Cal State Fullerton (12-9, 4-4 Big West) at
UC Irvine (7-16, 3-6 Big West)
Date: Thursday, Feb. 13
Time: 7 p.m. (PST)
Location: Bren Events Center (5,000) - Irvine, Calif.
Watch // Listen // Live Stats // Tickets (UCI Undergraduate Students Free with I.D.)

UC Irvine (7-16, 3-6 Big West) at
UC Davis (12-10, 7-2 Big West)
Date: Saturday, Feb. 15
Time: 2:30 p.m. (PST)
Location: The Pavilion (5,931) - Davis, Calif.
Watch // Listen // Live Stats

Notes (PDF)

IRVINE, Calif. - The UC Irvine women's basketball team will be looking to build off its recent win over league-leading UC Davis when it welcomes Cal State Fullerton to the Bren Events Center for a 7 p.m. showdown on Thursday, Feb. 13. The Anteaters will then head up to Davis to face the Aggies for the second time in seven days. Tip-off is set for 2:30 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 15. 
 
STORYLINES
• Eight 'Eaters have at least one double-figure scoring game, with six hitting the 20-point mark this season.
• UCI has scored 70+ points in three of its last four outings.
• Most recently, the Anteaters put up 73 against a UC Davis team that was allowing 53.0 ppg against Big West opponents.
• Senior Lauren Saiki is tops on the squad with 11.9 ppg and 6.5 apg.
• Her assist average is currently No. 1 in the Big West and No. 5 in the nation.
• Saiki ranks second among UC Irvine's all-time leaders with 382 career assists.
• She needs 18 more to become the second 'Eater in program history to reach 400.
• Saiki, who owns 150 assists on the year, has also cracked UCI's single-season top-10 for the second time in her career.
• She is on pace to break the 17-year old record of 189 set by Lisa Faulkner (2002-03).
• Freshman Sophia Locandro has reached double figures in scoring in three-straight contests.
• Two weeks ago, Locandro notched her team-leading third 20-point game with a career-high 25 in a win at UC Riverside. 
• Junior Haleigh Talbert has scored 10+ points eight times since the non-conference finale vs. Westcliff (Jan. 6).
• Talbert is tops on the team in Big West play with 13.8 ppg.

SCOUTING THE TITANS
Cal State Fullerton (12-9, 4-4 Big West) split a pair of home games last week, falling to UC Davis, 72-61, before defeating UC Riverside, 71-61. Raina Perez leads the Titans and the Big West with 20.6 points per outing. Taylor Turney has also put up 13.6 points, 5.6 rebounds and 4.6 assists per contest. As a team, CSF ranks first in the league in scoring (69.6 ppg) and field goal percentage (.442).
 
A GLANCE AT UC DAVIS
UC Davis (12-10, 7-2 Big West) had its seven-game win streak snapped by UC Irvine last Saturday as the Anteaters defeated the Aggies, 73-68. UCD remained atop the conference standings but saw its lead shrink to a half-game over second-place Hawai'i. Katie Toole leads the squad with 14.2 points per game. Cierra Hall is also averaging 9.0 ppg and a team-best 7.0 rpg. UC Davis ranks first in the league in 3-pointers made (9.0/gm) and 3-point field goal percentage (.368).
 
SERIES RECORDS
UC Irvine leads in its all-time series with Cal State Fullerton, 40-39. In the most recent meeting on Feb. 27, 2019, the Titans topped the Anteaters, 67-58, in Fullerton. It was CSF's first victory in the series since Jan. 14, 2017. The 'Eaters have won four of the last five.
 
UC Irvine trails in its all-time series with UC Davis, 30-9, but recently snapped a 10-game losing streak to the Aggies with a 73-68 victory in Irvine on Saturday, Feb. 8.
 
LAST TIME OUT
UC Irvine upended league-leading UC Davis, 73-68, last Saturday at the Bren Events Center. The Anteaters were down by two with less than a minute remaining in regulation when Dani Guglielmo knocked down her fourth 3-pointer of the game to give the home team a 69-68 lead with 43.2 seconds on the clock. The 'Eaters then stepped up on the defensive end, forcing a missed three and corralling the rebound. The Aggies had to start fouling, and both Guglielmo and Lauren Saiki sank their free throws to secure UCI's first win over Davis since 2015. Saiki had a team-high 17 points and seven assists, while Guglielmo finished with 16 points. Sophia Locandro added 10 points, and Haleigh Talbert pulled down a career-best nine boards.
 
FRESH START
After struggling to a 2-11 record through December (0-6) and January (2-5), UC Irvine got off to a fresh start on Feb. 1 with a convincing 77-53 win at UC Riverside. It was UCI's largest margin of victory against an NCAA Division I opponent this season. The Anteaters then picked up their first win over league-leading UC Davis in five years to improve to 2-1 in February.
 
HOME COOKING
Since the start of the 2017-18 campaign, UC Irvine is 26-12 (.684) at the Bren Events Center. The 26 home victories in two-plus seasons are more than UCI's combined total from the previous five years.
 
300 AND COUNTING
Senior Lauren Saiki is the sixth 'Eater in program history to record 300 career assists. She reached the milestone with the second of her five helpers against Vanderbilt on Dec. 20. Saiki, who is in her third year at UC Irvine after transferring from West Virginia, currently ranks second on UCI's all-time list with 382 assists.
 
THE LO-DOWN
Saiki has been the Anteaters' assists leader in 56 of her 86 career games played. Earlier this year, she recorded her third and fourth career double-digit assist performances in back-to-back outings with 10 helpers vs. UC Santa Barbara (Jan. 16) and 11 at Cal Poly (Jan. 18). The Monterey Park, Calif., native has dished out a team-best 150 dimes this season, which is seventh among UC Irvine's single-season leaders. Her 6.5 apg also rank first in the Big West and fifth in the nation.
 
HALEIGH'S TURN
Junior Haleigh Talbert became the sixth different 'Eater with a 20-point game this year after finishing with a career-high 23 at Cal Poly on Jan. 18. She went 6-for-12 from the field with a career-best five 3-pointers made. Talbert, who has reached double digits in scoring in eight of the last 10 games, is averaging a team-best 13.8 points in Big West play. The Euless, Texas, native made a three in 11-straight games prior to the Feb. 1 contest at UC Riverside where she did not attempt a shot from beyond the arc.

TWENTY-TWENTY
Freshman Sophia Locandro (Mount Waverly, Victoria, Australia) is the only Anteater with multiple 20-point games this year. On Feb. 1, she registered her third such performance with a career-high 25 points on 10-of-19 shooting at UC Riverside. Locandro also had the team's first double-double of the season with 22 points (10-16 FG) and 10 rebounds against Westcliff on Jan. 6, before finishing with 20 points and eight boards vs. UC Santa Barbara (Jan. 16). She has reached double figures in scoring in three-straight games and is averaging 11.8 points and 7.0 rebounds in Big West play.
 
HEATING UP
Junior Dani Guglielmo established two career highs over a three-game stretch with 18 points vs. CSUN and 19 at Hawai'i. In those two outings, she went a combined 11-for-24 (46%) from behind the arc. The Los Gatos, Calif., native broke through a shooting slump with a career-best six threes against the Matadors. She had gone 3-for-20 from long distance in the previous seven games. Guglielmo also reached double digits with 16 points in a win over UC Davis on Feb. 8. She was 4-for-8 from long distance and knocked down the go-ahead three with 43 seconds on the clock. She has made a career-best 33 triples on the season.
 
COUNT 'EM FOR CADEE
Freshman Jayde Cadee (Macleod, Victoria, Australia) had a breakout performance at SMU on Dec. 29, scoring a season-high 21 points, all of which came from beyond the arc where she was 7-for-10. Her seven triples are tied for the most in a game by a Big West player this year, and are tied for second in UCI's single-game history. Her 70% clip also ranks among the program's top-10. Cadee is second on the team with 35 3-pointers. She recently ended an 0-for-13 slump from downtown with a pair of triples in the third quarter at UC Riverside.
 
COMING INTO HER OWN
In her third year at UC Irvine, junior Alexus Seaton has emerged as one of the team's leaders. The Fort Worth, Texas, native, who has started every game, is among the top-three on the squad in scoring (8.7 ppg), rebounding (4.3 rpg), assists (1.6 apg) and steals (1.6 spg). Seaton, who came into the 2019-20 campaign averaging 2.3 points per outing, has reached double figures in scoring eight times with a career-high 23 vs. Vanderbilt.
 
FRESHMAN IMPACT
UC Irvine's active freshmen have provided quality minutes early in their careers. Sophia Locandro (9) and Jayde Cadee (4) have combined for 13 double-figure scoring games. Locandro had a team season-high 25 points (10-19 FG) at UC Riverside, while she also notched the Anteaters' first double-double of the year with 22 points and 10 rebounds vs. Westcliff. Cadee recorded a collegiate-best 21 points at SMU. Chloe Webb, who will miss the remainder of the season with an injury, scored 10+ points in five of 14 games played with a season-high 20 against Westcliff. Webb (51.8%) and Locandro (50.3%) own the top-two field goal percentages on the team.
 
ACCESS DENIED
UC Irvine has registered 3.8 blocks per outing, which is second in the Big West. The 'Eaters had a season-high 10 blocked shots at Denver, marking the first time they reached double digits in that category since Jan. 27, 2010. UCI also ranks third in the conference with 16.7 turnovers forced per game. They have caused 20+ miscues four times with a season-high 29 against Loyola Marymount.

UP NEXT
UC Irvine will make the short trip to Long Beach State (Feb. 20), before hosting Cal Poly on Saturday, Feb. 22.