CSUN Takes on UC San Diego and UC Riverside

FULL GAME NOTES

NORTHRIDGE, Calif.---CSUN Women's Basketball (2-17, 0-9 Big West) continues Big West play with a home game against UC San Diego and road game against UC Riverside. The Matadors will celebrate Girls and Women in Sports Day when they take on the Tritons on Thursday, Feb. 1, at 6 p.m. in the Premier America Credit Union Arena. They will then battle against the Highlanders on Saturday, Feb. 3, at 6 p.m. in the SRC Arena. Both games will be broadcast on ESPN+.

ABOUT LAST WEEK
The Matadors fell to Cal State Bakersfield 54-70, last Thursday night. The Matadors started strong as they dominated the court with a 9-1 run to open the game. They took the first quarter with a 16-8 lead. The Roadrunners began to close the distance as they traded shots with CSUN through the second quarter. Cal State Bakersfield took the lead with a 21-8 run in the third quarter. The Matadors tried for a rally in the final quarter, but were unable to close the distance.

CSUN dropped its home game against UC Irvine on Saturday afternoon. It was a battle from the beginning as the Matadors and Anteaters traded shots. UC Irvine claimed the first quarter 19-17, but CSUN tied the game by the half with a score of 31-31. The Matadors continued their momentum as they took the third quarter 44-42. CSUN continued to fight, but UC Irvine took the game 67-63.

FRESHMEN DUO LEADING OFFENSIVELY
CSUN's true freshmen duo of Amiyah Ferguson and Kaitlyn Elsholz have been force in their first season with CSUN. Ferguson is leading the team in scoring at 9.3 points per game while she has topped the team in scoring a team-best six times. She has also dished out 2.6 assists per game and made 24 threes. Elsholz, who was named Big West Player of the Week on Nov. 13, is averaging 7.3 points and 2.3 rebounds to go with 10 blocks on the year. Elsholz has also made 22 shots from 3-point range.

SPRIGGS MANAGING THE BOARDS
Junior forward Kayanna Spriggs has topped CSUN in rebounding in 12 games this season as she has averaged 6.6 per game. Spriggs has pulled down double-figure rebounds in four games this season and collected a pair of double-doubles. She is also second on the team in scoring at 8.9 points while she leads the team in points per game in Big West play (11.3). On the year, Spriggs leads the team in steals per game at 1.5.

NEWCOMERS MAKING AN IMPRESSION
Junior guard Erica Adams holds the third-highest scoring average for CSUN at 8.5 points this season. A Pacific transfer, Adams is shooting 36.7 percent while averaging 3.6 rebounds and 1.4 steals. Another new face this season, junior forward Talo Li-Uperesa is leading the team in blocks at 1.2 per game to go with averaging 7.3 points. Li-Uperesa, a transfer from the City of College of San Francisco, is shooting 42.1 percent in 31.4 minutes per game.

MATADORS ON THE BIG WEST CHARTS
Kayanna Spriggs is eighth in The Big West in rebounds per game (6.6). Talo Li-Uperesa is tied for third in the league in blocks per game (1.3) while Amiyah Ferguson is tied for eighth in assists per game (2.6) and 16th in 3-point field goals made per game (1.3). Erica Adams is tied for 15th in the league in steals per game at 1.4. As a team, CSUN is third in The Big West in blocks per game (3.6).

SCOUTING UC SAN DIEGO
The Tritons have an overall record of 8-12 and a conference record of 4-5. UC San Diego comes off a 62-49 loss against UC Davis. The Tritons have eight new players on the roster, four of whom are freshmen. Freshman Sumayah Sugapong leads the team in scoring with 14.5 points per game followed by graduate Denali Pinto at 10.6 points. Junior Katie Springs leads in rebounds per game (8.5), steals (1.3), and blocks (0.7). Freshman Eri Blithikioti leads the team in assists at 2.0 per game. The Tritons are led by head coach Heidi Vanderveer who is in her 12th season.

Series History: CSUN and UC San Diego are tied in series history 2-2. In the last meeting between the Matadors and Tritons, CSUN lost at home 57-46.

SCOUTING UC RIVERSIDE
The Highlanders have an overall record of 10-10 and a conference record of 5-5. UC Riverside comes off a 54-52 loss against Long Beach State. The Highlanders have five new players on their roster, two of whom are freshmen. Senior Jordan Webster leads the team in scoring with 18.2 points per game and in steals (2.4). Senior Matehya Bryant leads in blocks per game (1.2) and fifth-year player RyAnne Walters leads in assists (2.9). Head coach Nicole Powell enters her fourth season at the helm.

Series History: UC Riverside leads CSUN 36-34 in the all-time series history. Last time they played, the Matadors fell to UC Riverside 57-46 on Saturday, Jan. 20, in the Premier America Credit Union Arena.

#GoMatadors

CSUN Takes on UC San Diego and UC Riverside

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Players Mentioned

Erica Adams

Kaitlyn Elsholz

Amiyah Ferguson

Talo Li-Uperesa

Kayanna Spriggs