SAN MARCOS, Calif. – This week for Cal State San Marcos Athletics, men's and women's basketball will return to The Sports Center for a pair of games while women's track & field will begin their indoor season on the road.
 
Men's and women's basketball will face Cal State San Bernardino on Thursday night. The women's game will start at 5:30 p.m. and will be followed by the men's game at 7:30 p.m. On Saturday against Cal Poly Pomona, the women's game will get underway at 1 p.m. while the men's contest tips off at 3 p.m.
 
Women's track & field will begin their 2020 indoor season at the University of Washington Indoor Preview on Saturday in Seattle. Field events will begin at 9 a.m. while running events are set to begin at 9:30 a.m.


WOMEN'S BASKETBALL
Thursday, Jan. 16 – 5:30 p.m.
No. 23/17 CSUSM (12-3, 7-3 CCAA) vs. Cal State San Bernardino (1-12, 1-9 CCAA)
San Marcos, Calif. – The Sports Center
Live Stats | Watch Live
 
Saturday, Jan. 18 – 1 p.m.
CSUSM vs. Cal Poly Pomona (11-5, 7-3 CCAA)
San Marcos, Calif. – The Sports Center
Live Stats | Watch Live

LAST WEEK

• CSUSM went 1-1 last week in conference action.
• The Cougars collected a come-from-behind overtime win at Humboldt State by a score of 59-56 on Thursday.
• A late rally on Saturday fell just short for the Cougars as they fell 62-55 to Stanislaus State in Turlock.
• Emma Forel recorded double-doubles in both games, tallying 16 points on Thursday and 11 points on Saturday to compliment her 11 rebounds in each game.
• The Cougars enter the week in second place alongside UC San Diego and Cal Poly Pomona. Cal State East Bay has a one-game lead in the standings.
• The Cougars remains as the NCAA Division II national leader in 3-point field goal percentage defense, holding their opponents to 21.6%. North Georgia moved into second with a 22.5%.
• CSUSM has the top defense in the CCAA, holding opponents to 56.9 points per game.
• The Cougars top CCAA statistics in defensive rebounds per game, averaging 27.6.
• Stephanie Custodio leads the CCAA and ranks No. 21 in the nation in free-throw percentage, going 45-of-51 (88.2%).
• Emma Forel is the CCAA leader in field-goal percentage while ranking No. 11 nationally with 61.2% (82-of-132).
• Akayla Hackson is second in the conference and 42nd nationally in minutes played at 519:39.
• In the latest D2SIDA West Region Poll, the Cougars dropped to No. 5. 
• CSUSM is in a three-way tie for second place alongside Cal Poly Pomona and UC San Diego. Cal State East Bay is the CCAA leader with a one-game lead over the three teams. 

THURSDAY VS. CAL STATE SAN BERNARDINO

• Since the Cougars last saw the Coyotes on Dec. 21, CSUSB has gone 0-4 in CCAA action.
• CSUSB dropped back-to-back games last weekend at home, falling 74-68 to Cal State Dominguez Hills on Thursday before losing 87-73 to Cal State LA on Saturday.
• The Coyotes lead the CCAA and are seventh in the nation in fewest fouls committed with 185 in their 13 games.
• CSUSB ranks last in the CCAA in scoring (57.1 ppg) and field-goal percentage (35.1%).
• Tatianna Russell ranks fifth in the CCAA with 8.5 rebounds per game.
• Ashlynn Sharp is fifth in the conference with 2.0 3-point field goals per game.
• With Dec. 21's 63-56 win in San Bernardino, the Cougars took a 4-3 lead in the all-time series against CSUSB.
• Jon'Nae Vermillion's 24 points and Forel's 17 rebounds against CSUSB were the most by a Cougar in either category this season.
• CSUSM is 0-3 against the Coyotes in The Sports Center.
• In the CCAA standings, the Coyotes are tied for last place with San Francisco State.

 
SHOWDOWN AGAINST CAL POLY POMONA

• Since CSUSM last played the Broncos on Dec. 19, CPP has gone 5-0 including an overtime 69-61 win over then-No. 22 UC San Diego on Dec. 22.
• CPP registered a 70-63 victory over Cal State Dominguez Hills on Saturday.
• The Broncos rank second in the CCAA in assists (208), offensive rebounds per game (15.1), total rebounds (641) and rebounds per game (40.06).
• Jackie Rickertson is the CCAA assist leader with 81 and averages 5.1 assists per game, ranking her second in the conference.
• Kasey Smith is third in blocked shots per game (1.2) and registered six against Humboldt State on Dec. 5 – the second most in the CCAA this season.
• In CSUSM's win at Pomona, Kelsey Forrester tallied a career-best 23 points behind six 3-pointers while Hackson chipped in 19 points.
• CPP leads the all-time series between the two teams with a 5-3 record.
• The Cougars were victorious in the teams' last meeting in The Sports Center, walking away with a 70-68 win on Dec. 19, 2018.
• CPP is in a three-way tie for second with CSUSM and UC San Diego in the CCAA standings.
• The Broncos are seventh in the latest D2SIDA West Region poll. 

THE JIMENEZ FILE

• Head coach Renee Jimenez enters her fifth season in charge of the Cougar women's basketball team, a program that is only in its eighth season of existence.
• Jimenez has compiled a 183-132 (.581) in her 12 seasons coaching in the CCAA, spending two seasons at Cal State San Bernardino after a five-year stint at Cal State Monterey Bay.

MEN'S BASKETBALL
Thursday, Jan. 16 – 7:30 p.m.
CSUSM (8-8, 4-6 CCAA) vs. Cal State San Bernardino (13-3, 8-2 CCAA)
San Marcos, Calif. – The Sports Center
Live Stats | Watch Live
 
Saturday, Jan. 18 – 3 p.m.
CSUSM vs. No. 25/NR Cal Poly Pomona (12-3, 8-2 CCAA)
San Marcos, Calif. – The Sports Center
Live Stats | Watch Live
 
PREVIOUS WEEK

• CSUSM went 1-1 last week with a 76-74 win at Humboldt State and a 66-53 loss at Stanislaus State.
• The Cougars' win at HSU was their first true road win of the season.
• Marcus Brown had a season-high 24 points and four 3-pointers against the Jacks.
• In the Cougars' loss at Stan State, Brown once again led CSUSM with a game-high 17 points while Darius Goudeau had a season-high 12 rebounds.
• Brown has scored double figures in six of his last seven games while Jayce McCain has posted at least 10 points in his last five games.
• McCain's assist-turnover ratio of 3.57 leads the CCAA and ranks seventh nationally.
• McCain's 37 total steals lead the CCAA and rank 11th nationally while his 2.31 steals per game lead the league and rank 23rd nationally.
• CSUSM's 131 steals are the third most in the CCAA and rank 40th in the nation.
• The Cougars are holding opponents to an average field-goal percentage of 42.3% – third best in the CCAA and 62nd best nationally.
• CSUSM is on a three-game winning streak at The Sports Center.
• In home games this season, CSUSM is 4-1.

 
THURSDAY AGAINST THE COYOTES

• CSUSB comes into Thursday's game on a seven-game winning streak.
• At 8-2 in CCAA play, CSUSB is in a three-way tie for second in the league standings.
• The Coyotes are seventh in the latest release of the D2SIDA West Region Men's Basketball Poll.
• The Coyotes defeated Cal State Dominguez Hills (65-63) and Cal State LA (81-70) at home this past weekend.
• Jeremy Smith leads the Coyotes' offense with 16.8 points per game – tied for the fourth most in the conference.
• Smith's 5.1 assists per game and 82 total assists rank second in the CCAA.
• At 48.6%, CSUSB has the fourth-best field-goal percentage in the league.
• The Coyotes are holding opponents to 42.1% from the field this season – second best in the CCAA.
• From the charity stripe, CSUSB has the second-worst free-throw percentage in the conference at 63.0%.
• The Coyotes are the top rebounding team in the CCAA at 40.5 per game and are outrebounding opponents by a margin of 10.2 per game.
• CSUSB's offensive (12.8) and defensive (27.8) rebounds per game lead the league.
• CSUSM took an 89-73 loss in the first meeting of the season on Dec. 21.
• The Coyotes are on a four-game winning streak against the Cougars.
• At home, CSUSM owns a 2-1 series lead, but the Cougars' all-time series record against the Coyotes is 2-4.

 
WRAPPING UP THE WEEK AGAINST THE BRONCOS

• CPP comes into the week on a four-game winning streak and has tallied wins in 10 of their last 11 games.
• Like CSUSB, CPP is also in a three-way tie for second in the league standings with an 8-2 record.
• The Broncos are fifth in the latest release of the D2SIDA West Region Men's Basketball Poll.
• Before facing CSUSM, CPP will take on UC San Diego on Thursday night in La Jolla.
• This past weekend, the Broncos defeat Cal State LA (89-69) and Cal State Dominguez Hills (74-55) at home.
• William Christmas leads CPP with 16.7 points per game – sixth in the CCAA.
• At 2.27 steals per game, Phoenix Shackelford ranks second in the conference and 27th nationally.
• The Broncos have the second-best field-goal percentage defense in the nation at 37.7%.
• The Broncos' scoring defense of 61.1 points allowed per game ranks fifth nationally.
• CPP is tallying 9.9 steals per game – 10th most in the nation.
• The Broncos' turnover margin of 5.1 ranks 11th nationally.
• To go along with their defensive numbers, CPP has the 10th-best field-goal percentage in the nation at 50.9%.
• CSUSM is 3-5 in the all-time series against CPP and has lost the past four games.
• The Cougars are 1-2 at The Sports Center against the Broncos with the lone win coming on Jan. 12, 2017.

 
THE FOSTER FILE

• Head coach B.J. Foster enters his fourth season in charge of the CSUSM Men's Basketball program after taking over the head position in 2016.
• Under his leadership, the Cougars advanced to the CCAA Tournament for the first time in 2017-18 after finishing the season with a 15-7 conference record and a 20-9 overall record.
• Prior to becoming head coach of the Cougars, Foster was an assistant coach with the team from 2013 to 2016.
• Foster has tallied a career record of 55-46 (.545).

 

WOMEN'S TRACK & FIELD
Saturday, Jan. 18 – 9 a.m.
UW Indoor Preview
Seattle, Wash. – Dempsey Indoor
Live Results | Watch Live ($) | Schedule of Events
 
INDOOR SEASON OPENER

• This will be CSUSM's first time competing in indoor track & field events since 2018.
• This will be the Cougars' first-ever visit to Washington for track & field.

 
THE OLSON FILE

• Head coach Torrey Olson begins his second season at the helm of the men's and women's track & field programs after taking over in the summer of 2018.
• In 2019, Olson's men's and women's squads tallied three CCAA Championships for outdoor competition while the men's team earned five All-West Region selections.
• Olson came to CSUSM after spending three seasons as the Director of Track & Field and Cross Country at the Academy of Art University where his teams earned 50-plus All-American honors.
• Olson served as the head cross country coach the previous three years at Academy of Art.
• In addition to the Academy of Art, Olson has also worked with the University of San Francisco and Pomona-Pitzer College.
• A graduate of Pomona College in 2009, Olson also holds an MFA from St. Mary's College (2012).