Jan. 16, 2015
SAN DIEGO - Fresh off a home victory against Wyoming, the San Diego State women's basketball team looks to keep the momentum rolling on Saturday when it hits the road to battle UNLV, beginning at 2 p.m. PT. A live audio stream will be available on GoAztecs.com, with SDSU alumnus Chris Ello handling the play-by-play duties courtside from Cox Pavilion. In addition, the Aztecs-Lady Rebels matchup will feature streaming video via the Mountain West Network.
SDSU (5-10, 2-2 MW) will be looking to string together back-to-back wins for the first time this season after dispatching the aforementioned Cowgirls by a 57-54 count on Wednesday at Viejas Arena. The Aztecs fashioned runs of 8-0 and 9-0 during the second half to grab the upper hand before withstanding a late Wyoming rally. Junior Erimma Amarikwa (Vacaville, Calif.) notched her sixth career double-double with 14 points and 12 rebounds, while senior Khristina Hunter (Fairfield, Calif.) and freshman McKynzie Fort (Fontana, Calif.) tallied 10 points apiece.
On the flip side, UNLV, which sports an identical record as SDSU, is coming off a 78-67 defeat at the hands of Boise State at home in its last game on Wednesday.
The Aztecs and Lady Rebels will be meeting on Saturday for the 50th occasion, which represents the Scarlet and Black's second-most played rivalry behind New Mexico (54 games). SDSU owns a slim 26-23 lead against UNLV after posting a thrilling 64-63 triumph at Viejas Arena in the last encounter between the two squads on March 4, 2014. Earlier that season, the Lady Rebels snapped the Aztecs' six-game winning streak in the series with a 74-59 decision at Cox Pavilion.
Despite splitting two games last year, SDSU is still 14-3 against UNLV since 2007, posting a 6-2 mark in Las Vegas during that stretch. Prior to that date, the Aztecs had dropped 12 of 14 meetings. In addition, SDSU remains just one of two current Mountain West teams to maintain an all-time winning record against the Lady Rebels, joining Colorado State (24-16).
The Aztecs' last overtime game involved UNLV as well, with SDSU claiming a 66-62 road victory on Jan. 14, 2012.
Entering the week, the Aztecs find themselves among the top half of the Mountain West in several categories, including three-point field-goal percentage defense (2nd - (.283)), rebounding defense (2nd - (35.1/gm)) rebounding margin (4th - (+3.2)) and free-throw percentage (5th - (.667)).
Following Saturday's clash, San Diego State will return to "America's Finest City" to open a two-game homestand at Viejas Arena against Air Force (Jan. 21) and Colorado State (Jan. 24).