Feb. 18, 2003

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REDHAWKS FACE MAC'S TOP DEFENSE WEDNESDAY VERSUS CENTRAL MICHIGAN: Revived by a pair of tough road wins at Northern Illinois University and Bowling Green State University last week, Miami University's women's basketball team (12-10; 7-4 MAC) looks to keep its dreams of a Mid-American Conference East Division title alive Wednesday night when it faces a feisty Central Michigan University team (10-12; 4-7 MAC).

Armed with the MAC's top scoring defense-a unit that is surrendering just 58.2 points per outing-Central Michigan has already played the spoiler role against MAC East leader Kent State (65-58) this season and has won two of its last three games. The Chippewas' only loss to the MAC East thus far came in the form of a 53-49 overtime loss at Marshall on Feb. 1.

In her second year at CMU is Eileen Kleinfelter already has doubled last season's MAC win total with five league games remaining in the 2002-03 campaign. Senior Desiree Eidson leads the Chippewas, averaging 13.0 points and 6.5 rebounds per game. Freshman Erica Kuhl averages 9.3 points and team-highs of 2.9 assists and 2.0 steals an outing.

Despite starting three freshmen in Kuhl, Casey Manning and Lindsay Mecoli, CMU has demonstrated amazing discipline in averaging just 15.1 turnovers per game-the third-lowest total in the MAC. The Chippewas' offensive production has not been as impressive, however, ranking 12th in the league in scoring (58.4 ppg) and 13th in field goal percentage (.365). Defensively, the Chippewas have allowed onlytwo teams this season to score more than 70 points.

SERIES HISTORY: Miami and Central Michigan meet for the 44th time Wednesday night with Miami maintaining a 24-19 series advantage. CMU controlled the series during its first 10 seasons, but Miami has won 14 of the last 16 meetings. The RedHawks lead the series 12-7 at home but have been especially dominant over the past 11 years, winning the last eight Millett Hall meetings. Last season, Miami knocked off the Chippewas 64-57 in Mt. Pleasant, Mich. In the teams' last meeting in Oxford, Miami handled CMU 85-57.

THE LAST MEETING-Miami 64, CMU 57 (Feb. 16, 2002): Miami ended a 10-game road losing streak to the MAC's West Division, overcoming a halftime deficit on the way to a 64-57 defeat of Central Michigan. Neither offense was effective in the first half, and the score was just 27-22 in favor of the Chippewas at halftime. Miami, which shot 52 percent from the field in the second half, picked up steam in the final 20 minutes, building a nine-point advantage by the 14-minute mark. Aided by the 3-point shooting of Molly Munz, however, CMU charged back with a 9-0 run of its own and knotted the score at 54-54 with less than four minutes to play. Miami regained the lead with a Colleen Day free throw and put itself on top for good with a Beth Roederer 3-pointer. Heather Cusick led Miami with 24 points off 9-of-13 shooting.

MILLETT MAGIC: The magic of Miami's home court seems to be fading a bit this season. The RedHawks have won 19 of their last 26 contests in Millett Hall but are just 3-4 this season. Last year, Miami finished at 10-3 in Millett Hall overall and 6-2 in league play, finishing the season with seven consecutive home wins. The RedHawks are 32-11 (.744) at home over the past four seasons and had won 12 consecutive home games versus MAC East opponents until a Feb. 8 loss to Kent State. Miami will have to turn up the home court intensity, as it plays four of its final five contests at home.

NEXT UP: Miami travels to Kent State University and the M.A.C. Center, where it has not won a game since the 1992-93 campaign-a nine-game losing streak. At stake for the RedHawks could be a share of the MAC East lead. If both Miami and Kent State win Wednesday night, the RedHawks will enter the game trailing the Golden Flashes by one game in the East Division race. The game, which was moved to 4 p.m. to accommodate television, will be aired on FOX Sports Ohio. Miami, which is the only MAC East team to defeat Kent State in the last three seasons, has lost its last two to the Golden Flashes.

EAST ON THE RISE: After the MAC West Division dominated the East over the first month of the season, building an 18-5 advantage, the East Division has finally risen to the challenge. Keyed by a Miami win at Northern Illinois, a Marshall upset of Ball State and a Buffalo defeat of Western Michigan, the series is even at 5-5 over the last 10 meetings. Miami, which plays its last game against a MAC West foe Wednesday against Central Michigan, has a 3-3 mark against the West. A win over the Chippewas would give the RedHawks their first regular-season winning record versus the West since 1997-98.

FOLLOWING THROUGH: Under head coach Maria Fantanarosa, Miami has made a point of finishing strong. Over the four seasons leading up to this year, the RedHawks have posted a 24-13 (.649) record in the months of February and March. Though Miami is off to a very average 2-2 to start this February, recent trends indicate that it will get stronger. The RedHawks won seven straight before bowing out of the MAC Tournament last season, five straight before succumbing in the MAC semifinals in 2000-01 and three consecutive before losing in the MAC Quarterfinals in 1999-2000. Last season, Miami was 6-1 in February.

A FINE LINE: The difference between winning and losing has been a fine line indeed for Miami's 2002-03 women's basketball team. Through 22 games this season, 10 of Miami's games have been decided by five points or less and 14 have been decided by 10 points or fewer, with all 14 coming down to the final minute. The RedHawks have forged a 7-7 record in games decided by 10 or fewer points. Miami also has been working its share of overtime, posting a 2-2 record in games that have taken an extra period. Miami's four overtime games this season are a program single-season record. To fully illustrate just how fine the line has been, with a break or two in the closing minutes of those seven losses, the RedHawks could be 19-3 instead of 12-10.

THE RACE IS ON: With five regular-season contests remaining, Miami continues its quest for a first-ever MAC East Division title. The RedHawks, who trail Kent State by just one game in the standings, can put themselves in position to tie up the league standings by defeating Central Michigan Wednesday and winning at Kent State Sunday. Kent State, which travels to Marshall Wednesday night, hosts the RedHawks at 4 p.m. Sunday in a game that will be televised by Fox Sports Ohio. If Miami can win its last five games it can clinch a share of the MAC East title. Miami currently leads Buffalo by two games in the division standings and can clinch at least its fourth straight MAC East runner-up finish with three wins.

CUSICK BREAKS MIAMI SCORING RECORD: Entering Miami's Feb. 13 contest at Northern Illinois, Miami senior Heather Cusick needed just four points to surpass Monica Niemann (1991-95) as Miami's all-time scoring leader. Cusick, who scored the first four points of the game, broke the record at 18:07 in the first half, draining one of her trademark fallaway jumpshots with a hand in her face. Of 15 career categories tracked by the Miami Athletic Media Relations office, the senior now holds seven of the records and ranks among the Top 10 in three more categories.

BITTERSWEET DAY FOR LANCASTER: On a day in which junior Kim Lancaster became only the fourth player in the history of Miami's women's basketball program to reach 1,000 career points during her junior season, the Cincinnati native also suffered the low of a knee injury. Lancaster, who finished with nine points and eight rebounds, captured the record at 14:52 in the second half when she converted a three-point play that put Miami in the lead. She became the 14th overall Miami player to join the elite club and joined teammate Heather Cusick, Monica Niemann (1991-95) and Mary Ann Myers (1978-82) as the only four players to reach 1,000 prior to their senior season. Lancaster sprained her knee while battling for a loose ball with just 37 seconds remaining. She was unable to finish the game and is out indefinitely.

A GREAT DAY: Junior forward Colleen Day was key in Miami's wins at Northern Illinois and Bowling Green last week. The Independence, Ohio, native, who is averaging 10.3 points per game-the first RedHawks besides Heather Cusick to average in double digits in 12 games-averaged a team-high 19.0 points and 7.0 rebounds in the two wins. Day, who ranks ninth in the league in rebounding (6.7 rpg), can become the 14th RedHawk to amass 500 career rebounds Wednesday night with just two boards. With 703 career points, the junior is also on pace to become just the sixth Miami player to reach both 1,000 points and 500 rebounds in her career. Day also is leading the RedHawks from the free throw line, where she is hitting 85 percent of her efforts and has made her last 16 attempts.

TAKING ON THE WORLD: Though Miami's 5-6 non-conference record marked Miami's first sub .500 out-of-league record in four seasons, head coach Maria Fantanarosa stuck with her theory of using the non-conference schedule to prepare the team for league play. Seven of Miami's non-conference opponents rate among the top 126 of 324 NCAA D-I women's basketball programs, according to the Feb. 18 RPI.com rankings, while the average RPI of Miami's 11 out-of-conference foes is a solid 129.1. The average RPI of the 10 teams that have defeated the RedHawks this season is an even more impressive 90.8. Miami is ranked No. 141 in the RPI and No. 113 in the Sagarin ratings. Miami's strength of schedule ranks 118th in the Sagarin Ratings. A breakdown of Miami's opponents in the RPI and Sagarin ratings is in the right-hand column on this page.

CHARITY CASES: Miami has been taking better advantage of its trips to the charity strip as of late, raising its percentage above .700 for the first time since it was a dismal 4-of-13 from the line in its first game of the season. Over the last three games, the RedHawks have buried 48-of-60 free throw attempts (.800) to raise their season average to .701. Leading the way have been Colleen Day and Heather Cusick. Day was 14-of-14 over the stretch, while Cusick buried 10-of-11. Since the start of MAC play, in which the RedHawks are shooting .737 from the line, Miami has raised its free throw percentage by 36 percent. Miami's 2002-03 roster includes three of the top six RedHawks all-time in career free throw percentage: Cusick (4th-.801), Day (5th-.795) and Beth Roederer (6th-.780).

CUSICK AND THE MAC GREATS: Along with etching her name all over the Miami career record books, Heather Cusick also is starting to place her name throughout the Mid-American Conference record book. The senior's 1,631 career points rank 20th in MAC history, while her 219 3-point field goals and 558 assists rank fifth and 11th, respectively. Miami's point guard also has reached the MAC's Top 10 for career steals with 282. Cusick could become the first player in MAC history to amass 1,500 points, 500 assists, 400 rebounds, 300 steals and 200 3-point field goals. She's only the second MAC Player, joining former Toledo standout Kelly Savage (1985-89), to reach both 500 career assists and 200 career 3-point field goals.

STEADY AS THEY COME: When opposing coaches are scouting Miami, they do not have to wonder whether or not point guard Heather Cusick will be on the floor. Cusick, who has played in all 109 games of her collegiate career has started 106 consecutive contests. Opposing teams also can expect Cusick to show up on the stat sheet, where she has scored in double figures in 80 percent (87-of-109) of her career games and notched 31 outings of 20 points or more. Cusick also has dished an assist in 79 straight games and has only been held scoreless once in 109 contests. The senior has made a steal in 89 of the last 90 contests-a 78-game streak ended at TCU on Jan. 3.

CLUTCH PERFORMER: Miami senior Beth Roederer has demonstrated the poise of a true veteran during a recent string of tight games. In Miami's dramatic comeback defeat of Eastern Michigan, Roederer drained a backbreaking 24-foot 3-pointer in overtime to lift Miami to the win. The senior followed up with another clutch overtime trey at Ball State, but the five-point cushion it provided was not enough. On Feb. 13 Roederer hit a critical layup at Northern Illinois that put Miami in front, 61-60, with less than two minutes to play and later iced to free throws to put the game out of reach. Most recently, Roederer scored 14 second-half points in leading Miami to a come-from-behind win at Bowling Green.

BUTLER'S BLOCK PARTY: After averaging fewer than 10 blocks a season over her first three years in the Miami Red and White, senior center Jana Butler has emerged as a shot blocking threat during her senior season. Through 22 games, Butler already has swatted 20 shots, including four contests with three rejections each. The senior presently ranks 12th all-time at Miami with 49 career blocked shots.

JUST KOZ': After coming off the bench in 17 of Miami's first 18 games, junior Melanie Kozlowski has broken into Miami's starting lineup over the past four games. One of Miami's most dangerous 3-point threats, Kozlowski is one of just seven RedHawks to drain 100 3-point field goals in her career. The junior is averaging a steady 7.5 points per game and is second on the team with 29 3-point field goals.

ROADHAWKS: The road is becoming an increasingly friendly place for Miami, which actually has a better winning percentage on the road than at home. After a win at Michigan State during its opening weekend, the Red and White dropped five of its next six road games, including its worst losses of the season at TCU and Western Michigan. More recently, however, Miami has reeled off wins in five of its last six road games, including a current two-game winning streak. Miami, which plays 16 of its 27 games this season on the road, owns a 7-6 road record. Last season, Miami assembled an 8-7 record on the road-its first winning road mark since 1995-96.