A Big West Glance
Five of the nine Big West schools own an above .500 conference record with Cal State Fullerton leading the charge with a perfect 4-0 mark. UC Davis, selected second in the media preseason poll, sits in the second slot with a 3-1 record. Defending champion UC Santa Barbara is tied for third with Long Beach State and central coast foe Cal Poly at 2-1.
History In The Making For Cal State Fullerton
Led by first-year head coach Marcia Foster, Cal State Fullerton is already making history just two weeks into conference play. The Titans' 78-60 win over UC Riverside lifted them to 4-0 in Big West play for the first time in school history. Cal State Fullerton is the only team with a perfect league mark still intact. It looks to continue its success this week as it visits the central coast riding a four-game win streak, their longest winning streak since winning five in a row from Jan. 19-Feb. 2 in 2008.
Homeward Bound For UC Irvine
UC Irvine begins a three-game homestand this week that kicks off with UC Davis Thursday, February 14 at 7:00 p.m. With the help of their fans, the Anteaters have been victorious in their last three home contests, including a conference win over Cal State Northridge (1/7). Posting three combined wins on their home courts - Bren Center and Crawford Gym - this year already is an improvement on the 2008-09 season where they registered a 2-10 record.
UC Riverside, Cal State Northridge Looking For First Conference Win
After two weeks of Big West play, UC Riverside and Cal State Northridge remain winless in league action. One of the two teams is guaranteed at least one victory this week as the Highlanders (0-2) and Matadors (0-3) square off Thursday evening at the Student Recreation Center. From there the pair faces two of the top teams in the conference Saturday - league-leading Cal State Fullerton and defending champion UC Santa Barbara. Cal State Northridge hosts Cal State Fullerton at the Matadome for a 4:00 p.m. tip and UC Riverside welcomes defending champion UC Santa Barbara to the SRC at 5:00 pm.
Home Sweet Home
Four Big West teams own a .500 or better mark when playing in front of their hometown fans - Cal Poly, UC Davis, Cal State Fullerton and Long Beach State. The Mustangs lead the quartet with a 5-2 record (.714) and are followed closely by UC Davis (5-3). The Mustangs are the lone team to have the luxury of playing at home this week as they are set to entertain Long Beach State and Cal State Fullerton at Mott Gym.
LBSU Piles It In
On Thursday, January 7 over 3,000 screaming fans entered The Walter Pyramid to watch Long Beach State take on Cal State Fullerton, setting a new attendance record for the 49ers women's basketball program. Long Beach State, the reigning Big West winner for the NCAA Pack the House Challenge, saw success again this year, bringing in a record-breaking crowd of 3,004. The 49ers welcomed over 2,000 students from the Long Beach Unified School Districts GEAR UP program.
The Streakin' Aggies
UC Davis had a five-game win streak snapped on Dec. 21 after Seton Hall handed the Aggies a 58-54 loss. Their losing skid continued for two more contests before the Aggies were back in the W column with an 82-56 victory over Cal State Northridge to notch their first of three straight Big West victories. UC Davis now takes a three-game win streak to the Bren Center Thursday evening to battle UC Irvine.
UC Irvine Benefits From Transfer Maly-Karros
Mikah Maly-Karros, who had to sit out the first part of the season due to transfer rules, has made an immediate impact on the UC Irvine women's basketball team. In the seven games she has played in (12/15/09-1/10/10), Maly-Karros has averaged 18.1 points and 10.9 rebounds per contest to lead the squad. Maly-Karros has only played in 44% of UC Irvines contests and needs to play in 75% of the games in order to rank in the Big West standings. With that being said, her scoring and rebounding averages would theoretically place her at the top of the charts in both categories. In conference only contests Maly-Karros is pacing the Big West with 11.5 rebounds per game and ranks third in points with a 17.5 scoring average.
Double Trouble
Playing in just seven contests thus far, UC Irvine's Mikah Maly-Karros is tied for first in the conference with four double-doubles. Joining Maly-Karros at the top of the standings is UC Santa Barbara's Mekia Valentine. Long Beach's Kristina Figueroa and Cal Poly's Kristina Santiago each have three double-doubles, while Anteater Jazmyne White has recorded two.
Close...But No Cigar
In the young season, the Big West Conference members have played 23 contests that were decided by five points or less. Unfortunately the league has been on the losing end of most of the games, posting a 7-13 mark in nonconference games. UC Irvine leads the crop with three nail-bitting victories.
Reaching The1,000-Point Milestone
Long Beach State's Karina Figueroa registered a 23-point performance to open the 2009-10 season that assisted in her in becoming the 100th Big West player to reach the 1,000-point plateau. Figueroa, redshirting last season due to injury, now has 1,248 career points, making her LBSUs 21st 1,000-point scorer. She currently sits 52nd in the Big West record book.
The next closest conference player to reaching the elusive mark is Cal Polys Kristina Santiago with 959 career points. Should the junior forward reach the four-figure mark this year, she would become the fourth Mustang to do so in as few as three seasons.
Margaritis Eyes Coaching Milestone
UC Riverside head coach John Margaritis has his sights set on two coaching milestones in 2009-10. He is currently just one win shy of capturing his 200th career win.
Live On The Net
The Big West Conference and the CBS College Sports Network are partnering to bring you exclusive coverage of Big West sports, press conferences, interviews and features into your home via the Internet! Now in its fifth year, BigWest.TV covers every home and conference contest in women's volleyball as well as men's and women's basketball. Also covered are select contests in mens and women's soccer, baseball, softball, and Big West Conference Championships. A monthly subscription of $9.95 or an annual subscription of $79.95 delivers exclusive coverage to you. If you cant make it to the gym or the field, you can still catch all the action on BigWest.TV!