Jan. 10, 2005

This week's State Farm/Missouri Valley Player of the Week is UNI's Alex Cook and Wichita State's Kiki Stephens. Cook, a 6-foot, senior guided the Panthers to a win over pre-season favorite Southwest Missouri State and took the show on the road for a win over Bradley in the MVC TV game of the week.

For the first time since the 2000-01 season, UNI is 3-0 in league play as Cook averaged a double-double in the two games with 15.5 points, 13 rebounds, 3.5 assists, two steals and 1.5 blocks. Against SMS she led all scorers with 16 points and 14 rebounds while dishing out four assists. A member of the 2003-04 MVC All-Defensive team, Cook grabbed 12 defensive rebounds, picked up two steals and swatted away three shots against the Lady Bears en-route to the 65-55 victory.

Against Bradley, Cook picked up two quick fouls and was forced to sit on the bench for ten minutes of the first half, thus the Panthers struggled without their leader on the court, giving up a season-high 13 offensive rebounds in the first half. Even though she only played 10 minutes, Cook still managed to score five points, grab five rebounds and tally two assists.

In the second half, Cook scored 10 more points and collected seven more rebounds. Cook was called upon to defend Dena Williams. Williams scored 12 points in the first half, but Cook held her to only six points in the second half as the Panthers picked up the 74-66 victory.

This is the first time a UNI women's basketball player was selected for the State Farm/Missouri Valley Player of the Week this season. Cook was named a pre-season all-conference selection and is one of the main reasons why the Panthers are 9-5 overall and 3-0 in the MVC.