UC Irvine (4-2) at
Texas Tech (7-0)
Date: Wednesday, Nov. 29
Time: 6 p.m. (CST) / 4 p.m. (PST)
Location: United Supermarkets Arena (15,000) - Lubbock, Texas

IRVINE, Calif. - UC Irvine women's basketball continues a three-game road stretch at Texas Tech this week as it travels to Lubbock to take on the Lady Raiders Wednesday, Nov. 29, at 6 p.m. (CST) / 4 p.m. (PST).

STARTING FIVE: STORYLINES
• UC Irvine has a streak of 40 consecutive games holding its opponent to under 70 points. The last time the Anteaters gave up 70+ was in an overtime win against UC Davis in the 2022 Big West quarterfinals (March 11, 2022). Last year, the 'Eaters finished the campaign ranked seventh in the nation in scoring defense with a program-record 53.2 points allowed per outing. Through six games this season, they have given up just 57.3 points per contest.

• UCI is currently on a season-long three-game win streak. During that stretch, the Anteaters are averaging just over 70 points per outing and have a +8.3 scoring margin. They are also shooting over 40% from the field (45.5%) and from beyond the arc (40.4%).

• Junior Nikki Tom has led the way during UC Irvine's win streak as she has reached double figures in scoring in each of the last three games. Since Nov. 20, she is averaging 12.0 points, 2.7 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 3.3 steals, while shooting 42% from the field, 39% from distance and 82% at the free throw line. On the season, Tom has 18 steals, which ranks second in The Big West and 29th in all of NCAA Division I. She was named to the 2023-24 All-Big West Preseason Coaches Team.

• UC Irvine has a balanced scoring effort with seven different players averaging at least 6.0 points per outing. Junior Déja Lee is tops on the squad at 14.2 ppg. She has four double-figure scoring performances, including a career-high 23 points in the season opener at Pepperdine. Lee went on to match that point total last week against St. Thomas. Senior Neveah Parkinson has also put up 10.2 points per contest and is shooting a Big West-leading 67.5% from the field.

• The Anteaters have a road heavy non-conference schedule with seven of their 10 games being played away from home. They have already made their way to Pepperdine (Nov. 7), Saint Mary's (Nov. 14), and to Stockton where they faced St. Thomas and Pacific in the Tiger Turkey Tip-Off (Nov. 24-25). After this week's trip to Texas Tech, UCI will head to New Mexico State (Dec. 5) and to Long Beach where it will take on Colorado State (Dec. 16). The 'Eaters picked up their first wins on the road last weekend.

SCOUTING THE LADY RAIDERS
Texas Tech (7-0) remained one of 26 unbeaten teams in all of NCAA Division I with wins over Rutgers and Santa Clara at the Las Vegas Classic last weekend. Sophomores Jasmine Shavers and Bailey Maupin lead the Lady Raiders at 16.6 and 16.4 points per game, respectively. Maupin has also dished out a team-best 4.0 assists per outing, while sophomore Kilah Freelon is tops on the squad in rebounding (6.6 rpg). Krista Gerlich is in her fourth season as head coach at Texas Tech.

SERIES RECORD
UC Irvine trails in its all-time series with Texas Tech, 2-0. Both of those meetings came in the 1980s when the Lady Raiders defeated UCI, 72-65, in Irvine (Dec. 20, 1983), and 65-60 in Lubbock (Dec. 4, 1987). The 'Eaters are 2-12 against schools currently in the Big 12 Conference. They have not faced one of the 14 member institutions since Dec. 30, 2014, when they fell at TCU.

THE BIG 5-0
The 2023-24 campaign is the 50th season of UC Irvine women's basketball. In their inaugural year (1974-75), the Anteaters went 7-4 under head coach Dorene Cowart. They earned the program's first win in their second game with a 52-33 victory over UC San Diego. Since then, UCI has produced five 20-win seasons, one Big West championship, one Big West tournament title, two All-Americans and four UCI Athletics Hall of Fame members.

HOME SWEET HOME
Since 2017-18, UC Irvine is 60-22 (.732) when playing at the Bren Events Center. Dating back to last year, the Anteaters have won five consecutive home games.

LAST TIME OUT
UC Irvine defeated Pacific, 66-60, to close out the Tiger Turkey Tip-Off last Saturday at Alex G. Spanos Center. The Anteaters were the only ones to go 2-0 in the four-team tournament. Nikki Tom led UCI with a season-high 15 points. She was 6-of-12 from the field and 3-of-6 from deep. Amelia Scharpf, Nevaeh Dean and Diaba Konate all finished with nine points apiece. Konate also had three assists and two steals. Moulayna Johnson Sidi Baba chipped in eight points and five rebounds, while Nevaeh Parkinson registered seven points and five boards.

IN THE RANKINGS
UC Irvine was receiving votes in the first two College Insider Women's Mid-Major Polls, but dropped out in the most recent rankings released on Nov. 21. Last year, the Anteaters made their way into the Top 25 on Dec. 27, 2022, and remained in the rankings for the rest of the season. They rose to as high as No. 13 (Jan. 24), which was a program best, before closing out the year at No. 23.

TENACIOUS D
UC Irvine, which concluded the 2022-23 campaign ranked seventh in all of NCAA Division I with a program-record 53.2 points allowed per game, has picked up right where it left off. The Anteaters have held all six of their opponents to under 65, giving up a Big West-leading 57.3 points per outing. 

STARTING LINE
Junior Déja Lee is off to an impressive start in 2023-24, leading the team in scoring (14.2 ppg) and ranking second in assists (3.2 apg). The 5-foot-9 point guard has four double-figure scoring games this season, finishing with a career-high 23 in the opener at Pepperdine and against St. Thomas, 14 against Eastern Washington and 13 vs. Seattle U. She now has 19 career 10+ point games and four 20-point performances in her two-plus years at UCI.

IMMEDIATE IMPACT
Graduate transfer Moulayna Johnson Sidi Baba, who missed the first four games of the season with an injury, made her presence felt in her Anteater debut, averaging 9.0 points and 3.0 rebounds in the team's two wins at the Tiger Turkey Tip-Off last weekend. In her first game of the year, the 6-foot-1 guard/forward had 10 points (3-6 FG) vs. St. Thomas. She came back the next day to finish with eight points and a game-high tying five rebounds against tournament host Pacific.

NEVAEH NIGHT
Seniors Nevaeh Dean and Nevaeh Parkinson were phenomenal in the Anteaters' 71-63 win over Eastern Washington on Nov. 20. The two post players combined for 30 points on 13-17 shooting (76%). After the 'Eaters fell behind by three with just over two minutes remaining in the fourth quarter, Parkinson went to work down low with back-to-back layups before Dean knocked down her second triple of the night to make it a four-point game with 36 seconds on the clock.

OFF THE BENCH
Nevaeh Parkinson, the reigning Big West Best Sixth Player, has continued to provide a spark off the bench for the Anteaters. The 6-foot-3 center is averaging 10.2 points and a team-best 6.3 rebounds per game. Against Seattle U (Nov. 11), Parkinson went 8-for-11 from the floor to finish with a career-high 17 points. She ranks first in The Big West with a 67.5 (27-40) field goal percentage.

IRON WOMAN
Junior Nikki Tom has played in every game since her arrival at UC Irvine in 2021-22. She leads the team with 71 consecutive appearances, 48 consecutive starts and 2,001 minutes (28.1 mpg) in an Anteater uniform. The Fresno native currently leads the team and ranks 29th in the nation with 18 steals (3.0/gm), including a career-high tying five in a win over Eastern Washington. Tom has also found her rhythm offensively. After a slow start to the season where she was 5-for-30 (4-24 3FG), Tom is shooting 42% (11-26) overall and 39% (5-13) from beyond the arc over the last three games. She was named to the All-Big West Preseason Coaches Team.

GIVE AND TAKE
Fifth-year senior Diaba Konate is tops on the squad with 27 assists (4.5 apg). She has dished out 18 dimes over the last two games, including a season-high eight against Eastern Washington on Nov. 20. Konate has also been active on the defensive end, recording at least one steal in 32 of her 35 appearances as an Anteater. Last year, the All-Big West Defensive Team selection tied for eighth in single-season school history with 63 steals. In her career at both Idaho State and UC Irvine, Konate has amassed 1,118 points, 369 rebounds, 411 assists and 227 steals.

DEAN FROM DOWNTOWN
Last year, Nevaeh Dean didn't attempt her first 3-pointer until the Anteaters' 26th game, but finished with three triples over the final four weeks of the campaign. This year, the 6-foot-2 forward has already matched that total as she is a perfect 3-of-3 from beyond the arc. Against Eastern Washington (Nov. 20), she went 6-for-9 from the field and knocked down both of her threes for a career-high 15 points. Dean, who transferred from Cincinnati last year, has started 37 of her 38 games since her arrival at UC Irvine.

FAMILY TIES
Second-year UC Irvine assistant coach Derek Wynn will be on the opposite sideline as his oldest daughter, Jada, who is a sophomore on the Lady Raiders' women's basketball team. The 6-foot-1 guard transferred to Texas Tech from Colorado prior to the 2023-24 season.

UP NEXT
UC Irvine returns home to host Denver this Saturday, Dec. 2, at 2 p.m.