With three straight wins at Acker Gym, the Chico State women's basketball team has proven it can win consistently on its home floor. The tricky part so far in the 2017–18 season has been notching "W's" on the road, where as the visiting team the Wildcats have dropped four of five decisions. Saturday the 'Cats attempt to reverse that trend, as they travel to Hayward to take on Cal State East Bay. Tipoff is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. at Pioneer Gymnasium.
Mike Baca will provide the game's play-by-play locally on Newstalk 1290-AM KPAY, with the broadcast simulcast on the Internet via the Wildcat Athletics website. Live Stats will also be available online.
Chico State is 4-4 on the season and occupies fourth place in the California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) standings with a 3-2 conference record. The Wildcats snapped a two game mini-losing streak last Saturday with a 66-64 win over San Francisco State at Acker Gym.
The 'Cats' offense enters the week ranked second among the 13 CCAA teams, averaging 71.8 points a game. Chico State leads the conference in field goal percentage (43.5 percent), 3-point field goal percentage (36.1), free throw percentage (84.6) and assists (19 a game).
Defensively, the Wildcats are surrendering 69.0 points a contest, but in its last six games, Chico State has held opponents to 64.5 points a night.
Individually, Whitney Branham continues to lead the CCAA in scoring, averaging 19.9 points a game. The senior guard is also tops in the conference in 3-point field goals (24), 3-point field goal percentage (42.1 percent) and free throw percentage (96.9).
Kayla Taylor is No. 1 in the CCAA in field goal percentage (64.1 percent) while contributing 12.5 points and 6.1 rebounds a game. Madison Wong is another Wildcat ranked among the conference's best—the sophomore is second in assists, averaging 5.8 a contest.
Cal State East Bay, last season's CCAA Championship Tournament winners and looking to reach the NCAA Championship Tournament for the third straight year, sports a 5-5 overall record heading into Saturday's action. The Pioneers are in eighth place in the CCAA with a 2-3 conference record.
East Bay has not played since December 2, when the Pioneers easily disposed of Cal State Monterey Bay 65-36 in Seaside.
East Bay has played just one home game so far this season, beating San Francisco State 59-49 back on November 21 at Pioneer Gym.
Offensively, the Pioneers are averaging 64.3 points a game, and are fifth in the CCAA in field goal percentage (40.9 percent).
East Bay's defense is among the conference's best. The Pioneers rank fourth in the CCAA, giving up just 61.3 points a contest.
Forward Morgan Greene spearheads the East Bay attack. The sophomore is eighth in the CCAA in scoring (14.2 points a game), third in rebounding (11.0 boards a night) and fifth in field goal percentage (56.1 percent).
Junior guard Elayshia Woolridge is averaging 12.7 points a game, while junior forward Savannah McGill contributes 7.0 points and 7.8 rebounds a contest. Senior guard Janae Chamois is the Pioneers' biggest long distance threat with 20 3-pointers on the season.
Cal State East Bay has won the last eight meetings with the 'Cats, including both head-to-head matchups last season. The last time Chico State bested the Pioneers was back on February 28, 2013, when the Wildcats notched a 59-56 victory in Hayward.
The Wildcats lead the all-time series with the Pioneers 53-20.
