On Monday, Ronjanae DeGray said she knew nothing about Gonzaga.
UALR's senior forward, who is soon to embark on her second consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance, and the Trojans are fairly unfamiliar with Gonzaga which is located in Spokane, Wash.
Up next
UALR women vs. Gonzaga
WHEN 2:30 p.m. Central, Saturday
WHERE Gill Coliseum, Corvallis, Ore.
RECORDS UALR 21-10; Gonzaga 28-4
SERIES First meeting
RADIO KARN 920-AM, Little Rock
TELEVISION ESPN2
The two schools have two common opponents from the regular season: Missouri State and Western Kentucky.
Gonzaga (28-4) won both games. UALR (21-10) lost both.
Other than that, there are few connections between the No. 5 seeded Bulldogs and the 12th-seeded Trojans, who will meet for the first time ever Saturday at 2:30 p.m. Central at Oregon State's Gill Coliseum in Corvallis, Ore. The game will be broadcast on ESPN2.
"We don't know much about them," Gonzaga Coach Lisa Fortier said Monday.
If the Bulldogs know anything about UALR, it's the Trojans are an established program and that this will be their sixth NCAA Tournament appearance since 2010.
"I know that they have been playing pretty well," said Gonzaga senior forward Zykera Rice. "I know they went on a nice run and that they've won their conference and that they've been to the tournament multiple times. So this is not new for them."
Gonzaga's meeting with UALR will be the Bulldogs' first game against any current Sun Belt Conference member.
So what is there to know about the Bulldogs prior to the first round of the NCAA Tournament?
The Bulldogs -- who climbed to No. 12 in The Associated Press poll on March 11, their highest ranking in program history -- lost 82-68 to BYU in the West Coast Conference Tournament Championship Game on March 12.
More importantly, as it pertains to UALR, Gonzaga has some pains.
Senior starting point guard Laura Stockton and sophomore reserve Jill Townsend each suffered leg injuries in Gonzaga's 78-77 double-overtime semifinal tournament victory against Saint Mary's College on March 11.
Neither are expected to play against the Trojans on Saturday.
"This will be the first time this year, I guess beside the BYU game, where we've had a shorter roster," Fortier said.
In 31 games with no starts, Townsend averaged 9.4 points per game and was the Bulldogs' second-leading scorer.
Stockton, the daughter of Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame point guard John Stockton, averaged 9.8 points and 4.7 assists in 17 West Coast Conference games. Stockton started in all 30 of the games she played this season.
Rice, a 6-1 forward, leads all Bulldogs with 14.8 points per game. Rice, Stockton and redshirt senior, 6-0 guard Chandler Smith -- who finished the season averaging 9.2 points and 5.1 rebounds and led the Bulldogs with 28.6 minutes played -- were recently named to the first-team All-West Coast.
Rice is the primary scoring threat among a towering bunch of Gonzaga forwards, many of which are taller than DeGray, who is 6-0 and usually defends the tallest opposing player.
Sophomores LeeAnne Wirth, a starter, and her twin sister, Jenn Wirth, a reserve, are each 6-3. LeeAnne Wirth is averaging 4.4 rebounds in 23.1 minutes per game. Jenn Wirth, in 20.9 minutes, is averaging 8.4 points and 5.3 rebounds.
Junior guard Katie Campbell led the West Coast in three-point field goal percentage at 45.0 percent (58-129).
The Bulldogs led the West Coast in scoring defense, allowing a league-low 57.3 points per game, and scoring margin at plus-16.5.
Sports on 03/20/2019