Women's Basketball

Aztecs Host UCSB for Final Non-conference Game

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Need to Know
• The Aztecs wrap up the non-conference portion of their schedule when they host UC Santa Barbara Friday afternoon at 1:00 p.m.
• There will not be a stream for this game, but Chris Ello (12th season) will be calling the action for an audio-only broadcast. A link to the broadcast will be available on GoAztecs.com on the women's basketball schedule page.
• The Aztecs have been off since December 9 while they study and take their final exams. They split their last two games, earning a win at UC Irvine, who was undefeated at the time before falling at CSUN despite a valiant comeback effort.
• Sophia Ramos helped the Aztecs erase a 23 point fourth quarter deficit at CSUN by hitting six three-pointers. She finished the game with seven three's and 28 points, both career-highs. Her seven three-pointers tie her for the second most in school history and her she became the first Aztec to hit six three-pointers in a quarter
• Mallory Adams had her third double-double of the year at CSUN with 13 points and 11 rebounds. She has brought in nine rebounds or more in six of her last seven games.
Najé Murray scored a season-high 20 points at UC Irvine and then followed it up with a 19 point performance two days later at CSUN. She has scored in double-digits in nine of the Aztecs' 10 games and is averaging 17.8 points over her last four games.
• The Aztecs set season-highs in every shooting category at UC Irvine: field goal percentage (.521), three-point percentage (.600) and free-throw percentage (.842). SDSU then topped that free throw percentage in their next game, shooting 85.7 percent at CSUN.
• Sophia Ramos leads all Mountain West freshmen in points, assists, assist/turnover ratio and minutes played.
• Mallory Adams leads all Mountain West freshmen in rebounding.
• Sophomore Najé Murray leads the Mountain West in steals and in three-pointers made.
• Starting guard Téa Adams missed the last game with an injured ankle.
 
Noting the CSUN Game (L, 74-77, 12-9-18)
• All seven of Sophia Ramos' three-pointers came in the second half and six of them came in the fourth quarter, a new SDSU record for three-pointers made in a quarter. Entering the game Ramos had made just 11 threes through nine games.
• The Aztecs scored just seven points on 2-for-18 shooting in the first quarter. Their previous first quarter low was 11 against Hawai'i in their season opener.
• Mallory Adams finished with 13 points and 11 rebounds for her third double-double of the year. She also has had two games where she was one point or rebound away from a double-double.
• The Matadors dished out 25 assists, the most the Aztecs have allowed this season.
• With Tea Adams sidelined with an injury, Monique Terry made her first start of the season. It was her 11th career start and her first since the 2016-17 season.
• The Aztecs' 34 fourth quarter points were the most they have scored in a fourth quarter this season.
• SDSU shot 85.7 percent from the free throw line, their highest rate of the season.
 
Scouting the Gauchos
•  UCSB is 2-9 on the year.
•  They have lost three in a row and are coming off a 76-64 loss to California Baptist Wednesday night, a team SDSU beat 83-67 last month.
•  The Gauchos are 0-5 on the road.
•  Coco Miller leads the team with 11.5 points per game and has hit 19 three-pointers. She also has a team high 28 assists.
•  Natalia Bruening is averaging 10.6 points per game and a team-high 7.5 rebounds.
•  As a team, they attempt 22 three-pointer per game, but are making just 25 percent.
•  Head Coach Bonnie Henrickson (4th season) previously was the head coach at Kansas for 11 years.

All-Time Series vs. the Gauchos
•  San Diego State is 18-7 all-time against UC Irvine
•  The Aztecs are 11-2 when playing UCSB at home
•  The Gauchos beat the Aztecs 77-64 in Santa Barbara last season.
•  Prior to UCSB's win last year, the Aztecs had won four in a row.
•  The first meeting was February 22, 1977, a 56-43 UCSB win. That is still the fewest points SDSU has ever scored in the all-time series.
•  This is the last of three straight games against Big West teams. The Aztecs are 1-1 in that stretch.
•  This is also the fifth game of the season against a Big West school. The Aztecs are 3-1 on the year against Big West teams.
•  SDSU is 107-94 all-time against current Big West schools.

News & Notes
Fab Frosh
                Mallory Adams
•  Mallory Adams had her third double-double of the year at CSUN with 13 points and 11 rebounds. She has brought in nine rebounds or more in six of her last seven games.
•  Adams had 10 or more rebounds in three straight games earlier this year. The last Aztec to do that was SDSU legend and current pro Chelsea Hopkins, who did it in the 2011-12 season.
•  She is averaging 7.9 rebounds per game, which is fourth in the conference and most among freshmen.
•  She also leads the conference in free throws made and attempted.
•  She has committed just 12 turnovers in 301 minutes played, the best rate on the team.
•  Adams averaged a double-double at the SDSU Thanksgiving Classic and was named to the All-Tournament Team.               
                Sophia Ramos
•  Sophia Ramos scored a career-high 28 points at CSUN in the Aztecs' last game.
•  Her 28 points and 10 made field goals in that game were the most by an Aztec this season.
•  She finished the CSUN game with seven three's and 28 points, both career-highs. Her seven three-pointers tie her for the second most in school history and her she became the first Aztec to hit six three-pointers in a quarter
•  She leads the Aztecs in scoring with 16.0 points per game, this is third in the conference and best among freshmen.
•  She leads all freshmen in the Mountain West in points, assists, assist/turnover ratio and minutes.
•  She is shooting 48.4 percent from the floor, best on the team.
•  Despite being 5'9", she is second on the team in rebounds (5.6 per game). She had a career-high 10 in her last game vs. Arizona (12-2-18).

Building a Perimeter
• The Aztecs are third in the conference and 36th in the nation in three-point field goal percentage (.370).
Najé Murray leads the conference in three-pointers made and attempted.
• Murray is averaging 2.9 made three-pointers per game, which puts on her pace to break the Aztecs' single-season record of 77 set by Jamey Cox (2003) and Courtney Clements (2013).

Block Party
• The Aztecs are second in the conference with 4.1 blocks per game.
• Zayn Dornstauder and Baylee Vanderdoes are averaging a least one block per game

Master Thief
Najé Murray had a career-high six steals earlier this year at San Diego
• She leads the conference in total steals and steals per game.

Youth Movement
• The Aztecs started two freshmen, two sophomores and one junior in the season opener against Hawai'i. That group had a combined 33 career starts entering the game.
• The freshmen duo of Sophia Ramos and Mallory Adams earned the starting nod in the season opener, marking the first time two freshmen started the season opener for the Aztecs since 2003 (Michelle Elliott and Courtney Fritz).