San José, Calif. - Winners in 10 of its last 11 home games and three straight overall, San José State will be back at home to round out a two-game homestand on Wednesday morning against New Mexico.
The Lobos enter the week with a record of 11-9 (2-5 Mountain West) and are 3-3 on the road this season. It's sophomore Ahlise Hurst who paces the New Mexico offense with an average of 13.8 points per game. Senior Jordan Hosey tops the team on the glass, pulling down an average of 8.0 rebounds per game.
The Spartans boast the conference's leading scorer and one of the nation's top guards in Ayzhiana Basallo. The sophomore is one of just two players nationally to average 20+ points and 5+ assists per game as the month of January continues.
It was Basallo and forward Tyra Whitehead who led SJSU to a victory on Wednesday against UNLV as Whitehead tallied 13 points, four rebounds and three steals in the winning effort.
Wednesday's contest will be streamed on the Mountain West Network with Daniel Barrera on the call. Fans can also follow the Spartans on social media all season long by following @SanJoseStateWBB on Twitter or @sjswbb on Instagram.
STORYLINES
NAVIGATING NEW MEXICO
Wednesday's meeting will serve as the 21st game of the season for New Mexico. The team currently owns an 11-9 record and had won back-to-back games before falling to UNLV on Saturday. The Lobos are off to a 2-5 start to Mountain West play this season and sit in a tie for eighth place in the conference standings.
It's sophomore Ahlise Hurst who paces the New Mexico offense with an average of 13.8 points per game. Senior Jordan Hosey tops the team on the glass, pulling down an average of 8.0 rebounds per game.
The Lobos are 3-3 on the road this season and emerged victorious in their last road game, taking down Air Force for a 75-53 victory back on Jan. 11.
AN SJSU WIN WOULD
> Give SJSU its first regular-season sweep of New Mexico in program history
> Improve record to seven games above .500 for first time at SJSU since 2004-05 (also 13-6)
> Be better than a loss
SJSU VS. THE MOUNTAIN WEST
Overall, San José State is 117-221 against the current make up of schools in the Mountain West. The Spartans enter having won eight of their last 10 conference games, the most recent victory coming against UNLV on Wednesday night.
Sophomore Ayzhiana Basallo led her team in the 62-60 victory at the Provident Credit Union Event Center, tallying 17 points and the game-winning field goal with 0.3 seconds left. After Wednesday's tilt, San José State's next Mountain West game will come on Saturday at Air Force.
ROAD WARRIORS (OR SPARTANS)
San José State has won its first four road games of conference play for the first time since the 1978-79 campaign, when the Spartans won at San Francisco, Santa Clara, Stanford and Fresno State in NorPac action. Its four-game road winning streak is tied for the 19th longest in Division I and is the best in the Mountain West.
SJSU already has five road wins on the 2019-20 campaign. The program has not had a season with more than five road victories since winning eight in the 2004-05 season. Finally, the team's wins at Nevada and Colorado State earlier this month marked the program's first road sweep since the 2015-16 campaign (won at Air Force and Fresno State).
IT'S BEEN A WHILE
San José State is off to a 6-1 start to conference play, marking the program's best seven-game start to conference play in 41 years. The 1978-79 Spartans went 12-0 in NorPac action that season.
IN THE MORNING
Wednesday's 11:00 a.m. tip-off will mark the program's first morning contest in six years and just the second of the Jamie Craighead era. The last game came on Dec. 5, 2014 at Colorado, a 97-89 loss in overtime for San José State.
BASALLO BREAKDOWN
Sophomore Ayzhiana Basallo is playing as well as any guard in the country, ranking 11th nationally in points per game (20.6) and No. 23 in assists with 5.3 per game. She is also one of the nation's top free throw shooters, slotted fifth in Division I with a 92.7% clip at the charity stripe. In addition, the point guard tops the Mountain West in both scoring and free throw percentage as the month of January rolls on.
Basallo is one of just two players nationally averaging 20+ points and 5+ assists per game. She has scored in double figures in each of her 16 games against Division I opponents and has reached the 20-point plateau in nine of those.
20/20 CLUB
Grad transfer Tyra Whitehead became just the second player in program history to join the 20/20 Club on Jan. 4, tallying 22 points and 20 rebounds against Fresno State. Whitehead was just the 13th player in all of Division I to accomplish the feat this season and is the first to do so at San José State since Lora Alexander poured in 27 points and grabbed 20 rebounds against UC Santa Barbara on February 23, 1989.
MORE WHITEHEAD
Forward Tyra Whitehead has been producing all year in her first season on-campus at San José State. The Wake Forest transfer ranks No. 21 in all of Division I and is first in the Mountain West with 176 rebounds. Her seven double-doubles on the season slots her at second in the conference and 37th nationally in that category.
ACTUALLY, STEALING IS GOOD
San José State is ranked No. 9 nationally with 215 steals in 18 games. Forward Tyra Whitehead is slotted 21st in the country in that category with 46 thefts on the year. Fieme'a Hafoka (32 steals) and Danae Marquez (27) are also stealing the ball at a high rate as the month of January continues.
THIRD QUARTER SUCCESS
The Spartans have been one of the nation's top third quarter teams this season, outscoring its opponents to the tune of a 383-313 (+70) margin. They posted a pair of 35-point third quarters in an 18 day span earlier in the year, coming out of the locker rooms red hot against La Verne and New Mexico.
MAKING SOME HISTORY
San José State set multiple school records in its Dec. 14 victory over La Verne. The 128 points scored by the Spartans set a program record for scoring in a single game, topping its previous high of 119 (vs. Columbia, 2014). Its 66-point win broke a record for margin of victory that had stood since 1979 (65 vs. Cal Poly, 1979). In addition, SJSU's 44 made field goals matched the school record for makes in a single game (44 vs. Arizona on Jan. 4, 1979). Lastly, its 128 points is the second-most scored by a Division I team this season (Coastal Carolina, 132).
ON THE BENCH
The Spartans are one of just three schools in the Mountain West (Air Force and Nevada) with an all-female coaching staff. This is head coach Jamie Craighead's seventh season with the Spartans while associate head coach Alle Moreno is now in her fifth year. Assistant coaches Carlotta Kloppenburg and Arielle Wideman joined the staff in 2018.
CALL IT A COMEBACK
The Spartans own six victories on the season after trailing at halftime, highlighted by a 10-point halftime deficit at New Mexico:
Nov. 15, 2019 / -4 at half / SJSU 73, at UC Santa Barbara 70
Nov. 21, 2019 / -7 at half / SJSU 95, Buffalo 88
Nov. 23, 2019 / -7 at half / SJSU 88, San Diego 82
Jan. 1, 2020 / -10 at half / SJSU 81, at New Mexico 80
Jan. 8, 2020 / -6 at half / SJSU 72, at Nevada 70 (OT)
Jan. 11, 2020 / -9 at half / SJSU 58, at Colorado State 53
SINGLE DIGIT DEFENSIVE QUARTERS (SINCE 2019)
San José State has tallied seven single-digit quarters on defense since the start of 2019, led by a five-point second quarter in February's 73-60 victory over Air Force:
7 vs. UNLV - 1st quarter (1/19/19)
7 vs. UNLV - 2nd quarter (1/19/19)
9 at San Diego State - 2nd quarter (2/2/19)
5 vs. Air Force - 2nd quarter (2/23/19)
8 at Utah State - 1st quarter (12/4/19)
9 at Colorado State - 4th quarter (1/11/20)
6 vs. UNLV - 4th quarter (1/15/20)
BEST MOUNTAIN WEST FINISHES FOR TEAMS SELECTED LAST IN PRESEASON POLL
The following are the best five finishes for teams selected last in the history of the Mountain West Preseason Poll:
Season Team Picked Finished
2019-20 San José State 11th Currently 2nd
2018-19 San José State 11th 9th
2017-18 Air Force 11th 8th
2011-12 Boise State 8th 6th
2007-08 Air Force 9th 7th
2005-06 Air Force 9th 7th
2019-20 HONORS
AYZHIANA BASALLO
College Sports Madness
High Major Player of the Week (Dec. 9)
Mountain West Player of the Week (Nov. 25, Dec. 9)
Mountain West
Player of the Week (Nov. 18, Nov. 25)
CYDNI LEWIS
Maui Jim Maui Classic
All-Tournament Team (Dec. 18-19)
San José State University
Student-Athlete of the Month (December, 2019)
TYRA WHITEHEAD
Global Women's Sports Radio
Athlete of the Month (January, 2020)
FIRST AT THE PIT
San José State's 81-80 win on New Year's Day in Albuquerque marked the program's first-ever victory at New Mexico.
MAKING MAUI HISTORY
Senior Fieme'a Hafoka made a bit of history when she stepped on the floor on Dec. 18 against BYU, becoming the first-ever Maui native to play in a Division I women's basketball game on the island. Hafoka is a product of Kihei, Hawaii and played many of her high school games in the Lahaina Civic Center.
THREE'S COMPANY
San José State finished its victory over Eastern Washington last month shooting 61 percent from three-point range (14-of-23). The mark set a single-game record for three-point percentage in the Jamie Craighead era at SJSU.
20 ON 22's 20TH
Point guard Danae Marquez celebrated her 20th birthday in fine fashion last month, dropping 20 points to lead all scorers en route to her team's 84-66 victory over Eastern Washington. Not just a scoring threat, Marquez peppered the stat-sheet with three assists and one steal in the win.
SPARTANS IN THE NEWS
Be sure to bookmark our clips and links page for all of the latest San José State women's basketball coverage.
MOUNTAIN WEST CONFERENCE MEDIA INFORMATION
For any information concerning Mountain West basketball, contact Melissa Katz, Assistant Director of Strategic Communications. Mountain West information is also available online at www.themw.com.