Jan. 12, 2011
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GAME 17
Long Beach State (3-14, 1-3) at No. 13* UC Davis (12-4, 2-2)
Jan. 13 The Pavilion (7,100) KDVS (90.3 FM) www.ucdavisaggies.com Big West TV
* - CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major Top 25
OPENING TIPS: UC Davis returns home to begin a stretch where it plays just two games over a 15-day span, the fewest games over the timeframe this season... The Aggies also return home where they have won 14 of their past 15 games, the only blemish coming to Cal State Fullerton on New Year's Eve that snapped a 13-game winning streak on Hamilton Court... UC Davis has gone 2-2 over its last four games, dropping it to No. 13 in the most recent CollegeInsiders.com Mid-Major Top 25, after reaching as high as No. 8 earlier this season... The Aggies continue to be ranked in the top 15 of NCAA Division I teams for both turnover margin (7.6 pg, 12th) and steals (13.0 pg, 14th)... They are in the top 100 in nine other statistical categories including three-pointers per game (7.6)... They lead the Big West in a half-dozen stat areas... Senior P Paige Mintun has scored in double-figures in a career-high eight straight games, best on the team this season... W Vicky Deely has done so in three in a row while W Heidi Heintz has reached in six of her last eight... The Aggies' 12-4 mark is their best after 16 games since also posting the same mark in the 2001-02 season... UC Davis has been held to single-digit figures in steals in back-to-back games (7 at UCSB, 4 at Cal Poly) for the first time this season... It's also averaging just eight turnovers over its past three games, including just six in a Jan. 6 victory over Cal State Northridge.
ALL-TIME SERIES VS. LONG BEACH STATE: The 49ers lead UC Davis 8-7 in the all-time series between the teams which was played three times during the 1970's but then took a break until resuming 27 years later... The Aggies have won six of the past seven matchups and are 4-1 over the past five on Hamilton Court... UC Davis won both games in the series last year which were played consecutively over a week's span... Sparked by 22 points from P Paige Mintun, the Aggies won the first game 80-68 at home before getting 13 from W Vicky Deely in a 70-46 victory at Walter Pyramid... Deely was the only UC Davis player to score in double figures in the 24-point win.
A QUICK LOOK AT THE 49ERS: Long Beach State snapped a three-game losing streak with a 64-50 win at Cal State Northridge on Jan. 5 but then lost 77-59 at UC Irvine three days later... Its win at The Matadome was its first on the road this year although the 49ers have a neutral-site victory as well... The 49ers were 0-6 to start the season, lost 10 of their first 11 and are 2-4 since... They are led in scoring by F COURTNEY JACOB (13.0) and G BRANDI HENTON (12.5) who have combined for 32 of the team's 83 treys this year... LBSU is shooting just 25.3 percent from beyond the arc, is being outscored 73.9-59.5 ppg, and is being outrebounded 46.1-38.3 pg... F ELLA CLARK (1.82 pg) is ranked third in the Big West in blocks while Jacob's impressive 50.4-percent shooting from the floor puts her second in the league... The 49ers are spreading the minutes around with 12 of the 13 active players averaging at least 11.6 mpg.
LAST GAME - CAL POLY 74, UC DAVIS 65: G Rachel Clancy scored 21 points in the second half, canning seven three-pointers and scoring 31 points overall, as Cal Poly stunned UC Davis in a Big West Conference game at Mott Gym on Saturday afternoon... W Vicky Deely scored 17 points to lead UC Davis while senior P Paige Mintun added 12.. Both had a team-high six rebounds. The Aggies made seven three-pointers in the game, just about on their average, but were only 2 of 19 (10.5 percent) after halftime... The Mustangs trailed 42-37 in the second half but used a 17-2 run over a nearly six-minute span to take a 54-44 with 10:36 to go... The Aggies were able to whittle the deficit to just 60-57 with 5:17 remaining but G Jonae Griffin hit a trey to make it a six-point lead and the Aggies weren't able to get closer than four points the rest of the way.
DEELY MAKING MOST OF SOPHOMORE SEASON: W Vicky Deely had just six double-digit scoring games prior to this year, five of them during her redshirt freshman season in 2009-10... (She had one as a true freshman in 2008-09, a season she gained back with a medical hardship)... Entering this year, she was averaging just 5.3 ppg and 3.0 rpg., but has catapulted to rank second on the team in both scoring (11.1) and rebounding (5.1)... Deely has twice scored a career-high 22 points, twice has canned five three-pointers, and on Dec. 31 had a career-best 10 rebounds... She's 14th in the Big West in scoring, seventh in three-point percentage (.395) and is second in made three-pointers (2.1 pg)... Her 21 points, which included five treys, at UCLA in November led to her being named the Big West Player of the Week... Deely has scored at least 10 points in nine games.
SECOND-HALF SHOOTING WOES: In the Aggies' last two losses - Dec. 31 to Cal State Fullerton and Jan. 8 at Cal Poly - they have been hampered by tough shooting from beyond the arc... They were a combined 3 for 26 (.115) in the defeats including going 1 for 12 after halftime against the Titans... Over the last five games, UC Davis is 12 for 57 (.211) from three-point territory in the second half... Overall, the Aggies have shot .289 from long distance in the last five games.
HEINTZ JOINS 1,000-POINT CLUB: W Heidi Heintz reached an elite club in college basketball by going over 1,000 career points during the Aggies' win at UC Santa Barbara on Jan. 5... She had nine points in the game and is now at 1,011... Heintz's career points have been nearly evenly split during between two seasons at the University of San Francisco (505 pts) and at UC Davis (506)... P Paige Mintun went over 1,000 career points on Dec. 1 against Saint Mary's.
RIECKS RETURNS TO LINEUP: W Kasey Riecks saw her streak of 73 consecutive starts - representing all of her collegiate appearances - come to end because of an injury suffered prior to the Cal State Fullerton matchup... She missed the next three contests before scoring six points off the bench in her return against Cal Poly last Saturday.
DEFENSIVE PRIDE: Saturday's loss at Cal Poly marked the first time this season that UC Davis has allowed more than 70 points in a game... The high-pressure defense has resulted in the Aggies ranking 14th nationally in steals (13.0) and 21st in three-point percentage defense (.271) while remaining first in the Big West in points allowed (57.9)... The steals have also allowed UC Davis to garner a turnover margin of +7.6, ranking it 12th nationally.
DOUBLE-DOUBLES: P Paige Mintun had 11 points and 11 rebounds against Cal State Northridge, the Aggies' first double-double of the season, the fourth of her career, and her first since going for 21 points and 10 rebounds at home against Cal State Fullerton last season.
MINTUN CLOSING IN ON BLOCKS RECORD: P Paige Mintun, now No. 10 on the program's all-time scoring list with 1,121 points, is just four blocks from assuming the No. 1 spot in that category by herself... She has 116 with P KENDALL GREENE (119, 1992-96) holding down the top position... Mintun also went over 500 career rebounds last week and ranks... She needs 58 to crack the Aggies' all-time top 10 in that category.
TAKING CARE OF THE BALL: The Aggies had just six turnovers against Cal State Northridge on Jan. 2, their fewest during the Div. I era, and then followed that up with just eight at UC Santa Barbara... Even the 10 miscues at Cal Poly in the following game tied the previous Div. I-era low of 10, achieved most recently prior to that against South Carolina... UC Davis' +16 turnover margin (6-22) against the Matadors was its second-best this season, trailing only +19 totals against Saint Mary's and Santa Clara... For the season, the Aggies lead the Big West in turnover margin (+7.6) and assist/turnover ratio (0.95).
UC DAVIS SIGNS OUTSTANDING PREP TRIO: The Aggies signed three standout players to National Letters of Intent during the early signing period: W LAUREN BEYER (Bradshaw Christian HS, Sacramento), W SYDNEE FIPPS (Yosemite HS, Oakhurst), P EMILY VANN (Saint Mary's College HS, Berkeley)... Beyer is a McDonald's High School All-America nominee, Fipps averaged 24.5 ppg and 10 rpg. last season, and Vann helped lead Saint Mary's to the CIF State Div. IV title game.
BIG WEST HONORS: UC Davis has captured a pair of Big West Player of the Week accolades this season, already matching the two it won last year... W VICKI DEELY was honored on Nov. 22 after canning a career-high five three-pointers and scoring 21 points at nationally ranked UCLA, while W Heidi Heintz - one of two Aggie winners last year along with P Paige Mintun - was honored on Dec. 23 after going 7-for-7 from the field and scoring 19 points at San Jose State.
SIMPSON ANNOUNCES RETIREMENT: HEAD COACH Sandy Simpson announced in October that the upcoming 2010-11 season will be his last in order to spend more time with his family... Simpson, in his 14th season, has a 239-148 overall record and is the program's all-time leader for wins... He has been coaching for 33 seasons overall including a tenure as an assistant at UC Davis prior to becoming head coach... Simpson led the Aggies to a program-best 29-3 record as interim coach in 1997 as UC Davis finished third at the NCAA Division II Elite Eight Championships... Associate head coach Jennifer Gross, who played on the 1997 squad, has been named as Simpson's replacement on a permanent basis beginning next season.
AGGIES PICKED TO WIN THE BIG WEST: For the first time, UC Davis is the media's selection to capture the Big West Championship, receiving 16 of 25 first-place votes and 210 points overall to finish ahead of Cal Poly (183 pts), UC Riverside (182) and UC Santa Barbara (164) in the top four... UC Davis was selected second last year... For the second straight year, P Paige Mintun was voted to the preseason All-Big West team.
ON THE AIR AND ON THE INTERNET: All UC Davis games are simulcast on www.ucdavisaggies.com and KDVS (90.3 FM)... Pregame shows begin 15 minutes prior to tipoff... Live stats for all home games, as well as most road matchups, are also available by visiting www.ucdavisaggies.com... Live video of all Big West games is available for a subscription fee at www.bigwest.org... In-game updates are provide via Twitter by following UCDavisAggies.
