Dec. 17, 2014
SAN DIEGO - Following a nine-day break for final exams, the San Diego State women's basketball team returns to the hardwood on Thursday when it plays host to Pac-12 foe Washington, starting at 6 p.m. PT inside Viejas Arena. A live video stream of the Aztecs-Huskies clash will be available via the Mountain West Network on GoAztecs.com, with SDSU alumnus Chris Ello handling the play-by-play duties.
In addition, Thursday's contest will feature a free Aztec women's basketball T-shirt giveaway to the first 500 fans in attendance.
SDSU (3-5) is coming off a 66-44 setback on the road to crosstown adversary San Diego in its last game on Dec. 9, as the freshman duo of Cheyenne Greenhouse (11 pts.) and McKynzie Fort (10 pts.) each finished in double figures. Meanwhile, Washington (8-1), which received votes in both the AP and coaches polls this week, won its eighth straight last Sunday with an 83-54 triumph over Grambling at home.
The Aztecs will be facing the Huskies for just the third time in program history. The teams split their two previous meetings, with SDSU posting a 63-51 victory at Viejas Arena in 2011, before UW rallied from a 19-point deficit the following year to claim a narrow 59-58 decision in Seattle. That defeat to the Huskies in 2012 marked the only occasion in the past three-plus seasons in which the Aztecs ultimately lost when leading with five minutes remaining in the game (65-1).
Thursday's matchup will be SDSU's lone encounter of the regular season against a Pac-12 school. The Aztecs last scheduled a single Pac-12 opponent during the 2009 non-conference slate when they registered a 57-38 home triumph over Arizona. SDSU has dropped its last three meetings to Pac-12 squads (Washington - 2012; USC - 2013; UCLA - 2013) and is 68-111 all-time against current members of that conference. Conversely, the Huskies are 36-8 vs. teams that are presently aligned with the Mountain West.
The Aztecs have been buoyed by the return of junior Erimma Amarikwa, who missed the final 23 games of the 2013-14 campaign after undergoing hip surgery. Through eight games this year, the Vacaville, Calif., native leads the Scarlet and Black with 9.8 points and 6.4 rebounds per outing, while her .508 field-goal percentage ranks second on the team.
Collectively, SDSU finds itself among the top half of the MW in several categories, including three-point field goal percentage defense (2nd - .284), rebounding defense (2nd - 35.9/gm), rebounding margin (3rd - (+2.9)), field-goal percentage (4th - (.414)) and three-point field goal percentage (5th - (.324)).
Following Thursday's clash with the Huskies, the Aztecs wrap up their homestand on Saturday when they battle CSUN, starting at 2 p.m. PT.