CHICO – Now that the Chico State women's basketball team has officially put its recent five-game losing streak in the rearview mirror, the Wildcats can focus their attention on extending a streak of a much more positive nature. Fresh off home victories over San Francisco State and Sonoma State, the 'Cats take to the road for a pair of California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) contests, taking on Cal State East Bay Friday in Hayward followed by a Saturday showdown in Seaside versus Cal State Monterey Bay. Both games are scheduled to tip off at 5:30 p.m.
Chico State enters the weekend 6-8 on the season, and while tied for ninth place in the CCAA with a 3-7 conference record, the Wildcats sit just two games out of sixth place. The Wildcats vault themselves back in the postseason discussion with a pair of wins last weekend at Acker Gym, blasting San Francisco State 67-40 and edging Sonoma State in overtime 63-57.
The Wildcats are 3-5 on the road this season, but have not won away from Acker Gym since beating Cal State Stanislaus Dec. 13 in the CCAA conference opener.
The 'Cats are sixth in the CCAA in scoring, averaging 67.2 points a night. Defensively, Chico State is ranked ninth among the conference's 12 teams, giving up an average of 66.9 points a game. Over the last three contests, however, the Wildcats have surrendered just 50.7 points a game.
Individually, Hannah Womack continues to rank among the CCAA's top players in scoring (fourth, 15.6 points a game), 3-pointers (fifth, 30) and free throw percentage (eighth, 85.3 percent). Whitney Branham is fifth in the conference in free throw percentage (86.2 percent), while Brooke Bowen is 11th in the CCAA in rebounding, averaging 6.5 boards a night.
Cal State East Bay, Chico State's Friday night opponent, is 9-7 overall and tied for seventh in the CCAA with a 4-6 conference record. After winning nine of their first 11 to open the season, the Pioneers are currently mired in a five-game losing streak, including a pair of heartbreaking two-point defeats last week at the hands of Humboldt State and Cal State San Bernardino. East Bay is 5-3 this season on its home floor, Pioneer Gymnasium.
The Pioneers are seventh in the CCAA in scoring, averaging 65.9 points a night, but is one of the top defensive teams in the conference, giving up just 61.3 points per game.
East Bay is led by senior guard Stephanie Lopez, a Second Team All-CCAA selection last season. Lopez currently is second among conference players in scoring (19.2 points a game) and ranks in the CCAA top 10 in rebounds (eighth, 6.8 per game) and assists (4.1 a contest) while connecting on a team-high 21 3-pointers. Junior forward Tori Breshers is 10th in the conference in scoring, averaging 13.2 points a game, and her 24 blocked shots is tops in the conference. Sophomore forward Remy Puou has blocked 18 shots while averaging 10.3 points and 6.3 rebounds a game.
The Wildcats and Pioneers met twice last season, with East Bay prevailing in both contests. Chico State has the edge in the all-time series, winning 53 of 67 meetings with the Pioneers.
Cal State Monterey Bay, which takes on the 'Cats Saturday following its Friday faceoff with Cal State Stanislaus, has lost four straight and 10 of the last 11 entering the weekend, leaving the Otters with a 3-12 season record and in 11th place in the CCAA with a 1-9 conference record. Monterey Bay dropped a pair of road games last week, falling by double digits to both Cal State San Bernardino and Humboldt State. The Otters are 1-6 this season on their home floor, The Kelp Bed.
Monterey Bay ranks 11th in the CCAA in scoring, averaging 62.5 points a game. Defensively, the Otters are 10th among conference teams, allowing 70.1 points per contest.
Senior guard Jenna Bandy is Monterey Bay's top all-around talent, averaging 13.1 points, 5.2 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 2.0 steals a game, while also leading the Otters with 24 3-pointers. Bandy is complemented by sophomore McKenna Hill and junior Jazmine Johnson – the two forwards both average over eight points and six rebounds a contest.
Chico State won both games with the Otters last season, and lead the all-time series with Monterey Bay 16-6.
Fans can follow the action of both Wildcat games this weekend with Mike Baca handling the play-by-play locally on Newstalk 1290 KPAY-AM and on the Internet via the Wildcat Athletics website. Live Stats and live streaming video are also available online.
