Oct. 31, 2007

COACHES' LUNCHEON PHOTO GALLERY

HEAD COACH Larry Hunter QUOTES

HEAD COACH Kellie Harper QUOTES

MEN'S BASKETBALL NOTES:

Western Carolina vs. Milligan College: Although tonight's game will not count on official records, the Catamounts and Buffs have squared off seven previous times in the programs' recorded histories with Western leading the series, 6-1 ... the first time the two schools faced off on the hardwood was back in 1955, with the most recent coming back in the 2003-04 season, a 91-55 victory for the Catamounts in Cullowhee.

Western Picked Third in the SoCon's North Division: Western Carolina men's basketball was tabbed third in the North Division by the league's 11 head coaches, garnering 42 total points ... It is the highest preseason predictions for the Catamounts under the tutelage of head coach Larry Hunter ... WCU finished third in the North Division last season after playing for a share of first place midway through the conference slate.

A Look at the Rest of the League in Preseason Polls: UNC Greensboro, which posted a 16-14 record (12-6 in SoCon play) a year ago earned 10 of 11 first-place votes in the SoCon's North Division while defending league champion Davidson (29-5, 17-1) earned 10 first-place votes in the South Division to headline the SoCon Preseason Coaches' Poll ... Appalachian State (25-8, 15-3 in 2006-07), which set a school record for victories last season, earned one first-place vote and is picked to finish second in the North Division. Following the Spartans and Mountaineers are Western Carolina (11-20, 7-11), Chattanooga (15-18, 6-12) and Elon (7-23, 5-13) ... Georgia Southern (15-16, 7-11) is predicted to finish second in the South Division, followed by the College of Charleston, which earned one first-place vote and is picked for third just in front of Wofford (10-20, 5-13), Furman (15-16, 8-10) and The Citadel (7-23, 4-14).

Aldridge Tabbed Preseason All-SoCon: After a one-year hiatus from having anyone land on the preseason All-SoCon team, sophomore standout Nick Aldridge was tabbed by the league's coaches. One of the top freshmen in the conference a year ago, Aldridge ranked third in the SoCon in scoring with a team-leading 18.3 points per game average. He posted double-digit scoring in 27 of the 30 games with six double-doubles, closing the year with 20-consecutive, double-figure performances and twice tallying 30 points in a game. Aldridge additionally ranked sixth in rebounding (7.0 rpg), fifth in offensive rebounds (2.57 rpg), seventh in defensive rebounds (4.43 rpg), seventh in steals (1.67 spg), 12th in minutes played (32.50 mpg) and 15th in field goal percentage (46.1%). He was selected to both the All-Southern Conference and All-Freshman team by the league's head coaches - a sentiment that was echoed by the voting members of the SoCon Sports Media Association (SCSMA), which tabbed the South Webster, Ohio native first team all-league. In addition, Aldridge was also named to the CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major All-Freshman team after averaging 22 points a game in helping to guide WCU to its first opening-round victory in the SoCon tournament in five seasons, garnering all-tournament accolades.

WOMEN'S BASKETBALL NOTES:

PRESEASON SECOND IN SOCON: Defending regular season champion, the Lady Catamounts, received three, first-place votes and were the picked second in the league behind defending tournament champion, Chattanooga. The Lady Mocs collected seven first-place votes and 79 points overall to edge out WCU (three first-place votes and 75 total points) for the top spot in the poll. Davidson and UNC Greensboro were predicted to finish in third and fourth places, respectively, followed by Georgia Southern in fifth place and Appalachian State in sixth. Wofford, Elon, Furman and College of Charleston rounded out the poll.

THREE ON PRESEASON ALL-CONFERENCE LIST: A school-record three Lady Catamounts were named to the 10-member preseason All-SoCon team led by seniors Monique Dawson and Chevon Keith, and junior Brooke Johnson.

SEVEN STRAIGHT IN EXHIBITION: Western Carolina women's basketball has won seven consecutive opening exhibition games dating back to the 2000-01 season. Last season, the Lady Catamounts defeated Mars Hill 84-59.

Junior center Brooke Johnson will be facing her old teammates when Western Carolina faces Carson-Newman. She spent two seasons with the Eagles before transferring to Western Carolina. In 2005, as a freshman at Carson-Newman, she was named not only Freshman of the Year but also Player of the Year becoming the first player in SAC history to earn both of the awards that honor the top player and top rookie in a season.

HISTORY WITH THE EAGLES: Western Carolina is 0-6 against Carson-Newman all-time. The two teams met last on January 7, 1983 with the Lady Catamounts falling at Carson-Newman, 82-72.

IT IS 32 NOW FOR JOHNSON: Brooke Johnson is now wearing number 32. Last season she wore the number 30.

TOURNAMENT OF EXTREMES: Western Carolina women's basketball will be hot and cold this season. The Catamounts play in a tournament at the sometimes blustery Minnesota on November 16-17. The club will then warm up in December when WCU travels to Hawaii in December to compete in a tournament.

POWELL'S LESSON IN THREE: Junior guard Lauren Powell needs just three 3-pointers to move into third place on the Lady Catamount three-points made career chart. She has currently made 119.

OPPONENTS RANKED IN COACHES POLL: Two of Western Carolina's non-conference opponents are ranked in the top 25 ESPN/USA Today Coaches Poll. Louisville is 23rd and North Carolina State is 25th. The Lady Catamounts will also face Middle Tennessee and Minnesota who are receiving votes.

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