Hawai'i (8-12, 4-3 Big West) at
UC Irvine (14-4, 4-2 Big West)
Date: Thursday, Feb. 7
Time: 7 p.m. (PST)
Location: Bren Events Center (5,000) - Irvine, Calif.
Tickets // Watch on ESPN3 // Listen on KUCI // Live Stats

Cal State Fullerton (11-9, 3-4 Big West) at
UC Irvine (14-4, 4-2 Big West)
Date: Saturday, Feb. 9
Time: 3 p.m. (PST)
Location: Bren Events Center (5,000) - Irvine, Calif.
Tickets // Watch on ESPN3 // Listen on KUCI // Live Stats

UC Irvine Game Notes

IRVINE, Calif. - The UC Irvine women's basketball team wraps up a season-long four-game homestand this week starting with a 7 p.m. showdown against Hawai'i on Thursday, Feb. 7. The Anteaters are right back in the Bren on Saturday, Feb. 9, when they host Cal State Fullerton at 3 p.m. Saturday's contest, which is part of a Homecoming doubleheader with the men's team, will be broadcast on ESPN3 with Tim Becwar (PBP), Bill Herenda (Analyst) and Olivia Phelps (Sideline) on the call.

Fans can participate in the 12th annual Big West Coin Drive at Thursday's game vs. Hawai'i. The Coin Drive is held on each of the nine conference campuses with the respective Student-Athlete Advisory Committees (SAAC) collecting donations for a designated charity at various home events. This year, the 'Eaters are raising money for the UCI Health Breast Cancer Center. 
 
STORYLINES
• UC Irvine moved up one spot to No. 19 in the latest College Insider Mid-Major Poll released on Feb. 5.
• UCI has been in the top-25 for nine consecutive weeks with a high ranking of 15th on Jan. 15.
• The Anteaters (14-4) own their best record through 18 games since 1984-85 when they were also 14-4.
• Andee Ritter broke a single-game school record with eight 3-pointers made in a 73-57 win over Cal Poly on Jan. 26.
• She now has 189 career threes, putting her just nine away from tying and 10 from breaking UCI's 26-year old all-time record.
• Ritter is also tops in the conference with 2.6 steals/game and is tied for sixth in program history with 173 career takeaways.
• The 'Eaters were the first Big West team to 10 wins as they reached double digits in their non-conference finale.
• Through Feb. 3, UC Irvine is second in the nation in turnover margin, fourth in turnovers forced and 12th in steals.
• UCI has forced at least 20 turnovers in all but four games, and had a season-high 36 against Life Pacific on Nov. 7.
• The 'Eaters occupy the top-three spots on the Big West leaderboard for total steals: Ritter (44), Saiki (40) and Talbert (37).
• The Anteaters have trailed by double digits eight times this year, but came back to win four of those games.
• Nine of UCI's 10 active roster members have logged 10+ minutes per contest, while seven are averaging at least 5.0 ppg.
• Jordan Sanders, who has scored 20+ points nine times, is second in the Big West and 21st in the nation with 20.2 ppg.
• Sanders netted a career-high 34 points (15-25 FG) at Portland State on Dec. 18.
• Her 34 points are tied for the fifth-most in UCI single-game history, while her 15 made field goals rank third.
• Lauren Saiki ranks first in the conference and 19th in all of NCAA Division I with 5.6 assists per outing.
 
A GLANCE AT UH
Hawai'i (8-12, 4-3 Big West) split a pair of home games last week as it fell to UC Riverside, 60-55, before defeating Cal Poly, 70-52. Junior forward Makenna Woodfolk leads the Rainbow Wahine with 11.3 points and 5.7 rebounds per outing. Senior forward Leah Salanoa is also averaging 9.5 ppg and has made a team-best 28 threes, while senior guard Tia Kanoa sits at 6.9 points and 4.9 assists per contest.
 
SERIES RECORD
UC Irvine trails in its all-time series with Hawai'i, 30-10, but won both meetings last year. It was the Anteaters' first regular-season series sweep of the 'Bows since 1995. UCI topped UH, 74-67, on the road and 70-66 at home.
 
SCOUTING THE TITANS
Cal State Fullerton (11-9, 3-4 Big West) is on a three-game losing streak after falling to CSUN, 74-44, and Long Beach State, 59-53, last week. Senior center Daeja Smith leads the Titans with 12.9 points and 9.1 rebounds per game. Sophomore guard Raina Perez is also averaging 12.5 points and a team-best 5.2 assists per outing.
 
SERIES RECORD
UC Irvine leads in its all-time series with Cal State Fullerton, 39-38, and has come out on top in each of the last three meetings. Last year, the Anteaters dominated the Titans, winning both games by an average of 18 points.
 
IN THE RANKINGS
UC Irvine made its debut in the College Insider Mid-Major Poll at No. 24 on Dec. 4, and has remained in the top-25 ever since. The 'Eaters came in at No. 19 in the most recent rankings released on Feb. 5. They have been ranked as high as No. 15. One of UCI's four losses this year came to Oregon, which was seventh in both the AP and USA Today Polls at the time. The Ducks were the Anteaters' first nationally ranked opponent since Arizona State in 2006.
 
CHART CLIMBER
Senior Andee Ritter ranks second among UC Irvine's all-time leaders with 189 career 3-pointers made. She needs nine more to tie, and 10 more to break the record of 198, which was established by Kathy Lizarraga (1988-92) over 25 years ago. The Medford, Ore., native already topped Lizarraga's 28-year old single-season program record with 87 3-pointers as a sophomore, and set UCI's single-game high with a career-best eight treys vs. Cal Poly on Jan. 26. Ritter is also tied for sixth in school history with 173 career steals.
 
SWEET STROKE
Andee Ritter has made 30 of her team-leading 42 3-pointers over her last 10 games played. She has three 20-point outings during that stretch, starting with 21 (6-9 3FG) against San Diego State on Dec. 7 and 20 (6-11 3FG) at Portland on Dec. 16. Most recently, Ritter knocked down a single-game school-record eight threes for a season-high 24 points in a 73-57 win over Cal Poly (Jan. 26). On the year, she has registered 11.9 ppg, and if she keeps up her current pace, she will become UCI's 15th 1,000-point scorer by the end of the regular season.
 
POW TIMES THREE
Sophomore Jordan Sanders took home her third Big West Player of the Week award on Dec. 17. She was honored following a then career-best 29 points (13-18 FG) and six steals in an 84-69 win at Portland. Just a couple weeks earlier, Sanders became the first Anteater in program history to earn back-to-back Big West POW accolades. She received the nod on Nov. 26 & Dec. 3 after recording four-straight 20-point outings. On Nov. 28, Sanders was also named to the NCAA's Starting 5, which recognizes players with standout performances from around the country.
 
DEFENSIVE PRESENCE
The 'Eaters have been locked in on the defensive end, forcing more than 20 turnovers in 14 of their 18 games. They pressured Life Pacific College into a season-high 36 miscues, thanks to a school-record 25 steals. Through Feb. 3, UC Irvine ranks second in the nation in turnover margin (9.9), fourth in turnovers forced (23.1/gm) and 12th in steals (11.8/gm).
 
COMEBACK KIDS
The Anteaters have come back from a double-digit deficit in four of their last six wins. In those four games, UCI outscored its opponents in the second half, 158-102 (14.0 ppg). On Jan. 12, the 'Eaters erased a 14-point third-quarter deficit to top CSUN, 65-61. They were also down by nine to the Matadors midway through the fourth, marking the only time this season they won when trailing with five minutes left in regulation.
 
WIN NO. 10
UC Irvine was the only Big West school to reach double figures in the win column during non-conference play. It was the fastest the Anteaters have hit the 10-win mark in program history. It is also the first time since 2010-11 and 2011-12 that UCI has recorded back-to-back 10-win seasons.
 
HOME COOKING
Since the start of the 2017-18 campaign, the 'Eaters are 18-5 (.783) at the Bren Events Center. Their 18 victories in less than two full seasons are more than the previous three years combined (10).
 
THE BIG THREE
Senior Andee Ritter, junior Lauren Saiki and sophomore Jordan Sanders have accounted for 57 percent of UC Irvine's scoring. They have combined for 758 points (42.1 ppg), and have produced 39 double-figure scoring games, 13 of which have been 20+ performances.
 
JORDAN EFFECT
UC Irvine is in good shape when sophomore Jordan Sanders scores 10+ points. In her young career, the Anteaters are 27-5 when she reaches double figures, and 11-0 when she hits the 20-point mark. The Springfield, Mo., native has played a key role in UCI's success this year, putting up double digits in 16 of 17 games played. Nine of those have been 20+ performances, including a career-high 34 points on 15-of-25 shooting at Portland State on Dec. 18. Just two days earlier, she had a then career-best 29 points and six steals at Portland. Sanders also tallied 28 against UCSB on Jan. 31, while finishing with a 20-point double-double against Indiana State (25pts/11rebs) and UNLV (21pts/12rebs) back in November. The 2018 Big West Freshman of the Year ranks second in the league, and 21st in the nation, with 20.2 ppg.

THE LO-DOWN
Junior Lauren Saiki (Monterey Park, Calif.) has 12 games with five or more assists this year. Ten of those came in a consecutive stretch from Nov. 24-Jan. 12. She started the streak against Indiana State where she recorded her first double-double as an Anteater with 10 points and a career-high 13 assists. Saiki committed just one turnover in the 77-61 victory over the Sycamores. Her 13 dimes rank third in single-game program history and were the most by an 'Eater since Megan Stafford dished out 15 vs. Cal State Fullerton on Feb. 27, 1997. Saiki went on to notch her second double-double with 13 points and 10 assists at Portland State on Dec. 18. The 5-foot-3 point guard also had a career-high 25 points and two blocks, to go along with four rebounds and five assists at Cal Poly (Jan. 5).
 
UP NEXT
UC Irvine will make its way to Long Beach State (Feb. 14) and UC Santa Barbara (Feb. 16) next week.