Ames, IA—The UC Riverside Women's Basketball Team (3-7) will look to win its second straight game as it travels to face Iowa State (4-5) this Sunday at 12:00 pm PT at Hilton Coliseum. This will be the first of three straight on the road for the Highlanders as they wrap up their 2017-18 non-conference road schedule.
GAME NOTES
RUNNING OVER THE ROADRUNNERS
Playing its first home game in nearly a month, UC Riverside defeated CSU Bakersfield 68-65 on Dec. 6 as the Highlanders tied a season-high with four double-digit scorers, led by Michelle Curry (19 points) and Lauren Holt (17 points). Sophomore forward Marina Ewodo knocked down two clutch baskets down the stretch to help seal UC Riverside's first home win of the season, finishing with career-highs of 11 points (5-7 FG) and 10 rebounds.
COLD WINTER, HOT DECEMBER
UCR has a 2-1 record this month, having improved in nearly every significant statistical category on offense. Comparing the Highlanders' three December games to the seven they played in November, they have improved in points per game (70.3 to 55.3), field goal percentage (.432 to .352), three-point percentage (.281 to .194), assists per game (19.3 to 13), free throws per game (14.7 to 8.3) and free throw percentage (.746 to .580).
TAG TEAM
Much of UC Riverside's recent improvement on offense can be attributed to the team's leading scorers: Michelle Curry (14.3 ppg) and Lauren Holt (12.4 ppg). Both averaging just under 21 points per game this month, the senior guards have accounted for 58 percent (123 of 211) of UCR's points in December, shooting a combined 50.5 percent (46-91 FG) from the field.
CHEF CURRY
Michelle Curry is sixth in the Big West in scoring (14.3 ppg) and tied for second in free throws per game (3.6). She needs just eight more points to become the program's 18th 1,000-point scorer. That feat could likely be accomplished at Iowa State, as Curry has scored 12 or more points in 17 of her last 19 outings.
CASHING OUT
Lauren Holt put up both a Highlander season-high and a career-high of 28 points (10-16 FG) against UNLV on Dec. 2. Holt now has eight 20-point performances since the start of last season—most of any current Highlander—and has 13 of UCR's 30 three-pointers this season.
ADD 'EM UP
With 12 assists and an 8-for-9 free throw mark against UNLV, Curry moved into UCR's top-10 all-time for both categories. She now has 263 career assists, surpassing Tre'Shonti Nottingham (260) for No. 9 all-time. Curry's 246 career free throws also rank ninth. If she scores 25 more points, she will move past Natasha Hadley for No. 17 on the UCR scoring list.
OFFENSIVE EXPLOSION
UC Riverside defeated UNLV, 95-88 on Saturday, Dec. 2, posting the third-highest scoring total in the Highlanders' Division I era. UCR shot 59.3 percent (35-59 FG) for the game and tallied 29 assists, good for the fourth-highest field goal percentage and seventh-most assists in the program's single-game history. Lauren Holt (28) and Michelle Curry (27) became the first Highlander tandem with 25 points apiece since Brittany Crain (30) and Réjane Vérin (25) at UC Davis on Feb. 20, 2016.
FREE THROW DISPARITY
UC Riverside has struggled to keep opposing teams off the free throw line this season, currently allowing 24.7 free throw attempts—which would set a new single-season record—and 16.4 free throw makes per game. The Highlanders have attempted fewer free throws this season (159) than their opponents have made (164).
SETTING THE TONE
The first quarter has been a predictor of UC Riverside's success early in the season. In six of their seven losses, the Highlanders faced a double-digit deficit in the opening ten minutes. However, UC Riverside has gone a perfect 3-0 when holding the lead after one.
DOUBLE-DOUBLE TROUBLE
There are three Highlanders with a double-double this season: Skyler Lewis (3), Michelle Curry (1), and Marina Ewodo (1) No other Big West team has more than two players with a double-double.
SHE DID WHAT?
Redshirt sophomore forward Skyler Lewis has three of UC Riverside's five double-doubles this season, tied for second-most in the Big West. Her first double-double of the season came in the Highlanders' first win at Fresno State on Nov. 19, as she put up 20 points (8-13 FG) and 15 rebounds—both career-highs—while adding season-highs of three blocks and two assists.
SKYLER'S HISTORIC STATLINE
Lewis' dominant performance against the Bulldogs was the program's 25th 15-rebound game, and its tenth 20 point-15 rebound double-double. It also made her the only Highlander not named Kemie Nkele to have a game with 20 points, 15 rebounds and three blocks.
DEFENDING THE TOP-25
UCR has had two top-25 opponents this season: No. 14 Stanford on Nov. 17 and No. 7 UCLA on Nov. 28. After entering the game averaging 80.5 points per game, the Bruins were held to 68 points. Stanford scored just 53 points—a mark which ranks as the second-fewest points allowed by the Highlanders against a top-25 team in the team's Division I era (2001-Pres). The only time UC Riverside allowed fewer points against a nationally-ranked opponent was in a 50-47 win over No. 16 Vanderbilt on Dec. 6, 2008.
DEFENSE, DEFENSE, DEFENSE
The Highlanders rank third in the Big West in opponent field goal percentage (.397) and second in opponent three-point percentage (.293). The program's all-time season-lows for opponent field goal and three-point percentage are 36.1 percent and 29.4 percent, respectively, both set in the 2006-07 season.
R' HOUSE
UC Riverside began the year with a pair of games at SRC Arena, where it has gone 31-11 since the 2014-15 season. Following next week's three-game road trip, the Highlanders will play their final non-conference game at home against UTEP on Dec. 30.
ROADS OF THE RECENT PAST
Since 2015-16, UCR has a .477 record in contests played outside of SRC Arena, going 21-23 in away and neutral games combined.
DAZZLING DEBUT
Jannon Otto's 13 points in her UC Riverside debut are the second-most of any Highlander currently on the roster. Lauren Holt scored 22 points in her first game with the team against San Diego State on Nov. 11, 2016.
LOOK BACK TO LAST YEAR
The Highlanders qualified for postseason play for the third consecutive season in 2016-17, after posting a 16-15 overall record and 9-7 mark in Big West play to take the No. 5 seed into the Big West Tournament. UCR went on to defeat UC Irvine 92-60 in the First Round, setting a new program postseason record for single-game points, and ending a five-year drought with its first playoff win since 2011.
SOCRATES, PLATO, ARISTOTLE, MARGARITIS
Last year's Big West Tournament win over UC Irvine was Head Coach John Margaritis' 200th victory with the program, making him just the fourth Big West coach ever to reach 200 wins. Now in his 14th season with the team, Margaritis will look to add to his six combined NCAA Tournament and WNIT appearances, three Big West Tournament titles and two Big West Conference regular season titles.
ON THE ROAD AGAIN
The Highlanders have 30 regular season games on their schedule this year, 18 of which will be played on the road. The remaining non-conference road matchups include Iowa State (Dec. 17), South Dakota (Dec. 19) and Minnesota (Dec. 22).
FOUR IN, FOUR OUT
After the departure of four players from last year's roster — including leading scorers Réjane Vérin and Simone DeCoud — the Highlanders bring four new faces to the team for 2017-18. They are redshirt freshman Halle Sam-Boudreau (Oak Hills HS), and true freshmen Tianna Eaton (Rowland HS), Keilanei Cooper (Vista Murrieta HS), and Daphne Gnago (Insep Scolarité, France).
ALL-CONFERENCE, ALL DAY
UC Riverside had at least four players named to the various All-Big West teams for the third consecutive year last season—something it had never done before. Michelle Curry (Honorable Mention) earned her third career all-conference selection, while Lauren Holt (Honorable Mention) and Skyler Lewis (All-Freshman) were both honored in their first seasons in the conference.
HOLT HAS RANGE
Lauren Holt connected on 57-of-149 three-pointers last year, making the most threes of any Highlander in her debut season. That mark stands at No. 6 in program history for a single season, while her career 35.7 three-point percentage as a Highlander ranks fifth all-time.
TOP QUARTER SCORERS
The NCAA switched from halves to quarters in the 2015-16 season. The Highlanders' single-quarter scoring highs for team and player this season both came against Sacramento State on Nov. 26. UCR scored 31 points in the fourth quarter, including 14 points from Lauren Holt. Two of the program's six 30-point quarters have come this season.
To view this game's complete Game Notes in PDF form, click here.
