UC Irvine (5-1) at
Fresno State (5-5)
Date: Sunday, Dec. 11
Time: 2 p.m. (PST)
Location: Save Mart Center (15,596) - Fresno, Calif.

IRVINE, Calif. - UC Irvine women's basketball continues its road-heavy non-conference schedule at Fresno State on Sunday, Dec. 11, with tip-off set for 2 p.m. at the Save Mart Center. The Anteaters, who are returning to action after finals week, will be looking for their fourth consecutive win.
 
STARTING FIVE: STORYLINES
• All four of UCI's road games have been decided by two points or less, starting with a 60-58 victory at Sacramento State (Nov. 12) where Diaba Konate hit a buzzer-beating jumper. The 'Eaters then dropped a 62-60 double overtime decision at Pac-12 member Washington (Nov. 17), before bouncing back two days later with a 54-53 win at Seattle U. They trailed the Redhawks by four with just over a minute remaining, but Olivia Williams drained a clutch 3-pointer and Nikki Tom delivered a perfect entry pass to Nevaeh Parkinson who converted the game-winning layup with 4.2 seconds on the clock. In its last outing on Dec. 1, UC Irvine held off a late rally by Eastern Washington to come away with a 67-65 victory in Cheney.
 
• With a 5-1 record, the Anteaters are out to their best start since 2018-19 when they opened the campaign with seven consecutive wins. UC Irvine's only loss this year came at UW in the team's first double overtime game since 1981. UCI has been recognized for its impressive start as it has been receiving votes in the last three College Insider Women's Mid-Major Polls.
 
• The 'Eaters lead The Big West in 11 statistical categories, and rank among the top-15 in all of NCAA Division I in steals per game (6th, 14.3), turnover margin (12th, 9.0) and turnovers forced per game (12th, 24.3). UCI has forced 20+ turnovers in five of its six contests with a season-high 28 at Sacramento State and at Washington.
 
• UC Irvine is tops in The Big West and ranks 32nd in the nation in scoring defense at 54.5 points allowed per game. The Anteaters have held five of their six opponents to at least one single-digit scoring quarter, and gave up fewer than 60 points in four of their five wins. In the season opener, they kept Whittier College off the scoreboard in the third frame of a 98-33 victory, marking the first time UCI has not allowed a point in a 10-minute period since the NCAA switched to quarters in 2015-16.
 
• Sunday's match-up will feature two teams ranked among the top-35 in all of NCAA Division I in scoring defense as UCI is 32nd and Fresno State is 17th, holding its opponents to 52.5 points per outing. Both squads have also had four games that were decided by three points or less with UCI going 3-1 in those contests and the Bulldogs going winless at 0-4.

SCOUTING THE BULLDOGS
Fresno State snapped a three-game losing streak and evened its record at 5-5 with a 68-63 home win over Northern Arizona on Thursday evening. Senior guard Yanina Todorova leads the Bulldogs with 12.8 points, 5.4 rebounds and 1.7 assists per outing. Senior guard Amaya West is also averaging 11.3 ppg, while senior forward Amiee Book (10.5 ppg), who played at Cal State Fullerton from 2018-21, is the squad's top threat from the perimeter with 20 3-pointers made. Fresno has already faced three Big West schools and is 1-2 against the conference.
 
SERIES RECORD
UC Irvine trails in its all-time series with Fresno State, 20-3, with a bulk of the meetings coming during the Bulldogs' time in the Big West from 1986-1992. Fresno has won 19 in a row, including a 63-45 victory in the most recent tilt on Nov. 26, 2016, at the LMU Thanksgiving Classic. UCI's last win against Fresno State came on March 3, 1983.
  
LAST TIME OUT
UC Irvine earned another hard-fought road win, defeating Eastern Washington, 67-65, on Thursday, Dec. 1, at Reese Court. The match-up of two 4-1 teams that were both receiving votes in the College Insider Women's Mid-Major Poll lived up to the billing as it was a seesaw battle that saw nine ties and five lead changes. Neither side led by more than five in the first half, but the Anteaters took control in the third quarter, outscoring the Eagles, 23-10. They stayed out front in the fourth and went up by as many as 11 with just under three minutes left to play before holding off a late EWU rally. It was Eastern's first home loss of the season. Naomi Hunt led the 'Eaters with a season-high tying 17 points to go along with five rebounds and three steals. Nikki Tom and Diaba Konate added 12 points each, while Déja Lee finished with 11. Konate also dished out five assists. Nyagoa Gony pulled down a team-best eight rebounds and had three blocks.
 
TURNOVER TALK
The Anteaters forced 20+ turnovers in each of their first five games with a season-high 28 at Sacramento State and at Washington. As of Dec. 8, UCI ranks among the top-15 in all of NCAA Division I in steals per game (6th, 14.3), turnover margin (12th, 9.0) and turnovers forced per game (12th, 24.3). Since 2016-17, the 'Eaters have been one of the top teams in The Big West in turnovers forced with an average of 18.0 per game.

QUARTER RECORDS
The 'Eaters outscored Whittier, 26-0, in the third period of their 98-33 season-opening win. It was the first time in program history UCI held its opponent scoreless in a quarter (since 2015-16). The previous school record was one point allowed in the third frame against Life Pacific on Nov. 7, 2018. UC Irvine was the third NCAA Division I team to blank its opponent in a quarter to start the 2022-23 season.
 
COUNTDOWN TO 100
Head coach Tamara Inoue needs three more victories to hit the 100-win milestone. She is the second-winningest coach in program history (97). The 2021 co-Big West Coach of the Year has led the 'Eaters to two of their four 20-win campaigns, including a school-record tying 21 last year.
 
ON THE ROAD AGAIN
UCI is used to being on the road as it is set to play its fifth game away from Irvine. The 'Eaters are currently 3-1 in road contests as they defeated Sacramento State, Seattle U and EWU, while falling to Pac-12 member Washington. Overall, seven of the Anteaters' 11 non-conference games are on the road.
 
CARDIAC KIDS
Four of UC Irvine's last five games have been decided by two points or less. At Sacramento State (Nov. 12), Diaba Konate hit the game-winning jumper with 0.2 ticks on the clock to lift the Anteaters to the 60-58 win. In a 54-53 victory at Seattle U on Nov. 19, it was Nevaeh Parkinson who finished the go-ahead layup with 4.2 seconds remaining. In addition, UCI's 62-60 double overtime loss at Pac-12 member Washington (Nov. 17) was won by the Huskies with nine seconds to go. On Dec. 1, the 'Eaters got it done on the defensive end with a stop on EWU's final possession to secure the 67-65 triumph.
 
HUNTING MILESTONES
Naomi Hunt has reached two significant milestones in her time at UCI as she eclipsed 1,000 career points last season and surpassed 200 career 3-pointers made in the win at Eastern Washington on Dec. 1. The graduate student has knocked down 201 threes and currently sits at 1,102 points with 803 in her three seasons at Long Beach State and 299 in her time at UC Irvine. Hunt, who has netted a season-high 17 points on three occasions, is tops on the squad in scoring (11.7 ppg) and rebounding (5.3 rpg).
 
GIVE AND TAKE
Sophomore Nikki Tom leads the Anteaters in total assists (20) and steals (13). In the team's 54-53 win at Seattle U, she finished with a season-high five assists and a career-best four steals. Her fifth dime came on the game-winning play as she delivered a perfect entry pass to Nevaeh Parkinson for the go-ahead layup. Tom, who is averaging 9.8 ppg, has also reached double figures in scoring in four of her six outings this year with a career-high 18 points on a 6-of-7 shooting performance (4-4 3FG) vs. LIU on Nov. 25. Over the last two games, she has shot 70.6% from the field.
 
AMONG THE BIG WEST LEADERS
Junior transfer Diaba Konate has made an immediate impact in her first year at UC Irvine. Konate leads the team and ranks second in The Big West in assists (4.0 apg) and steals (2.4 spg) per game, while she is also second on the squad in scoring at 10.6 points per outing. Konate has reached double figures in three of her five appearances with a season-high 16 points at Sacramento State on Nov. 12. In addition, Konate is tops in the conference in free throw percentage (86.4%) and second in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.67).
 
ON THE HORIZON
Diaba Konate, who dished out her 300th career assist at Eastern Washington on Dec. 1, is approaching another milestone as she is on pace to reach 1,000 points. Konate (875) needs 125 more points to join the 1K club.
 
LATE GAME IMPACT
Graduate transfer Nyagoa Gony played a key defensive role in UC Irvine's wins at Sac State and Seattle U. Against the Hornets, the 6-foot-3 forward had three of her career-high four blocks during a 15-2 fourth-quarter run that gave the Anteaters a late 58-56 advantage, which was their first lead since the opening minute of the game. Gony's fourth block at Seattle U also came on the last play of the contest to seal the 54-53 victory for the 'Eaters. Gony leads The Big West with 12 total blocks (2.0/game).
 
WILLIAMS FOR THREE
Sophomore Olivia Williams found her stroke at Seattle U where she finished with a game and career-high 16 points. Williams topped her previous best of 14 from the season opener against Whittier. The 6-foot-1 guard went 6-of-12 from the field and drained a career-high four 3-pointers on eight attempts against the Redhawks. Williams is second on the team with nine threes made and ranks fourth with 9.0 points per outing.
 
OPENING STATEMENT
Sophomore Déja Lee had the best game of her young career in UCI's season-opening win over Whittier College. Lee came off the bench to lead all players with a career-high 16 points (7-9 FG). She also set career bests with eight rebounds, five assists and no turnovers in 18 minutes of action. Lee reached double figures in scoring again at Seattle U (12) and at Eastern Washington (11).

UP NEXT
UC Irvine returns to the friendly confines of the Bren Events Center next week when it plays host to Westcliff on Wednesday, Dec. 14, at 11 a.m. The early tip-off is for Kids Day in which local elementary schools are invited to attend as part of a field trip.