LA JOLLA, Calif.—UC San Diego women's basketball will continue a three-game road stint, traveling to face (RV) Stanford over the holiday weekend. The Tritons (1-6) will take on the Cardinal (6-1) in Maples Pavilion on Friday at 2 p.m. It is the first in-season meeting between the two programs.
 
The game will be broadcast on ESPN+ and live statistics will be available via UCSDTritons.com. 
 
DETAILS
Game 8
UC San Diego (1-6) at Stanford (6-1)
Friday, Nov. 29 | 2 p.m.
Maples Pavilion (7,233) | Palo Alto, Calif.
All-time series: First meeting
Watch on ESPN+ | Live Stats
 

ABOUT THE TRITONS	ABOUT STANFORD
Roster | Schedule | Stats	Roster | Schedule | Stats
Overall: 1-6	Overall: 6-1
23-24 Big West: 8-12	23-24 Conf: 15-3
Home: 1-3	Home: 6-0
Away: 0-3	Away: 0-1
Neutral: 0-0	Neutral: 0-0
vs. Ranked Opponents: 0-0	vs. Ranked Opponents: 0-0
Streak: L6	Streak: W2

 
HISTORY WITH STANFORD
Friday's contest is the first in-season meeting between the two programs, but the Tritons are no strangers to Maples Pavilion. The teams have met three times during Coach VanDerveer's tenure in La Jolla, taking on her sister Tara VanDerveer's squad in three preseason exhibitions while the Tritons competed in Division II. The teams first met on Nov. 8, 2014, with Stanford finishing on top, 74-51. UC San Diego's leading scorer in the contest was current UC San Diego assistant coach and director of basketball operations Miranda Seto with 24 points. The programs also met in 2016 (L, 85-41) and 2017 (L, 60-46).
 
LAST TIME OUT
The Tritons battled in a pair of overtime losses in Colorado, falling at Air Force, 67-64 (OT), on Friday and at Denver, 67-59 (OT), on Sunday. UC San Diego has pushed three of its last four games into overtime and are 0-3 in extra time this season, also falling to Saint Mary's, 74-65 (2OT), on Nov. 14.
 
UC San Diego 64, Air Force 67 (OT)
Points: Gallegos (16); Spriggs (15); Ma (10)
Rebounds: Gallegos, Spriggs (9); Sugapong (8)
Assists: Sugapong (5); Blithikioti (2)
Steals: Ma (4); Polocheck (3); Smith (2)
Blocks: Gallegos (3); Ma (1)
 
UC San Diego 59, Denver 67 (OT)
Points: Sugapong (17); Spriggs (15); Ma (10)
Rebounds: Gallegos (7); Sugapong (6); Smith (5)
Assists: Sugapong (3)
Steals: Sugapong (4); Polocheck (3); Ma (2)
Blocks: Spriggs, Sugapong (1)
 
UP NEXT
The Tritons will kick off Big West play with Bold Week, playing host to UC Santa Barbara on Dec. 5. UC San Diego will then travel to take on Cal State Bakersfield on Dec. 7, before returning to non-conference play for the remainder of December. Both games will be broadcast on ESPN+ with live statistics available via UCSDTritons.com.
 
STACKING UP AGAINST THE BIG WEST
UC San Diego currently ranks first in the Big West in steals (12.14 per game) and turnovers forced (22.29 per game) and second in defensive rebounds (26.7 per game) and free throws made per game (15.00).
 
Sabrina Ma ranks first in the Big West in steals (18 total, 2.57 per game) and Kayanna Spriggs is just behind her (17 total, 2.43 per game). Ma also ranks fourth in the conference in three-pointers made (13) and seventh in threes per game (1.86). Spriggs ranks second in free throw attempts (42) and third in free throws made (31). 
 
EXPERIENCED ROSTER
UC San Diego returns 12 Tritons from the 2023-24 squad, including starters Gracie Gallegos, Parker Montgomery and Sumayah Sugapong. Sugapong was named Big West Freshman of the Year and All-Big West Honorable Mention a season ago, recognized alongside Gallegos on the All-Freshman Team. 
 
FRESH FACES
The Tritons added three talented newcomers to the squad during the offseason, signing one incoming true freshman and two transfer scholar-athletes for the 2024-25 season. Freshman guard/forward Nicki Polocheck is headed to La Jolla after a successful prep career at Memorial Senior High School (Houston, Texas). UC San Diego also added two talented transfers, junior Sabrina Ma (San Jose State) and senior Kayanna Spriggs (CSUN). 
 
SUGAPONG NAMED TO PRESEASON COACHES' TEAM
Sophomore guard Sumayah Sugapong was one of six scholar-athletes recognized by the conferences' 11 head coaches on the 2024-25 Big West Women's Basketball Preseason Coaches Team. She was the only underclassman selected to the list, joining three fifth-year athletes and two seniors. Sugapong was just the third Triton to be recognized on the conference's preseason team since UC San Diego joined the Big West in 2021.
 
Sugapong was a standout in her first season with the Tritons in 2023-24, earning Big West Freshman of the Year as well as All-Big West Honorable Mention and All-Freshman Team recognition. The San Diego native averaged 14.0 points per game to lead all Triton scorers and rank sixth overall in the Big West. Sugapong was the leading scorer in 15 of UC San Diego's 31 games with 23 double-figure scoring efforts and six 20-point games. She also led the Tritons with 64 assists (2.1 per game) and with 41 steals (1.3 per game). She finished seventh in the Big West with a .738 free throw percentage (90-of-122) and ranked 17th in three-point field goals (1.2 per game).
 
TRITONS PICKED SIXTH IN PRESEASON POLL
UC San Diego was picked to finish sixth in the 2024-25 Big West Preseason Coaches' Poll with 60 points. For the third straight season, Hawai'i was picked to finish first with six of the 11 first-place votes (96 points). UC Irvine followed closely with the remaining five first-place votes (95 points) and UC Davis rounded out the top three (81 points).
 
Long Beach State was picked to finish fourth with 63 points, followed by Cal Poly (61 points), UC San Diego (60), UC Santa Barbara (52), UC Riverside (40), Cal State Fullerton (25), Cal State Bakersfield (18) and CSUN (14).
 
SABRINA MA NAMED TOUGH LIKE TAMMY TEAM AMBASSADOR
Sabrina Ma will be the UC San Diego team ambassador for the Big West's Tough Like Tammy fundraising initiative for the 2024-25 women's basketball season. The program is a joint venture between Big West women's basketball, the Kay Yow Cancer Fund and Big West women's basketball analyst Tammy Blackburn designed to support life-saving research on all cancers affecting women. 
 
A year ago, the program more than doubled its goal of raising $5,000, with all 11 women's basketball programs participating to contribute $10,236 to the cause. The goal in 2024-25 is to raise $15,000 through donations or pledges for each offensive rebound secured during the final month of the Big West women's basketball season. Each Big West women's basketball program has selected team ambassadors to spearhead the effort to exceed the team goal of $1,000 per institution and Ma was named the representative for the Tritons.
 
WINNING IN THE CLASSROOM
The Tritons excelled in the classroom in 2023-24 with three scholar-athletes earning College Sports Communicators (CSC) Academic All-District honors, including Izzy Forsyth and graduating seniors Denali Pinto and Katie Springs. UC San Diego had five scholar-athletes named to the 2023-24 Big West Winter All-Academic Team, including current Tritons Forsyth, Gracie Gallegos, and Gabby Louther. Additionally, 12 Tritons were named to the Big West Commissioner's Honor Roll with eight earning Highest Honors (3.51-4.00 GPA) including Meaali'i Amosa, Izzy Forsyth, Gracie Gallegos, Rosa Smith, Emma Svoboda and Grace Talbot.
 
WELCOMING A PAIR OF TRITONS BACK TO STAFF
UC San Diego welcomes two Tritons back to La Jolla for the 2024-25 season to serve in support roles. Miranda Seto, a 2015 graduate of the UC San Diego women's basketball program, returns to La Jolla as an assistant coach and the Tritons' director of basketball operations. Seto previously served as an assistant at her alma mater Pinewood School and Fever Club Basketball in Los Altos, Calif. As a senior at UC San Diego, Seto was named All-CCAA Honorable Mention and earned first-team accolades as a junior. She was also a three-time CCAA All-Academic honoree for the Tritons.
 
Additionally, UC San Diego has named former Triton head men's basketball coach Bill Car as the General Manager for both the men's and women's programs. Carr led the Triton men from 2004-07 and spent the last eight years as the head women's basketball coach at Santa Clara. In his new position, Carr will be responsible for implementing and managing a comprehensive basketball name, image and likeness (NIL) program and will serve as a valuable asset toward roster management, recruiting and overall program success for both the Triton men's and women's basketball programs. 
 
WHY THE TRITONS?
The Triton is described as the offspring of Poseidon and Amphitrite, a demigod of the sea with a lower part of the body like that of a fish. It is known as a mighty and fierce sea warrior. Given UC San Diego's close proximity to the Pacific Ocean and its connections with the world-famous Scripps Institution of Oceanography, the Triton became our mascot in 1964.
 
ON THE MOVE
After 20 seasons playing as an NCAA Division II team, the entire athletics program has completed a four-year transition to NCAA Division I, culminating in full DI status as a member of the Big West Conference for the 2024-25 academic year. All UC San Diego sports are now eligible for conference and NCAA postseason play.
 
WELCOME TO LIONTREE ARENA
Since it was established nearly three decades ago, the University of California San Diego's RIMAC (Recreation, Intramural and Athletic Complex) Arena has been home to countless athletic competitions, graduations, concerts and other events that are imprinted on the memories of thousands of UC San Diego alumni, students, friends and visitors.
 
In June of 2022, UC San Diego announced that RIMAC Arena has been named LionTree Arena in recognition of a $5 million gift for scholar-athletes from LionTree, an independent investment and merchant bank with expertise in technology, media and the digital economy. LionTree was founded by UC San Diego alumnus Aryeh B. Bourkoff, who also serves as the firm's CEO. LionTree's gift is the largest ever received by UC San Diego Athletics, establishing the LionTree Endowed Scholarship Fund to support scholar-athletes.

UC SAN DIEGO ON THE WORLDWIDE LEADER
Most UC San Diego home men's and women's basketball games, men's and women's soccer matches, men's and women's volleyball matches, baseball and softball games are broadcast live on ESPN+. For more information on where to watch UC San Diego women's basketball, visit UCSDTritons.com/live.
 
GAME DAY GOES DIGITAL
Triton fans now have a whole new way to access game day information, as game programs have gone digital! Fans can visit UCSDTritons.com from their smart phone or scan the QR code at the entrance to LionTree Arena for everything they need to know about each home game, including updated rosters, schedules, and stats for each team, as well as links to watch on ESPN+.

COVERING THE TRITONS
Media members wishing to cover a UC San Diego game in-person at LionTree Arena must notify a member of the Athletics Communication staff no later than 24 hours prior to the game. 

Following the conclusion of each home game, a video highlight melt and video postgame interviews will be made available for media members to download.
 
GET SOCIAL WITH UC SAN DIEGO WOMEN'S BASKETBALL
Keep up with the Tritons all season long on social media through Twitter and Instagram. The team's handle is @UCSDwbb.
 
FOR THE YOUNGER CROWD
Got some young Triton fans in your family? If they are eighth grade or under, check out the Junior Triton Club. Membership includes a free t-shirt, admission to over 100 UC San Diego home athletic events, and much more!

GEAR
For the latest Triton apparel and accessories, click here.
 
About UC San Diego Athletics
After two decades as one of the most successful programs in NCAA Division II, the UC San Diego intercollegiate athletics program began a new era in 2020 as a member of The Big West in NCAA Division I. The 23-sport Tritons earned 30 team and nearly 150 individual national championships during its time in Divisions II and III and helped guide 1,400 scholar-athletes to All-America honors. A total of 84 Tritons have earned Academic All-America honors, while 38 have earned prestigious NCAA Post Graduate Scholarships. UC San Diego scholar-athletes exemplify the academic ideals of one of the world's preeminent institutions, graduating at an average rate of 91 percent, one of the highest rates among institutions at all divisions.