SACRAMENTO, Calif. — The Sacramento State women's basketball team opens a run that will see the Hornets play five of their final six non-conference games on the road this weekend in Riverside, Calif., competing at the CBU Classic. Sacramento State gives thanks, then opens the tournament on Friday (Nov. 28) at 2:30 p.m. against Chattanooga before facing either host California Baptist or UC Santa Barbara on Saturday (Nov. 29) at either Noon or 2:30 p.m.
GAME #8
WHAT: Chattanooga (3-4, 0-0 SoCon) vs. Sacramento State (5-2, 0-0 Big Sky)
WHEN: Friday, Nov. 28, 2025
TIME: 2:30 PM PT
WHERE: Riverside, Calif.
ARENA: Fowler Events Center
WATCH: ESPN+
LIVE STATS: CBULancers.com
GAME #9
WHAT: Sacramento State (5-2, 0-0 Big Sky) vs. California Baptist (5-0, 0-0 WAC) or UC Santa Barbara (4-1, 0-0 Big West)
WHEN: Saturday, Nov. 29, 2025
TIME: Noon or 2:30 PM PT
WHERE: Riverside, Calif.
ARENA: Fowler Events Center
WATCH: ESPN+ (TBD)
LIVE STATS: CBULancers.com (TBD)
GAME NOTES: Sacramento State | Chattanooga | California Baptist | UC Santa Barbara | Big Sky Conference
THE COACHES
• Sacramento State's Aaron Kallhoff enters his third year at the helm of the Hornets' program, posting a 26-45 mark and a 104-121 overall record in seven-plus seasons as a head coach
• Kallhoff claimed his 100th career win as a head coach in Sacramento State's 2025-26 season-opening win over Stanton University
• Deandra Schirmer is in her second season as head coach at Chattanooga following five successful seasons at NCAA Division II Valdosta State where she was 114-31
• Jarrod Olson is in his 14th year at the helm of California Baptist, posting a 301-116 record and a 182-54 mark in conference play and winning three Western Athletic Conference Coach of the Year awards
• Renee Jimenez is in her second season at UC Santa Barbara following eight seasons at Cal State San Marcos where she won three conference regular season and two tournament titles, while making the NCAA Division II "Final Four" in 2023-24 following a 27-win season
PULLING RANK
• After opening the season with wins in five of their first six games, the Hornets broke into this week's CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major Poll, picking up three votes
• It's Sacramento State's first appearance in the poll since the Hornets ended the 2022-23 campaign ranked No. 22 in the country
• Depending on results of Friday's games, Sacramento State could face a California Baptist squad that ranks No. 21 in this week's Mid-Major poll
• The Hornets are among a group of three Big Sky Conference schools listed in this week's poll along with No. 7 Montana State and a receiving votes Northern Colorado squad
NEW NEST
• After spending most of its history playing at The Nest, both the Sacramento State men's and women's basketball teams transition its home contests to the Hornet Pavilion located inside The WELL, an on-campus fitness complex that has renovated a portion of the facility to serve as the new home of the Hornets.
• The venue will seat approximately 3,000 fans -- nearly tripling the capacity of The Nest
• It was a giant facelift for the facility featuring (among other enhancements): re-striping of all courts to include the game court, telescopic bleachers around the center court, two new video boards, LED ribbon boards, new scoreboards, a new sound system, removal and replacement of existing lighting, new press tables and courtside seats, and new branding promoting Sacramento State and the city of Sacramento
"BIG" NEWS FOR 2026
• The 2025-26 campaign marks the 30th -- and final -- season as a member of the Big Sky Conference for the Hornets, who announced plans to move to the The Big West beginning in 2026-27
• Sacramento State will face four of its future league rivals this year: UC San Diego (Nov. 12), Long Beach State (Nov. 15), Cal State Fullerton (Nov. 21), and either California Baptist or UC Santa Barbara (Nov. 29)
• Another league opponent -- Causeway rival UC Davis -- is also on the schedule (Nov. 24), but the Aggies are departing for the Mountain West Conference following this year
• The Big West will be the third conference for the Hornets in their Division I history after playing in the America West Conference along with Cal Poly, CSUN, and Southern Utah from 1994-96, and then joining the Big Sky in 1996-97
ABOUT THE MOCS
• Chattanooga enters the tournament with a 3-4 overall record, snapping a three-game skid with a 64-62 win over Northern Kentucky in its last outing on Nov. 22
• Two of the team's three wins have been by three points or fewer, while all four of its defeats have been by double-digits
• Junior guard Caia Elisaldez (12.7 ppg) and sophomore forward Gianna Corbitt (12.6 ppg) are averaging double digits in points, while Corbitt is the team's leader on the glass (5.3 rpg)
• The Mocs are averaging 61.9 ppg and shooting .390 from the field as a team, while opponents average 66.6 ppg and shoot .428 overall
SERIES NOTABLES
• Friday marks the first-ever meeting with Chattanooga in women's basketball
ABOUT THE LANCERS
• California Baptist is a perfect 5-0 overall on the season entering its own tournament, posting wins over UC Riverside, Pacific, Long Beach State, San Jose State, and CSUN
• The Lancers open the tournament against UC Santa Barbara on Friday
• CBU will join Sacramento State and Utah Valley as newcomers in The Big West beginning with the 2026-27 season
• Four players are averaging double figures in scoring, led by freshman Lauren Olsen and her 15.6 ppg and .452 shooting from the field
• Graduate guard Chance Bucher (12.4 ppg) is also in double figures, while junior guard Filipa Barrios (11.4 ppg, 11.8 rpg) and senior forward Emma Johansson (108 ppg, 11.0 rpg) are averaging double-doubles
SERIES NOTABLES
• A possible meeting on Saturday with California Baptist would be the third all-time in women's basketball, but the first since 1987
• The Lancers won the first-ever meeting between the two schools on Nov. 24, 1983, but 74-66 score on a neutral floor
• The Hornets answered with a 66-57 win at home on Feb. 10, 1987
ABOUT THE GAUCHOS
• UC Santa Barbara enters the tournament at 4-1 overall, having won its last three straight against Seattle U, Grand Canyon, and San Jose State
• The Gauchos' only loss this year came against then-No. 3 UCLA by an 87-50 score on Nov. 6
• Sophomore forward Olivia Bradley leads the team in scoring at 14.2 ppg and adds a team-high 5.4 rpg while shooting .580 from the field
• Junior forward Zoe Borter is also in double figures at 12.8 ppg to go with 3.4 rpg and shooting .453 from the floor
SERIES NOTABLES
• The series between UC Santa Barbara and Sacramento State is tied at 4-4, but the two schools haven't met in women's basketball since 2022
• The Hornets won that meeting, 70-68, in overtime on a basket by Kahlaijah Dean with 1.7 seconds remaining in the extra period after Katie Peneueta tied the game with a three-pointer with two seconds left in regulation
• UC Santa Barbara's last win in the series came in 2021 on its home floor by a 66-58 score
• Each of the last three meetings have been decided by single digits
• The 2021 meeting was the first between the two schools since 1988
• The two schools have met on a neutral floor three times: 1976-77 at the Chico North Valley Classic (W, 67-55); 1978-79 at the same Chico tournament (W, 60-52), and 1979-80 in San Luis Obispo (L, 85-64)
CONFERENCE CALL
• Sacramento State is a combined 93-108 against the current alignment of The Big West, having won three straight until falling to UC Davis on Monday night (Nov. 24)
• Chattanooga represents the third SoCon opponent for the Hornets in the league's current alignment, but the first since 2005 when they posted a 71-57 win over Wofford at home
• Sacramento State also fell to Mercer, 68-60, in 1996 at a tournament hosted by Colorado State
• The Hornets are 26-18 against the current Western Athletic Conference alignment, with 38 of those all-time meetings coming against former Big Sky rival Southern Utah -- 20 of those in league play
• Sacramento State is also 0-2 against Abilene Christian, 1-1 against California Baptist, and 2-0 against Utan Valley
AS THE WORLD TOURNEYS
• This weekend marks the fifth straight year that the Hornets will compete in a regular season tournament (six total events) dating back to 2021-22
• Sacramento State is 5-7 in tournament games in that stretch
• The Hornets have faced a tournament host three times in that span, falling to UC Irvine in 2021-22 at the UCI Invitational, defeating Cal Poly in 2022-23 at the Holiday Beach Classic, and falling to New Mexico at last year's Lobo Invitational
DE-FENSE (CLAP, CLAP)... DE-FENSE (CLAP, CLAP)
• Sacramento State hasn't given up much this season, ranking second in the the Big Sky Conference in scoring defense (56.4 ppg), rebounding defense (32.6 rpg), and field goal percentage defense (.359) while leading the league in three-point percentage defense (.231)
• It's a continuation of a trend that has seen the Hornets post two of the stingiest scoring defenses in school history in the last three years as they allowed 59.9 ppg in 2022-23 (second in school history) and gave up 63.6 ppg in 2024-25 (fourth in school history)
• The school record is 56.8 ppg allowed over 23 games in 1984-85
BONUS BALL
• An extra five minutes were needed to decide the annual Causeway rivalry with UC Davis on Monday night -- the first time the Hornets and Aggies played an overtime game since a 77-75 UC Davis win in DOUBLE overtime in 2019
• Monday's contest was the Hornets' first overtime game since they defeated Portland State on the road, 76-74, on Jan. 4 last year and was the first overtime game at home since falling to Northern Arizona, 84-82, in 2023
• Sacramento State has played overtime 44 times in its Division I era -- six of those going to double overtime -- posting a 17-27 record in those games
"PIC"-ING APART THE AGGIES
• Junior guard Natalie Picton came up with a huge night in an overtime battle with rival UC Davis, going for a career-high tying 24 points
• The performance marked her highest point total as a Hornet and matched her collegiate best set against Idaho State while a member of the Montana State roster last year
• Picton was 8-of-16 from the field and 6-of-8 from three-point range, matching her career high in the former and setting a new high bar from distance
• Monday's outburst moved her into the team lead with 14.3 ppg as she has scored in double figures in six of the team's seven contests this year, including each of the last four during which she is averaging 15.0 ppg
"PIC" SIX
• Picton's six makes from beyond the arc were the most in a game by a Hornet since Solape Amusan finished 6-of-7 from distance against Santa Clara on Nov. 29, 2023
MISS STEAL YOUR BALL
• Picton has been sneaky to start the season, finishing with multiple steals in all seven of the Hornets' contests thus far
• Picton's 20 swipes put her third in the Big Sky standings in that category as of Nov. 24 and also ranks her No. 25 in the nation thus far
• As a team, the 26 steals against Stanton were four shy of the program's single-game mark of 30 set against Portland State on Feb. 7, 2015
• The total was also the highest in six seasons for the Hornets, who last posted a 20-plus steal game against Cal Maritime on Nov. 13, 2019, finishing with 28 in that contest
SHADES OF GRAY
• Sophomore guard Rubi Gray finished with 12 points on 5-of-9 from the floor against UC Davis on Monday night (Nov. 24), extending her double digit scoring streak to four straight games heading into this week's tournament in Riverside
• Gray is averaging 18.8 ppg during her run -- including 24 points at UC San Diego and 26 points against Cal State Fullerton -- while shooting 50 percent (30-for-60) from the field and just under 40 percent (11-for-29) from three-point range
THAT'S WHAT BENTHE'S ALL ABOUT
• Senior guard Benthe Versteeg did a little bit of everything against UC Davis, collecting her 11th career double-double with 11 points and a career-high tying 12 rebounds to go with six assists
• The point-rebound double-double was only the second of her career, joining her 15-point, 11-rebound effort at home against Idaho State on Feb. 22, 2025
• Her other nine double-doubles are of the point-assist variety while she also added what is believed to be the first recorded triple-double in school history at Montana on Feb. 27 last year
SHOOTING BLANKS
• Dating back to last season, Sacramento State's defense has held nine of its last 10 opponents -- and 13 of its last 15 -- to under 40 percent from the field, including 28 percent by Northern Arizona in a 2025 Big Sky Tournament meeting
• Seven of those 15 opponents have made 20 (or fewer) field goals in a game, including only 12 by Weber State on Feb. 20 last season
• Meanwhile, the Hornets' offense has shot 40 percent or better 10 times in that same span
PICTURE WORTH A THOUSAND POINTS
• Versteeg enters her final collegiate season closing in on a milestone, needing just 116 more points to reach 1,000 for her career
• Should she reach the plateau, Versteeg would become the 19th Hornet to accomplish the feat and the first since Summer Menke did it in 2022
• Along with her assist total (more on that in a minute), she moved into fifth on the all-time minutes played list with 3,147 and, if she's able to replicate her total from each of the last two seasons, would set a new school record
• With her 42 assists over her first seven games this season, Versteeg now has 488 for her career, moving her into second on the school's all-time list, trailing only record-holder Fantasia Hilliard (726 from 2011-15), on that chart
• Among other top 10s, Versteeg is just 92 made field goals, 65 more free throws made, and 27 more steals from breaking into those lists
DELICIOUS DISH
• Add six more assists to the ledger for Versteeg, who has posted five-or-more helpers in each of the first seven games of the season
• Her total of 42 assists and her 6.0 assists per game puts her atop the Big Sky in both categories, while ranking No. eight and No. 21 in the nation, respectively, as of Nov. 24
• Her 42 assists are 10 ahead of last year's six-game pace when she finished the campaign tying her own single-season record of 208
• With her seven assists against Cal State Fullerton on Nov. 21 -- which tied her season high -- Versteeg posted her 32nd career game with seven-or-more assists with all of those coming in the last two-plus seasons (a total of 70 games)
BACK TO RUN THE SHOW
• The two-time Big Sky assist queen returns to the floor for her fourth season in the green and gold as Benthe Versteeg looks for a repeat of her last two record-setting campaigns
• After setting the school single-season record with 208 assists in 2023-24, Versteeg matched her own mark with 208 helpers in 2024-25, which ranked her tied for eighth in the Big Sky record books
• It marked the 12th time in Big Sky history that a player accumulated 200 assists in a season and only the third to accomplish the feat since 2012, joining Northern Arizona's Regan Schenck (231 in 2022-23)
• Versteeg's 6.50 apg last year is tied for the second-highest single-season mark in program history along with Fantasia Hilliard's 2013-14 average -- both of which trailed Versteeg's 6.71 apg in 2023-24
• Versteeg has now led the Big Sky in assists per game in back-to-back seasons -- the first player in league history to do so since Hilliard did so in three straight years from 2012-15 and only the fourth overall since 1988-89 (Montana's Skyla Sisco and Eastern Washington's Jennifer Sutter)
• Versteeg's performance last year marked only the sixth time a Hornet led the league in assists, joining Lianna Tillman (6.04 apg) in 2021-22, Rexanne Rodriguez (5.65 apg) in 2000-01, Tika Koshiyama-Diaz (5.48 apg) in 2010-11, and Hilliard, who did it in three straight seasons: 2012-13 (5.9 apg), 2013-14 (6.5 apg), and 2014-15 (5.8 pg)
