NEXT UP…
Idaho (19-13) at UC Davis (25-6)
Women's National Invitation Tournament - First Round
Thursday, March 15, 2018 | 6:00 p.m. PDT | Davis, Calif. | The Pavilion
RADIO: KDVS 90.3 FM (PBP: Greg Wong… ANALYST: Max Agress)
TV: Streamed Live on Big West TV
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UC DAVIS
Nickname: Aggies
Location: Davis, Calif.
2017-18 Record: 25-6
Home / Away / Neutral: 13-1 / 10-4 / 2-1
2017-18 Big West Record: 14-2
Scoring Leader: Morgan Bertsch, 19.5 ppg
Rebounding Leader: Pele Gianotti, 5.9 rpg
Assist Leader: Kourtney Eaton, 4.63 apg

ON THE BENCH
UC Davis Head Coach: Jennifer Gross
Alma Mater: UC Davis '97
Years: 7th Season
Career/UC Davis Record: 128-90 (.587)
Big West Conference Record: 69-42 (.622)
Associate Head Coach: Joe Teramoto
Assistant Coaches: Des Abeyta, Matt Klemin

IDAHO AT A GLANCE
Nickname: Vandals
Location: Moscow, Idaho
2017-18 Overall / Big Sky: 19-13 / 13-5
Home / Away / Neutral: 7-6 / 9-5 / 3-2
Head Coach: Jon Newlee
Alma Mater: San Diego State '82
Years: 10th Season
Career Record: 278-246 (.531)
School Record: 169-149 (.531)
Associate Head Coach: Christa Sanford
Assistant Coach: Jeri Jacobson

SERIES VS. IDAHO
Overall: First Meeting
Current Streak: None
at Davis, Calif.: 0-0
at Moscow, Idaho: 0-0
at Neutral Site: 0-0
First Meeting: First Meeting
Last Meeting: First Meeting

TIP-OFF: For the first time in the program's Division I history, the UC Davis women's basketball team (25-6 overall) will play host to a postseason game, welcoming Idaho (19-13 overall) to The Pavilion on Thursday (March 15) at 6 p.m., for a first-round Women's National Invitation Tournament match-up.

TICKETS, PLEASE: Tickets for the event will go on sale on Tuesday (March 13) at Noon online at UCDavisAggies.com, in person at the UC Davis Athletic Ticket Office at Aggie Stadium on campus, or over the phone at (530) 752-AGS1. Courtside seats are available for $15, reserved seats are $13, with general admission tickets going for $11. Students will be admitted for free and parking in Lot 25 near the arena will also be free on a first-come, first-served, basis.

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" women's basketball (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 @UCDavisWBB.

AGGIES IN THE POSTSEASON: The 2017-18 season marks the Aggies' sixth foray into the postseason in its 11 seasons at the Division I level, and back-to-back trips following last year's "Sweet 16" appearance in the WNIT... This year marks UC Davis' fifth appearance in the WNIT since 2008, posting a 2-4 record in those five appearances -- with every game played on the road... The wins over Utah and Colorado State at last season's WNIT were the program's first-ever postseason victories at the Division I level... The Aggies have also made an appearance in the NCAA Division I Tournament in 2011, falling to Bay Area rival Stanford... UC Davis was a mainstay at the NCAA Division II Tournament before making the jump, advancing to the NCAA West Regionals 12 times in 14 years from 1986-99, including a third-place national finish in 1997.

UC DAVIS DIVISION I POSTSEASON HISTORY
2008 - WNIT - at Gonzaga - L, 81-60
2010 - WNIT - at California - L, 74-69 (ot)
2011 - NCAA - at Stanford - L, 86-59
2012 - WNIT - at Oregon State - L, 66-48
2017 - WNIT - at Utah - W, 72-62
2017 - WNIT - at Colorado State - W, 58-57
2017 - WNIT - at Washington State - L, 71-62

MILLENEUM MILESTONES
1. Carol Rische (1979-83) - 1,711 points
2. Sydnee Fipps (2011-15) - 1,636
3. Morgan Bertsch (2015-pres.) - 1,571
9. Ellen Porshneva (2003-06, 2007-08) - 1,251
10. Jennifer Gross (1993-97) - 1,243
11. Pele Gianotti (2014-pres.) - 1,180
18. Kasey Riecks (2008-12) - 1,071
t19. Kendall Greene (1992-96) - 1,027
t19. Rachel Nagel (2014-pres.) - 1,027
-- Dani Nafekh (2014-pres.) - 871

ABOUT THE VANDALS: Led by 10th year head coach Jon Newlee, the Vandals finished the regular season with a 19-13 overall record and a 13-5 mark in the Big Sky, making a run to the conference tournament championship game before falling to Northern Colorado, which earned a No. 10 seed in the NCAA Tournament and will meet No. 7 Michigan in the opening round... Idaho, making its third straight postseason appearance won 11 of its final 13 heading into the conference tournament, and posted wins over Montana State (78-74) and Portland State (102-99) in the opening rounds, before falling to the Bears (91-69)... Junior guard Mikayla Ferenz led a trio of Vandal starters in double figures, averaging 22.6 points and 6.5 rebounds per game, while dishing out 4.41 assists per contest and shooting .452 from the field and .407 from three-point range... Senior post Geraldine McCorkell (16.8 ppg, 7.9 rpg, .477 FG%) and junior guard Taylor Pierce (15.5 ppg, 3.5 rpg) are also in double figures for an Idaho squad that averaged 75.2 ppg and shot .433 from the field, while holding opponents to 74.5 ppg and a .425 field goal percentage.

SERIES RECORDS: Thursday's opening round WNIT contest will be the first between the two programs.

WINNING IN THE WNIT: The Aggies enter the 21st annual WNIT tied for the fourth-most victories overall among the field of 64, and sports the third-best winning percentage (.806) behind only South Dakota and UAB (.813), which finished the regular season at 26-6 overall and tied with Drexel (26-7) for the most wins in the tournament field..

POSTSEASON PREPARED: Combined with the announcement of the 2018 NCAA Tournament field earlier in the day, and the release of the 16-team Women's Basketball Invitational bracket later Monday night, the Aggies have faced eight teams that have secured a postseason berth this season in NCAA selections CSUN (No. 16 seed vs. No. 1 Notre Dame), Seattle (No. 15 seed vs. No. 2 Oregon), and Oregon State (No. 6 seed vs. No. 11 Western Kentucky), as well as WNIT selections Saint Mary's (an automatic qualifier out of the West Coast Conference), UCF (an automatic qualifier out of the American Athletic Conference), and Fordham (an at-large selection out of the Atlantic-10 Conference). In addition, UC Irvine and Yale were both selected to compete at the WBI, which also begins Thursday.

HEAD-TO-HEADS: The Aggies and the Vandals had six opponents in common this season: Big West rivals CSUN and Cal State Fullerton, Seattle, and Big Sky opponents Sacramento State, Portland State, and Southern Utah. Idaho finished 8-2 against that group, while UC Davis finished a nearly identical 7-2.

LONG TIME COMING: After playing on the road in each of its previous five postseason trips as a Division I program, UC Davis last hosted a postseason contest in 1999 when it was home to the NCAA Division II West Regionals, defeating Cal Poly Pomona in the second round before falling to Montana State-Billings in the regional final.

AGGIES IN THE NCAA: UC Davis is one of the top shooting teams in the nation, entering this week's WNIT opening round as the No. 9 team in the nation in three-point shooting (.389) and No. 14 in overall field goal percentage (.467)... The Aggies also rank in the top 25 in assists (No. 16), overall assists (No. 21), and winning percentage (No. 24), as well as standing in the top 50 in five other categories: field goal percentage defense (No. 31), assist-to-turnover ratio (No. 32), three-pointers per game (No. 37), and three-pointers made (No. 37).

WE ARE THE CHAMPIONS!: The Aggies clinched their second consecutive Big West regular season title -- and the program's third overall -- claiming the first back-to-back titles for UC Davis since it ended a run of five consecutive California Collegiate Athletic Association crowns from 1995-99, and the 15th overall regular season conference title dating back to 1978. The Aggies are the first Big West school to win outright consecutive regular season titles since UC Santa Barbara did the same from 2007-09.

TWIN TITLES: Move over Green Bay. With the men's double overtime win over UC Irvine to clinch their third league title in four years, the city of Davis, Calif., has become the Big West's "Titletown." This year marks the first time that both the men's and women's regular season champions hail from the same school since 2008 when UC Santa Barbara swept the titles, and it is the seventh time since 1984 that the same school sports both regular season champions along with the 1984 (UNLV), 1985 (UNLV), 1990 (UNLV), 1991 (UNLV), and 2003 (UCSB), seasons.

MID-MAJOR MOVERS: A season-ending loss has the Aggies down to No. 13 in the latest College Insider mid-major poll released on Tuesday (March 6), falling out of the top 10 for the first time since Jan. 2 (No. 12). The drop ended a run of seven consecutive weeks in the top 10, where the Aggies stood for 12 of the 18 weeks this season. UC Davis has stood among the top 25 of the College Insider poll every week this season, debuting at No. 20 in the preseason.

Tracking the Aggies in the CollegeInsider.com poll
Preseason - No. 20
Nov. 14 - No. 17
Nov. 21 - No. 11
Nov. 28 - No. 8
Dec. 5 - No. 8
Dec. 12 - No. 5
Dec. 19 - No. 5
Dec. 26 - No. 7
Jan. 2 - No. 12
Jan. 9 - No. 10
Jan. 16 - No. 8
Jan. 23 - No. 8
Jan. 30 - No. 7
Feb. 6 - No. 10
Feb. 13 - No. 9
Feb. 20 - No. 9
Feb. 27 - No. 8
March 6 - No. 13

#PROTECTTHEPAVILION: With their victory over UC Irvine on Feb. 24, the Aggies established a new Division I record for home wins with their 13th victory in 14 chances, surpassing the previous mark of 12 set in 2010-11 (12-3) and 2016-17 (12-2), and posting the most wins at home since the 1997-98 squad also finished 13-1. UC Davis, which has won its last eight straight at home, has been impressive in defending its home court, winning 25 of its last 28 at The Pavilion and posting a combined 62-33 (.653) record at home under Head Coach Jennifer Gross.

ALL-TOURNEY DUO: Senior Pele Gianotti and junior Morgan Bertsch represented the Aggies on the six-woman Big West All-Tournament Team -- the fourth time in the program's history that UC Davis has had two players so honored. For Bertsch, it was her second career all-tournament award after picking up her first as a freshman, joining Heidi Heintz (2010-11), Paige Mintun (2010-11), and Alyson Doherty (2015-16), as two-time honorees for the Aggies.

GROSS REPEATS AS COACH OF THE YEAR: For the second consecutive season, UC Davis Head Coach Jennifer Gross was named the Big West Coach of the Year, joining mentor Sandy Simpson as Aggie women's basketball coaches to have earned that honor twice from the conference in a career. Gross is the first repeat winner of the award in the league since UC Santa Barbara's Mark French shared the award in 1999-00, then won it outright in 2000-01, and marks only the fifth time overall in conference history that a coach has won the award in consecutive seasons.

BERTSCH HEADLINES ALL-BIG WEST HONORS: Junior biomedical engineering major Morgan Bertsch was named to the first team for the second consecutive season, seniors Pele Gianotti (political science) and Rachel Nagel (psychology) earned second team honors, while senior managerial economics major Dani Nafekh was selected to the honorable mention team. For Bertsch and Gianotti, it was their third career All-Big West honors, while Nafekh picked up her second, and Nagel earned the first of her career. Read the complete release online at: http://www.ucdavisaggies.com/sports/w-baskbl/spec-rel/030518aab.html.

THAT'S FRESH: In addition to the above honors, let's not leave out newcomer Cierra Hall, who became the eighth UC Davis student-athlete named to the Big West All-Freshman Team. Hall, a cell biology major from Cypress, Calif., gives the Aggies one of the league's top freshmen for the fourth consecutive season, joining teammates Nafekh (2014-15), Bertsch (2015-16), and Nina Bessolo (2016-17). The 2009 Big West Freshman of the Year, Lauren Juric, Kasey Riecks (2008-09), Alyson Doherty (2012-13), and Molly Greubel (2012-13), have also been honored.

FIRST!: Bertsch's inclusion on the All-Big West first team marks the 12th such honor in the program's history as the Santa Rosa, Calif., native became the third UC Davis player to earn at least two first-team nods in a career along with Paige Mintun (2009-11) and Sydnee Fipps (2013-15). With her selection, Bertsch gives the Aggies a first-team honoree in every season since joining the Big West -- the only program in the conference to do so in that span.

AGGIES PACE BIG WEST IN THE RPI: After reaching as high as No. 42 in the nation in the RPI at one point this season, the Aggies continue to pace their Big West sistren as of March 12, ranking 73rd in the RPI and standing as the only Big West team in the top 100 thus far (Cal Poly is second among league members at No. 148). The No. 42 ranking earlier this season was the highest that UC Davis had been ranked in the RPI dating back to Dec. 29, when the Aggies stood 40th.

WIN AND WHERE: The Aggies' win over UC Riverside in the semifinals of the Big West Tournament gave them their 25th victory of the season -- tying the Division I program record for wins in a season set last year and tying them for the third-most victories in a single campaign trailing only the 26-5 Aggies in 1990-91 and the 29-3 UC Davis team that finished third nationally in 1996-97... Meanwhile, on the conference side of the ledger, the Aggies' 14-2 mark tied the Division I school record set last season (14-2)... The 28 wins in league over the last two seasons are the most in the program's Big West era, surpassing the 21 wins from 2009-11 (11-3 & 10-6), and the most in a two-year span since 1998-00 when the Aggies were 32-8... The 28 conference wins over the last two years are the most in the league since UCSB finished 30-2 over the 2007-09 campaigns.

THAT WAS FAST: UC Davis' victory over CSUN on Feb. 10 made the 2017-18 Aggies the quickest team to 20 wins in the program's Division I history, doing so in just 24 games to beat last year's squad that did so in 26 games. This year's squad now ranks as the seventh-fastest on the all-time list after the Aggies reached 20 wins in 22 games four times in 1991-92, 1995-96, 1996-97, and 1998-99, to set the record.

BACK-TO-BACK: At 25 victories thus far this season, UC Davis has posted back-to-back 20-win seasons for the second time in the program's Division I history, the fifth time overall, and the first since UC Davis finished 21-11 in 2009-10 and 24-9 in 2010-11. The Aggies also posted back-to-back 20-win seasons in 1979-80 (20-9) and 1980-81 (23-8), four straight years from 1988-92, and a run of six consecutive 20-win seasons from 1993-99.

DOUBLING UP: Of UC Davis' 25 victories this season, 17 of those have been by double digits, with seven of those by 20-or-more points. Of those seven, two have been by 30-or-more points: a 32-point win at Pacific on Nov. 20 and a 30-point win over Long Beach State on Feb. 15.

STINGY: UC Davis' Big West semifinal victory featured a stifling Aggie defense that held UC Riverside to just 28.8 percent shooting from the field -- including just 20.5 percent (8-for-39) over the final three quarters -- marking the third time this season that they held an opponent under 30 percent shooting for a game and the second lowest of the season behind only San Francisco's 28.6 percent on Dec. 6.

JUST ENOUGH: In the win over the Highlanders, UC Davis shot just 36 percent from the field in the win -- its lowest in a victory since shooting 35.8 percent from the floor at Colorado State in the second round of last year's Women's NIT -- while the 49 points scored were the fewest in a win for the Aggies since defeating UC Irvine, 47-43, on Feb. 28, 2013.

MAKING HER POINT: Already enjoying the highest scoring junior season in school history, junior Morgan Bertsch is now the highest scoring Aggie in a single season... EVER. With her 22 points in the Big West title game, the biomedical engineering major broke a record that had stood for three decades, leaping past Staci Stevens (600 points) for the top spot on the all-time list with 605 points.

THEY JUST KEEP GOING IN: To get to those 605 points, you gotta make baskets... something that Bertsch has done regularly this season. Ranking No. 5 in the NCAA in field goals made with 262, the junior broke Stevens' all-time single-season mark of 252 makes in 1987-88 during last week's Big West Tournament, upping her career total to 646 in three seasons -- a program Division I record that stands just five back of Carol Rische's all-time records of 651. Bertsch also stands No. 37 in the nation in points, No. 36 in points per game, and No. 32 in field goal percentage.

PELE ON THE BOARDS: Averaging 9.0 rebounds per game in a pair of Big West tournament games helped senior political science major Pele Gianotti earn a spot on the all-tournament team -- including a season-high tying 11 boards against UC Riverside in the semifinals. Her seven rebounds in the championship game against CSUN gave the Oregon native an even 600 rebounds for her career, making her the fourth UC Davis player to reach that plateau in the program's Division I history, joining Alyson Doherty (708), Celia Marfone (682), and Paige Mintun (606).

BOARDING SCHOOL: In addition to her 1,000-point milestone, Gianotti became only the the fourth player in the program's Division I history to score 1,000 points and grab 500 rebounds in a career, joining Alyson Doherty (2012-16), Paige Mintun (2007-11), and Sydnee Fipps (2011-15).

SHE'S GOT GAME(S): No one has appeared in more games in UC Davis history than senior political science major Pele Gianotti, who collected career games No. 126 and 127 this past weekend in Southern California, breaking Samantha Meggison's total of 123 games played from 2008-12. A four-year contrbuter who has started every game since her sophomore campaign, Gianotti also broke Jennifer Gross' all-time consecutive games streak of 119 from 1993-97, appearing in every game since she stepped foot on campus as a freshman.

MOVIN' ON UP: Gianotti is chipping away at a spot in the top 10 on the school's all-time scoring list, trailing her head coach, Jennifer Gross, by 63 points for the No. 10 spot with 1,180 in her career. Meanwhile, with her 17 points at the Big West Tournament, senior psychology major Rachel Nagel moved into a tie for 19th with Kendall Greene with 1,027 career points, needing 44 more points to match Kasey Riecks for 18th place.

"KOURT" VISION: Seven assists in the Big West championship game pushed junior psychology major into second on the school's Division I season list with 139 -- a mark that trails only her own record of 142 set last season and stands fourth on the all-time single-season list, standing 20 behind Sara Lillevand's record of 159 in 1990-91. It is her third season with at least 100 assists and only the fifth by an Aggie in the Division I era.

I'M COMING FOR YOU, COACH!: Eaton's passing prowess last week solidified her hold on third place on the all-time list with 394, setting her sights on Sara Lillevand (396) in second, with her head coach, Jennifer Gross, waiting at the top with 448 career assists.

IN A GIVING MOOD: UC Davis has been the queens of making the extra pass this season, entering the week ranked No. 16 in the nation in assists per game (17.3 apg) and No. 21 in overall assists (537), while ranking No. 32 in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.21). Meanwhile, Kourtney Eaton enters the week ranked No. 80 in the nation in assists per game (4.6), No. 84 in total assists (139), and No. 38 in assist-to-turnover ratio (2.32).

THE GREATEST OF ALL TIME?: Entering this week's contest with 1,571 career points to her name, good for third on the all-time list, Bertsch needs just 140 more to catch Carol Rische (1979-83) for the top spot and 250 more points to pass Audwin Thomas (1,821 points from 1975-79) on the men's side to become the all-time leading scorer in UC Davis basketball history. Although there are games still to be played this season, Bertsch -- who ranks sixth on a combined men's and women's all-time scoring list -- could join rarified air in Big West history as well if she can repeat this year's success as a senior, needing 429 more points to reach 2,000 for a career, something only seven other players in the history of the league have done.

DOUBLE-DIGIT DAMAGE: Chalk up two more records for Bertsch, who recorded the 30th and 31st double-digit performances of the season -- and the 80th and 81st of her career -- at the Big West tournament to set new program Division I records in both categories. Teammates Pele Gianotti (59) and Rachel Nagel (43) also rank fifth and seventh, respectively, on that same career list.

MISS CONSISTENTCY: Bertsch's 31 consecutive double-digit scoring games this season is a new program Division I record, breaking her own mark of 23 straight such performances from Feb. 18, 2016, to Jan. 5, 2017.

LEADERS BY EXAMPLE: Bertsch will finish this year's campaign as the team's leading scorer for the third consecutive season, becoming only the fifth Aggie to lead the team in scoring in three consecutive seasons, with a chance to join Carol Rische as the only UC Davis players to do so all four years of their collegiate careers. Staci Stevens in 1985-88, Paige Mintun in 2008-11, and Sydnee Fipps in 2012-15, are the only other three Aggies to accomplish the feat three times. Meanwhile, Gianotti is also on the verge of becoming the third straight Aggie to lead the team in rebounds in back-to-back seasons after Sydnee Fipps in 2012-14 and Celia Marfone in 2014-16.

SWAT TEAM: Freshman Cierra Hall's block in the first quarter of the Big West tournament championship game was a record-breaker, giving the Aggies 130 blocks as a team to break last year's short-lived mark of 129. UC Davis, which ranks third in the Big West at 4.3 blocks per game, have collected at least four blocks in a game 20 times this season en route to its third straight campaign with at least 100 swats (125 in 2015-16 and 129 in 2016-17).

BLOCK YOU VERY MUCH: Already the fifth Aggie to reach the century mark in career blocks at Seattle on Nov. 26, Bertsch upped her career total to 143 swats in last week's Big West Tournament, solidifying her hold on third place on the school's all-time list. The Santa Rosa, Calif., native is just four back of Alyson Doherty (147) for second place, and is well-within striking distance of Paige Mintun (150) for the all-time lead. Meanwhile, Bertsch's 50 blocks this season rank tied for third on the all-time single-season list with Alyson Doherty's 2015-16 total and stand just seven behind her single-season record of 57 set last season.

NAFEKH EARNS COSIDA ALL-DISTRICT HONORS: A four-year standout on the court, UC Davis senior guard Dani Nafekh has now been honored for her performance off of it, named to the CoSIDA Academic All-District second team on Feb. 23. Nafekh becomes only the second Aggie to earn all-district honors in the program's Division I history, joining Jessica Campbell, who earned a spot on the second team in 2007-08, and is only the fifth time that a UC Davis student-athlete has been so honored since 1998-99, joining Campbell, Sarah Allen (first team in 2002-03), and Kristen Coolidge (1st team in both 1998-99 and 1999-00). The managerial economics major from Oakville, Ontario, holds a 3.91 GPA.