UC Davis' annual rivalry with the Sacramento State Hornets returns to the Golden 1 Center in downtown Sacramento for the fifth time on Tuesday.
The Aggies trail the all-time series with Sac State 50-68 are 2-2 against the Hornets since the annual rivalry game moved to the Golden 1 Center at the start of the 2016-17 season. No game was played in 2020-21 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
WHO: Sacramento State
WHEN: Tuesday, Nov. 23 - 7:30 p.m.
WHERE: Golden 1 Center, Sacramento, Calif.
WATCH: Tuesday's game will not be live streamed.
LISTEN: Sports 1140 KHTK on the radio or via the Varsity App.
LIVE STATS: https://www.hornetsports.com/links/1t8wqw
Last time out the Aggies suffered a surprise loss to the Pepperdine Waves in Malibu on Nov. 17. Despite solid outings from the trio of
Ezra Manjon,
Elijah Pepper and
Christian Anigwe all getting into double figures scoring, the Aggies were undone in large part due to hot shooting from beyond the arc by the Waves. Pepperdine shot 7-14 for the game.
The Aggies continue to be an opportunistic team defensively, turning 19 Pepperdine turnovers into 22 points. But despite battling back from a double-digit half time deficit, UC Davis went scoreless for multiple prolonged stretches in the second half.
While Pepper and Manjon are known commodities to many Big West basketball fans, Anigwe has joined them as a consistent scorer for the Aggies while providing a valuable inside presence.
The junior transfer from San Jose State in his second season with the program is averaging 17 points and 8.7 rebounds through three games.
SERIES HISTORY
Record vs. Sac State: Sac State leads 50-68
Last Sac State win: 11/20/19, N - 51-61
Last UC Davis win: 11/21/17, N - 64-47
Series Streak: Sac State +2
BEST OF THE WEST
The season may be young but the Aggies are making their case for becoming one of the more dangerous teams in the Big West Conference.
Through Nov. 16, UC Davis ranked 26th nationally and third in the Big West in field goal percentage defense at 38 percent. UC Davis is 33rd in the nation in steals per game and first in the conference with 10.3 per contest. They also rank second in the Big West in total steals with 31.
Individually,
Elijah Pepper ranks 32nd nationally and first in the Big West in steals per game as he's swiping 2.67 per game.
SAC STATE AT A GLANCE
The Hornets' season got off to a turbulent start after long-time head coach Brian Katz retired due to health reasons. Nine-year associate head coach Brandon Laird was named interim head coach on Nov. 5.
Sac State is 2-2 to star the season and have gotten an early look at a couple of UC Davis' Big West opponents. The Hornets defeated Cal Poly 58-57 on Nov. 15 and fell to UC San Diego 71-56 on Nov. 20.
The Hornets are in the midst of a 25 game streak of turning the ball over 13 or fewer times. They're also holding opponents to 42 percent shooting from the field and and 26 percent from the three point line.
One area the Hornets have struggled is sending opponents to the line. They've been whistled for 88 fouls already this season. UC Davis is shooting just under 70 percent from the free throw line this season.
DOUBLE DOUBLE, ANIGWE STYLE
Through three games, forward
Christian Anigwe has one double with 19 points and 12 rebounds in a win over Eastern Washington but is averaging 17 points and 8.7 rebounds to lead UC Davis.
Only nine Aggies have ever averaged over 10 rebounds per game with none since the 2017-18 season.
300
With Nov. 12's win over Eastern Washington, head coach
Jim Les earned the 300th win of his collegiate career.
Les also coached in his 600th career game at Utah State.
He compiled the first 154 wins of his career at Bradley, his alma mater. He has 146 wins at UC Davis since 2011.
