UC Davis (6-4, 0-0 Big West) at
UC Irvine (5-6, 0-0 Big West)
Date: Thursday, Jan. 6
Time: 7 p.m. (PST)
Location: Bren Events Center (5,000) - Irvine, Calif.
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UC Riverside (3-3, 0-0 Big West) at
UC Irvine (5-6, 0-0 Big West)
Date: Saturday, Jan. 8
Time: 2 p.m. (PST)
Location: Bren Events Center (5,000) - Irvine, Calif.
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UC Irvine Game Notes

IRVINE, Calif. - After last week's cancellations, UC Irvine women's basketball is now set to open Big West play at home as it welcomes UC Davis to the Bren Events Center for a 7 p.m. showdown on Thursday, Jan. 6. The Anteaters will then host UC Riverside at 2 p.m. on Saturday, Jan. 8.

In accordance with guidance from the California Department of Public Health, UC Irvine Athletics is requiring fans in attendance (ages 3 and older) at all indoor home events to provide proof of vaccination or a negative COVID-19 test within one day for an antigen test and two days for a PCR test prior to entry. 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
• Thursday's game will feature the top-two teams in the Big West Preseason Coaches' Poll.
• UC Davis was picked No. 1 and UC Irvine came in at No. 2 prior to the start of the 2021-22 campaign.
• Both UCI and UCD will be playing their first game against a conference opponent since last year's Big West Tournament final.
• Preseason All-Big West selection Kayla Williams has a career-long streak of nine-straight double-figure scoring games.
• On the year, Williams is averaging a team-best 13.0 ppg, 4.1 apg and 2.4 spg.
• Chloe Webb is the only 'Eater with multiple double-doubles as she had two in non-conference play.
• Webb enters the week with 9.2 points and a team-leading 5.8 rebounds per game.
• Naomi Hunt is averaging 11.7 points in her last six outings.
• During that stretch she has knocked down 15 threes and reached double figures in scoring four times.
• Sophia Locandro (13) and Tara Dusharm (9) have combined for over half of UCI's 42 blocks.
• Locandro has had at least one block in eight games with a career-high tying four at California Baptist.

SCOUTING THE AGGIES
UC Davis (6-4, 0-0 BWC) closed out non-conference play with a 69-66 win over Gonzaga on Dec. 19. The Aggies' first two scheduled Big West games at UC Riverside and against Hawai'i were canceled last week. Reigning Big West Player of the Year Cierra Hall is tops on the squad with 12.3 points, 7.9 rebounds, 3.2 assists and 1.2 steals per game.
 
SERIES RECORD
UC Irvine trails in its all-time series with UC Davis, 32-9. The two teams last met in the 2021 Big West Tournament championship game where the Aggies pulled away late for the 61-42 win (March 13, 2021).
 
SCOUTING THE HIGHLANDERS
UC Riverside (3-3, 0-0 BWC), which has seen six of its last eight games canceled, was most recently in action on Dec. 19 when it dropped a 61-55 decision at the University of the Incarnate Word. Keilanei Cooper leads the Highlanders with 16.5 points and 5.0 rebounds per outing. Olivia West is also averaging 12.3 points, while Jada Holland has registered 10.8 points and 5.7 assists per contest.
 
SERIES RECORD
UC Irvine trails in its all-time series with UC Riverside, 41-23. The two teams split last year's regular-season series at the Bren Events Center. The Highlanders opened with a 63-45 victory on Jan. 8, 2021, before the Anteaters bounced back the next day with Chloe Webb hitting the game-winner in the final seconds for the 62-60 triumph.
 
LAST TIME OUT
UC Irvine came storming back from a double-digit deficit, but ultimately ran out of time in a 58-53 loss to Grand Canyon at GCU Arena on Dec. 23, 2021. Trailing, 49-38, with just over four minutes remaining, Jayde Cadee and Kayla Williams sparked a furious rally with each knocking down a pair of triples to bring the 'Eaters within five. After getting a stop on the other end, Williams was fouled on a 3-point attempt and calmly sank all of her free throws to make it 55-53 with 15.5 seconds on the clock. GCU then made 1-of-2 at the line to keep it a one-possession game, but Cadee was off the mark on the game-tying attempt. Williams finished with a team-high 13 points and three assists.
 
STARTING FIVE
UC Irvine has used the same starting lineup in every game this season - Kayla Williams, Olivia Williams, Chloe Webb, Naomi Hunt and Sophia Locandro. Locandro has been part of the first five in 52 consecutive games and leads all current Anteaters with 54 career starts.
 
BENCH PRODUCTION
UCI has outscored its opponents in bench points, 288-140. All 15 'Eaters have made their way into the scoring column, 10 have at least one double-figure scoring game, and eight are averaging at least 4.0 points per outing.
 
HOME & AWAY
After playing five of their six games in the month of November within the friendly confines of the Bren Events Center, the Anteaters did the opposite in December with four of their five contests on the road. UCI is 4-2 at home, 0-4 in true road games, and 1-0 in neutral-site contests. Since 2017-18, UC Irvine is 40-18 (.690) at the Bren.
 
RECORD WATCH
With 13 blocks this season, Sophia Locandro has increased her career total to 71, which puts her in sole possession of ninth all-time at UC Irvine. Jayde Cadee is also on the verge of breaking into UCI's all-time top-10 in 3-pointers made with her 106 career triples sitting one behind Lauren Saiki.
 
TURNOVER TALK
The Anteaters have forced 15+ turnovers on seven occasions (16.7/gm), with a season-high 24 at California Baptist on Nov. 20. Since 2016-17, they have forced 17.9 turnovers per game and have consistently been one of the top teams in the Big West in that category.
 
DOUBLE DIGIT TIDBITS
UCI has had multiple players score in double figures in 10 of its 11 games this season. Kayla Williams is tops on the team with nine 10+ point performances (28 career), while Chloe Webb is second with six (26 career).
 
IRON WOMEN
Sophia Locandro and Jayde Cadee are tied for the team lead with 66 consecutive games played. The Australian duo has not missed a contest since their arrival in Irvine in 2019-20. Locandro, a 6-foot-3 forward, is the team's active UCI career leader in points (680), rebounds (339) and blocks (71). Cadee, meanwhile, surpassed 100 career 3-pointers made with the first of her three triples at California Baptist.

DOUBLE DUTY
UCI is 4-0 when an Anteater finishes with a double-double this season. Chloe Webb has a team-best two double-doubles, putting up 11 points/10 rebounds vs. SJSU, and 14 points/13 boards against Southern Utah. Melodie Kapinga had the first of the year with 11 points and a career-high 10 rebounds in 13 minutes against Westcliff (Nov. 9), while Naomi Hunt registered 17 points and 12 rebounds vs. Sacramento State.
 
SCORING MACHINE
Kayla Williams has reached double figures in scoring in 28 of 34 career games played with six 20+ point performances. She has increased her 2021-22 average to 13.0 ppg after scoring 10+ in each of the last nine outings, including a season-high 20 at California Baptist. Williams also has a streak of 25 consecutive games played with at least one 3-pointer made. She owns a career high of 32 points which she established at Cal Poly on Jan. 23, 2021. 
 
ON THE HUNT
Naomi Hunt had four double-figure scoring performances in the last six non-conference games with 17 vs. Sac State, 13 at USC, 15 against San José State and 14 at Arizona State. During that six-game stretch, she averaged 11.7 points with 15 made threes.
 
OPENING NIGHT
For the seventh-straight year, UCI started the overall campaign at home, and won its fourth opener in the last five seasons with a 114-53 victory over Westcliff on Nov. 9. The 114 points were a program record, breaking the previous mark of 107, which was set back in 1979 and matched in 2018. Of the five 100-point games in school history, four have come in the Tamara Inoue era. The 'Eaters also tied a 39-year old school record with 30 assists vs. the Warriors.
 
WINNING WAYS
UC Irvine increased its win total in each of head coach Tamara Inoue's first three years at the helm, culminating with the program's third 20-win campaign in 2018-19. In five-plus seasons, including last year's shortened schedule, Inoue already ranks third in program history with 76 victories. The 2021 Big West co-Coach of the Year is 10 wins away from tying Mark Adams (86) for second.
 
THE TURNAROUND
Prior to Inoue's arrival in 2016-17, UC Irvine had two winning seasons in 15 years, but ever since her 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, posting 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.
 
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, which was tabbed the preseason favorite with nine first-place votes and 99 total 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 selected to the six-member Preseason All-Big West Team. Last year, Williams was named the Big West Freshman of the Year and earned first-team all-conference honors after averaging 14.4 points, 4.1 assists and 2.6 steals per game.

UP NEXT
UC Irvine will travel to La Jolla next Tuesday, Jan. 11, to take on UC San Diego (7 p.m.), before returning to the Bren Events Center to host Hawai'i at 4 p.m. on Saturday, Jan. 15.