UC Riverside (8-8, 2-1 Big West) at
UC Irvine (3-15, 1-3 Big West)
Date: Thursday, Jan. 19
Time: 7 p.m. (PST)
Location: Bren Events Center (5,000) - Irvine, Calif.
Video | Audio | Live Stats

UC Irvine Game Notes

The UC Irvine women's basketball team welcomes UC Riverside to the Bren Events Center on Thursday, Jan. 19, for its lone game this week. The 'Eaters and Highlanders are set to tip off at 7 p.m.

TIP-INS
• UC Irvine and UC Riverside will complete their regular season series in the third week of conference action.
• The two teams met in Riverside on Jan. 7 with the Highlanders earning the 76-58 victory.
• UCI snapped a 12-game losing streak in Big West regular-season play with its win over CSUN on Jan. 11.
• Andee Ritter (25) and Shereen Sutherland (24) combined for 49 points in the victory.
• It was the first time the 'Eaters had two players reach 20 points in a game since Feb. 28, 2015.
• Ritter tied a single-game school record with seven 3-point field goals made at UCR.
• She is tops in the conference in 3-pointers (51) and steals (43).
• Sutherland leads the Anteaters with 12.3 points and 7.0 rebounds per outing.
• Sabrina Engelstad is averaging 11.2 ppg as she has reached double digits in 14 of the last 16 contests.
• Brooke Bayman is tops on the team with 70 assists and had a career-best nine dimes vs. CSUN.
• UC Irvine set a program and Big West record with 40 points in the third period of a 92-61 win over Concordia.

FOLLOW THE 'EATERS: Fans can listen to every UC Irvine women's basketball home game, along with select road games, on KUCI 88.9 FM or KUCI.org. Darren Preston is the Anteaters' play-by-play announcer. All home games will also be streamed live on BigWest.tv.

CHALK TALK: Fans are invited to join the UCI coaching staff for a chalk talk before every home game. The chalk talk will begin 30 minutes prior to tip-off at the Stewart Room in the Bren Events Center.

LAST TIME OUT: UC Irvine was unable to get its second-straight Big West win as it fell to Cal State Fullerton, 64-53, last Saturday at Titan Gym. The 'Eaters put the pressure on CSF as they had 16 steals and forced 23 turnovers. They also held a lopsided 30-to-18 advantage in points off miscues. Despite their defensive effort, the Anteaters never really found their rhythm on the offensive end, finishing the night shooting 33.3 percent from the field and 21.1 percent from beyond the arc. UCI held Fullerton to 36.7 percent shooting, but the home team won the game at the free throw line where they were 24-of-26. Andee Ritter scored a team-high 13 points, 10 of which came in the third quarter alone. Sabrina Engelstad added 12 points and six rebounds, while Shereen Sutherland chipped in nine points and eight boards. Brooke Bayman dished out seven assists.

SCOUTING THE HIGHLANDERS: UC Riverside (8-8, 2-1 Big West) is coming off its first conference loss as it fell at UC Santa Barbara, 58-54, last Saturday. Senior forward Rejane Verin leads the Highlanders with 16.9 points, 8.1 rebounds and 4.5 assists per game. Senior guard Simone DeCoud is also averaging 13.0 points and 6.8 boards per outing.

SERIES RECORD VS. UCR: UC Irvine trails in its all-time series with UC Riverside, 35-18. The Highlanders extended their win streak to three with a 76-58 victory two weeks ago in Riverside. The 'Eaters raced out to an 18-6 lead at the end of the first quarter, but UCR came storming back as it outscored the visitors by 24 over the next two periods. Andee Ritter paced the Anteaters with 23 points on a school-record tying seven 3-pointers. She also had three blocks, three rebounds and three steals, while committing only one turnover. Rejane Verin anchored the Highlanders' effort with 21 points and 10 rebounds. Lauren Holt also finished with 20 points.

THREE'S COMPANY: Sophomore Andee Ritter is tops in the Big West with 51 threes (2.8/game). She currently ranks fifth in single-season program history, and is on pace to break the 28-year old record of 64. Ritter has connected from long distance in 17 of 18 outings and has hit multiple treys in 12 contests. The Medford, Ore., native tied a single-game school record with seven 3-pointers at UC Riverside on Jan. 7. She is the third 'Eater to drain seven triples in a game and the first to accomplish the feat in 12 years. Kathy Lizarraga set the original record back in 1988-89.

MORE ON RITTER: Ritter ranks second on the squad with 11.9 points per contest. She has 10 double-figure scoring games and a team-best four 20-point performances. The 6-foot guard had 23 points at Nevada (Dec. 1), before finishing with 21 vs. Concordia (Dec. 29), 23 at UC Riverside (Jan. 7) and a career-high 25 against CSUN (Jan. 11). In Big West play, she is averaging 16.5 points, 4.5 rebounds, 2.3 steals and 1.3 blocks per outing, while shooting 46.8 percent from the field and 45.5 percent from 3-point range. Ritter, who was named the College Sports Madness Big West Player of the Week on Jan. 2, is also a perfect 18-of-18 from the free throw line this season.

STEALING THE SHOW: In addition to being UCI's top perimeter shooter, Ritter has anchored the defensive effort with a Big West-leading 43 steals. She had a career-high eight takeaways at Nevada on Dec. 1. That was just one shy of the single-game school record of nine, which was established by Erin Higashi on March 4, 1983.

SENIOR LEADER: Shereen Sutherland leads UC Irvine with 12.3 points and 7.0 rebounds per contest. She has reached double digits in scoring 10 times, while adding two games with 10-plus rebounds. The 6-foot-2 senior forward recently had a career-high 24 points in a 77-52 win over CSUN on Jan. 11. In non-conference play, she notched her first double-double of the season and second of her career with a 20-point/12-rebound effort at Portland State. She has pulled down at least seven boards in 12 of the team's 18 games, including a career-high 15 at Utah State.

FAMILY TRADITION: Junior Sabrina Engelstad is the daughter of former UC Irvine great, Wayne Engelstad, who played for the Anteaters from 1984-88. Wayne ranks among the top-10 in school history with 1,530 points and 698 rebounds. Sabrina is now following in her father's footsteps as the 6-foot-4 forward is third on the squad with 11.2 points per contest. She has 14 double-figure scoring games in the last 16 outings, including seven-straight from Nov. 17-Dec. 10. The streak began with a then season-high 13 points at Utah State. Sabrina went on to record UCI's first double-double of the year with 11 points and a career-best 14 rebounds at Loyola Marymount. She later poured in 16 points at Portland State, a current season best of 18 vs. Sacramento State and 17 vs. Bakersfield. The Antioch, Calif., native matched her season high with 18 points against Pac-12 member USC on Dec. 21.

WE CAN DISH IT: Freshman Brooke Bayman and senior Irene Chavez have combined to dish out more than half of the Anteaters' 211 assists. Bayman is tops on the team, and second in the conference, with 70 dimes. She has 13 games with three or more helpers, including a career-high nine against CSUN. Chavez has chipped in 46 assists. She had a career-high nine with no turnovers at Nevada on Dec. 1.

GO BIG OR GO HOME: Wins may have been hard to come by so far this year, but when the 'Eaters do get the victory, they do it in dominating fashion. All three of their triumphs have been by double digits as they are averaging 80.3 points and a +23.0 scoring margin in those outings.

BREAKING BARRIERS: UC Irvine notched the program's 15th 90-point game, and first since the 2013-14 season, with its 92-61 victory over Concordia on Dec. 29. A huge third quarter sparked the win as the Anteaters set a program and Big West record with 40 points in the period.
     • UCI is one of four NCAA Division I teams to score 40 points in a quarter this season.
     • The Anteaters' 40 points are tied for second in the nation as Oakland's 41 is the top scoring quarter this year.
     • The NCAA record for points in a quarter is 45 by Central Michigan on Nov. 15, 2015.
     • The 'Eaters crushed their previous best of 29, which they established at Portland State on Dec. 3.

DEJA VU: UC Irvine recently held its opponent to six points in the first quarter and led by double figures at the end of the opening period in back-to-back games. The 'Eaters were up on both UC Riverside (18-6) and CSUN (24-6) after 10 minutes of action. In addition, after 15 games without a halftime lead, UCI was on top at the break against both the Highlanders and the Matadors.

GETTING TO TWENTY: Andee Ritter owns a team-best four 20-point outings, and UC Irvine is 3-1 in those contests. She became the first 'Eater to post back-to-back games with 20 points since 2014 as she scored 23 at UC Riverside and a career-high 25 vs. CSUN. Shereen Sutherland also notched her second 20-point performance of the season with a career-best 24 against the Matadors. It was the first time UCI had two players reach 20 in a game since Feb. 28, 2015.

UP NEXT: UC Irvine makes its longest trip of the conference season next week as it heads to Hawai'i for a 7 p.m. (HT)/9 p.m. (PT) contest on Thursday, Jan. 26. The Anteaters then have a quick turnaround as they return home to host UC Santa Barbara at 2 p.m. on Saturday, Jan. 28.