Bearcats Open Jamelle Elliott Era vs. Furman

Nov. 14, 2009

BEARCATS OPEN Jamelle Elliott ERA AGAINST FURMAN
The University of Cincinnati women's basketball team opens the 2009-10 season on Nov. 15, 2009 against Furman (0-1). The game marks the first regular season contest for head coach Jamelle Elliott, who spent the last 16 seasons at Connecticut, first as a player and then as an assistant coach. The Bearcats and Paladins will tip off at 7 p.m. in Fifth Third Arena.

THE SERIES
This is the first meeting between the Bearcats and Paladins.

THE COACH
Jamelle Elliott enters her first season as a head coach, taking over the Cincinnati program after 12 years as an assistant coach at Connecticut, her alma mater. She was a six-time national champion with the Huskies, including helping UConn to its first championship as a student-athlete in 1995. One of the most accomplished players in the distinguished history of the Connecticut program, Elliott finished her career ranked No. 2 among UConn's all-time rebounding leaders (1,054), No. 5 in BIG EAST career rebounding (558), and No. 11 in UConn career scoring (1,387).

• Senior guard Kahla Roudebush, who led the Bearcats in scoring last season with 16.3 points per game, returns as UC's 19th-leading scorer. She is fifth in UC career three-point field goals, fifth in three-opoint field goal attempts, and second in three-point field goal percentage.
• UC finished the 2008-09 season with a 14-17 overall mark and a 3-13 BIG EAST record.
• UC won its first BIG EAST Tournament game, topping Marquette, 60-54 in overtime in the first round. UC was just the second No. 16 seed to win in a postseason tournament (men's or women's). No. 16 Harvard upset No. 1 seed Stanford in the 1998 Women's NCAA Tournament.
• The Bearcats welcome back Carla Jacobs, who missed all of the 2008-09 season. Jamelle Elliott will walk the sidelines as a head coach for the first time in her career tonight. She spent 12 seasons as an assistant coach at Connecticut under legendary head coach Geno Auriemma.

EXHIBITION ACTION

• Shareese Ulis scored 20 points and added five assists in her Division I debut, leading the University of Cincinnati women's basketball team to a 72-36 exhibition win against Kentucky Wesleyan on Nov. 9 in Fifth Third Arena.
• Ulis, a junior point guard who transferred from Trinity Valley Community College in Texas, shot 6-of-8 from the floor, including 3-of-3 from beyond the three-point arc and 5-of-5 from the free throw line. She also grabbed three rebounds in a team-high 34 minutes of action.
• Nine Bearcats scored, with Ulis being joined in double figures by Kahla Roudebush (12) and Michelle Jones (10). Shanasa Sanders grabbed a game-high nine rebounds to help UC to a 48-26 advantage on the glass.
• Roudebush was honored prior to the game for becoming the 23rd player in UC history to reach the 1,000-point plateau. The senior guard accomplished the feat in UC's final regular-season game of the 2008-09 season. Elliott presented Roudebush with a commemorative ball in a pre-game ceremony.

BIG EAST HONORS

• Senior Kahla Roudebush was named to the preseason all-BIG EAST team prior to the 2009-10 season.
• Following the 2008-09 season, Roudebush earned second-team all-BIG EAST honors and Shanasa Sanders was named to the league's all-Freshman team. Jill Stephens was named the BIG EAST Scholar Athlete of the Year for 2008-09.

ROUDEBUSH CRASHING RECORD BOOKS

• Senior sharpshooter Kahla Roudebush has made her mark on the UC record books during her career with her three-point shooting.
• Roudebush is second in school history in three-point precentage, fifth in three-pointers, and fifth in three-point attempts.
• She also ranks in the Top 10 in career free throw percentage.
• Roudebush became the 23rd player in school history to score 1,000 career points and is currently 19th on the school's scoring list.
• She has put her name in the single season record books in each of the last two seasons. She is in the Top 10 in minutes played (1,095, 2008-09), three-point field goals (70, 2008-09; 66, 2007-08), three-point field goal attempts (177, 2008-09), three-point field goal percentage (.398, 2007-08; .395, 2008-09).
• Last season, Roudebush averaged 38.5 minutes per contest, which led the BIG EAST and ranked No. 8 in the nation.
• Roudebush missed the bulk of the 2006-07 season after shoulder and knee injuries.

GUESS WHO'S BACK

• Junior Carla Jacobs, that's who.
• Jacobs was a two-year starter before missing the entire 2008-09 season.
• She is a 8.6 point per game scorer and averaged 4.2 assists per contest during her first two seasons.
• The redshirt junior is expected to start at guard for the Bearcats this season.

LITTLE BIT OF OLD, LITTLE BIT OF NEW

• The Bearcats return just two starters from a season ago, but welcome back Carla Jacobs, a starter in her freshman and sophomore seasons before missing the 2008-09 campaign.
• Five newcomers join the Bearcats this season. Vanderbilt transfer Chanel Chisholm will sit out the 2009-10 season due to NCAA transfer guidelines. Junior college transfer Shareese Ulis is joined by freshmen Elese Daniel, Daress McClung, and Bryonna Snow to form Jamelle Elliott's first class.

BEARCATS PICKED 16TH IN BIG EAST

• Cincinnati was picked by the league's coaches to finish 16th in the BIG EAST in 2009-10.