Teams: UC Davis at UC Irvine; Cal State Fullerton
Records: Aggies, 7-14 (3-7); Anteaters, 5-18 (2-8); Titans 6-15 (3-7)
Where: Bren Events Center – Irvine, Calif.; Titan Gym – Fullerton, Calif.
When: Today at 7 p.m.; Saturday at 5 p.m.
Who to watch: With senior Genevieve Costello expected to miss this weekend’s action, the Aggies are left with one true point guard: freshman Hana Asano.
Asano got 42 minutes of work and scored five points in a narrow overtime loss to UC Riverside on Saturday.
Coach Sandy Simpson praised her for her play, especially for the things that do not show up in the box score.
“Hana did a nice job tonight considering she was our only true point guard,” Simpson said. “She had a lot of poise as Riverside pressured her knowing she was the only one out there.“
Did you know? UC Davis has not lost to UC Irvine since Jan. 4, 2006 when it suffered a 79-72 loss at the Pavilion. The Aggies have since won six straight matchups against the Anteaters, with four of those wins coming by 10 points or more.
Preview: UC Davis is in the midst of a tough five-game losing streak, with four of those losses coming by four points or less.
The Aggies are hoping that Thursday’s matchup with the Anteaters will reverse the trend, as UC Irvine is also struggling having lost 16 of its last 18 games. UC Davis won its first matchup with UC Irvine this season, 68-56.
In that game, four Aggies scored in double figures. UC Davis went 11-for-24 from beyond the arc for a 46 percent three-point percentage.
Offensively, the Anteaters are led by junior Rebecca Maessen, who averages 12.5 points per game. She also contributes 4.2 rebounds per contest.
On Saturday, UC Davis plays Cal State Fullerton, a team that handed the Aggies a 71-59 home loss on Jan. 15. The Aggies‘ offense was anemic in the first half as it shot at a 30 percent clip, including 0-for-7 from downtown.
UC Davis made a frantic comeback in the second period of play to bring the game to within four with five minutes remaining but could not pull off the victory in the end.
The Titans are led offensively by senior Toni Thomas who averages 14.1 points and 7.4 rebounds per game. The San Bernardino, Calif. native scored 15 points and had nine rebounds in the matchup earlier this season.
–Max Rosenblum
