SACRAMENTO — It's rivalry week on campus as Sacramento State plays host to Causeway rival UC Davis in its final game before the Thanksgiving holiday on Tuesday (Nov. 21) at 6:30 p.m. at The Nest. The game is the third of five straight at home and is part of a longer stretch that will have the Hornets playing six of their next seven at The Nest to close out the calendar year.
THIS WEEK…
GAME NOTES: Sacramento State | UC Davis | Big Sky Conference
GAME #5
WHAT: UC Davis (1-3) at Sacramento State (0-4)
WHEN: Tuesday, Nov. 21, 2023
TIME: 6:30 p.m. PT
WHERE: Sacramento, Calif.
ARENA: The Nest
WATCH: ESPN+
LIVE STATS: HornetStats.com
TICKETS: HornetSports.com
THE RIVALRY RETURNS HOME
• After a two-year hiatus played under the lights at the Golden 1 Center, the Causeway rivalry between Sacramento State and UC Davis returns to campus in 2023 as the Hornets host the Aggies on Nov. 21 at The Nest
• The Hornets lit up the Golden 1 Center to the tune of a 67-45 victory over the Aggies in 2022-23 -- their first win in the series since 2015
• The 45 points were also the fewest in the rivalry for UC Davis since 2008
• The Aggies won the first meeting between the two at the home of the NBA's Sacramento Kings in 2021-22 by the score of 75-46
• This marks the first on-campus meeting between the two since a 77-75 UC Davis win in Davis in 2019, and the first meeting at The Nest since 2018, also won by the Aggies
CALIFORNIA DREAMIN'
• Sacramento State will not leave the state of California for the remainder of the calendar year until it rings in the New Year with a trip to Minnesota to take on St. Thomas to kick-off the Big Sky-Summit League Challenge
• The Hornets were 17-4 in games played in the "Golden State" last year, posting an 11-2 record at home and winning four of their last five -- the only loss in that stretch coming against UCLA in the NCAA Tournament
IN THE RANKINGS
• Neither Sacramento State, nor UC Davis, are ranked nationally entering this week's games
• The Hornets finished 2022-23 ranked No. 22 in the final College Insider Mid-Major poll, but are unranked in that poll to start the 2023-24 campaign
• Sacramento State is scheduled to face four teams listed in the preseason College Insider poll (as of Nov. 1), all among those receiving votes and three of those during Big Sky Conference play: Eastern Washington (50 votes), Northern Arizona (4), UC Davis (3), and Montana (1)
THE COACHES
• Sacramento State's Aaron Kallhoff is in his first season at the helm of the Hornets. He has served five previous seasons as a head coach at the junior college level and spent 10 years as an assistant at five Division I programs: Arkansas State, TCU, LSU, Penn State, and BYU
• UC Davis' Jennifer Gross is in her 13th season at the helm of the Aggies' program, posting a 218-143 (.604) record in her previous 12 campaigns.
ABOUT THE AGGIES
• UC Davis enters the week with a 1-3 record, having lost its last three games after opening the year with a 102-52 win over Academy of Art
• Since then, the Aggies have dropped contests against Portland State (71-62), San Diego State (77-68) and Oregon State (86-48), with the last two coming on the road
• Tuesday's contest is the third in a run of five straight games away from home for UC Davis, which has contests at Boise State (Nov. 29) and Washington State (Dec. 1) looming
• The Aggies sport three players in double figures: Tova Sabel (14.8 ppg), Evanne Turner (14.5 ppg), and Megan Norris (13.5 ppg)
• Norris also paces UC Davis on the boards (7.5 rpg), while Sydney Burns is averaging 7.5 apg over the team's first four games
• Sabel and Sacramento State head coach Aaron Kallhoff are connected as Kallhoff was an assistant at Penn State during Sabel's freshman year in 2021-22
• Last year, the Aggies finished 16-14 overall and 12-7 in the Big West -- good for fourth place -- and were picked to finish third in the league in 2023-24
SERIES NOTABLES
• According to records that date back to 1970, UC Davis holds a slim 34-32 lead in the series with Sacramento State
• However, the Hornets lead the series in games played at The Nest by a 15-13 count despite the Aggies having won the last three played on campus in Sacramento
• Sacramento State's last win at home was on Dec. 30, 2012 with a 66-65 triumph in overtime
• UC Davis won the last meeting at The Nest on Dec. 7, 2018, by a 109-60 score
• The Hornets are 4-6 in their last 10 meetings with the Aggies, snapping a five-game skid with their 22-point win at Golden 1 Center last season
• Sacramento State hasn't won back-to-back games in the series since the aforementioned win in 2012 and an 84-78 win on Dec. 28, 2013
CONFERENCE CALL
• Sacramento State is a combined 87-103 against the current Big West Conference alignment, having faced 10 of the 11 members
• Tuesday's game against UC Davis will be the second of four against Big West opponents -- all coming within the friendly confines of The Nest
• Sacramento State fell to Cal State Fullerton, 61-51, on Nov. 12 and has games remaining against CSUN (Dec. 2) and Cal Poly (Dec. 21)
• The Hornets were an impressive 6-1 against the league last season, dropping their opener against UC Irvine before rattling off six straight wins over UC Santa Barbara, UC Davis, Cal Poly, CSU Bakersfield, CSUN, and Cal State Fullerton
• Sacramento State's 32 wins over UC Davis are the most against any other current Big West school, followed by the 20 wins over CSUN and 13 more against Cal Poly
AUSSIE, AUSSIE, AUSSIE... OI! OI! OI!
• Head Coach Aaron Kallhoff announced that Australian guards Rubi Gray and Jemma Amoore have inked National Letters of Intent with the Hornets during the NCAA's early signing period
• Gray, a 5-9 guard from Devonport, Tasmania, and scholarship holder at Basketball Australia's prestigious Centre of Excellence, has represented her country at the U16 FIBA Women's Asian Championships in Jordan, the U17 FIBA World Cup in Hungary in 2022, and the U19 Women's Basketball World Cup in Spain in 2023, while also winning a number of titles as a team captain with the Devonport Warriors Basketball Club
• The basketball bloodlines run deep with Gray, whose father and uncle both played professionally in Australia
• Amoore, a 5-4 guard from Ballarat, Victoria, has played for her hometown Ballarat Miners' junior and senior clubs her entire career and she earned a spot on the Victorian state team for the U20 Australian Junior Championships back in February
• Amoore is the second of her family to attend college in the United States as her sister, Georgia, is a standout guard entering her senior season at Virginia Tech
"HELLO, MY NAME IS..."
• Sacramento State welcomes nine new faces to the roster for 2023-24, adding eight freshmen and a junior college transfer to the rolls
• The nine newcomers are the most since the 2014-15 roster featured nine new faces: four freshmen and five junior college transfers
• The eight freshmen are the most on a roster in a single season in the program's Division I history (since 1991-92)
SO FRESH, SO CLEAN
• The nine newcomers to the roster are among the most in the nation according to a preseason survey of schools, ranking tied for ninth among those that responded
• Among those same schools, Sacramento State's eight freshmen are the most in the NCAA, edging out Coastal Carolina and Buffalo, which have six apiece
WORLDWIDE LEADER
• Of Sacramento State's 15-member roster for 2023-24, seven of those players hail from outside the United States
• The seven international players are tied for the third-most by any school in the nation according to a preseason survey of programs, trailing only South Florida (12) and McNeese State (9)
• The seven players are tied with the rosters from California, Buffalo, Middle Tennessee, and Santa Clara
• The Hornets' roster represents six different countries (United States, Germany, Spain, Australia, The Netherlands, and France), which ranks behind only South Florida (10) and Vermont (7)
DOUBLE-DOUBLE, HORNET STYLE
• That's what freshman Summah Hanson is all about
• After scoring eight points and grabbing six rebounds in her debut at Washington, Hanson has rattled off three consecutive double-doubles against Nevada, Cal State Fullerton, and San Diego State
• During that run the Brisbane, Australia, native is averaging 19.7 points and 11.0 rebounds per game, while shooting .432 (19-for-44) from the floor, .500 (9-for-18) from three, and .800 (12-for-15) from the line
• She is also adding 2.3 assists and 2.3 blocks per game in that stretch
• Hanson is the first Hornet to post three-straight double-doubles since Isnelle Natabou did so against UTEP (17-14), Fresno State (16-11), San Diego State (23-10), and CSU Bakersfield (19-14) from Nov. 26-Dec. 10 last year
SEEING DOUBLE-DOUBLE
• Entering this week's competition, Hanson is one of only nine players in the Big Sky to post a double-double in a game this year and the only one to have multiple double-doubles to start the year
• Hanson's three double-doubles are tied for second in the NCAA entering the week, behind only TCU's Sedona Prince with three
• Hanson is the only freshmen -- and one four underclassmen overall -- among that group with three-or-more double-doubles on the year
• She is one of only six non-Power 5 student-athletes to post at least three double-doubles along with Coppin State's Laila Lawrence, San Diego's Kasey Neubert, UNLV's Desi-Rae Young, UTEP's Jane Asinde, and Canisius' Siki Eleko -- all of whom have three
SUMMAH TIME!
• With her career-high 22-point outburst at Nevada on Nov. 9, Hanson became the first Hornet freshman to score 20 points in a game since Katie Peneueta had 20 at Northern Arizona on Feb. 3, 2022
• The 22 points were the most by a Sacramento State freshman since Tiara Scott scored 25 against Montana State on Feb. 18, 2017. Scott was 9-of-14 from the floor, including seven three-pointers
• Hanson's double-double against the Wolf Pack was the first by a Hornet freshman since Margaret Huntington had 10 points and 13 rebounds against UC Irvine on Dec. 14, 2013
• Hanson has either shared or led the team in scoring and rebounding in each of the team's first four games this year
SHE'S KIND OF A BIG (SKY) DEAL
• Hanson enters this week's competition ranked No. 4 in the Big Sky in scoring (16.8 ppg) and No. 3 in rebounding (9.8 rpg)
• Hanson is one of only five players from around the league to rank in the top 10 in both categories, joining Northern Colorado's Delaynie Byrne (3rd & t5th), Montana State's Katelynn Limardo (5th & 9th), the Bobcats' Lexi Deden (t6th & 7th), and Idaho State's Laura Bello (8th& 4th)
• Among that group, Hanson is the only freshman as the others are in, at least, their third season of college basketball
• She also ranks in the top five in the league in 11 other categories
SHE GIVETH
• Sophomore Benthe Versteeg enters the week ranked among the Big Sky's best in assists, standing second in the league with 18 assists overall and 4.5 assists per game
• She finished with a game-high seven assists against San Diego State on Nov. 18, falling one shy of her career high of eight at Nevada on Nov. 9
• Versteeg's eight helpers were also the most by a Hornet since Kahlaijah Dean finished with the same number against Idaho in the team's Big Sky Conference Tournament opener on March 6, 2023
SHE TAKETH AWAY
• Freshman Sophia Lee finished with a career-high three steals against San Diego State to give her a team-high six on the year
• The three steals are the most by a Hornet since Jordan Olivares had three at Montana on Jan. 26 of last season
• The Stockton, Calif., native enters the week tied for 15th in the Big Sky at 1.50 spg
HANG ON A MINUTE
• You seemingly can't get Benthe Versteeg or Summah Hanson off the floor through four games this season
• Versteeg leads the Big Sky in minutes per game entering the week, averaging 36.8 mpg -- including 39:17 at Nevada on Nov. 9 -- and ranked No. 24 in the NCAA with that average
• Hanson, meanwhile, is fourth in the league at 33.1 mpg -- including a season-high 39:22 against the Wolf Pack, which stands as the most in a single game by a Hornet this year
LALA'S LAND
• Junior transfer Seilala Lautaimi came off the bench to provide the Hornet offense with a spark against San Diego State, finishing with a career-high eight points to go with three rebounds and a steal in 17 minutes
• That performance followed a career-high six rebounds in 10 minutes against Cal State Fullerton
NO THREE'S FOR THEE
• Sacramento State's defense has limited opponents to just .261 from beyond the arc this season -- the third-best mark in the Big Sky entering this week's contests
• That comes on the back of last Saturday's performance when San Diego State was just 4-of-22 (.182) from three-point range -- a season low for both makes and percentage by a Hornet opponent
• The four three-pointers allowed were the fewest since Portland State was just 3-of-14 on March 7 in the Big Sky Tournament, while the Wolf Pack's .208 three-point percentage was the lowest since Weber State hit 1-of-9 (.111) on Feb. 16 last year
• Sacramento State's last three opponents have ended the game with five three-pointers made or fewer after Washington finished with 11 makes in the season opener -- the first time an opponent had made 10-or-more since Idaho finished 10-of-29 on Feb. 4
• Prior to that, the last time the Hornets held three straight opponents to five makes or fewer from beyond the arc was Feb. 9-16 against Northern Arizona (5), Northern Colorado (5), and Weber State (1)
• Opponents finished with double-digit makes from beyond the arc only three times last year: at Northern Arizona (Jan. 14), at Montana (Jan. 26), and at Idaho (Feb. 4)
• Sacramento State has not allowed an opponent to make double-digit three-pointers since Idaho finished 14-of-35 in an overtime Hornet victory on Jan. 22, 2022
