CSUN Plays Host to Hawai'i on Thursday

Game Notes
NORTHRIDGE, Calif -- CSUN Women's Basketball (3-12, 1-5 Big West) continues Big West play by hosting the Hawai'i Rainbow Wahine (9-6, 3-2 Big West) at Premier America Credit Union Arena on Thursday, Jan. 16 at 6 p.m. The game will be streamed live on ESPN+ with Jill Painter-Lopez on the call.

ABOUT LAST WEEK
CSUN continued Big West play last week and dropped a couple of contests to UC Irvine and Cal State Bakersfield. The Matadors took on the Anteaters on the road and fell 68-39. Morgan Edwards led all scorers with 11 points on the night. Laini Dahlin tallied nine points as well.

Two days later, CSUN was defeated by Cal State Bakersfield by a score of 62-56 at home. Erika Aspajo was a highlight for the Matadors in the loss, as she tallied a season-high 22 points on 9-17 shooting. Yves Cox had a near double-double at seven points and 10 rebounds. Jenna Kilty shot 50% (2/4) from beyond the arc, her fourth consecutive game that she has hit multiple three-pointers.

MORGAN EDWARDS LEADING THE WAY
Morgan Edwards is the only Matador player to play in and start every game so far this season. The junior from Los Angeles is averaging 9.1 PPG on the campaign. Edwards is second on the squad in three-point percentage at 40.4% from behind the arc. She is also fourth on the team in rebounding at 3.7 per contest. Edwards is an all-around player, she's even third on the team in assists at 1.3 per game.

ENOUGH REBOUNDS TO GO AROUND
CSUN currently ranks third in the Big West in rebounds per game at 38.4. Yves Cox, a freshman, ranks first on the team in rebounds at 6.7 per contest. She amassed three different double-digit rebounds games this season, grabbing a season-high 14 against Cal State Fullerton on January 2nd. In that game, CSUN tallied 61 rebounds, just two short of a team record and tied for third most in the team's history. Erica Adams averages 5.0 RPG and Erika Aspajo averages 4.3 RPG, both impressive numbers for two guards.

LONG DISTANCE CALLS
CSUN currently ranks third in the Big West with 6.8 threes per contest. Five Matador players have double-digit threes on the year. Jenna Kilty has 27, Morgan Edwards has 21, Kelly Tumlin has 19, freshman Karsen Marshall has 11, and Laini Dahlin has 11 as well. Nine of the 12 Matadors players have knocked down a shot from behind the arc this season. Kilty leads the squad in three-point percentage at 41% from downtown. CSUN has made a total of 102 three- point baskets on the season.

GETTING IT DONE FROM THE CHARITY STRIPE
The Matadors currently rank fourth in the Big West in free-throw percentage at 72%. Adams is leading the pack by shooting 83.8%. Kayla Hopson is shooting 83% while Erika Aspajo is shooting 82%. Eight different Matador players are shooting above 70% from the charity stripe.

OFFENSE RUNNING THROUGH THE SPANIARD
Since returning from injury Dec. 21 versus Idaho, Erika Aspajo is averaging 11.6 PPG. In that same time span, she is also tallying six rebounds per game. The junior from Barcelona is consistently staying on the court, as she has not played less than 30 minutes per contest since returning to the floor.

SCOUTING HAWAI'I
The Rainbow Wahine enter Thursday on a three-game winning streak with wins over Cal Poly, UC Riverside, and Cal State Fullerton. The latter two were at home as Hawai'i allowed fewer than 50 points in both games. The Bows are 2-4 away from home going into Thursday.

Known for their defense, the Rainbow Wahine are currently first in the Big West in points per game allowed at 55.2. That number is good enough for 21st nationally as well. UH has held 11 opponents under 40% shooting, including four games under 30%, and is 9-2 in those contests. Hawai'i is first in the Big West in blocks per game at 5.6.

Lily Wahinekapu is leading the team in scoring at 10.7 PPG. The senior is also leading the team in assists per game at three per contest.

Hawai'i was picked to finish first overall in the Big West preseason basketball polls with six first-place votes. Center Nnenna Orji is facing off against her former team. She played three seasons at UH as she was a part of two conference championship squads.

Series History: Both teams meet for the 29th time in history. CSUN is currently losing the season series 17-11. UH has won the last seven contests. The last win for the Matadors came on Jan. 9 2020, where CSUN came out victorious by a score of 58-54 at home.

#GoMatadors

CSUN Plays Host to Hawai'i on Thursday

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Players Mentioned

Erica Adams

Erika Aspajo

Yves Cox

Laini Dahlin

Morgan Edwards

Kayla Hopson

Jenna Kilty

Karsen Marshall

Nnenna Orji

Kelly Tumlin