2-5.

Lauren Riley started the second half with a quick basket to push the lead back to double digits. With just over 18 minutes left in the game. Johnsen threw the ball into a cutting Gillespie and threw the backdoor pass to Riley for the easy layup to make it 40-26. UVSC combo guard/ forward, Julie McMurray put in a three pointer with just under 16:00 minutes left to give the Wolverines a spark 29-40. With 10:51 in the game, Slade comes up with a steal and the Cougars swing the ball around to the other side where an open Gillespie squared up and hit a three pointer to put BYU up 51-36. Riley finished a three-point play with her free throw putting the Cougars up by 20, 56-36 with just under nine minutes to go.

UVSC never gave up in this game. The Wolverines started pressing and forced BYU into a couple of turnovers and closed the gap to 13, 62-49, with 5:09 left in the game. BYU did break the press and Jaime Judkins hit a free throw and moments later Keele went to the line and hit one to make it 66-50 BYU with 2:33 left in the game. Gillespie threw a strike the length of the field to push the lead to 69-53 when Johnsen hit the easy layup with just over a minute left. BYU played keep away the final minute to finish off the win.

"Mallary had a great second half, she has patience to let the game come to her," Judkins said of his leading scorer. "She's grown up a lot as a player."

Riley had a season high 13 points and BYU had four players in double figures, Slade 13, Riley 13, Gillespie 14 and Wright 13 for the third time this season. Wright had her second double double of the season and fourth as a Cougar with her 11 rebounds. King was only one rebound away from having double digit rebounds with her nine.

The Wolverines were very aware of Gillespie's 30-point night in BYU's previous game against Weber State. She was hounded all night by defenders but managed to get to the line for eight free throws and made seven of them. Some of those came in the closing minutes when UVSC was trying to stop the clock.

BYU has one more game before the Christmas break hosting UC Riverside on Wed., Dec. 20 at the Marriott Center. Tip off is set for 7 p.m.

Official Basketball Box Score
BYU vs Utah Valley State
12/16/06 3:05pm at Orem, Utah - McKay Center
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
VISITORS: BYU 8-3
                          TOT-FG  3-PT         REBOUNDS
## Player Name            FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA OF DE TOT PF  TP  A TO BLK S MIN
35 JOHNSEN, Melinda.... f  3-7    1-3    2-4    0  2  2   1   9  7  4  1  4  35
45 WRIGHT, Dani........ f  5-7    0-1    2-6    4  7 11   4  12  0  3  2  0  25
52 RILEY, Lauren....... c  6-9    0-0    1-1    1  4  5   4  13  0  0  1  0  16
15 KEELE, Jennie....... g  2-6    0-2    1-2    1  3  4   2   5  1  5  1  1  29
30 GILLESPIE, Mallary.. g  3-10   1-5    7-8    1  4  5   2  14  5  4  0  1  38
05 CHEESMAN, Ashley....    0-1    0-0    0-0    1  1  2   2   0  0  3  0  0   7
13 JUDKINS, Jaime......    0-1    0-0    1-2    2  0  2   0   1  0  0  0  0   2
22 FADDIS, Brittany....    0-0    0-0    0-0    0  0  0   0   0  0  0  0  0   1
32 SLADE, Shawnee......    6-10   1-3    0-0    3  3  6   3  13  4  2  1  3  32
54 KING, Cassie........    2-5    0-3    0-0    2  7  9   2   4  1  0  2  1  15
   TEAM................                                             1
   Totals..............   27-56   3-17  14-23  15 31 46  20  71 18 22  8 10 200
TOTAL FG% 1st Half: 15-35 42.9%   2nd Half: 12-21 57.1%   Game: 48.2%  DEADB
3-Pt. FG% 1st Half:  2-12 16.7%   2nd Half:  1-5  20.0%   Game: 17.6%   REBS
F Throw % 1st Half:  3-4  75.0%   2nd Half: 11-19 57.9%   Game: 60.9%    4
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
HOME TEAM: Utah Valley State 9-2
                          TOT-FG  3-PT         REBOUNDS
## Player Name            FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA OF DE TOT PF  TP  A TO BLK S MIN
20 Ashley Grimm........ f  0-7    0-0    2-2    1  2  3   4   2  0  2  0  2  23
25 Hollie Beaman....... f  1-3    1-3    1-2    1  3  4   0   4  3  1  0  0  24
10 Robyn Fairbanks..... c  8-19   0-4    3-6    0  2  2   2  19  1  3  1  0  32
01 Sandy Marvin........ g  3-7    0-1    4-4    2  3  5   4  10  2  5  0  3  35
13 Asumi Nakayama...... g  1-6    1-4    2-2    0  2  2   2   5  2  5  0  2  23
03 Julie McMurray......    3-6    1-2    1-2    2  1  3   3   8  0  0  0  0  23
04 Veva Ahlstrom.......    1-1    0-0    0-0    0  0  0   1   2  0  0  0  0   1
23 Rebekah Peterson....    1-2    1-2    0-0    0  3  3   0   3  1  1  0  1  23
34 Susie Cornejo.......    0-1    0-1    2-2    0  1  1   2   2  1  0  0  1   6
42 Blake Reynolds......    1-3    0-0    0-1    0  0  0   0   2  1  0  0  0  10
   TEAM................                         1  2  3
   Totals..............   19-55   4-17  15-21   7 19 26  18  57 11 17  1  9 200
TOTAL FG% 1st Half: 11-31 35.5%   2nd Half:  8-24 33.3%   Game: 34.5%  DEADB
3-Pt. FG% 1st Half:  2-7  28.6%   2nd Half:  2-10 20.0%   Game: 23.5%   REBS
F Throw % 1st Half:  2-5  40.0%   2nd Half: 13-16 81.3%   Game: 71.4%    4
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Officials: Mike Petty, Laura Rahe, Rick Thorne
Technical fouls: BYU-None. Utah Valley State-None.
Attendance: 634
Score by Periods                1st  2nd   Total
BYU...........................   35   36  -   71
Utah Valley State.............   26   31  -   57

With a 6-3 record to date, BYU's women's basketball team continues action at home hosting Weber State (4-5) on Thurs. Dec. 14 at 7 p.m. The Cougar team then travels a short distance to Orem to play at UVSC (9-1) on Sat. Dec. 16 at 3 p.m.

Complete Broadcast Plans

On television - The BYU vs. Weber State game will air live on BYUTV and will also air tape delayed on the mtn., Log onto themtn.com for air times. Chris McGown and Kristin Koslowski will provide play-by-play and analysis of the game.

On the internet - a live audio stream of all of the women's basketball games will be available on BYU Radio. Veteran broadcaster Jay Monsen will call the action. To listen log on to: http://www.byuradio.org

Live stats - fans can follow the game action via stats by clicking on:

http://www.byucougars.com/Schedule.jsp?SP=112&YR=2006

BYU Probable Starters

Pos. # Name Ht Yr PPG RPG

G/F 15 Jennie Keele 5-10 Sr 6.6 3.6

G 30 Mallary Gillespie 5-10 Jr 11.0 4.0

G/F 35 Melinda Johnsen 5-10 Sr 5.1 3.2

C 45 Dani Kubik Wright 6-3 Sr 11.0 5.9

F 52 Lauren Riley 6-3 Jr 4.0 4.7

Reserve Players

Pos. # Name Ht Yr PPG RPG

G/F 32 Shawnee Slade 5-11 So 8.7 6.2

C 54 Cassie King 6-3 So 5.4 2.8

F 22 Brittany Faddis 6-0 So 1.5 2.0

F 05 Ashley Cheesman 6-0 Jr 1.4 1.9

G 13 Jaime Judkins 5-6 Fr 0.5 1.0

G 31 Rachel Aina 5-9 So 0.4 0.2

Team Stats --

-- Shooting from the field: (.405, 200-494)

-- Shooting from the free-throw line: (.627, 89-142)

-- Shooting from three-point line: (.325, 49-151)

-- Average points per game: 59.8

2006 Run In Preseason WNIT

The Cougar team ended their run in this year's Preseason WNIT with a disappointing 58-84 loss to No. 16 Baylor on Thurs. Nov. 16. BYU had advanced to the Final Four after a 73-50 home victory over Idaho State on Nov. 10 and then a come from behind 55-52 upset victory over No. 4 Stanford. Dani Kubik Wright was named to the All-Tournament Team.

Cougars Team Summary

After compiling the best season record in school history (26-6), making their seventh postseason NCAA Championships appearance and clinching the 2006 MWC Regular Season Champion crown, the BYU team looks to take that success and winning attitude into the 2006-07 year.

BYU returns a nucleus of four starters and five letterwinners that will make this year's squad tough to beat during its non-conference and league schedules.

Once again the Cougars should finish at the top of the MWC standings, leading the way to an eighth appearance in the NCAA Championships and advancing further in that national tournament.

2006-07 Highlights

-- MWC Player of the Week - Shawnee Slade (Nov. 12, 2006)

-- Preseason WNIT All-Tournament Team - Dani Kubik Wright

-- Team's assist leader - Melinda Johnsen (220), as of 12/10/06

-- In the game @ Stanford - Dani Wright played a total of 35 minutes, the most minutes played in her college career.

-- In the game at home vs. Santa Clara University on 11/22/06, four different players scored in double figures, a first this season. In that same game

the .839 (26-31) free throw percentage was the best for the team so far this season.

-- At Harvard on 11/29/06 - the Cougars picked up season bests in field goal percentage .481 (26-54) and 3-pt-field goal percentage .455 (5-11). In that same game, the 66 final points for BYU were the third best so far this season.

-- When outrebounding opponents, the Cougar team is 4-0 on the year, and is currently 3-0 when playing at home.

-- The 55 total rebounds grabbed in the game vs. CSUN on 12/09/06 are a new season high for the team.

Injury Update

Freshman point guard Haley Hall is out for the rest of the season. She tore her ACL in her left knee at the New Mexico State game on 12/06/06.

2005-06 Season Review

-- Best record in school history 26-6

-- Tallied an impressive 13-1 record on the road

-- MWC Regular Season Crown with a 13-3 record

-- The squad advanced to the MWC Championship game before losing to Utah, 60-84

-- Made seventh appearance in NCAA Championships, seeded sev- enth, the highest seed for the Cougar program. The team advanced to Round of 32 with 67-62 victory over Iowa, then lost to Oklahoma 70-86

-- Breaks into the national polls after going 15-1 to begin the season. Its first appearance came the week of Jan. 16 when both the AP Poll and the USA Today/ESPN/WBCA Coaches Poll ranked the team at the No. 23 spot. The team moved as high as No. 16 in the USAToday/ESPN/WBCA Coaches Poll, the highest of the year and the highest ever in the program's history. BYU finished the season ranked 20th in the USA Today/ESPN/WBCA Coaches Poll.

2005-06 MWC Honors/All-America Citations

Co-Player of the Year

Ambrosia Anderson

First Team All- Mountain West Conference

Ambrosia Anderson

Second Team All- Mountain West Conference

Dani Kubik

Honorable Mention All- Mountain West Conference

Mallary Gillespie

Melinda Johnsen

Jennie Keele

Coach of the Year

Jeff Judkins

Honorable Mention All- America Citations

Ambrosia Anderson - AP Women's All-America Basketball Team

Ambrosia Anderson - WBCA and Eastman Kodak Company

Head Coach - Jeff Judkins

Overall Record:109-55

2006-07: 6-3

2006 MWC Coach of the Year Jeff Judkins begins his sixth year as head coach of the women's basketball program. Prior to heading up the women's program, he served one year (1999-2000) as Director of Basketball Operations for the BYU men's team. In 2000 he became an assistant coach on the women's team.

Last season under Judkins, the Cougars compiled their best finish in school history with a 26-6 record, clinched their first MWC regular season title since 1992 and received a no. 7 seed in the NCAA tournament, the highest seed for any BYU program.

For the first time since the 2002-03 season, the team and its 13-1 record to start the year broke into the women's basketball collegiate polls, ranked No. 23 by the AP Poll and the USA Today/Espn/WBCA Coaches Poll. They would rank as high as 18 and 16 in the two respective polls, finishing the year at No. 20. Last season Judkins picked up his 100th win, a 69-67 victory over CSU on Mar. 2, the same time the team clinched the league's regular season title.

Under Judkins tutelage, the women's basketball program has had consistent success with four postseason appearances including three NCAA Championships, guiding the team to its first ever Sweet Sixteen finish in 2002. In 2005, the 19-11 team played in the first round of the WNIT.

Judkins has also coached two All-Americans in Erin Thorn and Ambrosia Anderson. Both have gone on to play in the WNBA for the New York Liberty. Thorn has been with the team for the past four years while Anderson just completed her first year playing professionally.

The longtime University of Utah coach and player came to Provo 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 the University of Utah from 1974-78.

While playing at Utah, Judkins helped lead the Utes to one conference championship and two berths in the NCAA tournament. He was a second-team academic All-American and three-time District VII academic selection. He also earned three first team All-WAC honors and was a member of the 1977 United States World Games team that captured the gold medal.

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

After his NBA career, he returned to Utah in 1989 and was an instrumental part of that program's success during his 10 years, recruiting such players as Keith Van Horn, Andre Miller, Mike Doleac, Hanno Mottola, Alex Jensen, Trent Whiting, Garner Meads, Jeff Johnsen and Britton Johnsen.

Judkins, graduated from the University of Utah in 1978 with a degree in health and physical education. He and his wife Mary Kaye are the parents of five children: Jessica (26), (married to Paul), Jordan (24), Jenna (22), Jaime, who plays on the basketball team, (19), and Jaxson (16). Jenna plays on the volleyball team at BYU.

Hobbies: Waterskiing, horseback riding, hunting, golf, softball, and watching ESPN.

BYU Picked Second In MWC Preseason Media Poll

School (First-place votes) Points

1. New Mexico (8) 137

2. BYU (7) 134

3. TCU (4) 126

4. Utah 102

5. Wyoming 96

6. UNLV 71

7. San Diego State 41

8. Air Force 39

9. Colorado State 36

Preseason All-MWC Team

Dionne Marsh, Jr., F, New Mexico

Hanna Zavecz, Jr., F, Wyoming

Dani Kubik Wright, Sr., C, BYU

Adrianne Ross, Jr., G, TCU

Katie Montgomery, Sr., G, New Mexico

Top Returning Player

Dionne Marsh, Jr., F, New Mexico

Top Newcomer

Justyna Podziemska, Jr., F, Wyoming

ABOUT THIS WEEK'S BYU'S OPPONENTS

WEBER STATE University - Provo, UT (12/14/06)

Weber State comes to Provo with a 4-5 record on the year after picking up wins over Northwest Nazarene, Northern Iowa, Utah State and Idaho. They are currently on a 0-4 losing streak with their most recent loss, 60-68 vs. UVSC. Two players are scoring in double figures for the Wildcats. Junior guard/forward Sara Tuomi leads the way with an average of 17.4 points and a team high 7.2 rebounds per contest. Chelsey Warburton a 5-8 senior guard follows with14.1 points and grabs 3.8 boards a game. Head coach Carla Taylor is in her 19th season at the helm of Weber State's program where she has compiled a 253-251 record to start the 2006-07 campaign.

WEBER STATE Probable Starters

Pos. # Name Ht Yr PPG RPG

F 05 Sara Tuomi 6-0 Jr 17.4 7.2

F 11 Tashina Taylor 6-2 Jr 7.3 5.0

C 54 Janie Rayback 6-4 So 9.7 3.3

G 04 Chelsey Warburton 5-8 Sr 14.1 3.8

G 14 Laura Porter 5-8 Sr 8.1 3.9

Stat Comparisons BYU WSU

Field Goals: .405 .453

Free Throws: .627 .758

Three-Pointers: .325 .333

Points Per Game: 59.8 69.9

Rebounds Per Game: 40.0 36.6

Series Record

BYU holds a 35-8 advantage over Weber State. At the Marriott Center, the Wildcats have a 1-16 record with the Cougars losing to the Wildcats 87-93 back on 12/20/89.

Last Meeting

The two teams played last season at the Dee Events Center where BYU picked up the 63-47 victory.

UTAH VALLEY STATE, @ Orem, UT - (12/16/06)

UVSC has compiled an impressive 9-1 record to date with their lone loss to Utah on 11/1706, a two-point 68-70 deficit in overtime. Since then the team has gone on a 7-0 winning streak, and they are 7-1 at home. The Wolverines are led in scoring by sophomore center Robyn Fairbanks who is averaging 24.1 points and a team high 10.7 rebounds per game. Another sophomore, Sandy Marvin who is a 5-6 guard is also scoring in double digits with 17.1 points and is grabbing 3.2 boards per contest. Former BYU standout Cathy Nixon guides the UVSC program and is in her fourth season as a Division I program. The team returns four starters and a total of nine letterwinners from last year's team that finished with an 11-16 record.

UTAH VALLEY STATE Probable Starters

Pos. # Name Ht Yr PPG RPG

F 20 Ashley Grimm 6-0 So 5-4 3.9

F 25 Hollie Beaman 5-9 So 7.1 4.3

C 21 Robyn Fairbanks 6-1 So 24.1 10.7

G 01 Sandy Marvin 5-6 So 17.1 3.2

G 13 Asumi Nakayama 5-4 Fr 6.2 2.5

Stat Comparisons BYU UVS

Field Goals: .405 .462

Free Throws: .627 .701

Three-Pointers: .325 .333

Points Per Game: 59.8 78.7

Rebounds Per Game: 40.0 40.5

Series Record

The Cougars hold a 1-0 advantage.

Last Meeting

Both teams played last year on 12/16/05 in Provo, with BYU getting the 61-54 victory.

Media Information

Team Practice Times

-- The team practices are held at the Marriott Center MWF from 11:30 a.m., to 1:30 p.m. On Tuesday's, practice is scheduled for 1 to 3 p.m., and on Thursday's it is 12:30 to 3 p.m.

-- Coach Judkins and players are available for interviews prior to or after their practices. All interviews are scheduled in advance. Norma Collett is the Media Director for the team and can be contacted by phone or email. Office phone is 801-422-4908, cell phone is 801-372-0989 and email is norma_collett@byu.edu

p Next

The Cougar team hosts UC Riverside on Dec. 20 at 7p.m., right before the Christmas break. BYU then ends the year at Oregon on Dec. 30 in a 7 p.m., tip off from McArthur Court.