Big West Tournament Championship Game
No. 2 UC Irvine (15-8, 11-4 Big West) vs.
No. 1 UC Davis (12-2, 9-1 Big West)
Date: Saturday, March 13
Time: 5 p.m. (PST)
Location: Michelob Ultra Arena (12,000) - Las Vegas, Nev.
Watch on ESPN3 // Listen on KUCI // Live Stats

Virtual Watch Party (Hosted by UCIAA) Registration

UC Irvine Game Notes // UC Davis Game Notes

LAS VEGAS - UC Irvine women's basketball is set to take on UC Davis for the hardware at the Air Force Reserve Big West Championships, presented by The Hawaiian Islands, Saturday, March 13, at Michelob Ultra Arena in Las Vegas. No. 2 seed UCI will square off against the top-seeded Aggies in the championship game at 5 p.m.
 
STORYLINES
• UC Irvine is making its fifth overall appearance in the championship game of the Big West Tournament, and first since 1997.
• The Anteaters are vying for the program's second conference tournament title.
• Their first and only championship to date came in 1995, when they won in Las Vegas as the No. 3 seed.
• The 'Eaters advanced in this year's tournament with wins over No. 7 UC Santa Barbara and No. 6 Cal Poly.
• This is the first time both the UCI women's and men's teams will play in the Big West championship game in the same year.
• UC Irvine's 11 Big West regular-season victories were tied for first in the league this year, and tied for second in school history.
• The Anteaters reached double-digit wins in conference play for the fifth time in program history.
• Two of those seasons have come under 2021 Big West co-Coach of the Year Tamara Inoue.
• The 'Eaters locked up their highest Big West Tournament seed since 1998, when they were No. 2 in the West Division.
• They are 6-4 in their fifth appearance as the two seed.
• This is the second-straight year UCI placed among the top-two in the conference standings.
• In 2019-20, they tied for second, but earned the three seed in the tournament due to a tiebreaker.
• Redshirt freshman Kayla Williams is UC Irvine's third Big West Freshman of the Year, and first since 2018.
• She ranks among the top-15 freshmen in all of NCAA Division I in assist average (T-8th) and scoring average (13th).
• Sophomore Chloe Webb is averaging 20.0 points, 8.0 rebounds, 3.0 assists and 1.5 steals in two tournament games.
• Webb earned an All-Big West honorable mention nod.
 
WITH A WIN...
• UC Irvine would win its second Big West Tournament title and first since 1995.
• The Anteaters would earn the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.
• It would be the team's second national postseason appearance in head coach Tamara Inoue's tenure (2018 WBI).

BIG WEST NOTABLES
Despite tying for the conference lead with 11 Big West victories, UC Irvine finished second in the regular-season standings based on win percentage. The Anteaters earned the No. 2 seed in the Big West Tournament for the fifth time in program history, and first since 1998, when they were second in the West Division. The 'Eaters are 6-4 all-time when playing as the No. 2 seed. UC Irvine is making its 32nd Big West Tournament appearance in its 38th year as a member of the conference.
 
This is the first time the Big West Tournament is being held outside the state of California since 2000 (Reno, Nev.), and the first time it is in Las Vegas since 1995 (Thomas & Mack Center), when the Anteaters won their first and only conference title to date.
 
ALL-CONFERENCE DISTINCTION
Kayla Williams earned multiple postseason honors as she was a first-team All-Big West and All-Freshman Team selection, while also becoming the third Big West Freshman of the Year in program history (first since 2018). She is UCI's first freshman to receive first-team all-conference honors. The 5-foot-7 point guard finished the regular season ranked first in the league in steals (2.7), second in assists (4.5 apg) and third in scoring (14.8 ppg). This is the fourth year in a row the 'Eaters have had a representative on the six-member All-Big West First Team.
 
Sophomore Chloe Webb, who missed the 2019-20 conference season with an injury, garnered her first postseason accolades with an All-Big West honorable mention nod. Webb ranks first in the league in field goal percentage (47.8%), seventh in rebounding (7.3 rpg) and 14th in scoring (12.0 ppg).
 
COACH OF THE YEAR
Head coach Tamara Inoue, who is in her fifth season at the helm, was voted the Big West co-Coach of the Year. She is the second head coach in program history to win the award, joining Colleen Matsuhara (1995) in elite company. Despite a unique and challenging season with the pandemic, Inoue continued to forge a path forward for the Anteaters, leading them to a second-place Big West finish and their highest tournament seed in 24 years. Her team's 11 regular-season conference wins tied for second most in school history. 

HOW WE GOT HERE
UC Irvine started the Big West Tournament with a 92-90 quarterfinal win over No. 7 seed UC Santa Barbara on Wednesday, March 10. It was the first time in tournament history that two teams scored 90+ points in a single game. The Anteaters also established postseason program-records in points (92), field goals made (33) and FG% (55.9), while tying the top marks of 10 threes and five blocked shots. The 'Eaters came back on Friday to top sixth-seeded Cal Poly, 68-59, in their second semifinal appearance in three years. Chloe Webb led UCI with 20 points and eight rebounds in both games.
 
No. 1 seed UC Davis was also battle-tested in its first two games as it advanced with a 61-54 victory against No. 9 seed Cal State Fullerton, and a 64-52 semifinal win over fourth-seeded Hawai'i. Cierra Hall (20 points/10 rebounds) and Sage Stobbart (12 points/11 rebounds) each have a double-double in postseason play.
 
SCOUTING THE AGGIES
After being shut down for nearly two months due to Yolo County health orders, UC Davis (12-2, 9-1 Big West) got right back into the swing of things in late January, winning its first eight conference games. Big West Player of the Year Cierra Hall leads the Aggies with 14.0 points and 6.8 rebounds per contest. Big West Defensive Player of the Year Sage Stobbart is also averaging 10.8 points, 8.1 rebounds and 2.7 blocks in 14 games played. Not including last year's tournament, which was canceled due to the pandemic, UCD will be making its third-straight Big West championship game appearance.
 
SERIES RECORD
UC Irvine trails in its all-time series with UC Davis, 31-9, and has dropped nine of the last 10 meetings. The two teams did not face each other this season due to the Aggies' shutdown, but they split their two games in 2020. This marks the fifth time the two teams will square off in the Big West Tournament where UCD holds a 3-1 edge. The programs have never met in the championship game.
 
WINNING WAYS
UC Irvine secured its fourth-straight season with at least 13 wins after a 79-70 triumph over Long Beach State on March 5. Since 2017, the Anteaters have won 66 games, marking their most victories in a four-year stretch since 1983-87.
 
TURNOVER TALK
UCI has forced a Big West-leading 18.7 turnovers per game. The 'Eaters have caused 17+ miscues in all but three outings this year.
 
I'LL TAKE THAT
UC Irvine ranks second in the Big West with 9.4 steals per game. Kayla Williams has led the charge with a conference-best 2.6 average. Her 57 takeaways on the year are tied for 10th in single-season school history.
 
CAREER RECORD WATCH
Senior Tahlia Garza ranks sixth in the school record books with 101 career blocks. Senior Haleigh Talbert sits just outside UCI's all-time top-10 with 105 career 3-pointers made. She needs two more threes to etch her name in the record books.
 
FIRST FIVE
UC Irvine has used nine different starting lineups on the year, seven of which debuted in the team's first 10 games. The Anteaters then found a winning recipe, using the same five over an eight-game stretch where they went 7-1. Due to injuries, UCI had to start mixing it up again at UC San Diego (Feb. 26-27). Sophia Locandro is the only 'Eater to have started every game this season.
 
WORKING OVERTIME
After two seasons without an overtime game, the 'Eaters have gone to an extra period twice this year. It is the first time they have had multiple OT games since 2014-15, and multiple OT wins since 2013-14. UC Irvine has fared well this year as it is 2-0 in overtime games, while outscoring its opponents, 37-15, in the five-minute extra period. In their Big West Tournament history, the Anteaters have gone to OT once, defeating UC Davis, 74-70, on March 12, 2014.
 
HOME COOKING
Since 2017-18, UC Irvine is 36-16 (.692) at the Bren Events Center. The 36 home victories in three-plus seasons are more than the combined total from the previous six campaigns (2011-17).
 
BIG WEST LEADERBOARD
In Big West regular-season play, redshirt freshman Kayla Williams led the conference in steals (2.7 spg), while ranking second in scoring (14.7 ppg), and third in assists (4.4 apg). She earned her first career Big West Player of the Week award after dropping a career-high 32 points on 10-of-22 shooting (7-11 3FG) in the second of back-to-back wins at Cal Poly. The Los Angeles native also had 24 points at UC Santa Barbara (Dec. 28), 24 at CSU Bakersfield (Feb. 5) and 20 vs. Hawai'i (Jan. 29), while registering her first collegiate double-double with 18 points and 10 rebounds vs. Long Beach State (March 5). Williams added six assists and a career-best six steals against the Beach. In addition, she was the first of three players in the Big West with a double-digit assist game, dishing out 10 against UCSB on Dec. 28.
 
MAKING MOVES
Overall, Williams is tops on the squad with 14.5 points, 4.3 assists and 2.6 steals per contest. She has 18 double-figure scoring games and five 20-plus point performances. Her career-high 32 points are tied for 11th in single-game school history, while her seven triples are tied for third. The 5-foot-7 point guard made her Anteater debut on Nov. 28, marking her first official competition since her high school career ended on Feb. 27, 2019 (21 months).
 
FREE THROW RECORDS
In the first game at CSU Bakersfield (Feb. 5), Williams was a perfect 11-for-11 at the free throw line. It was the first time an 'Eater did not miss a free throw with at least 10 attempts since 2011. She also ranks among the top-three in UCI's single-game history with her 14 free throws made and 20 free throws attempted in a 24-point performance against Westmont College on Dec. 9. Williams is shooting 75.2% (85-113) at the charity stripe this season.
 
DOUBLE DIPPING
Sophomore Chloe Webb is the only Anteater with multiple double-doubles this season, as she has five, including four against Big West opponents. Webb, who has scored 20+ in three of her last four outings, is averaging 12.0 points and a team-leading 7.3 rebounds. The San Diego native had a career-high 21 points on 7-of-10 shooting vs. Long Beach State (March 5), and finished with 20 points in both of UCI's Big West Tournament victories. Earlier in the year, Webb pulled down a career-best 15 rebounds, to go along with 14 points, in her first double-double vs. Westmont College (Dec. 9). The 5-foot-8 guard was the first 'Eater with 15 boards in a game since Nov. 17, 2016.
 
BACK TO BUSINESS
Sophomore Sophia Locandro, a 2019-20 All-Big West honorable mention selection, has continued to be a key presence on the court for the Anteaters this year. The 6-foot-3 forward ranks among the top-three on the squad with 10.3 points and 5.0 rebounds per contest. She has reached double figures in scoring 13 times with a season-high 20 points vs. Saint Mary's on Dec. 16. It was her seventh career 20-point performance. The Australia native also pulled down a career-high tying 11 rebounds at UC Santa Barbara (Dec. 27). Earlier in December, Locandro was named the Big West Women's Basketball Player of the Week for her effort at LMU (Dec. 3), where she put up 14 points and a team-high eight boards, six of which came on the offensive end.
 
HEART OVER HEIGHT
Senior Haleigh Talbert (Euless, Texas) has been one of the Anteaters' most consistent all-around players over the last few years as she is the team's active career leader in points (795), assists (190) and steals (132). The 5-foot-4 guard has continued to put up solid numbers in 2020-21, averaging 9.8 points, 3.6 rebounds and 2.1 assists in 16 games played. She missed a month of competition with an injury, snapping a streak of 97 consecutive games played.
 
SHOOTERS TOUCH
Sophomore Jayde Cadee (Melbourne, Australia) is tops on the squad with 36 3-pointers made. She had a season-high tying 15-point performance, on 5-of-9 shooting from beyond the arc in Wednesday's quarterfinal round. The 5-foot-11 guard also had 12 points (4-10 3FG) in the regular-season finale vs. Long Beach State. Cadee, who has 22 career games with multiple treys, has made 5+ triples in two of her three career Big West Tournament games. In postseason play, she has made 12 treys (4.0/gm).
 
THE BAKER SHOW
Freshman Victoria Baker has made quite the splash in her first Big West Tournament. The 5-foot-9 freshman guard is averaging 11.5 points, 4.0 rebounds and 3.5 assists in two postseason games. She dished out a season-best six assists vs. UCSB, and had seven of her 11 points in a fourth quarter run that lifted UCI to a semifinal win over Cal Poly.
 
DON'T COUNT 'EM OUT
In the 2021 Big West Tournament, UC Irvine came back from 12 and nine-point deficits against UC Santa Barbara and Cal Poly, respectively. The 'Eaters were trailing at the half in both games, but combined to outscore their opponents, 89-69, in the final 20 minutes.

UNDER THE LIGHTS
The Anteaters have been featured on ESPN3 29 times (including in-house productions) since the start of the Tamara Inoue era in 2016-17. They are 20-9 in those games. In full ESPN3 productions, the 'Eaters are 8-6.
 
UP NEXT
The winner of today's championship game will earn the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. The selection show is scheduled for 4 p.m. (PDT) on Monday, March 15, and will air on ESPN.