Anteaters Travel to Hawai'i for Pivotal Big West Match-Up

UC Irvine (15-9, 10-3 Big West) at
Hawai'i (12-9, 8-3 Big West)
Date: Saturday, Feb. 19
Time: 3:30 p.m. (HT) / 5:30 p.m. (PT)
Location: SimpliFi Arena at Stan Sheriff Center (10,300) - Honolulu, Hawaii
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UC Irvine Game Notes

HONOLULU - First-place UC Irvine heads to the Aloha State for a pivotal Big West match-up at second-place Hawai'i on Saturday, Feb. 19. Tip-off is set for 3:30 p.m. (HT)/5:30 p.m. (PT) at SimpliFi Arena at Stan Sheriff Center.

STORYLINES
• The Anteaters were the first Big West team to reach 10 wins in conference play with a 67-50 victory over UCSD on Tuesday.
• Over the last two years, the 'Eaters are 21-7 in regular-season Big West games.
• They have secured back-to-back campaigns with 10+ conference victories for the first time in program history.
• Sixth-year head coach Tamara Inoue is tied for second in school history with 86 career victories.
• Inoue owns a 51-41 Big West record.
• The Anteaters are making their first trip to Hawai'i since Jan. 30, 2020.
• UC Irvine has allowed fewer than 60 points on 12 occasions, including in five of its last six games.
• UCI held UC Santa Barbara to a season low in points scored in a 58-31 win on Feb. 3.
• It was the fewest points the 'Eaters allowed against an NCAA Division I opponent since 1991.
• Kayla Williams has reached double figures in scoring in 21-straight outings.
• She is averaging a team-best 14.7 ppg, and is also tops on the squad in 3FG made (46), assists (102) and steals (54).
• Williams is the only player in the league to rank among the Big West's top-five in all four categories.
• Sophia Locandro is third in the conference with 1.1 bpg and has at least one block in five-straight contests.
• Jayde Cadee ranks second on the squad with 37 3-pointers made, 26 of which have come in Big West play.
• Cadee has eight outings with multiple threes, including vs. CSUN (Feb. 5) where she was 6-of-11 for a season-high 20 points.

WITH A WIN...
• The Anteaters would secure their 11th Big West win, tying for the second-most conference victories in program history.
• The 'Eaters would earn a split in the regular-season series with their first win at UH since 2019.

SCOUTING THE RAINBOW WAHINE
Hawai'i (12-9, 8-3 Big West) saw its five-game win streak snapped on Thursday, falling to UC San Diego, 62-60. Amy Atwell is the only Rainbow Wahine averaging double figures in scoring with a conference-leading 17.8 points per game. She is also tops on the squad with 6.3 rebounds and 1.6 steals per outing.

SERIES RECORD
UCI trails in its all-time series with Hawai'i, 33-13. The Anteaters had won two in a row before the 'Bows took the first meeting of the year, 77-73, in Irvine on Jan. 15. Kayla Williams paced UC Irvine with 21 points, four assists and two steals, while Amy Atwell had 20 for UH.

LAST TIME OUT
UC Irvine got out to a quick start and never looked back in a 67-50 win over UC San Diego Tuesday at the Bren Events Center. The 'Eaters outscored the Tritons, 25-9, in the first quarter where they shot 56% from the field, including 3-of-6 from beyond the arc. UCI ended up leading for all but one minute and seven seconds in the game. Kayla Williams finished with a team-best 18 points to go along with six rebounds and seven assists. Sophia Locandro recorded her first double-double of the season with 10 points and 10 boards. She also had three steals, two assists and a block.

BIG WEST BATTLE
Following Thursday night's results, UC Irvine (10-3) is in sole possession of first place in the Big West standings. With just over two weeks remaining, it is still a tight race as Hawai'i (8-3) is second, Long Beach State (9-4) is third and UC Santa Barbara (7-5) is fourth. UC Davis is also still in the mix with a 6-5 league record.

CONFERENCE LEADERS
As of Feb. 17, UC Irvine ranked first in the Big West in overall scoring offense (67.4 ppg), FT percentage (75.1), and offensive rebounds per game (13.4). Individually, Kayla Williams is the only student-athlete among the top-five in the conference in scoring (5th), assists (2nd), steals (3rd) and 3FG made (3rd).

DEFENSIVE PROWESS
The 'Eaters have held their opponents to under 60 points 12 times this season (11-1), eight of which have come in Big West games. UCI's defense has been stellar of late, limiting opponents to 35% from the field and 20% from behind the arc since Jan. 20. Last Thursday, UC Irvine held UCR to a season-low three points in the fourth quarter.

BENCH PRODUCTION
UCI has outscored its opponents in bench points, 559-340. All 14 'Eaters have made their way into the scoring column, 11 have at least one double-figure scoring game, and eight are averaging at least 4.0 points per outing. In addition, every Anteater who has appeared in at least 10 games is averaging more than 5.0 minutes.

TURNOVER TALK
The Anteaters have forced 15+ turnovers on 18 occasions (17.1/gm), with a season-high 25 vs. UC Riverside on Jan. 8. 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 21 of its 24 games. Kayla Williams is tops on the team with 21 double-digit performances, while Chloe Webb is second with 13. In addition, 10 of the team's 15 wins have come by 10+ points, while they are also 6-0 when an 'Eater finishes with a double-double.

RECORD WATCH
Jayde Cadee is making her way up UCI's all-time charts in 3-pointers made with her 132 career triples ranking fifth in program history. With 25 blocks this season, Sophia Locandro has increased her career total to 83, which puts her in sole possession of eighth all-time at UC Irvine.

CONNECTIONS
Third-year UC Irvine assistant coach Cinnamon Lister was on the Princeton women's basketball staff in the same capacity when UH's McKenna Haire was a sophomore with the Tigers in 2018-19. That team won the Ivy League championship, earning an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. Caiyle Kaupu hails from Holualoa, Hawaii, where she graduated from Konawaena HS in 2020.

HOME & AWAY
Since 2017-18, UC Irvine has compiled a 45-20 (.692) record at the Bren Events Center. This season, nine of the Anteaters' 15 victories have come at home while they own a +10.8 scoring margin in games at the Bren. The 'Eaters are also 5-4 in true road games, with all of those wins coming in Big West play where they are 5-1.

WALKING BUCKET
Kayla Williams has reached double figures in scoring in 40 of 46 career games played with eight 20-plus point performances. Williams, who is averaging a team-best 14.7 ppg, has scored 10+ in each of her last 21 outings, with a season-high 25 at Cal State Fullerton on Jan. 20. She also has a streak of 37 consecutive games played with a 3-pointer made. The 5-foot-7 point guard owns a career high of 32 points which she set at Cal Poly on Jan. 23, 2021.

SPINNING HER WEBB
Chloe Webb, who earned All-Big West honors last year, has been impressive in conference action, averaging 12.7 points, 5.7 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 2.5 steals in 11 games played. She has reached double figures in scoring in seven of those outings with a career-high 26 points at CSUB on Jan. 27, and 20 vs. CSUN on Feb. 5. Since Jan. 6, she has shot 51% (50-98) from the field, 57% (8-14) from beyond the arc and 82% (32-39) at the free throw line.

NEAR PERFECTION
Webb was just shy of becoming the first Anteater in program history to have a perfect shooting performance with at least 10 field goals made. She still set the single-game school record at 90.9% (10-11) in a win at CSU Bakersfield on Jan. 27. Her only miss against the Roadrunners came at the 8:33 mark of the third period, and on that miss she got her own rebound, was fouled and went to the charity stripe where she made both free throws. Webb finished the evening with a career-high 26 points.

3-POINT THREAT
Jayde Cadee is one of the Anteaters' biggest threats from the perimeter. In her last 13 outings, she has made 28 3-pointers, and is shooting 42% from deep. On Feb. 5, Cadee went 6-for-11 from behind the arc for a season-high 20 points against CSUN, while she was also 5-of-10 for 15 points vs. UC Riverside (Jan. 8).

ACCESS DENIED
Sophia Locandro ranks third in the Big West with 1.1 blocks per game. The 6-foot-3 forward has registered at least one block in 16 of her 23 appearances, including in each of the last five contests. Locandro has also had multiple blocks on six occasions with a career-high tying four at California Baptist on Nov. 20. In addition, she ranks third on the squad in scoring (8.7 ppg) and second in rebounding (5.0 rpg).

DOUBLE DUTY
UCI is 6-0 when an Anteater finishes with a double-double this season. Chloe Webb has a team-best three, putting up 13 points/13 rebounds at UC Riverside, 11 points/10 rebounds vs. SJSU, and 14 points/13 rebounds against Southern Utah. Melodie Kapinga had the first of the year with 11 points and a career-high 10 boards in 13 minutes against Westcliff. Naomi Hunt also registered 17 points and 12 rebounds vs. Sacramento State, while Sophia Locandro notched 10 points/10 boards vs. UCSD.

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 is already tied for second in school history with 86 career victories. The 2021 Big West co-Coach of the Year is one win away from passing Mark Adams for sole possession of No. 2 on the all-time wins list.

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 to come in behind five-time defending regular-season champion UC Davis, which earned 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 also named to the six-member Preseason All-Big West Team.

OPENING NIGHT
For the seventh-straight year, UCI started the 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.

UP NEXT
UC Irvine returns to the Bren Events Center next Thursday, Feb. 24, to host Cal State Fullerton before making its way to Long Beach State on Saturday, Feb. 26.

Schedule

Anteaters Travel to Hawai'i for Pivotal Big West Match-Up

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Players Mentioned

Jayde Cadee

Naomi Hunt

Melodie Kapinga

Caiyle Kaupu

Sophia Locandro

Chloe Webb

Kayla Williams

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