RENO -- Behind a career-high 27 points from sophomore guard Mindy Nielson, BYU powered to a 81-63 win over the Nevada Wolfpack in Reno, Tuesday for their first win in the 2008-09 campaign.

This is a great win for us," said head coach Jeff Judkins. "We came out with a lot of energy and the first eight minutes were the best eight minutes of defense I've seen this team play."

Led by Nielson and fellow guard Jazmine Foreman, the Cougars got off to a quick start, leading 17-8 at the 12:44 mark. Forward Keilani Moeaki scored 14 points and had three rebounds, senior center Cassie King had 11 points and nine boards. BYU was also strong behind the three-point-arc, going 8-17 (47 percent). In all, five Cougars scored in double figures.

"We did a good job pushing the ball as well," said Judkins. "It was as a total team effort."

Nielson led all scorers, and powered the Cougar offensive attack throughout the game, 44 percent from the field and going 9-10 from the free-throw line.

Portland was able to match the Cougars for much of the second half, but wasn't able to overcome 31 percent shooting in the first half, which ended with BYU leading 48-31. The Cougars built the lead on 17-29 (58 percent) shooting in the first twenty minutes.

Senior guard Dellena Criner lead the Wolfpack with 20 points in 32 minutes, and forward Cherlanda Franklin had a team-high seven rebounds.

The Cougars now return to the friendly confines of the Marriott Center for their 2008 home-opener to play Pac-10 power Oregon on Friday, Nov. 21 at 3:30 p.m. Live internet stat and audio feeds will be available at www.byucougars.com/basketball_w/.

Official Basketball Box Score
Brigham Young vs Nevada
11/18/08 7 p.m. at Reno, Nev. (Lawlor Events Center)
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VISITORS: Brigham Young 1-1
                          TOT-FG  3-PT         REBOUNDS
## Player Name            FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA OF DE TOT PF  TP  A TO BLK S MIN
03 FOREMAN, Jazmine.... *  4-6    2-4    0-0    0  3  3   3  10  3  1  0  0  33
22 NIELSON, Mindy...... *  8-18   2-4    9-10   1  2  3   2  27  5  0  0  4  34
32 SLADE, Shawnee...... *  2-11   1-3    2-2    3  3  6   4   7  2  2  1  2  29
45 MOEAKI, Keilani..... *  6-10   0-2    2-2    1  1  2   3  14  0  4  0  1  24
54 KING, Cassie........ *  4-5    1-1    2-2    4  5  9   1  11  0  2  0  0  20
01 JACKSON, Jenteal....    0-1    0-0    0-0    1  1  2   1   0  0  1  0  0   7
13 JUDKINS, Jaime......    0-0    0-0    0-0    0  0  0   0   0  0  1  0  0   2
14 HOSTETTER, Sarah R..    0-1    0-0    0-0    0  1  1   0   0  1  3  0  0  14
21 BUHLER, Stephanie...    0-1    0-1    0-0    0  0  0   0   0  0  0  0  0   4
23 WOOD, Coriann.......    4-4    2-2    0-0    1  4  5   2  10  1  1  0  0  14
24 PETERSON, Dani......    0-1    0-0    0-0    0  0  0   0   0  0  0  0  0   4
35 RILEY, Kristen......    0-2    0-0    2-2    2  1  3   3   2  0  1  0  1  13
55 MARKS, Megan........    0-0    0-0    0-0    0  0  0   0   0  0  1  0  0   2
   TEAM................                         2  2  4
   Totals..............   28-60   8-17  17-18  15 23 38  19  81 12 17  1  8 200
TOTAL FG% 1st Half: 17-29 58.6%   2nd Half: 11-31 35.5%   Game: 46.7%  DEADB
3-Pt. FG% 1st Half:  5-8  62.5%   2nd Half:  3-9  33.3%   Game: 47.1%   REBS
F Throw % 1st Half:  9-9  100 %   2nd Half:  8-9  88.9%   Game: 94.4%    1
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HOME TEAM: Nevada 1-2
                          TOT-FG  3-PT         REBOUNDS
## Player Name            FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA OF DE TOT PF  TP  A TO BLK S MIN
01 Jones, Brandi....... *  6-15   1-2    1-3    2  3  5   2  14  1  1  0  1  24
10 WARD, Johnna........ *  1-8    0-5    0-0    0  2  2   3   2  2  1  0  1  20
22 CRINER, Dellena..... *  6-9    1-2    7-8    1  1  2   2  20  3  2  0  0  32
25 FRANKLIN, Cherlanda. *  3-7    0-0    2-2    4  3  7   1   8  1  5  2  2  24
33 MOORE, Shavon....... *  1-6    0-1    0-0    4  2  6   1   2  0  3  0  1  19
00 HENRY, Bre'Anna.....    0-1    0-0    0-0    1  0  1   0   0  0  1  0  0   7
02 Cherry, Megan.......    0-3    0-3    0-0    0  0  0   0   0  1  1  0  1  11
03 Woodard, Brittany...    0-0    0-0    0-0    1  2  3   1   0  2  0  0  0  13
05 Williams, Nicole....    1-2    0-0    0-0    1  1  2   0   2  1  0  0  1  11
23 JOHNSON, Amanda.....    0-3    0-1    2-4    0  0  0   0   2  0  0  0  1   8
30 HAMMOND, Marissa....    2-3    0-0    0-0    1  0  1   0   4  0  3  0  0  14
32 LOMBARDI, Marianne..    2-3    0-0    0-0    1  0  1   2   4  1  0  0  0   5
34 WILLIAMS, Kayla.....    2-4    0-0    1-2    1  0  1   1   5  0  0  0  0  12
   TEAM................                         5  3  8
   Totals..............   24-64   2-14  13-19  22 17 39  13  63 12 17  2  8 200
TOTAL FG% 1st Half: 11-35 31.4%   2nd Half: 13-29 44.8%   Game: 37.5%  DEADB
3-Pt. FG% 1st Half:  0-7   0.0%   2nd Half:  2-7  28.6%   Game: 14.3%   REBS
F Throw % 1st Half:  9-12 75.0%   2nd Half:  4-7  57.1%   Game: 68.4%    2
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Officials: Melissa Barlow, Penny Davis, Wendy Dailey
Technical fouls: Brigham Young-None. Nevada-None.
Attendance: 426
Score by Periods                1st  2nd   Total
Brigham Young.................   48   33  -   81
Nevada........................   31   32  -   63

BYU’s women’s basketball team opens the 2008-09 season with two road games on Nov. 14 and 18. On Friday, Nov. 14, the Cougars (0-0) are at Portland State (0-0), in a 7 p.m. tip. Tues., Nov. 18, the squad travels to Reno to play at Nevada (0-0). That game begins at 7 p.m.

Game Information

When: 11/14/08 At: Portland St. Tip: 7 p.m. Arena: Peter Stott Ctr.

When: 11/18/08 At: Nevada Tip: 7 p.m. Arena: Lawlor Event Ctr.

Broadcast Plans

Internet: Audio streaming is available. The game at Portland St., will air in progress at the conclusion of the men’s game. The contest at Nevada will air delayed in its entirety after the men’s game. A link is available by going to http://www.byucougars.com/basketball_w/

Stats: Live stats through GameTracker are available for both games. A link is available by logging on to the BYU women’s basketball home page at http://www.byucougars.com/basketball_w/

BYU Probable Starters

No. Name Pos. Ht. Yr. PPG RPG

03 Jazmine Foreman G 5-5 So 1.8 1.0

22 Mindy Nielson G 5-10 So 7.3 3.0

32 Shawnee Slade F 5-11 Sr 7.7 5.5

45 Keilani Moeaki F 6-2 So 3.7 3.0

54 Cassie King C 6-3 Sr 4.7 2.8

Off the Bench

No. Name Pos. Ht. Yr. PPG RPG

23 Coriann Wood F 6-1 So 3.4 2.2

14 Sarah Hostetter G/F 5-11 Sr 2.3 0.4

13 Jaime Judkins G 5-6 Jr 0.7 0.5

55 Megan Marks F 6-3 So 0.6 1.0

21 Stephanie Buhler F 6-0 Fr (RS)

01 Jenteal Jackson G 5-7 Fr

10 Alexis Kaufusi F 6-1 Fr

24 Dani Peterson F 6-1 Fr

35 Kristen Riley C 6-3 Fr

Team Summary for 2008-09

The Cougars return 12 letterwinners and two starters.

-- Three seniors: Shawnee Slade, Cassie King and Sarah Red Hostetter. Slade, who started in every game last year, was second on the team in both scoring and rebounding averaging 7.4 points and 5.5 rebounds per game. King, a 6-3 center played in all games with an average of 4.7 points and 2.7 boards per contest. Red-Hostetter played in 21 games last year and averaged 2.7 points per game.

-- Key returners include Mindy Nielson and Haley Hall. Nielson started in 19 games last year and averaged 7.3 points, 2.9 rebounds, and led the team in assists with a total of 80 for an 2.8 average. Point-guard Haley Hall played in seven games during the 2006-07 season before an ACL injury ended the season. After a year of rehabilitation on the knee, Hall was set to return to her point-guard spot in 2007-08, but reinjured the same knee and did not play last year.

-- Jaime Judkins is the lone junior on the squad. She will be relied on to continue her hard working attitude and strong play this year.

-- Also back are four additional sophomores: Jazmine Foreman, Megan Marks, Keilani Moeaki and Coriann Wood. The four return after playing significant minutes as freshmen and learning to compete at the college level.

-- The six newcomers include Stephanie Buhler, a 6-0 freshman forward who redshirted last season.

-- 2008-09 Freshman Class:

Jenteal Jackson, a 5-7 guard from Salt Lake City and Skyline HS

Alexis Kaufusi, a 6-1 forward from Provo and Timpview HS

Dani Peterson, a 6-1 forward from Salt Lake City and Skyline HS

Kristen Riley, a 6-3 forward from San Clemente, CA and San Clemente HS. Riley’s older sister Lauren played four seasons with the BYU program, graduating in 2008.

Last Game

The Cougars opened the 2008-09 campaign on the road playing at Portland St., on Friday, Nov. 14. Despite having three players in double digit scoring, BYU’s comeback in the final minutes of the contest were not enough as they fell to the Vikings 73-64. Shawnee Slade led all scores with 15 points, followed by 12 from Jazmine Foreman and 11 from Haley Hall.

The Cougars shot 36 percent from the field and 70 percent from the free throw line. Sophomore forward Keilani Moeaki grabbed a team-high seven boards on the night.

Injury Report

Near the conclusion of the game at Portland, BYU's sophomore point-guard Haley Hall suffered a season ending injury to her right knee. She has a torn ACL. Hall has had two other ACL injuries both on her left knee prior to the 2008-09 season.

This Week’s Cougar Opponents

Portland State (Nov. 14, 2008) in Portland, OR

The Portland State Vikings return 11 letterwinners and four starters from last year’s team that compiled a 22-9 record and finished tied for third in the Big Sky Conference. Senior Kelsey Kahle, a 5-10 guard is one of two top returners for Portland State. She averaged a team high 14.9 points and 7.6 rebounds per game. Junior Guard Claire Faucher followed averaging 13.6 points and grabbing 5.3 boards per contest. At the end of last season, the Vikings were averaging 75.5 points per game while holding opponents to 68.4 points. Coach Sherri Murrell is in her second season with Portland State. Friday’s game will the season opener for both teams.

Stat Comparison

Category BYU PSU* (2007-08 stats)

Points: 53.7 75.5

FG: .384 .441

3FG: .301 .352

FT: .648 .724

Reb: 38.0 38.1

Series Information

Record: BYU leads the series 3-0.

Last Meeting: Jan. 8, 2005. The game was played in Provo where the Cougars grabbed the 77-50 victory.

The last time the contest was held in Portland was on Jan. 10, 2004. In that game, BYU picked up the 82-60 win. Coach Judkins is 2-0 versus Portland State.

Nevada (Nov. 18, 2008) in Reno, NV

The Wolf Pack opens their season on Nov. 16 at Cal before hosting the Cougars on Nov. 18. Nevada returns 10 letterwinners and four letterwinners from last year’s team that tallied an 18-12 record and finished in fourth place in the WAC standings. The team’s leading scorer is back for her final season for the Wolf Pack. Dellena Criner, a 5-7 guard, led the team in scoring with 16.1 points and 3.5 rebounds per game. Another senior on the team, Brandi Jones averaged 8.9 points and grabbed 5.0 boards per game. During the 2007-08 season Nevada averaged 68.2 points per game and held opponents to 65.4 points. This is coach Jane Albright’s first season with the Wolf Pack.

Stat Comparison

Category BYU NEV* (2007-08 stats)

Points: 53.7 68.2

FG: .384 .400

3FG: .301 .307

FT: .648 .692

Reb: 38.0 35.6

Series Information

Record: BYU leads the series 3-0

Last Meeting: Nov. 19, 2004 in Provo. The Cougars picked up the 81-64 win. The last time the two teams met in Reno was on Dec. 2, 2003. In that matchup, BYU also picked up the win an 81-64 victory. Coach Judkins has 2-0 record against Nevada.

What’s Next

After playing the first two games of the year on the road, the Cougar team plays its next three at home. Pac-10 foe Oregon plays at the Marriott Center on Fri., Nov. 21, 2008 at 3:30 p.m. The nation’s no 1 ranked women’s basketball team, Connecticut makes its first ever trip to Provo and the Marriott Center on Tues., Nov. 25. The Huskies game tips off at 7 p.m. Finally, on Fri., Nov. 28, BYU hosts instate foe Southern Utah. That contest is set to begin at 7 p.m.