NEXT UP…
GAME 12: UC Davis (8-3) at UCF (10-2)
Wednesday, Dec. 28, 2016
7:00 p.m. ET/4:00 p.m. PT
Orlando, Fla.
CFE Arena (10,000)
TV: None
RADIO: KDVS 90.3 FM
Game Coverage: UC Davis Gameday Central | UC Davis Notes | UCF Women's Basketball

TIP-OFF: Winners of two straight on the road, the UC Davis women's basketball team takes to the skies for its second-longest road trip of the season, winging its way to the "Sunshine State" for a pair of games to ring in the New Year. The Aggies (8-3) open the week against UCF (10-2) on Wednesday (Dec. 28) at 4 p.m. (PT)/7 p.m. (ET) at CFE Arena in Orlando, Fla.

IN THE POLLS: Both UC Davis and UCF are unranked nationally this week... The Aggies, who received one vote in the Dec. 13 CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major poll, fell out of the rankings a week later.

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 (facebook.com/UCDavisWomensBasketball) as well as follow them on Twitter and Instagram (@UCDavisWBB). In-game updates on game day are also available on Twitter by following @UCDavisInGame.

BERTSCH EARNS A PAIR OF HONORS: UC Davis sophomore Morgan Bertsch was named the Big West Conference Player of the Week on Dec. 26 after her career day in helping the Aggies to a road win at San Francisco last week. In addition to her first career league weekly honor, Bertsch was named the conference's player of the week by the website College Sports Madness for the second time this season. For the complete release, visit http://www.ucdavisaggies.com/sports/w-baskbl/spec-rel/122616aaa.html.

ABOUT THE KNIGHTS: UCF enters the week with a 10-2 overall record and winners of its last four straight following an, 81-41, triumph over Omaha in its last outing on Dec. 20... The Knights have lost their only two games by a combined four points to Virginia Tech (67-64) and Buffalo (66-65)... UCF is an almost perfect 6-1 at home this season, winning its last five straight... Senior Zykira Lewis leads the team in scoring at 16.1 ppg and is joined in double figures by junior Aliyah Gregory, who is averaging 11.3 ppg... Senior Joslyn Massey paced the squad in rebounding at 7.7 rpg while shooting .550 from the field.

SERIES NOTES: Wednesday will mark the first-ever meeting between the Aggies and the Knights... UCF will be the third member of the American Athletic Conference that UC Davis will have faced in the history of the program, having previously taken on UConn (0-2) and Navy (1-0).

AGGIES IN THE "SUNSHINE STATE": This week marks the program's first-ever trip to the state of Florida, and only the second and third games against opponents from the "Sunshine State" according to records that date back to the 1970-71 season. The Aggies faced Florida A&M at the Women of Troy Classic back in 2015, falling to the Rattlers, 61-58.

AGGIES INK THREE TO NLIs: UC Davis women's basketball solidified its front line with a trio of signings during the NCAA's early signing period on Nov. 10, welcoming three high school standouts to the "Aggie Family." Southern California natives Kayla Konrad (Valencia, Calif. / Valencia HS) and Cierra Hall (Cypress, Calif. / Fairmont Prep Academy) join highly-rated Canadian post Sage Stobbart (North Vancouver, British Columbia / Seycove Secondary School) in the Aggies' signing class, who all begin their careers as true freshmen in 2017-18. For more details on the three signees, read the entire release at http://www.ucdavisaggies.com/sports/w-baskbl/spec-rel/111016aac.html.

IT'S A START: With eight wins in their first 11 games out of the gate, the Aggies have posted their best start since the 2010-11 UC Davis squad opened 9-2 in the same 11-game stretch to start the year. That season, the Aggies finished with a school Division I Era record 24 wins en route to a Big West Tournament title and an NCAA Tournament berth.

HIT THE ROAD, JACK: UC Davis carries a 2-1 record into the fourth game of its season-long six-game road trip on Wednesday in Orlando -- the Aggies' longest stretch away from home since a similar run from Nov. 29-Dec. 18, 2013. UC Davis, however, is looking for a better results during this season's extended road swing after going just 2-4 during that 2013 trip, which included a contest at top-ranked UConn on Dec. 5.

BACK-TO-BACK: With wins over Sacramento State and San Francisco last week, UC Davis posted back-to-back wins on the road for the first time since the Aggies defeated Utah Valley and Big West rival CSUN on Dec. 31 and Jan. 7, respectively, last season.

WHAT A DIFFERENCE A POINT MAKES: UC Davis is a perfect 6-0 this season when scoring 70-or-more points, but is just 2-3 when held to 69-or-fewer.

OR YOUR POINTS ARE FREEEEEEE: There may be no such thing as a free lunch, but the Aggies are proving there are such things as free points. UC Davis enters the week leading the Big West shooting .773 from the free throw line -- a mark that also stands No. 20 in the NATION as of Dec. 26.

BERTSCH GOES BIG: Sophomore Morgan Bertsch was the picture of efficiency in the Aggies' win at San Francisco last week, finishing 10-of-15 from the floor and a career high-tying 7-of-7 from the line en route to a career-high 27 points in only 24 minutes against the Dons. Bertsch bested her previous high of 26 set against UC Santa Barbara in the quarterfinals of last year's Big West Tournament and reached the 20-point plateau for the third time this season.

TOP-10 TOTALS: Bertsch's 27 points places her in a tie for seventh on the school's Division I single-game scoring list -- the second Aggie to make the top 10 this season after junior teammate Dani Nafekh scored 28 points against San Diego State on Dec. 2 to move into a tie for fourth. The Division I record is 29 points accomplished three times by Jessica Campbell (at San Francisco in 2007) and Sydnee Fipps (against Long Beach State in 2013 and again versus UC Riverside in 2015). The all-time record is 36 points set by Aimee Conner at Chico State on Feb. 20, 1993.

STRONG AS A BERTSCH: While the oak has long regarded as one of the strongest woods in nature, the Aggies are proving that a "Bertsch" can be just as durable in any conditions. The Santa Rosa, Calif., native has finished in double figures in all 11 games for the Aggies this season, and in each of her last 19 games overall dating back to last year, averaging 18.1 ppg (344 overall) and shooting .570 (134-for-235) from the floor in that span.

GIANOTTI DOUBLES UP: For the second time this season, and the fourth time overall in her career, junior Pele Gianotti finished with a double-double, scoring 11 points and grabbing 12 rebounds in the win at San Francisco. Her total on the glass matched a career high set earlier this year against Portland in the season opener on Nov. 11, while the Myrtle Creek, Ore., native reached double figures for the the third time in the last four games, and the sixth time overall.

SOPHIA'S SONG: Entering the game at Sacramento State game with a combined eight points in her previous six games, freshman Sophia Song has been singing a different tune offensively in her last two contests. The Monterey Park, Calif., native set a career high with 13 points on 4-of-6 from the field and 4-of-4 from the line against the Hornets, and nearly duplicated that effort three days later at San Francisco, finishing with 13 points on 4-of-7 from the floor and a pair of three-pointers in 18 minutes off the bench.

SWAT TEAM: When it comes to patrolling the paint, not many have done it better than the Aggies' tandem of sophomore Morgan Bertsch and junior Marly Anderson, who have combined for 39 of the team's 51 swats thus far this season. Bertsch leads the way with 23 blocks overall and has tallied at least one block in each of UC Davis' first 11 games -- including a career high-tying four against Saint Mary's (Dec. 11) and Sacramento State (Dec. 18), and seven games with two or more -- while Anderson has at least one block in nine of the team's 11 games and is second on the team with 16 overall, including three in wins over Montana State and San Diego State.

RECORD CHASING: With her two blocks against San Francisco last Wednesday, Bertsch increased her career total to 59, ranking her fourth on the school's career list in the Division I Era and moving her past Jessica Campbell (2003-06, 2007-08) into 10th place on the program's all-time list, just five back of Kari Sivesind (1992-96) for ninth.

SHE CAN DISH IT OUT: Junior Dani Nafekh has solidified her hold on second place on the school's Division I list for career assists with 233, ranking behind only Hana Asano (278), and moving her closer to Jessica Campbell (274) for 10th on the all-time chart, needing just 41 more to match the all-time Aggie great. Nafekh is only the fifth player in the program's Division I history to reach 200 assists, joining Asano, Blair Shinoda (223), Alyson Doherty (214), and Celia Marfone (206).

DOUBLE DIGIT DANI: Showcasing a scoring ability not often seen in her first two seasons, Nafekh has reached double figures in nine of the her 11 games this year, missing the remaining two by a single point at No. 11 Stanford on Dec. 4 and at San Francisco on Dec. 21. Ranked second on the team in scoring at 13.3 ppg entering Wednesday's game at UCF, Nafekh had hit double figures just six times COMBINED in her first two seasons, averaging 4.8 ppg.

EATONS IN A GIVING MOOD: The sophomore sister duo of Kourtney and Karley Eaton have fully embraced the holiday season and have been in a giving mood as of late, combining for 20 assists against only nine turnovers over the last two Aggie wins. Karley set a career high with five helpers in the win at Sacramento State, while Kourtney has dished out 43 assists against 20 turnovers, leading the Big West (and standing No. 69 in the NCAA) with a 2.15 assist-to-turnover ratio, including a season-high eight assists against the Hornets -- the 14th time in 43 career games that the Longview, Wash., native has finished with five-or-more assists in a game.

AND THE POINTS JUST KEPT ON COMING: UC Davis' 110 points scored in its win over Causeway rival Sacramento State on Dec. 18 set a new single-game scoring standard in the Aggies' Division I Era, surpassing the 102 points scored at San Jose State almost six years ago to the day on Dec. 21, 2010. The point total stands second only to the 117 scored at Metro State during the program's Division II days on Nov. 13, 1998, while the 56 points in the first half against the Hornets set the school's Division I record for points in a half, surpassing the 54 scored in the first half against the Spartans.

Top Five All-Time Single-Game Scoring Performances
1. 117 at Metro State, 1998-99
2. 110 at Sacramento State, 2016-17
3. 108 vs. Patten College, 1996-97
4. 107 at Cal State Los Angeles, 1998-99
5. 103 vs. UC Santa Cruz, 1974-75

BESTIES: Scoring 110 points will lead to a number of season bests, and Sunday's win over the Hornets was no exception. Aside from the record number of points, the Aggies posted highs in field goals made (40), attempts (66), percentage (.606), free throws made (25), free throw percentage (.926), rebounds (51), assists (26), blocks (9). The block total was just one short of the school's single-game record set against Humboldt State on Feb. 18, 1995.

LUCKY SEVEN: According to game-by-game records that date back to the 1991-92 season, the seven players in double figures on Sunday against Sacramento State are the most in the single game during that stretch. Six times in that period the Aggies finished with six players with 10-or-more points, the last coming against Stanislaus State on Feb. 18, 2000, in an, 88-75, UC Davis win at home. The win over the Hornets marked the fifth time this season that the Aggies have finished with at least four players in double figures, winning all five of those contests. In fact, UC Davis has won its last 13 games (including a 7-0 mark last year) when it has four-or-more players finish in double figures dating back to a, 73-70, loss to San Francisco on Dec. 2, 2014.