March 7, 2005
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – University of New Mexico freshman forward Dionne Marsh and Utah junior Kim Smith were named the Mountain West Conference Women’s Basketball Co-Players of the Week. It is Marsh’s first career honor, while Smith earns her third career award.
Marsh led New Mexico to two important road wins last week over Colorado State and Wyoming, capturing its second straight share of the MWC title. The Lobos also earned the No. 1 seed in the MWC Championship for the second straight year. The freshman scored a game-high 26 points against Colorado State as the Lobos rallied from a late deficit. She scored 12 of New Mexico’s 24 first-half points to keep the Lobos in the game. In the game vs. Wyoming, she scored a game-high 16 points, including 11 in the second half as the Lobos rallied from a six-point halftime deficit.
For the week, Marsh averaged 21.0 points and 4.5 rebounds. She shot 57.1 percent (16-for-28) from the field and 66.7 percent (10-for-15) from the line.
Smith led the Utes to two crucial road victories last week over San Diego State and UNLV and a share of the MWC title with New Mexico. Against San Diego State, she scored a season-high 29 points and shot 54.5 percent (12-for-22) from the floor, while the rest of the Utes shot just 26.3 percent (10-for-38). When the Aztecs cut Utah’s lead to three points midway through the second half, Smith hit back-to-back buckets to extend the Utes’ lead back to seven (54-47) with 7:51 remaining. Against UNLV, she scored 25 points for the game, including 15 in the first half.
For the week, Smith averaged 27.0 points, 7.5 rebounds and 2.0 assists. She shot 57.9 percent (22-for-38) from the floor and 77.8 percent (7-for-9) from the free throw line.