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Dec. 14, 2009

AUBURN - Following a 10-day break for final exams, the Auburn women's basketball team (6-3) will return to action at 6 p.m., Tuesday, hosting defending Big South Conference champion Liberty (6-1) at Beard-Eaves-Memorial Coliseum. The game is the final home game of 2009 for the Tigers as Auburn closes out the calendar year on the road.

The Tigers have won three games in a row heading into the showdown with Liberty. Auburn downed George Washington, 62-43, its last time out and was led by Alli Smalley with 19 points, nine rebounds and six assists. KeKe Carrier added 17 points and five rebounds while Blanche Alverson scored a season-high 14 points off the bench.

After cramming nine games into the first three weeks of the season, Auburn head coach Nell Fortner was happy to get some time off for her team.

"It has been a good break. It has allowed us to give the kids a few extra days off and has really allowed us to work on a few things," said Fortner. "I believe we have become a better team during these last few days and that feels good as a coach, I just hope it carries over to a game."

With everyone having time to get healed up and refreshed, Fortner is excited to get back out on the court.

"It is going to be 10 days since we last played when we play Liberty on Tuesday, but we are looking forward to competing against someone else again," said Fortner. "I feel really good about the progress we have made."

The Flames enter the game with a 6-1 and are coming off an 86-45 win over Division II member Glenville State their last time out. The lone loss came in a 60-50 loss to James Madison. Liberty has won the Big South conference championship in 12 of the past 13 years and has made the NCAA Tournament each of those 12 times, advancing to the "Sweet 16" in 1999 and 2005.

"Liberty is a really good team. They are well-coached and they are experienced as far as playing in big-time games by going to the NCAA Tournament every year," said Fortner. "They are very good, have great fundamentals, are very smart and run some great things offensively. We went up there and played them last year were able to sneak out of there with a win, I'm glad we have them at home this year."

Liberty returns seven letterwinners and two starters from last year's team that went 24-9, advancing to the NCAA Tournament after running up a 15-1 mark in Big South Conference play, winning the automatic bid. The Flames lost to Louisville, 62-42, in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.

Leading the Flames this season is redshirt freshman Devon Brown with 19.3 points per game and 9.1 rebounds. Also back are Kylee Beecher, Avery Warley and Amber Mays, all players who started against Auburn last season. Mays has started all seven games and averages 9.4 points and 4.0 assists per game. Warley has started all season and is third on the team in scoring with 8.3 points, and second in rebounding with 8.1 boards per night. Beecher is right behind Warley with 7.4 points and 3.9 rebounds.

As a team, Liberty is averaging 67.9 points per game and averages winning by 21.7 points. The Flames pull down 43.3 boards per night, tallying 15.0 more than their opponents. LU picks up 11.1 steals per game, but is also turnover prone with 21.0 per outing.

The Flames shoot 48.8 percent from the field and 32.1 percent from beyond the arc, but have only made 17 treys this season. The Flames are 62.5 percent from the line, knocking down 90-of-144 attempts.

Nearly a third of the way into the season and heading into another tough opponent, Fortner is happy with how her team has progressed so far.

"The season goes by so quick and that is the amazing thing about a basketball season, it is here and gone before you know it," said Fortner. "I feel like this team has really progressed and I think our young players are coming along and have been producing well for us. I just feel good about where we are right now."

Fortner also pointed out the production senior KeKe Carrier has given the team. After not starting a game in nearly two years, Carrier moved into the lineup in the third game of the season and has been a force for the Tigers in the post.

"I feel good about how KeKe Carrier is playing, she is playing with so much confidence and it is nice to have her presence on the floor," said Fortner. "Not many people have an answer for KeKe and it is nice to have that."

Tickets are still available for Tuesday's game. The game is also "Toys for Tots" night with fans receiving free admission with the donation of a new, unwrapped toy. Fans can also visit and take pictures with Aubie Claus at the game.

For fans that cannot make it to the game GameTracker will be available at www.AuburnTigers.com. Tiger fans can listen to the game live on WMXA 97.7 FM with play-by-play from Andy Burcham and color commentary from Arnika Edwards. Audio and video Webcasts will also be available at www.AuburnTigers.com.

Auburn Women's Basketball Quick Hitters
• Auburn is coming off a 62-43 win over George Washington; Liberty is coming off an 86-45 win over D-II Glenville State
• AU is not ranked; Libert is receiving votes in ESPN/USA Today Coaches' top-25 poll
• KeKe Carrier had Auburn's first double-double of the season (17 pts.-12 rebs.) against Florida A&M; she followed up with her second consecutive double-double against North Carolina A&T with career highs of 28 points and 13 rebounds
• The Tigers are beginning their final season in Beard-Eaves-Memorial Coliseum before moving to the new Auburn Arena
• As a team, Auburn ranks 27th in the country in 3-point field goal percentage (.385) and blocked shots per game (5.2)
• The Tigers are 2nd in the SEC in 3-point field goal percentage, 3rd in blocked shots and 2nd in offensive rebounds (16.6)
• Auburn owns a 1-0 all-time lead in the series with Liberty after last year's 64-53 win (Dec. 7, 2008)
• The Tigers were down by one at the half against Liberty and out-scored the Flames 32-20 in the second half to win
• Three active Tigers (Smalley, Hilliard, Carrier) played at Liberty last year; Smalley had 11 points, four rebounds and five assists; Hilliard had a rebound and Carrier had one point and three rebounds
• Four active Flames (Beecher, Warley, Mays and Dale) played against Auburn last season; Beecher had four points and nine rebounds, Warley had four points and seven rebounds, Mays had 13 points, three rebounds and four steals and Dale had six points and four rebounds
• Auburn holds a 16-7 all-time record against teams from the state of Virginia
• Auburn is 4-3 all-time on Dec. 15; Nell Fortner is 0-1
• The Tigers are 188-48 all-time in the month of December, 29-6 under Fortner
• Auburn owns a 7-0 all-time record against current members of the Big South Conference
• AU has a 66-18 non-conference record under Nell Fortner
• Since Jan. 5, 1992, Auburn has compiled a 124-6 record against non-conference opponents at home
• Nicolle Thomas scored 27 points against Florida State, the highest point output for an Auburn freshman since 1987
• The Tigers tied the Auburn single-game blocks record against Alabama A&M with 17
• Freshman Morgan Toles and sophomores Chantel Hilliard and Parrisha Simmons earned their first career starts in the season-opener against Troy; freshman Nicolle Thomas earned her first career start against Alabama A&M
• Morgan Toles and Nicolle Thomas started against Alabama A&M, marking the first time for Auburn to have multiple freshmen starters since March 3, 2006 against Tennessee in the SEC Tournament (Boddie, Bonner, Carrier)
• KeKe Carrier, Auburn's lone senior, started against Alabama A&M - her first since Feb. 11, 2007
• Auburn was picked eighth in the SEC Preseason Media and Coaches' polls, LSU (media) and Tennessee (coaches) were picked to win the league this season
• Alli Smalley was picked the the Coaches' Preseason All-SEC Second Team
• Nell Fortner is beginning her sixth season at Auburn, marking her longest tenure at any job
• The Tigers welcome four newcomers: Blanche Alverson, Morgan Toles, Nicolle Thomas, Pascale West
• Auburn begins the season with 6-7 KeKe Carrier and 6-8 Pascale West, two of the three tallest players in the SEC
• AU is without Reneisha Hobbs and Morgan Jennings after suffering ACL injuries, leaving the Tigers with a roster of nine
• Auburn will be a first- and second-round host of the 2011 NCAA Tournament in the new Auburn Arena

GAME NOTES

LIBERTY MEDIA RELATIONS
For information on the Liberty Flames women's basketball team, contact Paul Carmany in the media relations office. His number is 434.221.5575 and his email is pjcarmany@liberty.edu. For more information, go to www.LibertyFlames.com.

RANKINGS
Auburn is not ranked. Liberty is receiving votes in the ESPN/USA Today Coaches' poll.

NEXT UP FOR THE TIGERS
Auburn will travel to Mobile, Ala., on Sunday for a 2 p.m. game at South Alabama. It is the Tigers' last game prior to the Holiday Break.

QUICK HITS
Auburn is in its 39th season of women's basketball and sports an all-time record of 771-332... AU has made 18 NCAA Tournament appearances, two WNIT appearances and three Final Fours in the program's history... Head Coach Nell Fortner is in her sixth season at Auburn with a 124-71 career record and a 107-60 record on the Plains... The Tigers are coming off a 30-4 season in 2008-09 with their first SEC title in 20 years and its second NCAA Tournament appearance in as many seasons.

THE SERIES
Auburn holds a 1-0 series lead over Liberty after defeating the Flames, 64-53, last season in the inaugural meeting of the series. Tuesday's game will mark the first meeting between the teams in Auburn.

SCOUTING AUBURN
Nearly a third of the way through the regular season, Auburn is led by junior Alli Smalley, the lone starter from last year's SEC Championship team, with 16.7 points per game. She leads a pack of three Tigers in double figures as senior KeKe Carrier trails with 12.6 points per game and freshman Nicolle Thomas comes in with 11.3 points.

Carrier is having the best season of her career as she is also averaging 6.4 rebounds and 2.0 blocks per game. She has also tallied a pair of double-doubles on the season, including career highs of 28 points and 13 rebounds at North Carolina A&T.

Thomas is the highlight of the freshman class as she has stepped up into a starting role, becoming one of Auburn's top offensive threats. She put up 27 points earlier this season against Florida State, marking the most points scored by an Auburn freshman in 22 years.

Auburn is 6-3 on the season with all three losses coming to teams that are either nationally-ranked or receiving votes in the polls. Texas A&M and Florida State are both top-15 teams while Temple is receiving votes.

As a team, Auburn is shooting 43.0 percent from the field, including a 38.5 percent clip from 3-point land. Smalley, Thomas and freshman Blanche Alverson have combined for Auburn's 3-point triple threat, accounting for all 47 treys hit by the Tigers this season.

Auburn has struggled at the line, hitting just 56.8 percent, but are out-rebounding their opponents by 2.1 pergame.

SCOUTING LIBERTY
Liberty returns seven letterwinners and two starters from last year's team that went 24-9, advancing to the NCAA Tournament after running up a 15-1 mark in Big South Conference play, winning the automatc bid. The Flames lost to Louisville, 62-42, in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.

Leading the Flames this season is redshirt freshman Devon Brown with 19.3 points per game and 9.1 rebounds. Also back are Kylee Beecher, Avery Warley and Amber Mays, all players who started against Auburn last season. Mays has started all seven games and averages 9.4 points and 4.0 assists per game. Warley has started all season and is third on the team in scoring with 8.3 points, and second in rebounding with 8.1 boards per night. Beecher is right behind Warley with 7.4 points and 3.9 rebounds.

The Flames enter the game with a 6-1 record with the lone loss coming on Dec. 1 in a 60-50 decision against James Madison. Liberty rebounded in its next game for an 86-45 win over Division II member Glenville State.

As a team, Liberty is averaging 67.9 points per game and averages winning by 21.7 points. The Flames pull down 43.3 boards per night, tallying 15.0 more than their opponents. LU picks up 11.1 steals per game, but is also turnover prone with 21.0 per outing.

The Flames shoot 48.8 percent from the field and 32.1 percent from beyond the arc, but have only made 17 treys this season. The Flames are 62.5 percent from the line, knocking down 90-of-144 attempts.

LAST TIME OUT FOR AUBURN
The Auburn women's basketball team (6-3) earned a 62-43 win over non-conference rival George Washington (2-5) Dec. 5 at Beard-Eaves Memorial Coliseum. The Tigers were led by junior Alli Smalley, who collected 19 points, and Parrisha Simmons, who brought down a career-high 12 rebounds.

With the victory, Auburn earned its third consecutive win, the longest streak of the season thus far, while George Washington took its fifth straight loss.

Smalley finished the game with nine rebounds and six assists, tying career-highs for the Arab, Ala. native. She also collected a season-high three steals in the game.

Auburn led by as 17 in the first half, but saw the lead cut down to 10 early in the second half on a 13-0 GW run. Auburn re-gained control of the game and built the lead back up to 21 points with 1:31 left, cruising to the 19-point win.

Blanche Alverson finished the game with 14 points, setting a career-high for the Andalusia, Ala. native. She also totaled four rebounds, all of which came in the second half.

For the game, the Tigers went 25-for-55 from the field, including 4-for-13 from behind the arc.

The Colonials were led in scoring by Tiana Myers, who tallied 15 points, 13 of which came in the second half. Shi-Heria Shipp and Megan Nipe followed with 10 points each in the loss. Brooke Wilson led the team with eight rebounds.

LAST TIME OUT FOR LIBERTY
The Flames shot 61.4 percent from the field, 35-of-57, including a 75 percent clip in the second half to down Division II member Glenville State, 86-45, on Dec. 5 in Lynchburg, Va.

Devon Brown led Liberty with 20 points and nine rebounds while Kylee Beecher added 14 points and six rebounds. Jelena Antic added a double-double off the bench with 12 points and a team-high 10 rebounds.

The Flames led 39-23 at halftime and out-scored Glenville State 47-22 in the second period for the win. Liberty forced 20 turnovers, collecting 11 steals, but turned the ball over 33 times themselves. LU out-rebounded Glenville State, 67-29, in the game.

LAST TIME VS. LIBERTY
Auburn held Liberty to 20 points in the second half and forced 23 Flame turnovers in the game as the 14th-ranked Tigers came from behind for a 64-53 win in Lynchburg, Va. on Dec. 7, 2008.

Senior Sherell Hobbs scored 15 points in the second-half comeback to lead the Tigers with 20 points. She led a pack of three Tigers in double figures as DeWanna Bonner tallied 17 and Alli Smalley chipped in 11. Senior point guard Whitney Boddie picked up nine points and seven rebounds along with a 10-assist effort.

Senior Moriah Frazee led Liberty with 17 points and seven rebounds while guard Amber Mays tallied 13 points and four steals. Rachel Hammond rounded out the double-digit scorers for the Flames with 10 points and seven rebounds.

Down by a point at the half, the teams traded the lead until Auburn went ahead 43-41 on a Hobbs layup with 10:43 left in the game. From there, Auburn held the Flames scoreless for the next five minutes, building a nine-point lead during that stretch.

The Flames came back and cut the lead to six, but a Hobbs three-pointer with 2:38 remaining sealed the win. From that point, Liberty went to fouling on each possession, sending Auburn to the line 12 times in the final minute and a half. The Tigers would go on to make nine of their attempts for the final 64-53 win.

SECOND-HALF COMEBACK
After trailing by one point at Liberty last season, Auburn out-scored the Flames 32-20 in the second half to pick up the double-digit win. KeKe Carrier was the difference-maker, though her stat line of one point and three rebounds did not show it. She was a force in the lane, keeping Liberty's larger post players from having an effect on the game.

AGAINST THE BIG SOUTH CONFERENCE
Auburn holds a 7-0 record all-time against members of the Big South Conference, holding three wins each over Charleston Southern and North Carolina-Asheville, and one over Liberty. The last meeting against a Big South team came in last year's 64-53 win over Liberty.

Nell Fortner VS. CAREY GREEN
This will be the second meeting between Auburn head coach Nell Fortner and Liberty's Carey Green with Fortner holding the 1-0 advantage.

Fortner is in her sixth season at Auburn and holds a 107-60 record on The Plains. Green is in his 11th season at Liberty as head coach and holds a 243-78 record.

ON THIS DATE. . .
Auburn is 4-3 all-time when playing on Dec. 15. The last game for the Tigers on Dec. 15 came in 2007 when the Tigers lost at Texas A&M, 60-62, in 2007. The last win came in 2002 as Auburn downed Texas A&M, 77-39. Nell Fortner is 0-1 as Auburn's coach on Dec. 15.

AGAINST THE STATE OF VIRGINIA
Auburn holds a 16-7 all-time record against teams from the state of Virginia. The Tigers are on a six-game winning streak against teams from Virginia and are un-defeated this decade against the state, having not lost since a 76-61 loss at Virginia Tech in the 1999 NCAA Tournament. The Hokies are Auburn's most frequent opponent from Virginia as the team's have met six times all-time.

SUPER FRESHMAN
Freshman Nicolle Thomas did against Florida State what no Auburn freshman has done in a long time. The Moultrie, Ga., native scored 27 points against the 12th-ranked Seminoles, the highest single-game scoring output by an Auburn freshman since Linda Godby scored 30 against Mercer on Feb. 23, 1987.

DOUBLE DOWN
Senior KeKe Carrier tallied Auburn's first double-double of the season against Florida A&M in the 2009 Seminole Classic. The Lake Charles, La., native put up a season-high 17 points while coming one short of her career high with 12 rebounds.

She followed up in the very next game with another, tallying career-highs of 28 points and 13 rebounds in Auburn's 76-63 win at North Carolina A&T.

STARTING FRESHMEN
In the Nov. 19 win over Alabama A&M, Nicolle Thomas made her first career appearance in the starting lineup, joining fellow freshman Morgan Toles. With two freshmen starting, it marked the first time for Auburn to have multiple freshmen in the starting lineup since March 3, 2006 when freshmen Whitney Boddie, DeWanna Bonner and KeKe Carrier started in the SEC Tournament against Tennessee.

BACK IN THE LINEUP
KeKe Carrier, the lone senior on Auburn's roster this season, made her 24th career start on Nov. 19 against Alabama A&M. It marked the first time for Carrier to start a game at Auburn since Feb. 11, 2007 when she started at Vanderbilt.

HOME COOKIN'
Since a 77-70 loss to Virginia on Jan. 5, 1992, the Auburn Tigers have compiled a 124-6 record against non-conference opponents in Beard-Eaves-Memorial Coliseum. Overall, Auburn has a 343-66 record in its home facility for an .840 winning percentage.

62 AND COUNTING
Auburn junior guard Alli Smalley earned her first collegiate start on Dec. 29, 2007 at Saint Joseph's, the 14th game of her collegiate career, and has not left. Since then, Smalley has started in 62 consecutive games.

OUTSIDE THE LEAGUE
Nell Fortner has guided the Tigers to a 66-18 ledger in non-conference play. When playing in Beard-Eaves-Memorial Coliseum, Fortner's teams have posted a 27-4 mark. The only four non-conference losses in BEMC came from Xavier on Dec. 2, 2005 (58-60), No. 2 Duke on Dec. 31, 2004 (61-80), No. 20 George Washington on Jan. 3, 2008 (68-66) and No. 15 Texas A&M on Nov. 22, 2009 (79-59).

OFFENSE WINS GAMES
Auburn is 74-2 when scoring 70 or more points in the Nell Fortner era. The only times Auburn has lost when scoring at least 70 points was on Jan. 20, 2005 vs. No. 7 Tennessee, 71-81 and Feb. 19, 2009 at No. 18 Vanderbilt, 73-70. When scoring less than 70 points, Auburn is 32-58 during the Fortner era.

IN DECEMBER
Auburn is 188-48 all-time in the month of December, including a 29-6 mark under Nell Fortner (records begin in 1978-79 season, not all dates provided prior to or during that season).

STARTING EXPERIENCE
Only three active Auburn players, Alli Smalley, Jordan Greenleaf and KeKe Carrier, entered the 2009-10 season with experience as a starter. Smalley, a junior, has started in 62 of her 75 games as a Tiger, while Greenleaf has started in 68 of 79. Both have been fixtures in the starting lineup since their freshman seasons. Carrier, a senior, has started in 30 of 99 games at Auburn, mostly during her freshman and sophomore seasons.

Reneisha Hobbs and Morgan Jennings, who are both out with ACL injuries, also have starting experience. Hobbs started against UAB last season while Jennings started the first four games of the season in place of Whitney Boddie.

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