UC Irvine Entertains San Diego State on Sunday

Sunday, November 14

Irvine, Calif.

2:00 PM

UC Irvine

San Diego State

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UC Irvine Entertains San Diego State on Sunday

November 13, 2021 | Women's Basketball

San Diego State (1-0) at
UC Irvine (2-0)
Date: Sunday, Nov. 14
Time: 2 p.m. (PST)
Location: Bren Events Center (5,000) - Irvine, Calif.
Watch on ESPN+ // Listen on KUCI // Live Stats // Follow on Twitter

UC Irvine Game Notes

IRVINE, Calif. - UC Irvine women's basketball will be looking for its second 3-0 start in four seasons when it welcomes San Diego State to the Bren Events Center for a 2 p.m. showdown on Sunday, Nov. 14.

In accordance with guidance from the California Department of Public Health, UC Irvine Athletics is requiring fans (ages 2 & older) in attendance at all indoor home events to provide proof of vaccination or a negative COVID-19 test within 72 hours before the event starts. In addition, all individuals, regardless of vaccination status, will be required to wear a mask while indoors at UCI facilities unless actively eating or drinking.

UCI Athletics is utilizing mobile ticketing and a clear bag policy for all 2021-22 home games.

STORYLINES
• The Anteaters have been tough to slow down on the offensive end, averaging 97.5 points through their first two games.
• They rank among the top-20 in all of NCAA Division I in scoring offense and assists per outing.
• UCI established a single-game program record with 114 points in a season-opening win over Westcliff.
• That broke the previous mark of 107, which was originally set back in 1979, and matched in 2018.
• The offense has been spread out with all 15 'Eaters making their way into the scoring column.
• Twelve are averaging at least 5.0 points per game with four in double figures.
• Melodie Kapinga and Chloe Webb have both registered a double-double to start the 2021-22 campaign.
• Kapinga had the first of the season, and her career, with 11 points/10 rebounds vs. Westcliff.
• Webb notched her sixth career double-double with 14 points/13 rebounds against Southern Utah.
• UCI welcomes back eight letterwinners from a 2020-21 team that advanced to the Big West Tournament championship game.
• Kayla Williams was named the 2021 Big West Freshman of the Year, while also earning first-team all-conference honors.
• She ranked among the top-15 NCAA DI freshmen in both scoring (14.4 ppg) and assist average (4.1 apg) last season.
• Tamara Inoue was tabbed the 2021 Big West co-Coach of the Year.
• In five-plus seasons, Inoue has become the third-winningest head coach in program history (73 wins).

SCOUTING THE AZTECS
San Diego State (1-0) won its season opener, defeating Cal State Los Angeles, 72-57, on Tuesday, Nov. 9. Sophia Ramos led the Aztecs with 21 points and five rebounds, while Mallory Adams also finished in double figures with 15 points. Mercedes Staples added nine points and five assists.

Despite receiving two first-place votes, SDSU was picked to finish seventh in the Mountain West Preseason Poll. Asia Avinger was named the MWC Preseason Freshman of the Year. The Aztecs return nine letterwinners and four starters from last year's team that went 7-17 overall.

SERIES RECORD
UCI trails in its all-time series with San Diego State, 20-8, but has won two of the last three. In the most recent meeting, the Anteaters defeated the Aztecs, 66-55, in San Diego on Dec. 19, 2020.

PRESEASON PREDICTIONS
UC Irvine was picked to finish second in the Big West Preseason Coaches' Poll. The 'Eaters (88 points) received one first-place vote from the league's 11 head coaches to come in behind five-time defending regular-season champion UC Davis. The Aggies were tabbed the preseason favorites with nine first-place votes and 99 total points. UC Santa Barbara, which received the final first-place nod, came in third with 75 points. This is the fourth year in a row the Anteaters were selected among the top-three in the Big West Preseason Poll.

Third-year freshman Kayla Williams was also named to the Preseason All-Big West Team. She was selected to the six-member squad by both the coaches and the media. Last year, Williams was tabbed the Big West Freshman of the Year and earned first-team all-conference honors. The 5-foot-7 guard averaged a team-best 14.4 points, 4.1 assists and 2.6 steals per game.

RECEIVING VOTES
UC Irvine was receiving votes in the 2021-22 College Insider Women's Mid-Major Preseason Poll that was released on Nov. 2. The Anteaters were last featured in the mid-major rankings in 2018-19 when they rose to as high as No. 15 in the nation.

OPENING NIGHT
UC Irvine started the campaign at home for the seventh-straight year. The Anteaters won their fourth season opener in the last five seasons.

WINNING WAYS
Since 2017-18, the 'Eaters have registered 68 wins, marking the program's best four-year stretch since 1983-87 (69). They have finished above .500 three times in head coach Tamara Inoue's five full seasons.

THE TURNAROUND
Prior to head coach Tamara Inoue's arrival in 2016-17, UC Irvine had just two winning seasons in 15 years. But, ever since Inoue's first campaign with her own recruits in 2017-18, the 'Eaters have been on the rise. That 2017-18 squad put together the second-best turnaround in all of NCAA Division I as they posted 18 wins after finishing with just five in 2016-17. The following year, the Anteaters notched the program's first 20-win season since 1985. In 2020-21, they also advanced to the Big West championship game for the first time in 24 years. UCI has placed among the top-three in the conference standings three times under Inoue.

HOME COOKING
Since 2017-18, UC Irvine is 38-16 (.704) at the Bren Events Center. The 38 home victories in four-plus seasons are more than the combined total from the previous six campaigns (2011-17).

LAST TIME OUT
Behind another impressive team effort, UC Irvine defeated Southern Utah, 81-65, Thursday at the Bren Events Center. Twelve of the 14 Anteaters who logged minutes made their way into the scoring column, while nine had at least five points. Chloe Webb led the way with 14 points and 13 rebounds for her sixth career double-double. Sophia Locandro added 12 points and seven boards, while Nikki Tom dished out a game-high five assists.

SPREADING THE WEALTH
UC Irvine has shown its depth in its first two games of the season, with over half of its points coming off the bench. All 15 Anteaters have scored with 12 averaging at least 5.0 points, including four in double figures. Sophia Locandro and Olivia Williams lead the way at 10.5 ppg, while Nikki Tom and Chloe Webb sit at 10.0 ppg.

HELPING HAND
In the season-opening win over Westcliff, the 'Eaters dished out 30 assists on 43 made field goals. The 30 helpers tied a program record that was set during the 1982-83 season. UCI currently ranks 16th in all of NCAA Division I with 23.0 assists per game.

DOUBLE DUTY
The Anteaters have produced two double-doubles in two games. Melodie Kapinga had the first of the season with 11 points and a career-high 10 rebounds in 13 minutes against Westcliff (Nov. 9). Chloe Webb followed with 14 points and 13 boards for her sixth career double-double in a win over Southern Utah on Nov. 11. Webb, a 2021 All-Big West honorable mention selection, is averaging 10.0 points and a team-best 9.0 rebounds per outing.

BACK TO WORK
Despite losing five seniors to graduation, UC Irvine welcomes back eight returning letterwinners, including its top-three scorers from a year ago in Kayla Williams (14.4 ppg), Chloe Webb (12.2 ppg) and Sophia Locandro (10.1 ppg). Williams was named the 2021 Big West Freshman of the Year and earned first-team all-conference honors, while Webb received an honorable mention nod.

JOINING THE CREW
The Anteaters bring in a group of seven newcomers in 2021-22. UCI has five true freshmen - Hunter Hernandez, Déja Lee, Amelia Scharpf, Nikki Tom and Olivia Williams - while adding some experience with grad transfers Tara Dusharm (Pepperdine) and Naomi Hunt (Long Beach State).

TURNOVER TALK
The 'Eaters have forced at least 15.0 turnovers per game every year since Tamara Inoue took over the program in 2016-17. They led the Big West in that category in three of Inoue's five seasons at the helm with averages of 18.6 turnovers forced per game in 2020-21, 19.9 in 2018-19 and 20.3 in 2017-18.

RECORD WATCH
It didn't take long for Sophia Locandro to enter UC Irvine's career record books as her 61st block, which came in the first two minutes against Southern Utah on Nov. 11, put her in a tie for 10th with Geanine Hobbs. Jayde Cadee is also on the verge of breaking into UCI's all-time top-10 in 3-pointers made with her 99 career triples sitting just eight behind 2020 graduate Lauren Saiki (107).

SCORING MACHINE
As a redshirt freshman in 2020-21, Kayla Williams ranked among the best in the Big West in scoring (6th, 14.4 ppg), assists (3rd, 4.1 apg) and steals (2nd, 2.6 spg). She had 19 double-figure scoring games, including five 20-plus point performances. In the second of back-to-back wins at Cal Poly, Williams dropped a career-high 32 points on 10-of-22 shooting (7-11 3FG). Her 32 points are T-11th in single-game school history, while her seven triples are T-3rd.

YEAR THREE
Sophia Locandro is UCI's active career leader with 605 points, 295 rebounds and 61 blocks. The 6-foot-3 forward is a two-time Big West Player of the Week, and garnered all-conference recognition as a freshman in 2019-20.

SHOOTERS TOUCH
Jayde Cadee is the Anteaters' active career leader in 3-pointers made (99). As a freshman, she knocked down a team-leading 59 triples, which ranks fifth in single-season school history. The 5-foot-10 guard, who has 23 career games with multiple threes made, also tied a single-game program record with eight 3-pointers at Long Beach State on Feb. 20, 2020.

MITTY CONNECTION
UC Irvine has three true freshmen who were teammates at Archbishop Mitty High School in San Jose. Hunter Hernandez, Amelia Scharpf and Olivia Williams helped the Monarchs to four league championships and three CIF Central Coast Section titles. They also won the 2020 Nor Cal Championship and advanced to the state championship before the game was canceled in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition, associate head coach Cecilia Russell-Nava is a Mitty alum, while recent UCI graduates Dani Guglielmo and Tahlia Garza were also Monarchs.

INTERNATIONAL FLAVOR
UC Irvine has three international student-athletes in Jayde Cadee, Sophia Locandro and Déja Lee. Lee, a freshman from Surrey, British Columbia, was one of the top-ranked 2021 prospects in Canada. She competed with the Canadian National Team at the 2021 FIBA U19 Women's World Cup (5th) and the 2019 FIBA U16 Americas Championship (2nd). Cadee and Locandro both hail from Melbourne, Australia, where they won national titles with the Victoria Metro State team. In addition, freshman Olivia Williams, who has dual citizenship, has competed with the New Zealand National Team, winning silver at the 2019 FIBA U17 Women's Oceania Championship.

STRONG WOMEN
UCI women's basketball has an all-female staff with head coach Tamara Inoue, associate head coach Cecilia Russell-Nava, assistants Jualeah Woods and Cinnamon Lister, and Director of Operations Tyler Ellis. All five played Division I basketball and have made it to the NCAA Tournament as either a player and/or coach. In addition, Tayyiba Haneef-Park, a three-time Olympian and two-time silver medalist with the U.S. Women's Indoor Volleyball Team, is in her fourth year as the program's Director of Administration.

UP NEXT
UC Irvine will head to California Baptist for its first road game of the season next Saturday, Nov. 20. Tip-off is set for 1 p.m.