Game No. 24
UC San Diego Tritons (20-2, 15-2) @ San Francisco State Gators (13-13, 9-9)
Friday, February 19, 2010
SFSU Gymnasium (2,000) • 5:30 pm

Game No. 25
UC San Diego Tritons (20-2, 15-2) @ Cal State Monterey Bay Otters (15-7, 11-7)
Saturday, February 20, 2010
Otter Sports Complex (822) • 5:30 pm

The Week Ahead
After falling for just the second time this season on Saturday, the 11th-ranked UC San Diego women's basketball team will come home to face Cal State East Bay to kick off a busy three-game week. The Tritons will face the Pioneers on Tuesday night at 5:30 p.m. at RIMAC Arena, looking to bounce back after dropping a 77-67 decision at Chico State. UCSD will then hit the road again, traveling to San Francisco State and Cal State Monterey Bay this weekend. The Tritons will go for the season sweep of the Gators on Friday, before taking on the Otters on Saturday, with both games scheduled to tip at 5:30. Following this weekend's contests, UCSD will host Sonoma State and Humboldt State Feb. 24 and 26 to wrap-up the regular season.

On the Record
UCSD enters Tuesday's contest with an overall record of 20-2 and a 15-2 mark in California Collegiate Athletic Association play following a 1-1 road trip last week. Head coach Charity Elliott's squad had its best shooting performance of the season in a convincing 83-60 victory over Cal State Stanislaus on Friday, but couldn't carry the momentum into Saturday's matchup with Chico and lost by a 10-point margin. Despite the setback, the Tritons still hold a two-game advantage in the loss column over second place Cal Poly Pomona in the league standings with five games remaining. UCSD suffered its second loss in CCAA play for the first time since 2007-08, when the Tritons went 14-6 against conference foes. UCSD went 19-1 in 2008-09 and has now won 38 of its last 41 league games over the last three seasons. The Tritons will entertain last place East Bay at RIMAC Arena on Tuesday, where they are a perfect 12-0 in 2009-10.

Tritons Shoot Lights Out In Win Over Warriors
UCSD shot a season-high 59.6% in the 83-60 win at Cal State Stanislaus on Friday, converting 31-of-52 shots from the field. The Tritons were on fire in the opening half, connecting of 15 of their first 19 shots to open the game and finishing at a blistering 69% (18-26) clip for the period. UCSD scored the game's first 10 points and led by as many as 32 (77-45) in the second half to easily dispatch the Warriors and sweep the season series. The Tritons' previous shooting high for the year was 56%, which came in a 69-55 victory at Cal State San Bernardino on Dec. 4. UCSD had shot 46% or better in three straight games until shooting just 32% in the loss to Chico State on Saturday.

Home Cookin
The Tritons have been absolutely dominant on their home floor in 2009-10, outscoring the opposition by more than 18 points per game. UCSD has really been clicking at RIMAC lately, blowing out its last three opponents by an average of 27 points. The Tritons enter Tuesday's game with Cal State East Bay on the heels of resounding victories over Cal State San Bernardino (58-41), Cal State Dominguez Hills (83-57), and Cal State L.A. (75-43). UCSD's last home loss was on Mar. 3 of last season, when the Tritons were upset by Cal State San Bernardino in the first round of the CCAA Tournament, 62-57. In three seasons with the Tritons, head coach Charity Elliott has an overall record of 36-6 (.857) at RIMAC Arena.

Scouting the Pioneers
Cal State East Bay comes to town with an overall record of just 1-21 and a 1-16 conference mark following road losses to Chico State and Cal State Stanislaus last week. The Pioneers dropped a 67-52 decision to the Wildcats on Friday, before suffering a 67-59 defeat at the hands of the Warriors on Saturday. East Bay, which is in its first season as a member of the CCCA, registered its only win on Feb. 4, a 69-68 triumph over Cal State L.A. in overtime. The Pioneers currently rank ninth in the conference offensively, averaging 57.9 points per game, while the defense has really struggled, surrendering a league-worst 75.8. Junior guard Claudia Nelson is the only player scoring in double figures for CSUEB at 13.2 points per game, while also averaging 3.0 rebounds and a team-high 2.3 assists. Backcourt mate Andrea Rodriguez is second, scoring 8.5 points to go with 2.1 boards and 2.0 assists, while freshman center Lauren Lucchesi begins the week averaging 7.5 points and a team-high 7.7 boards. UCSD has won three of four previous meetings with Cal State East Bay, including a 78-61 victory in the first meeting of the year on Dec. 15. Annette Ilg scored 23 points and Chelsea Carlisle finished with 14 to lead the way for the Tritons.

Chelsea Lately
After a stellar freshman campaign a year ago, Chelsea Carlisle is having a superb second season for the Tritons in 2009-10. The sophomore point guard enters Tuesday's contest second in the CCAA in scoring at 18.0 points per game, while shooting just under 43% for the season. She also leads the team in assists (3.1), steals (2.4), three-pointers made (53), and minutes per game (28.8) through 22 games this season. The Agoura Hills native led UCSD in scoring in both games last week, averaging 17.5 points to go with 2.5 rebounds, 3.5 assists, and 3.0 steals against Cal State Stanislaus and Chico State. Carlisle finished with a game-high 17 points in the Tritons' 23-point win over the Warriors, converting 5-of-9 shots from the field and 3-of-5 from the three-point line. She also tallied three boards, three assists, and three steals. She finished with 18 points in the loss to the Wildcats on Saturday, but needed 17 shots to get there, connecting on just five attempts. Four of her makes came from behind the arc.

Feeling Ilg
Senior guard Annette Ilg is in the midst of her best season at UCSD and her leadership has been a huge key to the Tritons' success. She is currently second on the team in scoring, averaging 11.7 points, while her 2.3 assists and 2.2 steals also rank second on the squad. The Avon Lake, Ohio native has scored in double figures 15 times in 22 games this season, including both of UCSD's games last week. She was tremendous in the Tritons' win at Cal State Stanislaus, finishing with 13 points, five rebounds, two assists, a blocked shot, and two steals. She went 5-of-6 from the field and hit 3-of-4 at the free throw line. Ilg had another strong game in the loss to Chico State, racking up 10 points, seven boards, a block, and two steals.

Mind of the Hunter
Junior transfer Tiffany Hunter has made a huge impact this year, averaging 10.9 points and a team-high 7.0 rebounds in her first season as a Triton. She ranks third on the squad shooting 48% from the field and leads the team in both free throws made (76) and attempts (109). After finishing with just three points in 12 minutes against Cal State Stanislaus, the Fallbrook native came up big the next night at Chico State, scoring 17 points and pulling down a team-high nine boards in a losing effort. She was just 5-of-14 from the field, but sank 7-of-9 attempts at the foul line. Hunter has now scored 10 points or more in six of the last eight games and 14 times overall in 2009-10.

Triton Offense Continues To Get It Done
UCSD has had the top offense in the CCAA all season and enters Tuesday's contest leading the conference in three major offensive categories. The Tritons are currently averaging 73.1 points per game, which is nearly three points higher than the next-closest squad (Humboldt State at 70.4). UCSD is also leading the conference in team field goal percentage at 43.3% and scoring margin at +13.1 points per game, while ranking fourth in both three-point field goal percentage (.320) and assists (13.2). Individually, Chelsea Carlisle has been the CCAA's leading scorer for much of the season and currently ranks second at 18.0, while Annette Ilg ranks 12th, averaging 11.7. The Tritons have scored 70 points or more 14 times in 2009-10 and have reached the 80-point plateau on six occasions.