Louisiana Tech looking to bounce back against Arkansas State

[weunice]

November 25, 2002

Louisiana Tech coach Kurt Budke knew his team could have trouble on the road early in the season.

Now, he hopes his 15th-ranked Lady Techsters have put it behind them.

After losing their season opener, the Lady Techsters (1-1) look to bounce back when they visit Arkansas State on Monday.

The Lady Techsters were feeling good after beating then-No. 7 Texas Tech on Nov. 10. Then they went on the road and fell to Western Kentucky 71-57 on Saturday.

``We knew there would be bumps along the way,'' Budke said. ``The win over Texas Tech made everyone think that everything was perfect. We will have a lot of bumps unless we learn from tonight.''

Louisiana Tech shot just 31 percent (21-of-67), including 3-of-23 from 3-point range.

Foul trouble also hampered the Lady Techsters, as starting guards Erica Smith and Amber Obaze were both forced to spend considerable time on the bench.

``We've said all along that we can't afford to get into foul trouble,'' Budke said. ``We look up in the first half and both Amber and Erica are sitting on the bench with three fouls each. Our freshmen gave it their best, but this was a hostile environment.''

Through two games, senior center Cheryl Ford leads the Lady Techsters with 15 points and 11 rebounds per game.

Arkansas State opened its season on Friday with an 81-64 win over Maryland-Eastern Shore.

Senior guard Casie Lowman led the Lady Indians with a career-high 17 points.

``Casie is so much stronger than she was in the past,'' Arkansas State coach Brian Boyer said. ``I thought she did a good job of attacking the basket.''

Senior forward Jolie McKeirnan, who had 12 points and 11 rebounds Friday, averaged 13.4 points and 9.6 rebounds last season. She was the only underclassman named All-Sun Belt Conference last season.

[weunice]

My favorite:

After losing their season opener, the Lady Techsters (1-1) look to bounce back when they visit Arkansas State on Monday.

The Lady Techsters were feeling good after beating then-No. 7 Texas Tech on Nov. 10. Then they went on the road and fell to Western Kentucky 71-57 on Saturday.

...

Did we lose the season opener or not?

[sportdawg]

I think they are talking about losing the road season-opener. The first game was neutral site, therefore it didn't count as a road game. The writer could have done a better job, just like I could've done a better job with this post.

[ARKDAWG02]

Anyone got a score on the Techster game? Ought to be about over by now.