SAN JOSE, Calif. - Louisiana Tech will face perhaps the most improved team in the Western Athletic Conference Thursday night as the 12th-ranked Lady Techsters (10-2, 3-1) square off against San Jose State (10-2, 2-1) at the Events Center at 9 p.m. CST.

The Spartans won only 13 games last year and finished in sixth place in the WAC standings but returned all five starters and seven letter winners from that team.

With senior point guard Cricket Williams, a returning first team All-WAC selection, running the Spartan show, Tech head coach Kurt Budke knows his team will have its hands full.

"They have one of the best players in the league in Cricket Williams," Budke said. "She is a player that is capable of going off for 30 on any given night. They have a veteran team that doesn't lose at home very often."

Williams is averaging 12.8 points, 8.5 assists and 5.6 rebounds per game for the Spartans through the first 12 games. As a junior, the New Orleans, La., native led the WAC in scoring at 20.4 per game, and although her scoring is down, Williams has become a more dangerous offensive player due to her unselfish play.

One benefit San Jose State won't have is that of surprise. Budke doesn't have to do anything more than remind his team of last year's game in San Jose, a contest that went down to the final seconds before the Lady Techsters pulled out a 66-59 win. In that game, Tech led by only two with 30 seconds remaining when forward Trina Frierson pulled down an offensive rebound off a missed free throw and put it back to seal the victory.

"Last year we were very lucky to get out of here with a win," Budke said. "I think it took a late rebound and put back before we finally had a little breathing room. It's a tough place to play. They are off to their best start in their program's history, and they will be a confident basketball team coming into this game."

Included in the Spartans 10 wins is a league best eight-game winning streak that was broken with a loss at Fresno State just over a week ago.

The Lady Techsters are coming off a pair of WAC wins last week but Budke knows his team still has a long way to go before March.

"We're still looking for that team that beat Penn State before the Christmas break," Budke said. "I've seen flashes of it over the last week, but we need to be more consistent for 40 minutes on both ends of the floor."

Senior forward Trina Frierson leads Tech and the WAC in scoring at 17.1 points per game while senior forward Amisha Carter leads the team and the league in rebounding at 10.3 rebounds per contests.

Tech leads the all-time series with San Jose State 4-0 with all four games coming in the last two seasons during conference play.

The contest can be heard on KXKZ-FM 107.5 and via the Internet at www.latechsports.com.