Tipping Off
National Notables
Three Big West squads rate in the top 10 in their respective statistical categories: UC Santa Barbara stands in third in free throw percentage (82.0), UC Davis is third in field goal percentage defense (32.9) and 10th in three-point field goal percentage defense (24.1) and Hawai’i is ninth in blocks per game (5.9).
Doubling Up
A total of 18 Big West players from 10 programs have recorded one double-double on the season. Cal State Fullerton’s Eva Levingston leads the way with five and teammate Aixchel Hernandez has recorded three on the year. CSUN and Long Beach State both a trio of players on the listings.
Four for 1K
UC Santa Barbara’s Alyssa Marin was the latest player to eclipse 1,000 points, coming in at 1,007 after a big home win against Hawai’i to open the New Year. Marin joins three Big West players already in the 1,000-point club, paced by Hawai’i’s Lily Wahinekapu (1,331). UC Davis’ Tova Sabel (1,283) and Daejah Phillips of UH (1,213).
What 2 Watch 4
A clash of the two Big West unbeatens dots the Saturday slate as Long Beach State (8-5, 4-0 BW) hosts UC Davis (10-4, 4-0 BW) at Walter Pyramid.
The Aggies are stout both offensively and defensively, leading the league in both scoring offensie (72.86) and scoring defense (55.07). But the Beach are right behind UCD in points output while also pacing The Big West in rebounding (43.54 rpg). Keeping an eye on the offensive glass and frequency of second-chance opportunities for LBSU could be the key to seeing which way the battle will sway.
In order to make it into the game without a blemish, the Aggies first meet up with Cal State Fullerton on Thursday while the Beach are idle heading into the weekend contest.
All 10 Big West matchups can be seen on ESPN+.
Last Week, Today
Big West play resumed after a early-December Bold Week beginning. UC Davis and Long Beach State went 2-0 on the week to remain unbeaten in conference action. Six other squads - CSUN, Hawai’i, UC Irvine, UC Riverside UC San Diego, and UC Santa Barbara - netted at least one Big West win.
For the Gauchos and Tritons, their victories came in their lone game of the week, both home contests. USCB won against UH and UCSD got it done versus Cal State Fullerton. For the Matadors, the impressive overtime comeback against the Titans was a first conference win of the year. Hawai’i’s win in the Spectrum SportsNet game at Cal Poly also got Rainbow Wahine a first notch in the conference win column.
Team Tidbits - Around the League
Cal Poly
Cal Poly dropped a pair of games at UC Irvine at versus Hawai’i as the offense was unable to consistently produce. The Mustangs hosts UC San Diego before traveling to Santa Barbara for the Blue-Green Rivalry game on Saturday.
Annika Shah is pacing The Big West in three-pointers made per game with a 2.86 average and leads the team in scoring with 14.21 points per game, fourth in the conference. Teammate Mary Carter is also averaging double figures with 11.86 points per game which rates ninth in the league.
Cal State Bakersfield
In the last game out, Ary Dizon tallied three blocks against Long Beach State to bring the season total to a league-high 32 denials. Dizon’s 2.29 blocks per game average stands as tops in the league and 14th nationally. The Roadrunners are still seeking a first win of 2024-25 with UC Santa Barbara and CSUN on this week’s calendar.
First-year head coach Ari Wideman was tapped to lead the Roadrunners and holds the distinction of being the first Black, female head coach in the 50-plus year history of CSUB athletics.
Cal State Fullerton
The Titans are looking for the first win in league play pitted up against formidable foes of UC Davis and Hawai’i this week.
Eva Levingston and Aixchel Hernandez are 1-2 in The Big West in rebounding average, with 8.62 and 7.79 per game, respectively. Hernandez is second in blocks average with 2.14. The pair also paces The Big West in double-doubles with Levingston’s five leading the way.
The Titans secured the program’s 13th 100-point game with a 100-40 win over Bethesda to close out non-conference play on Dec. 29, 2024. It was the first triple-digit scoring output since 2010.
CSUN
The Matadors overcame a 17-point fourth quarter deficit to defeat Cal State Fullerton in overtime to claim a first Big West win of the season. Five players reached double figure scoring, with Morgan Edwards’ 21 points on 50 percent shooting and nine rebounds leading all scorers. Yves Cox posted a 13-point, 14-rebound double-double in the game. CSUN went on a 23-9 run to close regulation including a three by Jenna Kilty with six seconds to play and outlasted the Titans with a 6-3 overtime period to notch the win.
Big West and UC Irvine alumna Angie Ned was tapped to lead the Matadors program in the spring of 2024 and the first-year head coach garnered back-to-back victories to open the tenure.
Hawai’i
Hawai’i split the road trip to open the year, falling at UCSB before defeating Cal Poly, 62-50, on Spectrum SportsNet. Lily Wahinekapu led the scoring against the Gauchos with 17 points and tied for team-high honors with 14 points on 67 percent shooting against the Mustangs, also setting a season-high with seven assists in the contest.
Hawai’i’s defense has been stout this season, and the tem’s 5.9 blocks per game stands in ninth in NCAA Division I.
On Dec. 16, the Rainbow Wahine routed Arkansas-Pine Bluff 56-15. The 15 points was the least amount UH has ever allowed against a Division I opponent, obliterating the previous mark of 31 by UTEP on Jan. 7, 1999. The last time the ‘Bows won by such wide a margin was nearly 24 years ago, when UH defeated Detroit, 97-53, on Dec. 18, 2000.
Long Beach State
LBSU kept their Big West record unblemished with wins against UC Riverside and Cal State Bakersfield last week. The Beach got a 22-point performance from Savannah Tucker at UCR and team-best 16 points in 20 minutes off the bench from Jada Crawshaw against the Roadrunners.
Tucker leads the conference in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.78) while averaging 3.15 assists per game, tied for second in The Big West. Tucker also plays a conference-high 36.05 minutes per game.
Earlier this season, Lovely Sonnier was named a Kay Yow Servant Leader Award winner, one of 14 student-athletes recognized across the country, and is wearing a special jersey patch this season. Along with serving as the team ambassador for The Big West’s Tough Like Tammy campaign, Sonnier volunteers at Miller Children’s Hospital, Los Altos Parks and Rec and Jefferson Elementary School in her free time.
LBSU picked up a 122-49 win over Bethesda on Dec. 30, the highest point tally in 37 years and the first three-digit output since 2006.
UC Davis
Big West Player of the Week Tova Sabel paced the offense in lopsided wins against Cal State Bakersfield (81-37) and CSUN (68-41) last week. Sabel averaged 15.5 points and 7.0 rebounds along with 2.0 steals and 1.5 blocks per game in the winning efforts. UC Davis cracked into the receiving votes category in the latest College Insider Mid-Major Madness Top 25 poll.
Sabel ranks second in The Big West in scoring average (15.07 ppg) with Megan Norris second in field goal percentage at .484 (60-for-124). The Aggies average a league-high 72.86 points per game with a Big West-best +17.79 margin of victory. UCD allows teams to score just 55.1 points per game on 32.9 percent shooting, which is third in the country.
UC Davis posted their first Power 4 win since 2021 by knocking off Arizona State, 57-50, on Dec. 15.
UC Irvine
The Anteaters split their weekend, handily defeating Cal Poly before dropping their first league game at UC Riverside. Hunter Hernandez led the team in both scoring (15.5 ppg) and rebounding (8.0 rpg). In the win against the Mustangs, the junior put up a game-high 18 points in 23 minutes played with seven rebounds.
Summah Hanson connects at a Big West-best 91.1 percent from the free throw line, going 41-for-45 through 13 games, good for 20th nationally. Hernandez (13.82 ppg) and Hanson (11.31 ppg) both average double figure scoring for the Anteaters.
UC Riverside
Long Beach State handed the Highlanders their first conference loss of the season Thursday, but UCR responded with a 59-54 home win against UCI on Saturday. Shelley Duchemin led a trio of double-digit scorers with 14 points on a perfect 5-for-5 night from the field with six rebounds and three steals.
Duchemin’s 11.71 points per game average leads the team and Esther Matarranz’ 7.21 rebounds per game is good for fifth in the league.
UC San Diego
UC San Diego’s second half defense helped the Tritons dispatch Cal State Fullerton in their lone game of the week. UCSD allowed the Titans to score just 15 points in the last 20 minutes in the 57-45 win. Sumayah Sugapong led all scorers with 15 points to go along with six rebounds, four assists and three steals.
Kayanna Spriggs leads The Big West listings in field goal percentage, connecting at a 55.0 percent pace (61-for-111), Sugapong paces the conference in assists per game (4.00) with teammate Sabrina Ma providing a league-best 2.67 steals per game. UCSD averages 12.5 steals per night, good for 20th in the country.
Sugapong set UC San Diego’s Division I single-game steals record with seven in a loss at Stanford earlier this season.
UC Santa Barbara
Cayla Williams led the Gauchos to a 72-62 victory over defending regular-season champion Hawai’i in their lone game of the week. Williams provided a career-high 14 points including a 3-for-4 effort from distance along with four rebounds and a pair of blocks.
Alyssa Marin is the current Big West scoring leader at 16.69 points per game and has recorded two 31-point games on the season. Marin crossed the 1,000-point career threshold against UH, now sitting with a total tally of 1,007 points.
The Gauchos lead the league and are third in NCAA Division I in free throw percentage at .820. Marin (.869), Zoe Borter (.848) and Skylar Burke (.778) are all in The Big West’s top 10 in efficiency from the line.
The Gauchos are under the direction of new head coach Renee Jimenez. Coming to UCSB from Division II Cal State San Marcos, Jimenez and the Cougars reached the DII Final Four a year ago.
The Big West + Spectrum SportsNet
The Big West announced a slate of 16 men’s and women’s basketball contests to air on Spectrum SportsNet during the 2024-25 season.
The package includes five women’s games featuring six squads, all set for the New Year.
Cal Poly hosted Hawai’i on Jan. 4, and the Rainbow Wahine took the contest, 62-50. The Mustangs also head to Long Beach State on Jan. 25 and UC Riverside on Feb. 22 in the Spectrum schedule. On March 1, UC Irvine plays at Long Beach State and March 8 has the Anteaters hosting UC Santa Barbara to round out the regular season on the home of the World Champion LA Dodgers.
All Spectrum SportsNet contests can also be seen live on ESPN+, and on-demand for 30 days. Check local listings for channel availability in your area. |
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The Big West has announced the return of its Tough Like Tammy fundraising initiative for the 2024-25 women’s basketball season. The program is a joint venture between Big West women’s basketball, the Kay Yow Cancer Fund and Big West women’s basketball analyst Tammy Blackburn designed to support life-saving research on all cancers affecting women.
A year ago, the program more than doubled its goal of raising $5,000, with all 11 women’s basketball programs participating to contribute $10,236 to the cause. The goal in 2024-25 is to raise $15,000 through donations or pledges for each offensive rebound secured during the final month of the Big West women’s basketball season.
To date, the campaign has raised $2,390 thus far this season. Fans can donate today at BigWest.org/TLT.
“There is no greater example of courage, toughness and grace than my friend Tammy Blackburn,” Big West Commissioner Dan Butterly noted. “We thank the many fans, coaches and friends who supported Tough Like Tammy a year ago, but we know the battle is not yet won against cancer. The Big West and all 11 of our member institutions are united in our support of Tammy and the Kay Yow Cancer Fund, and in the belief that together we will make a difference.”
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