THIS WEEK...
AT AIR FORCE CLASSIC
UC Davis (3-3) vs. Santa Clara (3-2)
Friday, Dec. 5, 2014
3:30 p.m. PT
Clune Arena
Colorado Springs, Colo.
RADIO: KDVS 90.3 FM
Game Coverage: | Audio | UC Davis Notes | Santa Clara Notes

UC Davis (3-3) vs. Southern Utah (3-0)
Saturday, Dec. 6, 2014
1 p.m. PT
Clune Arena
Colorado Springs, Colo.
RADIO: KDVS 90.3 FM
Game Coverage: | Audio | UC Davis Notes | Southern Utah Notes

TIP-OFF: Continuing a string that will see them play three games in five days, the UC Davis women's basketball team (3-3) opens a five-game road swing with its longest trip of the year, taking to the skies for the 2014 Air Force Classic in Colorado Springs. The Aggies will travel 1,243 miles to meet a pair of teams that sit a combined 769 miles from the UC Davis campus, facing off against Bay Area rival Santa Clara on Friday (Dec. 4) at 3:30 p.m. PT, before taking on Southern Utah on Saturday (Dec. 5) at 1 p.m. PT at Clune Arena prior to their return to Northern California.

IN THE POLLS: Entering this week's contests, UC Davis, Santa Clara, and Southern Utah, are unranked in both the Associated Press and USA Today national polls.

MARK YOUR CALENDARS: A small change to the UC Davis schedule, as the Aggies will now ring in the New Year against Menlo College at 4:30 p.m., instead of the originally scheduled 2 p.m. tip, making it a true doubleheader with the men's team, which faces Cal Maritime at 7 p.m. that night.

BE A FOLLOWER: Fans can keep up with the latest in UC Davis Athletics by "liking" us on Facebook (facebook.com/UCDavisAggies) and following us on Twitter (@UCDavisAggies). You can also "like" the women's basketball program on Facebook by visiting facebook.com/UCDavisWomensBasketball as well as follow them on Twitter (@UCDavisWBB) and Instagram (instagram.com/ucdaviswomensbasketball). Game Day in-game updates are also available on Twitter by following us @UCDavisInGame.

"CAN YOU HEAR ME NOW?": Thanks to a partnership with Arizona-based Stretch Internet, live Internet audio will be available for all of the Aggies' contests this season, as well as broadcast locally on KDVS 90.3 FM with Greg Wong and Brian Fuller on the call. Visit the women's basketball schedule page at UCDavisAggies.com to access the links.

"YOU ARE LOOKING LIVE...": Bringing together live and on-demand video from each of the Big West Conference's nine member institutions, BigWest.TV covers Big West sports, press conferences, interviews, and features, including every home and conference contest. Now in its 11th year, BigWest.TV will again air all of the Aggies home and conference clashes FOR FREE during the 2014-15 campaign. Log on to www.bigwest.org/thisweek for weekly schedules or visit the women's basketball schedule page at UCDavisAggies.com.

I NEED STATS, STAT!: New-look live stats for all UC Davis home games, as well as selected road contests, are available on your computer and mobile device courtesy the StatBroadcast platform. Visit the women's basketball schedule page at UCDavisAggies.com or the StatBroadcast landing page at UCDavisLiveStats.com to access the links when the games begin.

ABOUT THE BRONCOS: The third straight West Coast Conference opponent for the Aggies, Santa Clara enters the tournament with a 3-2 overall record following a six-point loss to Cal Poly... UC Davis will be the fourth Big West opponents for the Broncos, who have also faced UC Riverside (L, 80-69) and UC Santa Barbara (W, 47-33) on the road... Senior guard Nici Gilday leads the Santa Clara offense at 15.2 ppg, shooting .364 from the floor and .367 from beyond the arc... Senior center Vanessa Leo is also in double figures at 10.0 ppg to go with 9.5 rpg, but hasn't played since a 46-point win over San Francisco State on Nov. 16... The Broncos have outscored the opposition by an average of 9.0 ppg and are shooting .430 from the field while holding opponents to a .321 field goal percentage on the year.

ABOUT THE THUNDERBIRDS: Southern Utah enters the tournament with a perfect 3-0 record and will face host Air Force on Friday evening before taking on the Aggies... The Thunderbirds have opened with wins over Boise State, New Mexico Highlands, and Utah Valley... Senior guard Hailey Mandelko paces the offense, scoring 18.0 ppg and shooting 40 percent from the field, while also leading the team with 6.7 rpg... Senior guard Desiree Jackson is also in double figures at 15.0 ppg while getting to the line a team-high 23 times and shooting 74 percent.

SERIES NOTES: UC Davis trails in the all-time series with Santa Clara by a 9-8 count, according to available records, dating back to the 1974-75 season... The Aggies, however, have won two straight, and five of the last six, following a 75-70 win over the Broncos last season in Santa Clara... UC Davis leads the all-time series with Southern Utah, 2-0, posting wins at home in 2005-06 (73-46) and in Cedar City in 2008-09 (64-44).

CONFERENCE CALL: The Aggies are a combined 37-48 against the current West Coast Conference alignment following Tuesday's loss to San Francisco, and are 1-2 against the league this season... UC Davis has faced seven of the 10 WCC members, having played everyone except for BYU, Loyola Marymount, and San Diego... Records against other WCC teams include: Portland (0-2), Gonzaga (0-3), Santa Clara (8-9), Saint Mary's (10-12), San Francisco (5-7), Pacific (13-12), and Pepperdine (1-3)... UC Davis is 31-38 against current Big Sky members, including a 1-0 mark this season following its win at Sacramento State on Nov. 18... The Aggies have also faced Northern Arizona (1-0), Southern Utah (2-0), Sacramento State (25-29), and Portland State (3-9).

WAIT, WE HAVE TO PACK?: After not having strayed more than 20 miles from home for the first month of the season, the Aggies now have to endure a five-game road trip that will see them rack up a total of 4,464 round-trip miles over the next 18 days, with the added "bonus" of final exams thrown in for good measure.

THE GIVING SEASON: First, freshman Dani Nafekh scored her first points as an Aggie in a win over Pacific. Tuesday night, she got her teammates into the act to the tune of a career-high seven assists to go along with two points and a pair of steals in 26 minutes against San Francsico. The total was the highest since Molly Greubel dished out nine assists in the Aggies' Big West Tournament game against UC Irvine on March 12 of last season.

HELP ME, HELP YOU: Creating opportunities for teammates has been a hallmark of the Aggies thus far this season, assisting on 89 of the team's 134 makes (66 percent) -- including a season-best 22 helpers on 34 makes against Sacramento State on Nov. 18.

WINDEX WOMEN: For only the second time this season, the Aggies cleaned the glass better than their opponents, holding a five-rebound advantage over visiting San Francisco on Tuesday night. The only other time UC Davis out-rebounded an opponent came in a 56-rebound night against Sacramento State -- coming out nine boards better than the Hornets.

NAGEL IS NAILS: Freshman Rachel Nagel reached double figures for the second time in her young career Tuesday against San Francisco, coming out firing to the tune of 10 points on 4-of-8 from the field (including two, three-pointers) in a career-high 25 minutes. Nagel, who had scored just six points combined in her previous three games, fell just two baskets shy of her career high of 14 points set at Sacramento State on Nov. 18.

MISS CONSISTENT: Junior Alyson Doherty became only the third different Aggie to lead the team in scoring this season with her 14 points against San Francisco, joining Sydnee Fipps (3 times) and Kelsey Harris (twice) in that group through the first six games of the year. Doherty has reached double figures in four of her five appearances this season, matching Fipps for the team lead in that category thus far, while leading (or sharing the lead) the team in rebounds in each of the last five games.

AND BRIANNE MAKES 13: Sophomore Brianne Yasukochi hit 1-of-2 from the line late in the second half against San Francisco on Tuesday night, accounting for her first point of the young season and filling in the only hole in the points column for the Aggies.

SHOOTER!: One of the top shooting teams in the Big West entering the week, UC Davis has been white-hot from the floor in its last five contests, hitting on better than 41 percent in each of those games, including a season-best 54 percent at Sacramento State on Nov. 18 in an eight-point win. On the flip side, as hot as the Aggies' offense has been, the defense has been just as good, holding four of the last five opponents to under 40 percent from the field, having its streak snapped on Tuesday against San Francisco, which shot 45.5 percent from the field in a three-point win.

I'LL TAKE SCORING FOR 20, ALEX: Fipps' 21-point performance against Pacific on Nov. 29 was good enough for her to collect her 25th career 20-point game. Already the highest-scoring sophomore (512) and junior (548) in the history of the program, Fipps needs just six more 20-point games this season to catch Staci Stevens (31 from 1984-88) for the most career 20-point games in UC Davis history.

GIMME FIVE!: A pair of big scoring nights for senior Sydnee Fipps has the Mariposa, California, native rocketing up the all-time scoring list, jumping past former Aggie great Aimee Conner (1989-93) and into fifth place with 1,309 career points -- just 402 points back of record holder Carol Rische (1979-83), who had 1,711 points during her illustrious career. With 22 regular season games remaining (plus any possible postseason contests), Fipps needs to average 18.3 points per game to reach that mark and supplant Rische atop the UC Davis scoring chart.

THE PASSING POSTS: Inside out. Not good if you're a t-shirt, really good if you're a basketball team. Three of the Aggies' top four in assists thus far this season play in the front court as junior forward Celia Marfone (16) and junior center Alyson Doherty (14) -- who set a career high with five assists in a win over Pacific on Nov. 29 -- rank 1-2 on the team in assists, while junior forward Lauren Beyer fourth with nine helpers through six games. Individually, Marfone and Doherty entered the week ranked in a tie for 10th in the Big West with 3.00 assists per game.

SOMEBODY GET A HAND IN HER FACE: Senior Kelsey Harris has been white-hot from beyond the arc through the first six games this season, hitting 18-of-34 from three-point range (.529) and ranking third on the team in scoring at 10.0 ppg. The Brea, California, native entered the week ranked third in the Big West in three-point percentage and stood second among the league's sharpshooters in three-pointers made per game (3.00). In fact, all but two of her field goals (94 percent) have come from long distance this season, continuing a trend that saw her take 82 percent (217 of 264) of her field goal attempts from beyond the arc as a junior.

"BENCH"-MARK FOR SUCCESS: Once the starters come out, the Aggies' bench has done well to keep UC Davis running like a well-oiled machine, especially on the offensive end where the reserves have out-scored their counterparts by a combined 49 points in six games this year -- including a run of five straight games with the advantage in bench scoring and a season-best 18-point advantage against San Francisco. Leading the way for that group has been play of freshmen Rachel Nagel and Pele Gianotti, who are averaging 6.2 and 5.2 points per game respectively, while combining to shoot 24-for-52 (.462) from the floor.

GOING DEEP: Speaking of the Aggies' new-found depth, 10 of 13 players who have seen time on the floor this season are averaging better than 10 minutes per game, led by senior Kelsey Harris' 30.7 minutes per contest. She is the only UC Davis player averaging more than 30 minutes per game with teammate Sydnee Fipps behind her at 28.4 mpg.

SHE'S JUST ALY FROM THE BLOCK: With nine blocks in five games back from injury, junior Alyson Doherty is already asserting herself in the post, blocking three shots in three straight games against Sacramento State, Saint Mary's, and Utah Valley. Thanks to her performance against the Gaels, Doherty registered her 11th career game with three-or-more swats, falling one shy of her single-game career high set against Long Beach State on Jan. 11, 2014, and matched against UC Irvine on March 8, 2014. The three blocked shots against the Wolverines gave her 71 for her career, solidifying her hold on seventh on the UC Davis career list, just nine back of Ellen Porshneva (2003-06, 2007-08) for sixth place.

RECYCLED NOTES
THEY CAME IN DROVES: With the top-ranked team in the nation visiting Davis, the fans came out in record numbers to see the Aggies battle UConn. The announced attendance of 4,712 at The Pavilion on Nov. 14 was the largest crowd to see a women's basketball game in UC Davis history, topping the previous mark of 4,675 against Chico State back on Jan. 23, 1999, and only the fourth to break the 4,000 mark, joining two other games vs. the Wildcats in 1998 (4,615) and 1996 (4,549).

WOMEN'S BASKETBALL ADDS TWO IN EARLY PERIOD: UC Davis women's basketball head coach Jennifer Gross announced, on Nov. 13, that Washington natives Karley and Kourtney Eaton have signed National Letters of Intent to continue their academic and athletic careers with the Aggies beginning with the 2015-16 season. Originally from Longview, Washington, the twin sisters helped lead the Mark Morris HS girl's basketball team to the school's first-ever Washington State championship as sophomores and a runner-up state finish as juniors in 2014. Over the last two seasons, the Monarchs have compiled a 49-5 overall record with the help of the Eaton's, who will enter UC Davis as freshmen with four years of eligibility remaining. For more information on both Karley and Kourtney, read the full release online at http://www.ucdavisaggies.com/sports/w-baskbl/spec-rel/111314aah.html.

AGGIES PICKED FOURTH IN CLOSE BIG WEST RACE: UC Davis was picked to finish fourth in the race for the Big West Conference crown this season -- one spot higher than where the Aggies finished a season ago, and two spots better than where they were picked at the start of the 2013-14 season. UC Davis received 83 points to place behind defending regular season and tournament champion CSUN (13 first-place votes, 125 points), Hawai'i (1 first-place vote, 101 points), and Cal Poly (99 points), while finishing 10 points ahead of fifth-place Long Beach State. Cal State Fullerton (53), UC Irvine (41), UC Riverside (29), and UC Santa Barbara (26), round out the preseason prognostications.

SO... HOW 'BOUT THOSE AGGIES?: Losing only one player off of last season's "efficient" roster, UC Davis features an experienced lineup that lists five returning starters, 10 returning letter winners, and five newcomers, with a nice balance of upperclassmen (3 seniors, 5 juniors) and underclassmen (2 sophomores, five freshmen). Under the direction of fourth-year head coach (and former Aggie point guard) Jennifer Gross, UC Davis looks to build off a campaign that saw the Aggies finish 15-16 overall and 9-7 in Big West play, advancing to the league tournament quarterfinals thanks to a late-season run that saw them win four of their final five regular season contests. Sydnee Fipps (17.7 ppg), Alyson Doherty (13.1 ppg), and Kelsey Harris (10.7 ppg), all averaged double figures in scoring for the Aggies, while Doherty (6.3 rpg) and Celia Marfone (6.1 rpg) ranked among the top 10 in rebounding in the Big West.

TOURNEY-TESTED SCHEDULE: The Aggies are scheduled to face nine teams that saw postseason action in 2013-14, four of those teams in the NCAA Tournament and five more that made the WNIT field. Connecticut (National Champions), Stanford ("Final Four"), Arizona State (2nd Round), and CSUN (1st Round), all made the NCAA bracket, Southern Utah and Saint Mary's advanced to the second round of the WNIT, while league rivals Cal Poly and Hawai'i joined Pacific as WNIT selections.

HONORS ROLL IN FOR FIPPS: As if a second All-Big West First Team selection wasn't enough for the senior, Fipps has already garnered a host of other preseason awards from various outlets. One of six named to the All-Big West Preseason Team by a vote of media members covering the league, the Mariposa, California, native also earned preseason all-conference first-team honors (one of 10 selected) according to College Sports Madness, as well as All-Mid Major Second Team laurels by the same organization -- one of only two Big West players (CSUN guard Ashlee Guay the other) to be so honored.

DON'T FORGET DOHERTY: Junior Alyson Doherty also earned a nod on the College Sports Madness preseason All-Big West First Team alongside her teammate Sydnee Fipps, joining CSUN's Ashlee Guay, Cal Poly's Ariana Elegado, and UC Riverside's Brittany Crain.

BY THE NUMBERS: With all but one letter winner returning for the 2014-15 season, it is almost an embarassment of riches statistically for the Aggies, who bring back 94 percent of their scoring (1,960 points), 93 percent of their rebounds (1,047), 94 percent of their assists (429), 95 percent of their steals (183), and 94 percent of their blocks (67). What does that all mean? We don't know, but numbers are fun.

"HELLO, MY NAME IS...": Name tags may be required for the first few games as fans get to know the five new faces on the UC Davis roster: Morgan Bertsch, Pele Gianotti, Dani Nafekh, Rachel Nagel, and Lauren Seyranian. The five true freshmen on this year's roster are the most for the Aggies since 2012-13 when that season's rookie class featured Heidi Johnson, Aniya Baker, Celia Marfone, Molly Greubel, and Alyson Doherty.

#WINNING: UC Davis' 15 wins overall and nine Big West Conference victories eclipsed the Aggies win totals in both categories from all of last season and are the most since they finished 17-13 overall and 9-7 in the Big West during the 2011-12 campaign.

RECORDS ABOUND: Aside from Kelsey Harris' record-setting performance from beyond the arc, the Aggies were also busy in other categories. Molly Greubel set a school single-game record with a career-high 14 assists on Feb. 8 at UC Irvine, breaking the previous mark of 13 by Sara Lillevand at Cal State Stanislaus on March 10, 1990. As a team, UC Davis set a school single-game record with 39 three-point attempts on Nov. 29 against San Francisco, eclipsing the previous record of 36 set against Stanford on Dec. 28, 2008. Sydnee Fipps also added her name to the record books, sinking a single-game record 17 free throws at Pacific on Nov. 11, breaking Jackie Turpin's mark of 15 against Cal Poly on Feb. 9, 2006.