Bouncing back from only its third loss of the season with a big win over Idaho State on Thursday, the Sacramento State women’s basketball team looks to make it a 2-0 week on Saturday (Jan. 21), welcoming Weber State to The Nest for a 1 p.m. tip-off.
IN THE RANKINGS: After two weeks ranked among the top 25 in the College Insider mid-Major poll, Sacramento State slipped back into the ranks of those receiving votes in this week’s poll (https://collegeinsider.com/womens-mid-major-top-25) following its first loss in over a month, picking up 47 votes to stand 29th… The Hornets made their debut in the top 25 back on Jan. 3 at No. 24, then jumped two spots to No. 22 in the Jan. 10 ranking… Those two rankings followed five consecutive weeks among those receiving votes beginning on Dec. 1… The No. 22 ranking on Jan. 10 was the highest for the program in the poll since they stood No. 22 on Feb. 11, 2014 — a season that saw them among the top 25 for eight consecutive weeks following an 8-1 start that year, reaching as high as No. 13 in early January.
NATABOU MAKES MID-MAJOR AWARD MIDSEASON CUT: Initially named as one of 25 players to the preseason watch list for the 2023 Becky Hammon Mid-Major Player of the Year Award presented by Her Hoop Stats back on Oct. 19, junior center Isnelle Natabou got word that she has made the midseason top-15 cut on Jan. 18. The first Big Sky Conference student-athlete ever to be named to the list for this particular award, Natabou is one of only four from the West Coast named to the list along with Gonzaga’s duo of Brynna Maxwell and Yvonne Ejim as well as Portland’s Alex Fowler. Read the complete release on HornetSports.com.
NATABOU NAMED TO BIG SKY’S PRESEASON TEAM: In addition to her national honor, Natabou was also named to the seven-member preseason all-conference team, joining Montana State’s Darian White (who was selected the MVP), Idaho’s Beyonce Bea, Montana’s Carmen Gfeller, Northern Colorado’s Hannah Simental, Montana State’s Kola Bad Bear, and Weber State’s Daryn Hickock. The native of the Czech Republic became only the third Hornet to earn preseason all-league honors in the process, joining former standouts Kennedy Nicholas (2019-20) and Brianna Burgos (2016-17).
BUT WAIT… THERE’S MORE!: The accolades continued to roll in for Natabou, who was also named the Big Sky’s Preseason Player of the Year according to ESPN.com, which made its picks for all 32 Division I conferences on Oct. 25.
ABOUT THE WILDCATS: Weber State enters the week with a 4-14 overall record and an 0-6 mark in Big Sky play after falling in a one-point heartbreaker at Portland State on Thursday (Jan. 19)… The Wildcats are mired in a 10-game losing streak dating back to a 64-51 win at home over Seattle U on Dec. 3… Weber State is 0-9 on the road this season and has lost its last 11 away from the Dee Events Center dating back to a 62-52 win over Sacramento State on Feb. 17 of last season… The Wildcats are powered by the 1-2 punch of Daryn Hickock (17.8 ppg, 6.3 rpg) and Jadyn Matthews (13.9 ppg, 8.4 rpg), who are both shooting better than 43 percent from the field.
SERIES NOTES: Weber State leads the all-time series with Sacramento State by a 34-18 count, having won the last five meetings after sweeping the regular season series and winning the Big Sky Tournament first-round match-up in 2021-22… The Hornets’ last win in the series came on Feb. 6, 2020, at home by the score of 58-52 — the last in a four-game winning streak that spanned the 2018-19 and 2019-20 seasons… All of the last five meetings have been decided by 10 points or less, including an overtime decision in Ogden, Utah in 2021… Of Sacramento State’s 18 victories, 11 of those have come at The Nest where the Hornets are 11-13 all-time… Sacramento State has won 10 of the last 12 meetings at home dating back to the 2008-09 campaign.
NOT IF, BUT WIN: Sacramento State earned its 14th triumph of the season with its victory over Idaho State on Jan. 19, already matching last year’s win total with 12 regular season games (plus any postseason competition) remaining. Having already posted double-digit wins in back-to-back seasons for the first time since going six straight years with 10-or-more wins from 2011-17, the Hornets’ next victory would be the most since the 2014-15 squad finished 18-16 overall. According to records that date back to the 1974-75 season, the school record for wins in a single season is shared by the 1990-91 (19-7) and 2012-13 (19-12) squads.
BIG START IN THE BIG SKY: In addition to opening the conference schedule with a 4-0 record for the first time in school history, the Hornets’ 5-1 start in league play is also its best since the 2014-15 squad began the Big Sky slate with a 7-1 mark, losing its opener before winning seven straight.
WIRE-TO-WIRE: Sacramento State never trailed in its win over Idaho State on Thursday, leading for all but the first 14 scoreless seconds before Isnelle Natabou hit a pair of free throws to break the seal. It was the fourth wire-to-wire victory for the Hornets this season, joining wins over UC Davis, UTEP, and Portland State, while the 39:46 in the lead is the most this year.
SAFE AT HOME: The Hornets are starting to make winning at home a habit as their victory over Idaho State improved them to 6-1 at The Nest this season — including a six-game winning streak. The six-game home winning streak is the team’s longest since winning six straight from Nov. 20 to Jan. 24 during the 2014-15 season, while a win on Saturday would give Sacramento State its longest home winning streak since beginning the 2013-14 season with an 8-0 record at home en route to an 11-1 start. This year’s six wins at The Nest ties last year’s total (6-7), while the next victory will give the Hornets their most home victories since the 2014-15 squad finished 11-3 within the friendly confines of The Nest.
ROAD WARRIORS: The win at Northern Colorado on Jan. 12 was the Hornets’ sixth win in true road contests this season, standing just one shy of last year’s total (7-7) which were the most since the 2015-16 team also won seven games away from The Nest. The six road wins are tied with Montana State (as of Jan. 20) for the most in the league following Thursday’s games.
EVERYBODY’S WORKING FOR THE WEEKEND: Thursday’s win over Idaho State improved the Hornets to 8-1 during the week — and a perfect 3-0 on Thursday’s — compared to a 6-2 mark on Saturday (the team’s hasn’t played a Sunday game thus far).
THIS IS 40: Limited to just 38 percent from the field in the win over Idaho State, Thursday marked only the third time that the Hornets have been held to under 40 percent from the floor in a game this season, but improved to 2-1 in those contests with the win when you include a “W” against UTEP (.396) and a loss at San Diego State (.370). On the flip side, the Sacramento State defense has held nine opponents to under 40 percent on the defensive end — including the Bengals and their .370 on Thursday — moving to 8-1 in those contests with its only loss coming to UC Irvine in the opener.
SHOOTER!: Someone get a hand in the face of the Hornets. Sacramento State enters the weekend as the most efficient shooting team in the Big Sky, leading the league in both field goal (466) and three-point (.363) percentage, while ranking second in free throw (.784) percentage. The Hornets lead second-place Eastern Washington by more than 40 points in the field goal category, has a nine-point lead in three-point shooting over Portland State, and stands second only to Northern Colorado (.792) from the line.
AMUSAN ARRIVES: Senior Solape Amusan made her first start in the green and gold a memorable one in Thursday’s win over Idaho State, finishing with a Sacramento State career-high 11 points to go with six rebounds and a pair of blocked shots. The 11 points were just four shy of her collegiate high of 15 points against Northwestern in 2021 while at the University of Illinois, while the six boards tied her collegiate best.
NO SUCH THING AS A FREE LUNCH: But there are such things as free points, and senior Kahlaijah Dean is taking full advantage. Ranking third in the Big Sky with 87 makes from the line and sixth with an .821 free throw percentage, Dean finished a perfect 7-for-7 at the line against Idaho State on Thursday (her third “perfect” game with at least six attempts this year), moving her to within 25 makes of the school’s all-time single-season top 10 list (Shelby Boudreaux is 10th with 112 made in 1995-96) and 19 away from the program’s Division I top 10 (Julie Wastell with 106 made in 1998-99).
BUILDING BLOCKS: Thanks to her two blocks against Idaho State, Isnelle Natabou moved into eighth place on the school’s all-time blocked shots list with 59, swatting 36 last season and adding 23 more this year. Her total passed Hannah Friend (2017-19) for the spot and trails Sephora Scoubes (1999-01) by eighth for seventh. Natabou isn’t the only one climbing the list as sophomore Katie Peneueta and her 50 career blocks — 29 of those coming this season — are just six shy of Atty Boyer (2005-09) and her 56 blocks for 10th place.
BOXING OUT AND CLOSING IN: Following a year in which she grabbed the fourth-most rebounds in a single Hornet season, Natabou has her sights set on both the school’s all-time and Division I top-10 lists for career rebounds during her second year in the green and gold. Entering Saturday with 499 boards, Natabou stands 71 shy of the all-time top-10 (Linda Simmons is 10th with 570 from 1977-81) and only 30 back of the Division I list (Emily Christensen is 10th with 529 from 2007-12).
THIS GIRL IS ON FIRE: Kahlaijah Dean is still out there doing Kahlaijah Dean things, notching her eighth straight double-digit scoring performance with 27 points against Idaho State after being held to a season-low nine points against CSU Bakersfield. In that stretch, Dean has been a machine, averaging 24.0 ppg, 4.6 rpg, and 4.3 apg, while shooting .467 (63-for-135) from the floor and .893 (50-for-56) from the line during that stretch.
20-20-20-20-20-30-20-20 VISION: It’s truly a sight to see. Dean’s 27 points against Idaho State on Jan. 19 marked her eighth game — and her fourth in the last five outings — with at least 20 points this year, while her 31 points against Eastern Washington were the most by a Hornet since Lianna Tillman finished with 35 at Idaho on Feb. 24 last season en route to Big Sky MVP honors.
HERE’S A QUARTER: Give Kahlaijah Dean 10 minutes and she’s going to do some damage. Give her four of those and watch out. The senior from Bakersfield, Calif., scored 11 points in the first quarter of Thursday’s win over Idaho State and added 10 more in the third — her 12th and 13th double-digit quarters this season out of 16 by a Hornet this year. She has accomplished the feat five times in the third, four times in the first, twice in the second, and twice in the fourth.
THE DEAN OF SCORING: Dean brings with her a pedigree of knowing where the basket is, reaching the 1,000 career point milestone as only a junior at Oakland University and finishing her four years with the Golden Grizzlies with 1,425 points. Following her first 17 games in the green and gold, the Bakersfield, Calif., native has brought her total up to 1,779 career points, ranking No. 24 among active scorers across the country as of Jan. 20 and posting a total that would rank second on Sacramento State’s all-time scoring list, trailing only the 2,064 points by Kristy Ryan from 1990-94.
THREE!: One of the steadiest shot-makers in the nation continues to rank among the top five in the nation in an ever-changing national ranking for field goal percentage as Natabou enters Saturday’s game at No. 3 in the NCAA in the category two days after standing No. 4 in the nation. Natabou’s .675 from the field trails only Liberty’s Mya Berkman (.716) and Indiana’s Mackenzie Holmes (.681), while topping Ohio State’s Taylor Thierry (.669).
ALMOST AUTOMATIC: Natabou hasn’t missed much over the last two weeks, shooting .773 (17-for-22) from the field — including an 88 percent performance (7-for-8) in a win at Northern Colorado. In 17 games this year, Natabou has hit 70 percent from the field in a game seven times, including a program Division I record 7-for-7 against Fresno State on Dec. 3.
SEE, WHAT HAD HAPPENED WAS…: Not many teams can solve the paint problem that is Isnelle Natabou, but Idaho State did so on Thursday night, limiting the powerful junior to just six points on three field goal attempts. The performance blunted Natabou’s double-digit scoring streak at 22 consecutive games dating back to last year, while tying a career low in attempts dating back to her three attempts against UC Davis on Nov. 23, 2021. Natabou, however, found other ways to contribute, grabbing seven rebounds, swiping three steals, and blocking a pair of shots in the Hornet victory.
I DOUBLE DOUBLE-DOUBLE DARE YOU: Keep on eye on your box scores. If Isnelle Natabou has a double-double, you may be in trouble. Thanks to her 16-point, 10-rebound effort in the win over Northern Colorado, Natabou collected her seventh double-double in her last nine games and her ninth of the season overall — ranking No. 20 in the NCAA in that category as of Jan. 20. In her nine double-double performances this year, the native of the Czech Republic is averaging 16.8 ppg, 13.1 rpg, and shooting 63-for-88 (.716) from the floor.
1-2 PUNCH: Dean (second at 20.8 ppg) and Natabou (fifth at 15.9 ppg) are one of only two teammate tandems to rank among the top 10 in the Big Sky in scoring, joining Weber State’s Daryn Hickock (third at 17.8 ppg) and Jadyn Matthews (eighth at 13.9 ppg).
WHAT IS THE “JOUEUR DE LA SEMAINE?”: It’s the player of the week. That sounds good, we’ll have that. Thanks to Kahlaijah Dean’s award on Jan. 10, a Hornet has now been named Big Sky Player of the Week five times in the last eight weeks (Isnelle Natabou took home honors on Nov. 29 and Dec. 13, while Dean won twice on Nov. 22 and Dec. 27) — the most of any school in the league this season. The five awards matches the 2012-13 squad for the most in a single season since the Hornets joined the league in 1996-97.
AND THE AWARD GOES TO…: Dean became the first Hornet women’s basketball player to win Big Sky Player of the Week honors three times in the same season with her award on Jan. 10, while her three career awards makes her one of only 10 Sacramento State players in the program’s Division I history to win multiple awards in a career. Her three honors trail only the four career awards claimed by Kylie Kuhns (2009-13), Alle Moreno (2010-14), Fantasia Hilliard (2011-15), Maranne Johnson (2014-18), and Natabou.
NINE TIMES? NIIIIINE TIMES.: Wake up and smell the coffee, Hornet fans, it’s already a record-setting season and we’re only halfway done. Sacramento State clinched its ninth non-conference victory of the season on Dec. 21 at Cal State Fullerton, breaking a tie with the 2013-14 squad (8-2 in non-conference games) for the most in the history of the program. Of the Hornets’ 11 non-conference opponents, seven finished with winning records and were a combined 64-50 (.561) in non-conference play. That kind of start bodes well for the Hornets, who won 18 games in 2013-14 — ranking tied for the third on the school’s single-season list.
OH, YES, THEY CALL IT A STREAK: The Hornets’ win over Northern Colorado on Jan. 12 extended Sacramento State’s winning streak to seven games overall — its longest since winning seven straight from Jan. 3-24, 2015 — giving them two winning streaks of at least six games in the same season for the first time in the program’s Division I history. The last time Sacramento State had a pair of six-game winning streaks in the same year came in 1984-85, when it won 14 of its last 15 overall while posting runs of eight consecutive victories from Jan. 4-29 and six straight wins to end the year from Feb. 5-18.
THE BEST AROUND: Nothing’s ever gonna keep them down. Despite suffering their third loss of the year, the Hornets are still off to their best start in school history at 14-3 overall, breaking a deadlock with the 2013-14 squad that opened 11-1 before losing its next three consecutive games. Included in this year’s start, four straight victories to tip-off Big Sky Conference play — the first time since Sacramento State joined the league in 1996-97 that the Hornets have opened conference play with a 4-0 record.
DOUBLE-DOUBLE DARLING: Natabou is one of 20 players in the NCAA averaging a double-double (as of Jan. 20), but one of only nine to average at least 15.9 points and 10.1 rebounds along with DePaul’s Aneesah Morrow (25.2 ppg-11.9 rpg), LSU’s Angel Reese (24.2 ppg-15.6 rpg), Gardner-Webb’s Jhessyka Williams (19.0 ppg-10.3 rpg), Virginia Tech’s Elizabeth Kitley (18.2 ppg-11.0 rpg), UNLV’s Desi-Rae Young (17.9 ppg-10.1 rpg), UMass’ Sam Breen (17.3 ppg-10.1 rpg), Youngstown State’s Lilly Ritz (17.2 ppg-10.6 rpg), and BYU’s Lauren Gustin (15.9 ppg-16.3 rpg).
PUTTING THE “KAY” IN 1K: A picture is worth 1,000 words, but senior guard Kaylin Randhawa is now worth more than a 1,000 points in her career following her performance in the win over Eastern Washington on Jan. 7. The Turlock, Calif., native finished with 17 points, pushing her past the 1,000-point plateau in her collegiate career, which includes 524 points in three years at Pacific, 345 points last year at Utah State, and 167 points this season with the Hornets.
BLOCKING IT OUT: Boasting the Big Sky Conference’s second-best scoring defense at 58.6 ppg allowed, the Hornets have also done work on the glass, holding opponents to a league-best 28.6 rebounds per game. Sacramento State allowed only 21 rebounds to Idaho on Jan. 5, which stood as the fewest allowed by the Hornets in their Division I history for exactly a week until they gave up only 19 rebounds to Northern Colorado on Jan. 12. Two days later, Northern Arizona was held to 28 rebounds, marking the 13th time in 17 games that Sacramento State has allowed fewer than 30 rebounds in a game this season.
MIND THE GAP: The 32-point win over Northern Colorado marked the largest margin of victory in head coach Mark Campbell’s tenure, besting the 22-point win over UC Davis earlier this year. It was the program’s biggest win since a 59-point drubbing of NAIA member Pacific Union on Dec. 19, 2019, and the largest against a Division I foe since sinking Northern Arizona by the same margin in a 111-79 win over the Lumberjacks on March 4, 2016.
THREE IS MORE THAN TWO: Trust us… Peneueta has certainly done the math. In 37 career games with the Hornets, the Vancouver, Wash., native has made a living from long distance, sinking 97 of her 105 career field goals from behind the three-point line. At the media timeout of the second quarter on Nov. 22 against UC Davis, Peneueta’s previous 30 makes from the field had all been three-pointers until she posted up and found room inside for a lay-up at the four-minute mark of the period — her first two-point basket since scoring inside at Northern Arizona with 21 seconds left in a 76-62 victory on Feb. 3 last year — and she finished with a career-high three (out of four makes) two-pointers against Idaho on Jan. 5 as part of her third double-double this season.
THE PENEUETA IS MIGHTIER: One of four players in double figures against Idaho, sophomore Katie Peneueta collected her third double-double of the year in the process, adding a career-high 11 rebounds against the Vandals, while hitting a perfect 4-of-4 from the floor. However, her most impressive performance may have been at the defensive end, where she finished with a career-high seven blocks — six of those against the conference’s leading scorer Beyonce Bea. The seven blocks are tied for third on the school’s single-game list and were the most since Kennedy Nicholas had seven at Weber State on Feb. 20, 2019. The record is held by Heidi Carroll, who swatted 10 shots against San Francisco State on Feb. 21, 1983.
PASSING THE CRASH TEST: Another double-digit rebounding perfomance for Isnelle Natabou is nothing new for the junior, who owns five of the top eight single-game rebounding performances in the Big Sky this season. Natabou enters the week ranked among the top 40 in the nation in three of the four major rebounding categories: offensive rebounds (16th), rebounds per game (21st), and total rebounds (33rd).
NO SLEEP TILL…: No rest for the weary for the Hornets as Natabou became the latest to go all 40 minutes in a game this season at Portland State on Dec. 31 — her third game this year playing all 40 minutes (or more) when you include the 43-minute performance in overtime against UC Santa Barbara and her 40 minutes against UTEP. It is the eighth time a Sacramento State player has played every minute, joining Benthe Versteeg’s 40-minute performance at Cal State Fullerton and Peneueta’s four games of 40 minutes or more (at Santa Clara, vs. UC Santa Barbara, vs. UTEP, at Cal State Fullerton).
MINUTE WOMEN: Speaking of minutes, there haven’t been many players in the Big Sky — let alone the entire country — who have seen more time on the court this year than the Hornets’ Natabou (36.1 mpg), Peneueta (35.8 mpg), and Dean (35.1 mpg). The trio ranks second, fourth, and sixth, respectively, in the league in minutes and entered the week ranked among the top 60 in the nation at 25th, 29th, and 56th, respectively.
