'Dogs Host UC Riverside Thursday

Dec. 2, 2014

By Josh Mitchell
jomitchell@csufresno.edu
GoBulldogs.com

FRESNO, Calif. - Fresno State returns home after three-straight games on the road as the squad hosts UC Riverside on Dec. 4. Tipoff is slated for 7 p.m., PT. Fans can watch the game on the Mountain West Network and listen to it ESPN2 790AM with Christian Lukens on the call. Saturday the Bulldogs will be in Washington D.C., for an 11 a.m., PT, contest with George Washington.

Weekend Schedule

Game 6 (Dec. 4)

UC Riverside -- Fresno, Calif. (Save Mart Center)
Video Feed: Mountain West Network • Radio: ESPN2 790 AM • Live Stats: GoBulldogs.com

7 p.m., PT
Game 7 (Dec. 6)
at George Washington -- Washington D.C. (Charles E. Smith Center)
Video Feed: A-10 Network • Live Stats: GoBulldogs.com

11 a.m., PT

Game Notes

Bulldog Bites

• Jaime White enters her first season at the helm of the Bulldog program. The 10th head coach in program history, White comes to Fresno State after eight seasons at Northern Colorado.

White earned the first win of her Bulldog career on Nov. 16, 2014 at the Save Mart Center in a 67-56 victory over Cal Poly.

• On the bench, White is joined by assistant coaches Mandi Carver, Keith Ferguson and Laura Dinkins, along with director of operations Tom Perkins and graduate assistant Erik DeRoo.

• The Bulldogs return 11 letterwinners in 2014-15, including two seniors in forward Alex Sheedy and guard Robin Draper.

• Unable to slow Bakersfield down on the road, Fresno State fell 80-60 as the Roadrunners shot 44.1 percent (26-of-59) from the field and 11-of-20 (55 percent) from beyond the arc. The Bulldogs were forced into committing 29 turnovers that resulted in 38 Bakersfield points. Senior forward Alex Sheedy led Fresno State with her second double-double of the season with 16 points and 10 rebounds.

• Senior guard Raven Fox scored a career-high 31 points in the 'Dogs first road win of the season at San Diego, 93-88. The squad shot 71.4 percent in the second half as it overcame an eight point deficit midway through the final 20 minutes.

• Fresno State dropped its first game of the season at USC as the Trojans controlled the paint, holding a 40-21 rebounding advantage and outscoring the Bulldogs 44-22 in the paint. Sheedy led all scorers with 16 points, while adding seven rebounds.

• The Bulldogs won its second game to start the season with a 65-36 win against Cal State Stanislaus. Redshirt freshman Bego Faz Davalos recorded her first double-double with 19 points and 14 rebounds, while also adding seven blocks. Sheedy chipped in a team-high 20 points.

• In Fresno State's opening win of the season over Cal Poly, senior forward Alex Sheedy led the team with her seventh career double-double with 12 points and 11 rebounds. The Australian also added a career best five assists in the contest.

• Senior guard Alex Furr also chipped in 12 points as well, and fellow senior Robin Draper added 11.

• In her Bulldog debut, redshirt freshman Bego Faz Davalos totaled seven points, six rebounds and five blocks against the Mustangs.

'Dogs Impress in Initial RPI Rankings

• In the first release of the 2014-15 RPI, Fresno State came in at No. 22.

• The Bulldogs are the only team from the Mountain West in the Top 100, with the second-highest ranked team being San Jose State at 135th.

Closing in on 1,000-Point Club

• Senior forward Alex Sheedy is on the verge of becoming the 22nd Bulldog in program history to score over 1,000 career points, as she has posted 934 points in her career.

• Despite missing half of the 2013-14 conference season with a foot injury, Sheedy averaged 16.3 points in the eight Mountain West games and averaged 12.7 points and 6.1 rebounds per game overall for the entire season in helping lead the Bulldogs to a 22-11 record.

Australian Sensation

• Senior forward Alex Sheedy began her final season in Fresno, Calif., with a solid performance, recording her seventh career double-double with 12 points and 11 rebounds against Cal Poly (Nov. 16). The native of Moe, Australia, who earned a spot on the preseason All-Mountain West Team, ended the first half with 10 points on 4-of-6 shooting to go with four rebounds.

• She followed up the season opener with 20 points and eight rebounds against Cal State Stanislaus.

• For the third game in a row (at USC), Sheedy recorded double figures with 16 points and added seven points.

• At Bakersfield, Sheedy recorded her second double-double of the season with 16 points and 10 rebounds.

Sly Like a Fox

• After only averaging 5 points through the first three games of the season, senior Raven Fox exploded for a career-high 31 points at San Diego on Nov. 28. The guard primarily used the dribble-drive throughout the game as she shot 10-of-11 from the field, while also going 10-of-12 from the charity stripe after only hitting 4-of-10 to start the year.

• Fox's previous career high was 13 points. She had 11 in just 15 minutes in the first half before scoring 20 during 15 minutes in the second half.

Impacting the Paint

• In her first game as a Bulldog after redshirting the 2013-14 season, center Bego Faz Davalos made an immediate impact against Cal Poly (Nov. 16). Despite sitting much of the first half due to foul trouble, the native of Monterrey, Mexico made her presence inside felt as she totaled seven points, six rebounds and five blocks in only 16 minutes.

• Against Cal State Stanislaus, the freshman recorded her first double-double with 19 points, 14 rebounds and seven blocks.

At Bakersfield, Faz Davalos was one-point shy of her second career double-double as she finished the game with nine points, 11 rebounds to go along with three blocks.

Series History with UC Riverside

• Fresno State is 10-1 all-time against UC Riverside, with the Bulldogs earning a 67-62 win in their latest showdown on Dec. 21, 2012 in Riverside, Calif.

• The Bulldogs are 4-0 in the series when playing in Fresno, Calif.

• The Highlanders only win in the series came during the 1972-73 season.

A Look at UC Riverside

• As of Dec. 1, UC Riverside is 5-0, one of 28 unbeaten teams in the country.

• The last time the Highlanders started a season with five or more straight wins was the 1986-87 campaign.

• UC Riverside is currently ranked No. 7 in the season's first RPI rankings.

• UCR is scoring 81.2 points per game, while holding opponents to just 65.2 points.

• They are led by Brittany Crane, who leads the nation with 29 points per game to go with nine rebounds. Simone DeCoud is also averaging 17.2 points per contest and 4.4 rebounds.

Series History with George Washington

• George Washington won the only matchup in the all-time series with Fresno State, a 65-59 win in Washington D.C., on Dec. 22, 1987.

A Look at George Washington

• The Colonials are 5-2 on the year, and are coming off of winning the Junkanoo Jam in the Bahamas after defeating both NC State and Purdue by at least 20 points.

• The Colonials are led by Jonquel Jones, who is averaging a double-double with 16 points and 10.5 rebounds per game. Kelli Prange is right behind her at 14.4 points and 7.9 rebounds per contest.

• GW's only losses of the season came in the season opener at Florida Gulf Coast (88-75) and No. 9/8 Maryland (75-65).

• The Colonials are out-scoring their opponents by nearly 14 points and out-rebounded them by more than 15 rebounds per game.

California Livin'

• The Bulldogs are currently in the midst of playing six straight games in the state of California.

• During the 2012-13 season Fresno State opened up the season with seven games in its home state before leaving.

• The 'Dogs are also in the midst of playing six consecutive opponents from California. The last time the Bulldogs played that many teams from the state in a row was the 1997-98 which saw the squad face seven consecutive California teams.

"Be Bold" - ESPN2 790 AM is the home of the Fresno State women's basketball team.

Fresno State Athletics

'Dogs Host UC Riverside Thursday

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Robin Draper

Bego Faz Davalos

Raven Fox

Alex Furr

Alex Sheedy

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