Titans Give Thanks Deep in the Heart of Texas

Nov. 23, 2011

FULLERTON, CA -

Complete Weekly Release - SMU Hoops for the Cure Tournament

THIS WEEK...
Cal State Fullerton at Hoops for the Cure Tournament
Cal State Fullerton at SMU
Nov. 25, 2011 | 4 p.m. PT
Moody Coliseum (8,998)
Coverage: Live Stats

Cal State Fullerton vs. Tennessee State
Nov. 26, 2011 | 3 or 5 p.m. PT
Moody Coliseum (8,998)
Coverage: Live Stats

TIP-OFF: Off to its best start in 15 years, the Cal State Fullerton women's basketball team (3-0 overall) gives thanks deep in the heart of Texas this weekend as one of four competitors at the Hoops for the Cure tournament hosted by SMU at Moody Coliseum in Dallas, TX. The Titans open against the host Mustangs on Friday evening (Nov. 25) at 4 p.m. PT following the first game of the day between Fresno State and Tennessee State at 2 p.m. PT. The losers of Friday's contests will then meet on Saturday (Nov. 26) at 3 p.m. PT with the two winners deciding the championship at 5 p.m. PT.

CH-CH-CH-CHANGES: For our Arizona faithful, the game time for Fullerton's contest at Northern Arizona on Dec. 4 has been moved to 1:05 PST.

BE A FOLLOWER: Fans can keep up with the latest in Titans athletics by following us on Facebook (CSUF.Athletics), Twitter (@FullertonTitans) and Vimeo.com (vimeo.com/fullertontitans). In addition, the women's basketball team has established its own official Facebook fan page, just search for Cal State Fullerton Women's Basketball.

CAN YOU HEAR ME NOW? GOOD!: Thanks to a partnership with Arizona-based Stretch Internet, select Cal State Fullerton women's basketball contests will be broadcast live over the Internet at FullertonTitans.com. To access the links, click on the headphones icon in the upper right-hand corner of FullertonTitans.com.

I SEE YOU: For the sixth consecutive season, live streaming video for all of Cal State Fullerton's home regular season contests and selected road games will be available (on a subscription basis) live over the Internet courtesy the Big West TV platform. For a monthly subscription of \$9.95 or an annual subscription of \$79.95, fans can catch all the exclusive action from the comfort of their home computers. For more information, please visit www.BigWest.org/TV or access the video player at www.fansonly.com/schools/bigw/allaccess/index.html.

I NEED STATS, STAT!: For the third consecutive season, Cal State Fullerton men's and women's basketball will feature live stats via CBS College Sports' Gametracker interface for all of the Titans' home games as well as select road contests. Links will be available on both the men and women's basketball schedule pages at FullertonTitans.com.

AS THE WORLD TOURNEYS: The Titans trip to Dallas this weekend will mark the eighth straight year that they will compete in a regular season tournament on a hostile court since the 2003-04 season, and Fullerton will look to snap a dreadful streak that has seen it post just a 2-18 record in regular season tournaments since that season. The Titans' win over Portland State in 2009-10 at the World Vision Invitational in Eugene, Ore., snapped an eight-game losing streak in regular season tournaments with Fullerton's only other win in that stretch coming against East Carolina at the Four Points Surf `N Slam Shootout hosted by Pepperdine in 2004. Not including conference or other championship tournaments, the Titans are just 45-64 overall in regular season events since the 1977 season.

SMU BRIEFLY: The Mustangs enter a Tuesday night (Nov. 22) clash with North Texas with a 3-0 record, posting wins over Alcorn State (76-54), Arkansas-Little Rock (69-60), and TCU (47-38)... SMU is averaging 64.0 ppg and 39.3 rpg while shooting .412 from the field as a team while the defense has been held to just 50.7 ppg and 36.7 rpg while shooting just .324 from the floor... senior guard Samantha Mahnesmith leads the team in scoring at 11.3 ppg, shooting .545 from the field... junior guard Alisha Filmore (10.7 ppg) is also in double figures while senior post Christine Elliott is almost averaging a double-double at 9.0 ppg and 10.7 rpg... Head Coach Rhonda Rompola is in her 20th season at SMU, posting a 367-236 (.609) overall record with the Mustangs.

TENNESSEE STATE BRIEFLY: The Tigers carry a 2-2 overall record into a match-up against Southern Illinois on Tuesday (Nov. 22), having posted wins over Lipscomb (80-54) and Cumberland (78-48) in their last two outings after falling to Cleveland State (74-56) and Ohio State (78-51) to open the year... Tennessee State is averaging 66.2 ppg and shooting .398 from the field as a team while opponents are averaging 63.5 ppg and shooting .417 from the floor... junior guard Jasmin Shuler leads the offense, averaging 18.3 ppg and shooting .403 from the floor -- including a .441 mark from three-point range... junior center Destiney Gaston, averaging 8.3 ppg, leads the team at 5.3 rpg and shooting .615 from the field... Head Coach Tracee Wells is in her eighth season at the helm of her alma mater, posting a 70-135 (.341) record.

FRESNO STATE BRIEFLY: The Bulldogs enter the weekend with a 2-2 overall record, posting wins over Santa Clara (83-71) and Cal Poly (79-76) while falling at USC (65-57) and Pepperdine (81-78)... Fresno State is averaging 74.2 ppg and is shooting .430 from the floor while opponents are averaging 73.2 ppg and shooting .436 from the field... junior guard Ki-Ki Moore, a Washington State transfer who sat out last season, leads the offense averaging 17.0 ppg and shooting .473 from the floor... junior forward Rosie Moult is also in double figures, averaging 14.8 ppg and shooting .488 from the floor while pacing the team on the boards at 6.3 rpg... Head Coach Adrian Wiggins is in his seventh season as head coach at Fresno State, earning a pair of WAC Coach of the Year trophies in the process and leading the Bulldogs to a 148-61 (.708) record, winning at least 20 games in five of the last six seasons, four NCAA Tournament appearances, and a WNIT berth.

SERIES NOTES: Friday's meeting with SMU and a possible Saturday match-up with Tennessee State will be the first in women's basketball between the two schools and Cal State Fullerton... the Titans are 19-11 all-time against their former conference rivals, Fresno State, winning the last meeting between the two schools, 61-56, in 2006... prior to that, the Bulldogs had reeled off six consecutive wins... Fullerton was 8-4 against Fresno State when both were members of the Big West Conference from 1987-92... the two have met on neutral courts twice - both in the Big West Tournament - with the Titans claiming a 79-41 win in 1991 and the Bulldogs winning, 72-60, in 1990.

CONFERENCE CALL: Fullerton is 5-5 all-time against current Conference USA members: East Carolina (1-0), Houston (1-2), Marshall (1-0), Memphis (1-0), Tulane (0-1), Tulsa (0-1), and UTEP (1-1)... the Titans are 1-1 all-time against the Ohio Valley Conference: Eastern Illinois (0-1) and Tennessee Tech (1-0)... Fullerton is 81-65 all-time against current Western Athletic Conference foes: Fresno State (19-11), Hawaii (12-12), Idaho (4-11), Louisiana Tech (1-0), Nevada (6-10), New Mexico State (7-11), San Jose State (26-9), and Utah State (6-1).

THE ROAD MOST TRAVELLED: The Titans' trip to Dallas this weekend opens a stretch that will see them compete eight of their next 10 contests on the road save for home contests against national power Gonzaga (Dec. 2) and Nevada (Dec. 10). The road has been unkind to Fullerton as of late as the Titans were just 3-14 in true road contests last season, having lost their last six straight dating back to a 77-65 win at Long Beach State on Jan. 19.

MILLENIUM WATCH UPDATE: Eight more points for senior Lauren Chow on Monday night against Loyola Marymount has the sharp-shooting guard inching her way toward the esteemed 1,000-point club. Chow, who enters the Thanksgiving weekend with 980 career points, needs just 20 more to become the 21st Titan to reach the milestone in the history of the program. With 25 more points, Chow would immediately move into 20th place on the school's scoring list, surpassing Joey Ray, who scored 1,004 career points from 1988-92.

SPEAKING OF POINTS: Richardson's season-high 19 points on Monday against LMU also pushed her higher on the scoring list, jumping her over Andrea Thieme (1995-99) for ninth on the school's all-time list with 1,294 career points. The Manhattan Beach native now sets her sights on No. 8 Charlee Underwood, who scored 1,382 points from 2003-07.

THE BIG 4-(AND)-0: After matching their best start in 15 years with a win over Loyola Marymount on Monday night (Nov. 21), a win over host SMU on Friday in Dallas would give the Titans four-straight wins to start a season for the first time since the 1982-83 campaign when Fullerton opened the year with five-consecutive victories (which would then be matched with a win over either Fresno State or Tennessee State on Saturday) en route to a 13-15 overall record.

WE'RE GOING STREAKING: Fullerton's three-straight wins is the longest for the Titans since they rebounded with three-consecutive victories over Seattle, San Francisco, and Sacramento State last season from Nov. 14-21 following a season-opening loss at Eastern Washington.

WINNING COMFORTABLY: Although you only have to have one more point at the final buzzer, the Titans have comfortably put away their first three opponents to start the 2011-12 campaign. Fullerton has won each of its first three games this year by double-digits -- a streak that hasn't happened since the Titans posted four-straight double-digit wins over New Mexico State (91-79), North Texas (82-61), Pacific (78-55), and Long Beach State (92-80) from Feb. 7-16, 1997.

OFFENSE ROARING AGAINST THE LIONS: The Titans' 27-point victory over Loyola Marymount on Monday night marked their largest win over the Lions in the history of the series between the two Southern California rivals, eclipsing Fullerton's 22-point, 96-74, victory on Dec. 1, 1994. The Titans' margin, however, was not the largest in the series overall as LMU posted wins of 29 points (80-51) on Nov. 21, 1999, and 28 points (84-56) on Dec. 9, 1998.

PLAYING FROM AHEAD: Cal State Fullerton has led wire-to-wire in two of its first three contests this season, and has trailed for a grand total of just 10 seconds to start the year after Pepperdine scored the first basket of its contest on Nov. 16 only to have Alex Thomas answer back with the tying bucket 10 seconds later to start an 8-0 run and build a lead the Titans would not relinquish.

THE STREAK CONTINUES: We know we're tempting fate here, but senior Megan Richardson is on a streak. Richardson enters the 2011-12 season having made her last 23 consecutive free throws dating back to last season, not missing since the second half of the Titans' contest at UC Riverside on Feb. 5, 2011. The Manhattan Beach native shot .837 from the line as a junior last season -- the third-best single-season performance in school history -- and, if her career ended today, her mark of .820 (259-for-316) over the last three-plus seasons would be the program's second-highest mark behind only Lyndsey Grove's school-record .828 (256-for-309) performance from the line from 2007-11.

IRON WOMEN: Chow stands one game away and Richardson is six games away from playing in 100 career contests -- something only 33 players in the history of the program has accomplished. Last season, Ashley Richie set the all-time record with 122 career games while teammate Lyndsey Grove was right behind her, finishing her career with 119 appearances to both break Genia Miller's previous record of 118 games that had stood since 1991.

DOUBLE-DIGIT DOMINATION: You know the old saying, "In this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes?" We'd like to add a third -- senior Megan Richardson and double-digit points. The Titans spectacular scoring guard has reached double digits in points in 67 of her 95 career games (70 percent), including 19 career 20-point contests and a 33-point effort against Cal Poly on Jan. 13, 2011. She is one of only three active Fullerton players with at least 10 career double-digit games (Lauren Chow and Mya Olivier) and is one of two active Titans who have reached 20 points in their collegiate careers (Chow).

BALANCING ACT: Despite returning three of their top four scorers from last season, the Titans have done well to spread out the scoring load thus far in 2011-12. Every Fullerton player who played at Sacramento State finished with at least two points and the Titans almost replicated the effort against both Pepperdine and Loyola Marymount as 10 of the 11 players in each of those games finished in the scoring column.

THIS NOTE BROUGHT TO YOU BY WINDEX: Fullerton has done a bang-up job of cleaning the glass this season, outrebounding all three opponents thus far this season by double digits and nearly doubling-up the opposition overall, 150-94. The Titans, who are averaging a robust 50.0 rebounds per game as a team through three games and led the way on the glass only five times all of last season, have outrebounded opponents in three-straight games for the first time since Jan. 2-7, 2010, against UC Davis (+6), Pacific (+11), and Long Beach State (+6). Fullerton's 56 rebounds in its season-opening win over Sacramento State on Nov. 11 marked the team's highest single-game rebounding total since grabbing 58 rebounds in a 90-68 win against the Hornets almost two years ago to the day on Nov. 15, 2009.

10 MORE FOR MYA: Sophomore Mya Olivier continued her strong play on the glass, grabbing a game-high 10 rebounds in the Titans' win over Loyola Marymount on Monday to give her three consecutive double-digit rebounding games to start the season. The redshirt sophomore, who missed all but eight games last season due to injury, is averaging 12.0 rpg (second in the Big West Conference) and is the first Titan player to tally three-consecutive double-digit rebounding performance since Jenna Breite grabbed 13, 12, and 10 boards against LMU, Sacramento State, and Pepperdine from Dec. 7-18 last season. A fourth double-digit performance on Friday against SMU and Olivier will be the first Fullerton player to fill up with double-digit rebounds in four straight games since Toni Thomas did it from Feb. 23-March 12, 2008.

PARK SIGNS WITH THE TITANS FOR 2012-13: Annie Park, a 5-foot-4 point guard from Redondo Union High School in Redondo Beach, Calif., has signed a National Letter of Intent to continue her athletic and academic career at Cal State Fullerton, Head Coach Marcia Foster announced.

"Annie Park's game is a mix of playground savvy and old school fundamentals," Foster said. "She's a tough, high basketball IQ point guard with exceptional passing ability and a deep three. We are so pleased that she has chosen to continue her basketball and academic career at Cal State Fullerton. Her toughness and competitive nature make her a great fit for our program."

A three-year varsity letter winner, Park is entering her senior season with the Sea Hawks after averaging 7.2 points, 1.8 assists, and 2.1 steals as a junior in 2010-11, earning second-team All-Bay League honors.

Redondo Union finished 21-9 overall and a perfect 10-0 in league play last season, advancing to the second round of the CIF Division I-AA playoffs with a win over Millikan HS before falling being edged out by Etiwanda HS.