SACRAMENTO, Calif. — The Sacramento State women's basketball team closes out the first round of Big Sky Conference play on the road this week with a two-game trip to the "Treasure State." The Hornets, currently fifth in the league standings, open the week with a match-up against first-place Montana State on Thursday (Jan. 29) at 6 p.m. PT. Thursday's contest is the first of a three-game "weekend" for Sacramento State, which travels to Montana on Saturday (Jan. 31) and Weber State on Monday (Feb. 2).
GAME #21
WHAT: Sacramento State (10-10, 4-3 Big Sky) at Montana State (14-5, 7-1 Big Sky)
WHEN: Thursday, Jan. 29, 2026
TIME: 6 PM PT
WHERE: Bozeman, Mont.
ARENA: Brick Breeden Fieldhouse
WATCH: ESPN+
LIVE STATS: MSUBobcats.com
GAME NOTES: Sacramento State | Montana State | Big Sky Conference
THE COACHES
• Sacramento State's Aaron Kallhoff enters his third year at the helm of the Hornets' program, posting a 31-53 mark and a 109-129 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
• Tricia Binford is in her 21st season as head coach at Montana State, leading the Bobcats to a 373-258 record, six conference titles, and four postseason berths in the last 10 seasons
ABOUT THE BOBCATS
• Montana State enters the week with a 14-5 overall record and a 7-1 mark in Big Sky play, leading second-place Idaho by a half game entering this week's contests
• The Bobcats are a perfect 8-0 at Brick Breeden Fieldhouse this season, last suffering a home loss to Sacramento State on March 1 of last year -- MSU's only Big Sky loss of the season and the only blemish in a 13-1 home record in 2024-25
• Montana State has posted a double-digit margin of victory in all but one of its home wins, including five by 30-or-more points, and have outscored opponents by an average of 29.0 ppg
• Sophomore guard Taylee Chirrick leads the team in both scoring (17.9 ppg) and rebounding (7.0 rpg), while shooting .486 from the field and ranking second on the team in assists (67)
• Her 74 steals rank first in the Big Sky
• Sophomore forward Addison Harris (15.2 ppg) is also in double figures while shooting .480 from the field overall
• Five other Bobcats are averaging better than 6.3 ppg this season
SERIES NOTABLES
• Montana State leads the all-time series with Sacramento State, 47-14
• The Bobcats are 25-5 all-time against the Hornets at home, having won 10 straight in the series in Bozeman until the Hornets' 73-69 win last year
• Sacramento State's win also snapped a three-game skid in the series and was only the team's fourth in the last 24 overall meetings between the two
• Five of the last six all-time meetings have been decided by nine points or fewer
• The Hornets haven't won back-to-back games in Bozeman since the second meeting of the 2011-12 season and the first meeting of the 2012-13 campaign
LOOKING AT LAST WEEK
• Sacramento State returned to Hornet Pavilion for a brief respite from the road, splitting games against second-place Idaho (L, 62-55) and Eastern Washington (W, 61-54)
• The Hornets nearly completed a comeback from down 13 against the Vandals, closing to within three points at 53-50 with 2:59 to play, but they could not get over the hump
• Idaho managed just one field goal in that stretch, but hit 7-of-12 from the line -- as part of a 21-for-32 performance overall -- to hold off any further rally
• Sacramento State flipped the script against the Eagles, building a 13-point lead of its own before EWU clawed back to get within one with 3:04 to play in regulation
• Junior guard Natalie Picton then drained a clutch three-pointer on the next possession and the defense held the Eagles to just one basket over the final 2:41
• Meanwhile, the Hornets finished 10-of-10 from the line down the stretch in the final 37 seconds to ice the victory
SO... WE MEET AGAIN
• This week marks a bit of a homecoming for the Hornets' Picton, who returns to Bozeman for the first time since transferring to Sacramento State last summer
• Picton played her first two collegiate seasons for Montana State in 2023-24 and 2024-25, appearing in 67 games (33 starts) while averaging 6.8 ppg and helping the Bobcats to a Big Sky regular season and tournament crown as a sophomore last year
HOME, SWEET HOME
• The Hornets have certainly adjusted well to their new digs at Hornet Pavilion, winning seven of their 10 home contests thus far
• Over the last two seasons, Sacramento State is a combined 16-9 at home, already surpassing its win total from the previous two years (15-14) with four home games remaining
• Even though it is still in progress, it is also the most home wins in back-to-back years since the Hornets finished 17-9 at The Nest in 2021-22 and 2022-23
THE HORNETS' NEWEST MILLENNIAL
• Senior guard Benthe Versteeg became the 19th Hornet to collect 1,000 career points on Jan. 22 against Idaho after needing just two points to reach the plateau entering the day
• Versteeg became the first Sacramento State women's basketball player to accomplish the feat since Summer Menke did so in 2022
• The senior reached the mark on a right-handed floater with 3:06 remaining in the second quarter against the Vandals
• With 26 points against the Vandals, and 10 more against Eastern Washington two days later, Versteeg now has 1,034 points for her career, placing her 17th on the school's all-time scoring list
• Versteeg now has her sights set on Menke, who had 1,078 points from 2018-22 for 16th and Hannah Friend, who had 1,079 points from 2016-18, for a spot in the top 15
• The senior has reached double figures 12 times this season while collecting the sixth 20-point game of her career and posting her highest single-game point total since scoring 26 against both Northern Arizona (Jan. 20) and Weber State (Feb. 10) in 2024
WHO'S NEXT?
• After Versteeg surpassed the 1,000 career-point plateau, we now keep our eye on a pair of Hornets who are also making their way toward the milestone
• Picton enters the weekend needing 287 points to reach the mark, accumulating 713 points in her three-year collegiate career -- including a career-high 256 this season with Sacramento State
• A little further away is senior forward Fatoumata Jaiteh, who has 646 career points, but would need to average 29.5 ppg over the team's final 12 possible games to get to 1,000 points this year
MORE MARKS AHEAD
• The scoring list isn't the only one that Versteeg has her sights set on
• Her 395 field goals are 35 back of Alle Moreno (2010-14) and Julie Wastell (1995-99) for 10th on that list
• Versteeg's 152 steals are 11 behind Kris Karley (1994-97) for 10th
• Her 114 games are one back of Erika Edwards (2006-10) for 10th
• Her 96 starts are already fourth and she needs six more starts to match Wastell and Kristy Ryan (1990-94) for second
• With 3,588 minutes, Versteeg is fifth on the all-time list, passing both Wastell and Fantasia Hilliard (2011-15) for third and trailing Ryan in second place by just four minutes
HISTORIC HELPING HANDS
• With three assists on Saturday against Eastern Washington, Versteeg solidified her hold on 10th on the Big Sky all-time list with 543
• The total remains second on the Sacramento State all-time list, trailing only record-holder Fantasia Hilliard -- whose 726 career assists from 2011-15 rank second in league history -- on that chart
• Versteeg needs 31 more helpers to catch Weber State's Tonya Schnibbe (574 from 2006-10) for ninth and 44 assists to move into a tie for seventh alongside the Montana duo of Skyla Sisco (587 from 1994-98) and Mandy Morales (587 from 2005-09)
DELICIOUS DISH
• Versteeg has posted five-or-more assists in 13 of the team's 20 games this year
• Her total of 97 assists and her 4.85 assists per game puts her atop the Big Sky in both categories entering this week, while ranking No. 46 in the NCAA as of Jan. 25
• 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 81 games)
HELPING HERSELF
• When she's not dishing to her teammates for easy buckets, Versteeg has been finding her own ways to score as of late, hitting for double-digit points in five of her last six games -- including her last four
• In that stretch, the senior has averaged 15.6 ppg while shooting .404 (36-for-89) from the field -- including a season-high nine makes against Idaho on Jan. 22 -- and dishing out 4.0 apg
• Over the last four contests, Versteeg's scoring exploits are nearly a full point better, averaging 16.5 ppg and shooting .417 (25-for-60)
• While tying her career high, Versteeg's 26 points against Idaho surpassed her previous season high of 18 points set against Weber State and Northern Arizona during her recent run
SHE'S A "NAT"URAL
• Averaging 37 minutes per game last week, Picton came through offensively with a pair of 18-point performances to help lead the Hornets
• The Welland, Ontario, native finished 13-for-32 (.406) from the field overall, draining six of her 13 shots from beyond the arc, and going a perfect 4-for-4 from the line in the final 20 seconds to help ice the victory against Eastern Washington
• Her two performances gave her 14 double-digit point totals this season and her highest output since netting 21 points against Portland State on Jan. 10 at home
• Picton has now reached double figures in five of her last six contests, averaging 15.0 ppg, 4.5 rpg, and 2.5 spg in that stretch
• Amidst that run, Picton's seven rebounds at Northern Colorado on Jan. 17 were a collegiate high, while her eight makes against the Vikings are tied for the second-most in a game this season
"PIC"-POCKET
• Thursday's game at Montana State features two of the Big Sky's top thieves in the Hornets' Picton and the Bobcats' Taylee Chirrick
• Chirrick leads the Big Sky with 3.89 spg and 74 steals overall while Picton is fourth at 2.65 spg and 53 swipes
• Picton has been in the pockets of opposing offenses all season, posting multiple steals in 17 of the team's 20 games -- including nine games with three or more
• Her four steals at Northern Arizona (Jan. 15), marked her fifth game with at least four swipes in a game, and she added three more at Northern Colorado two days later
• Aside from her standing in the Big Sky, Picton's 53 steals rank No. 40 in the NCAA, while her 2.65 spg are No. 42
• Her 53 swipes this year are the most by a Hornet since Versteeg had 58 in 2023-24
• Picton's 53 steals are two shy of her freshman season total at Montana State and are four short of her single-season career best of 57 with the Bobcats as a sophomore
• After setting her Hornet career high with five in the regular season opener against Stanton, Picton finished with back-to-back five-steal performances against San Jose State (Dec. 21) and Idaho State (Jan. 1)
RUBI'S BACK
• After being held to just three points and six shot attempts against Idaho, sophomore guard Rubi Gray was back to her old tricks in the win over Eastern Washington
• With 19 points against the Eagles, Gray has now scored in double figures in four of her last five, averaging 16.2 ppg and 5.6 rpg, while shooting just under 40 percent (32-for-81)
• Going back even further, the sophomore has reached double-digit points in 15 of her last 17 contests after opening dating back to a 24-point night at UC San Diego on Nov. 12
• Of those 15 double-digit performances, Gray has reached 20 points four times, including a career-high 26 points against Cal State Fullerton on Nov. 21 and 26 more (to go with 11 rebounds for her first double-double) at Northern Arizona on Jan. 15
• Gray has led, or shared the team lead, in scoring in 12 of the team's 20 contests -- including six of the last nine
WHAT SOPHOMORE SLUMP?
• Gray leads the Hornets with 299 points this season -- the most points by a Sacramento State sophomore since Lina Falk had 305 in 2024-25
• While seven points will push her past Falk, 62 more will give Gray the most points by a Hornet sophomore since Versteeg finished with 360 in 2023-24
IN THE MARGINS
• When Sacramento State wins this season, it usually wins big
• Of the team's 10 victories this season, seven of those have come by double-digits
• Five of the seven have been by 20-or-more points: Stanton (+85), Nevada (+20), Cal State Fullerton (+20), Simpson (+60), and Weber State (+21)
• On the other side, five of the team's 10 defeats have been by seven points or fewer, including a three-point overtime loss
• Sacramento State's 60-point margin of victory over Simpson on Dec. 15 is the fourth-largest in the program's history, trailing the school-record 85-point win over Stanton earlier this year, a 71-point win over San Francisco State in 1974 and a 64-point victory against Stanislaus State in 1979
WINDEX WOMAN
• Junior forward Elizabeth Abiara has put in the work in the paint for the Hornets over the last month-plus, accumulating 72 of her 110 rebounds in her last 10
• Abiara is averaging 7.2 rpg in that stretch -- compared to just 4.4 rpg over her first nine contests as a Hornet -- including a Sacramento State career-high 12 boards against Portland State on Jan. 10 and 10 more at Pacific back on Dec. 4
• In addition, 29 of her 42 offense rebounds this year (70 percent) have come during the last seven weeks, setting season highs with five on the offensive end against both the Tigers and Vikings
HIGH FIVE FOR THIS FIVE
• With senior Fatoumata Jaiteh returning to the starting lineup in last Saturday's win over Eastern Washington, the Hornets got back to "normal" when its comes to the starting five
• The win over the Eagles improved Sacramento State to 6-2 this year when Jaiteh is joined by Versteeg, Picton, Gray, and Abiara on the floor to start a game
• Last Saturday marked the first time that Head Coach Aaron Kallhoff has been able to roll out his opening day starting lineup in two months dating back to Nov. 24 against UC Davis, when Jaiteh suffered the injury that sidelined her for the next 10 games
DE-FENSE (CLAP, CLAP)...
• Sacramento State hasn't given up much this season, entering the week leading the Big Sky in three-point percentage defense (.266) -- which also ranks No. 24 in the NCAA (as of Jan. 24) -- while standing second in scoring defense (59.2 ppg), second in field goal percentage defense (.374), and third in rebounding defense (35.9 rpg)
• Eastern Washington became the ninth Hornet opponent this year to be held under 60 points in a game on Jan. 24, with Sacramento State winning eight of those nine contests
• The nine opponents under 60 points this year ranks third in the Big Sky, trailing only Idaho State and Northern Colorado which have done it 10 times apiece
• 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 all-time school record is 56.8 ppg allowed over 23 games in 1984-85
APPLE, CHERRY... BASKETBALL FLAVORED?
• Sacramento State's defense has forced opponents into an average of 19.1 turnovers per game this season, one that ranks third in the Big Sky entering the week
• Thursday's opponent, Montana State, has been quite adept at turning opponents over, leading the league and ranking tied for fourth in the nation at 26.89 turnovers per game, while Northern Colorado is second in the Big Sky at 21.29 per game
• The Hornets have turned opponents over 20-or-more times in a game eight times, the last coming in a 21 turnover night against Idaho
RIM PROTECTORS
• Sacramento State enters the week ranking third in the league in both total blocks (76) and blocks per game (3.80), while standing No. 90 in the nation in the latter
• Individually, Keanna Salave'a ranks tied for 11th with 16 blocks by herself, while Elizabeth Abiara is 16th with 13 swats
• The Hornets have blocked multiple shots in 17 of their 20 games this season, including five-or-more blocks nine times -- the last coming against Idaho on Jan. 22
• The team's seven blocks at San Francisco were a season high and tied for the fourth-most in a game by a Big Sky squad this year
• The seven blocks were the most for the Hornets since they had seven against Northern Arizona in the second round of last year's Big Sky Tournament on March 9
NOT HALF BAD
• Sacramento State is 9-1 this season when leading at the half and a combined 22-5 when winning the first 20 minutes under Head Coach Aaron Kallhoff over the last two-plus years
• Last season, the Hornets were 10-1 when leading at the break
• The 58 first-half points on Dec. 15 against Simpson were the second most in a single half this year, trailing only the 71-point opening half against Stanton, and the third half with at least 50 points
PUNCHING FIRST
• Sacramento State has outscored the opposition by a combined 94 points in the first half this season -- including a 66-point advantage in the first quarter alone
• The Hornets are averaging 16.7 ppg in the opening 10 minutes this season, outscoring the opposition by nearly four points per quarter
• Following Saturday's game against Eastern Washington, Sacramento State is now "winning" all four quarters this season, holding a 28-point lead in the second, a 25-point lead in the third, and a one-point advantage in the fourth (328-327)
ATTACKING THE PAINT
• Sacramento State is a combined 8-1 this year when outscoring its opponents in the paint
• The Hornets have scored 30-or-more points in the key in all eight of those wins, including 86 points in the season opener in a lop-sided win over Stanton, 54 against Simpson on Dec. 15, and 44 more in a 20-point victory against Cal State Fullerton
HITS OF THE 70s
• During the Aaron Kallhoff era, 70 points seems to be the magic number for the Hornets
• Over the last two-plus seasons, Sacramento State is 17-3 when scoring 70-or-more points, while winning just 11 times when held under that mark since 2023-24
