BYU women participate in Radisson Chatsworth Thanksgiving Classic

BYU Game Notes vs. Georgia

PROVO, Utah—BYU women’s basketball (2-2) is set to take its second road trip of the year when it competes in the Radisson Chatsworth Thanksgiving Classic in Northridge, Calif., Nov. 27-28. The holiday tournament is hosted by Cal State Northridge (CSUN).

On Friday, the Cougars will play Georgia (3-1) at 5 p.m. PST. The game can be heard live on BYU Radio. On Saturday, BYU will either play host CSUN or Penn State at 2 p.m. All games will be played at the Matadome on the CSUN campus. Live stats for Saturday’s game can be found on the BYU women’s basketball schedule page on byucougars.com

ABOUT BYU
BYU has two players that are scoring in double figures. All-American senior guard Lexi Eaton Rydalch (22.8) and junior Makenzi Morrison Pulsipher (12.0). All-American Kalani Purcell, a junior college transfer from Hutchinson Community College, leads the way in the rebound category (13.0).

The Cougars are scoring 65.2 points per game, shooting 38 percent from the field, 72 percent from the free throw line and 37 percent from 3-point range.

• Head coach: Jeff Judkins (Utah, ‘78) 15th season
• Team’s leading scorer: #21 L. Eaton Rydalch, 22.8 ppg
• Team’s leading rebounder: #32 K. Purcell, 13.0 rpg
• Team’s assists leader: #3 K. Maeda, 4.5 apg
• Team’s steals leader: #21 L. Rydalch and #23 M. Morrison Pulsipher, 2.0 spg
• Team’s blocks leader: #34, M. Orton, .50 bpg

ABOUT GEORGIA
Georgia enters this weekend’s Thanksgiving Classic with a 3-1 record after wins over Stetson, Georgia Tech and Georgia Southern. Their lone loss was at No. 23 Michigan State, 66-45.

The Bulldogs return 11 letterwinners, including four starters that compiled a 19-12 record last year and finished in 10th place in the SEC with a 6-10 mark.

Four Georgia players are putting up double figures in points, led by 16.3 from Merritt Hempe. She’s followed by Tiaria Griffin who is scoring 13.3 points a game with teammate Shacobia Barbee contributing 11.0 points per contest. Mackenzie Engram rounds out the double-digit scoring with 10.8 points a game. Barbee is finishing with a double-double average with a team-best 10.8 rebounds.

As a team, the Bulldogs are scoring 68.5 points per game while shooting 43 percent from the field, 62 percent from the free throw line and 27 percent from behind the arc.

• Head coach: Joni Taylor (Alabama, ‘02) First year
• Team’s leading scorer: #13 M. Hempe, 16.3 ppg
• Team’s leading rebounder: #20 S. Barbee, 10.8 rpg
• Team’s assists leader: #20 Barbee, 5.3 apg
• Team’s steals leader: #20 Barbee, 3.3 spg
• Team’s blocks leader: #13 M. Hempe, 1.3 bpg

Series History
This is the first meeting between the two schools.

ABOUT PENN STATE
Penn State has compiled a 3-1 record to date with its lone loss, 74-66 at No. 5 Tennessee. They’ve had wins over Holy Cross, Fordham and Central Connecticut State. They will play host CSUN on Friday night. If the Lions and Cougars meet on Saturday, it would be a first time matchup for the two teams.

On this year’s team are six letterwinners and four starters who had a 24-8 record, including a 15-3 mark in the Big Ten conference last season. Head coach Coquese Washington enters her ninth season at the helm of the Lions.

Penn State is led in scoring by Peyton Whitted who is averaging a double-double from 15.8 points and 13.3 rebounds per game.  Brianna Banks follows with 14.0 points, while teammate Teniya Page contributes 13.8 points a contest. Page tops the list in assists with a 5.5 average.

After playing in four games to date, the Lions are averaging 75.0 points, shooting 45 percent from the field, 29 percent from behind the arc and 61 percent from the charity stripe.

ABOUT CSUN
Tournament host CSUN has compiled a 0-4 record to date; two of those losses were to West Coast Conference foes Saint Mary’s and San Diego. Should the Matadors meet BYU on Saturday, it would be the third WCC team they've play this year.

Last season, CSUN had an impressive season with a 23-10 record, a second place finish in the Big West Conference and a first round appearance in the NCAA tournament. They lost all five starters from that team. Head coach Jason Flowers is in his sixth season with the Matadors.

Tessa Boagni is the lone player for CSUN that is putting up double figures in scoring with a 13.0 average. Channon Fluker tops the leaderboard in the rebound category, pulling down 6.3 boards per game. Serafina Maulupe has the most assists on the team with nine.

The Matadors are scoring 58.0 per game while shooting 33 percent from the field, 22 percent from 3-point range and 69 percent from the free throw line.

BYU has a 4-1 series lead over CSUN. The two teams played last year in Provo, with the Matadors getting the 63-54 win.

What’s Next
The Cougar women will remain on the road next week as they compete in the Tom Weston Classic in Lai’e, Hawaii, on the BYU-Hawaii campus, Dec. 2-5. Along with the Cougars and Seasiders, No. 9 Texas A&M and the University of Hawaii will also participate in the tournament. The Cougars first play BYU-Hawaii on Wednesday, Dec. 2.