CSUN Takes On UC Santa Barbara and UC Riverside This Week

FULL GAME NOTES

NORTHRIDGE, Calif.---CSUN Women's Basketball (2-13, 0-5) continues Big West play this week with a road game against UC Santa Barbara and a home game against UC Riverside. The Matadors will take on the Gauchos on Thursday, Jan. 18, at 7 p.m. in the Thunderdome. They will then battle against the Highlanders on Saturday, Jan. 20, at 2 p.m. in the Premier America Credit Union Arena. Both games will be broadcast on ESPN+.

ABOUT LAST WEEK
CSUN dropped its home match against UC Davis on Thursday night. The Aggies struck first and had a tight hold on the first quarter as the Matadors tried to close the distance. CSUN managed to cut the deficit to five points at the end of the first half and traded shots throughout the third quarter. CSUN fought hard, but UC Davis managed to hold their lead as Aggies prevailed 55-45. Kayanna Spriggs led CSUN with 11 points in the loss.

The Matadors fell to Cal State Fullerton, 62-68, on Saturday night. CSUN started strong and led by as many as 10 points before taking a six-point lead into halftime. The Titans though began to close the distance from that point on. CSUN tried for one last rally in the fourth quarter but fell short to the Titans. Spriggs once again led the team in scoring with 17 points while she also finished with 10 rebounds for her first career double-double. Talo Li-Uperesa had 15 points while Rachel Harvey had a season-high 10.

FRESHMEN DUO LEADING OFFENSIVELY
CSUN's true freshmen duo of Kaitlyn Elsholz and Amiyah Ferguson have been a force for the Matadors in the early going this season. Each has shared or led the team in scoring five times while Ferguson has led the team in assists seven times. Ferguson is leading the team in scoring with an average of 9.5 points while dishing out 2.8 assists per game. Elsholz, who was named Big West Player of the Week on Nov. 13, is third in the team for scoring at 8.3 points per game while averaging 2.6 rebounds and 1.0 assists.

SPRIGGS MANAGING THE BOARDS
Junior forward Kayanna Spriggs has topped CSUN in rebounding in 10 games this season as she has averaged 6.3 per game. Spriggs has pulled down double-figure rebounds in four games and led in scoring for the Matadors over the last two games. She also leads in steals per game (1.5) while averaging 8.8 points per game. In perhaps the highlight of the season, Spriggs hit a game-tying three to force overtime against Seattle U in an eventual win. The three versus Seattle was her first career 3-point attempt.

NEWCOMERS MAKING AN IMPRESSION
A Pacific transfer, junior guard Erica Adams is second on the team in scoring average at 9.3 points this season while she is shooting 36.8 percent with 3.3 rebounds and 1.5 steals per game. Another new face this season, junior forward Talo Li-Uperesa is leading the team in blocks at 1.3 per game to go with averaging 7.4 points. Li-Uperesa, a transfer from the City of College of San Francisco, is shooting 45.2 percent in 30.3 minutes per game.

MATADORS ON THE BIG WEST CHARTS
Kayanna Spriggs has moved up to seventh in The Big West in rebounds per game (6.3). Talo Li-Uperesa holds third in blocked shots per game (1.3) while she ranks 13th on the rebounds list at 5.4. Amiyah Ferguson is sixth in assists per game (2.8). As a team, CSUN is ranked third in blocks per game (3.7) and fourth in steals per game (8.8).

SCOUTING UC SANTA BARBARA
The Gauchos have an overall record of 11-5 and a conference record of 5-1. UC Santa Barbara is coming off a 69-56 win against Long Beach State. The Gauchos have six new players on the roster, three of whom are freshmen. Senior Alexis Whitfield leads the team in scoring with 14.9 points per game and rebounding with 8.8 per game. Senior Alyssa Marin leads the team in steals per game (1.0) and assists per game (3.8) while averaging 10.9 points. The Gauchos are led by head coach Bonnie Henrickson who is in her ninth season.

Series History: UC Santa Barbara leads series history with 51 wins and 20 losses. In the last meeting in the series, CSUN fell 64-61 at the Thunderdome. UCSB has a winning streak of seven games against CSUN.

SCOUTING UC RIVERSIDE
The Highlanders have an overall record of 8-8 and a conference record of 3-3. UC Riverside will take on Cal State Bakersfield on Thursday, Jan. 18, before competing against the Matadors. The Highlanders have five new players on their roster, two of whom are freshmen. Senior Jordan Webster leads the team in scoring with 17.3 per game. Senior Matehya Bryant leads the team in steals (2.6), rebounds (8.2), and blocks (1.3) while averaging 11.8 points. Fifth-year senior RyAnne Walters leads the team in assists per game (3.8). Head coach Nicole Powell enters her fourth season at the helm.

Series History: CSUN is narrowly behind UC Riverside in the all-time series as the Highlanders lead 35-34. CSUN won the last meeting 48-44 on February 20, 2023, in the SRC Arena.

#GoMatadors

CSUN Takes On UC Santa Barbara and UC Riverside This Week

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Players Mentioned

Erica Adams

Kaitlyn Elsholz

Amiyah Ferguson

Rachel Harvey

Talo Li-Uperesa

Kayanna Spriggs