San José, Calif. - In the history of San José State women's basketball, no Spartan team has ever earned a top-three seed in a conference tournament.
The 2019-20 Spartans can do just that this week as a win at UNLV combined with a Fresno State win on Thursday will clinch the No. 3 seed in the Mountain West Tournament. The team has already made a bit of Mountain West program history, insuring themselves of no worse than a tie for the best regular-season finish in the conference standings since joining the league.
The Lady Rebels will attempt to play spoiler for SJSU's plans as the team hosts its Senior Night at Cox Pavilion in Las Vegas. The team has been led in both scoring and rebounding by senior Rodjanae Wade, totaling 14.9 points and 11.1 rebounds to date.
UNLV enters Thursday's showdown with a record of 13-15 and is 9-8 in Mountain West play.
The game will be streamed live on the Mountain West Network with Ben Wilson and Amie Callaway 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
UNDERSTANDING UNLV
Thursday's meeting will also serve as the 29th game of the season for UNLV. The team currently owns a 13-15 record and is coming off a 29-point loss at Boise State on Wednesday. The Lady Rebels are 9-8 in Mountain West play this season and sit in fifth place in the conference standings.
It's senior Rodjanae Wade who paces the UNLV offense with an average of 14.9 points per game. Wade also tops the team on the boards, pulling down an average of 11.1 rebounds per game.
The Lady Rebels are 9-6 at home this season. They are coming off a win in their last game at Cox Pavilion, a 72-67 victory over San Diego State.
AN SJSU WIN WOULD
> Give SJSU two wins over UNLV in one season for the first time in program history
> Mark the program's first season with four winning streaks of at least three games for the first time since the 1982-83 campaign
> Be better than a loss
SJSU VS. THE MOUNTAIN WEST
Overall, San José State is 122-226 against the current make up of schools in the Mountain West. The Spartans last conference victory came on Monday against Utah State.
Sophomore Ayzhiana Basallo led her team in the 76-38 victory at the Provident Credit Union Event Center, tallying 18 points while dishing out five assists.
THREE SEED UP FOR GRABS
Wins by San José State and Fresno State on Thursday night will give the Spartans the No. 3 seed for next month's Mountain West Tournament. The third spot would be the best seed ever earned by the program for a conference tournament (have been a No. 4 seed four times - 2016, 2006, 2003, 2002).
Losses by either the Spartans or Bulldogs on Thursday will hand SJSU the No. 4 seed for the Mountain West Tournament. Head coach Jamie Craighead's team became the third team in the conference to earn a first-round bye by virtue of its win over Colorado State on Saturday.
SEARCHING FOR SOME MARCH MADNESS
The Spartans are aiming to make their first postseason tournament in NCAA program history this year. The school's last trip to the postseason came prior to NCAA sponsorship as the 1980-81 Spartans faced USC in the first round of the AIAW Regionals.
BASALLO NAMED MID-MAJOR PLAYER OF THE YEAR SEMIFINALIST
Sophomore Ayzhiana Basallo has been named as one of 10 semifinalists for the Her Hoop Stats Becky Hammon Mid-Major Player of the Year award. The point guard is the youngest player on the list and the only representative from the Mountain West.
WHITE(HEAD) NOISE
Forward Tyra Whitehead ranks No. 14 as of February 25 in Division I and is second in the Mountain West with 282 rebounds. Her 12 double-doubles on the season (three of which have come in her last three games) slots her at second in the conference and 27th nationally in that category. Whitehead has made 170 field goals on the season and is 25 makes away from breaking into the program's top-10 list for made field goals in a season.
The Wake Forest transfer became just the second player in program history to join the 20/20 Club last month, tallying 22 points and 20 rebounds against first-place 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 (1989). It was an all-around strong month for the forward, who was named the Mountain West Player of the Week on Jan. 27 after recording back-to-back double-doubles in wins over New Mexico and Air Force.
MONDAY WAS FUN
There was no case of the Mondays this week for San José State as the team's 38-point victory over Utah State marked the program's largest conference victory since Jan. 11, 1980 (70-25 vs. Santa Clara). The 38 points allowed is the program's fewest in a game since Feb. 18, 2006 (58-35 vs. New Mexico State).
THREE'S COMPANY
Guard Megan Anderson's 66 three-pointers on the 2019-20 campaign is currently slotted at No. 6 for made three-pointers in a single season at San José State. Anderson is also slotted at eighth on the list after draining 63 triples a year ago. Rebecca Woodberry is the program's all-time leader in the category with 90 made three-pointers in the 2013-14 season.
ACTUALLY, STEALING IS GOOD
San José State is ranked No. 12 nationally with 304 steals in 28 games. Forward Tyra Whitehead is slotted 37th in the country in that category with 64 thieveries. Guards Fieme'a Hafoka (48 steals) and Danae Marquez (39) are also stealing the ball at a high rate as the month of February continues.
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). Finally, the 128 points is the second most scored by a Division I team this season (Coastal Carolina, 132).
GOOD WAY TO START A YEAR
San José State finished the month of January with a record of 7-1, matching the program's second-best January in school history (also went 7-01 in 1981-82). The 1978-79 Spartans have the current record, going 10-0 in the first month of the year en route to a 24-4 record.
IT'S BEEN A WHILE
San José State's 9-1 start to conference play marked the program's best 10-game start to conference play in 41 years. The 1978-79 Spartans went 12-0 in NorPac action that season.
NCAA'S BIGGEST WIN TURNAROUNDS THIS SEASON
San José State currently owns the nation's second largest single-season win turnaround this year:
Team Wins Increase
San José State 6 to 17 +11
Ball State 8 to 18 +10
Cleveland State 10 to 19 +9
UNC Greensboro 11 to 20 +9
Eastern Kentucky 2 to 10 +8
Longwood 3 to 10 +7
BEST WIN TURNAROUNDS IN SCHOOL HISTORY
This San José State teams also owns the biggest single-season win turnaround in program history:
Seasons Wins Increase
2018-19 to 2019-20* 6 to 17 +11
1999-00 to 2000-01 3 to 13 +10
2010-11 to 2011-12 2 to 11 +9
1992-93 to 1993-94 5 to 14 +9
1997-78 to 1978-79 17 to 24 +7
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. The Spartans have already clinched the best finish for a team picked last in conference history:
Season Team Picked Finished
2019-20 San José State 11th Currently 3rd
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
A HISTORIC CAMPAIGN
This Spartan team is currently tied for fourth for most wins in a season in program history:
Season Record
1978-79 24-4
1979-80 22-9
2004-05 18-12
2019-20 17-11
1982-83 17-9
1977-78 17-10
2001-02 17-11
SENIORS WERE SPECIAL
Seniors Fieme'a Hafoka and Alexis Harris both had a special Senior Night against Utah State on Monday. Playing her 118th career game in a Spartan uniform, Hafoka tallied seven points and seven rebounds in the blowout of the Aggies. Harris - a Palo Alto product - not only scored for the first time this season, but was three-for-three from the field while also pulling down three rebounds.
CRAIGHEAD THIS SEASON
San José State's 17 victories this season is the most in the Craighead era in Silicon Valley. In addition, the 11 conference wins matches a high for the Spartans under Craighead. The head coach picked up career victory No. 125 in Monday's historic 76-38 win over Utah State.
WINNING WAYS
The Spartans earned their 15th win against Boise State on Jan. 29, a victory that clinched the program's first winning regular season since the 2004-05 campaign (went 17-11 in regular season).
GOOD LUCK WHEN ENDING IN VEGAS
Finishing the regular season in Las Vegas has proved lucky in the past for the Spartans under head coach Jamie Craighead. SJSU ended the 2014-15 regular season with a 99-97 victory at UNLV, then won back-to-back games in the Mountain West Tournament to advance to the semifinals. It marked just the second time in school history that the program advanced to the semifinals of a conference tournament.
BASALLO BREAKDOWN
Ayzhiana Basallo has been one of the top guards in the country this season, ranking 24th nationally in points per game (19.0) and No. 48 in assists with 125 total dimes. She is also one of the nation's top free throw shooters, slotted third in Division I with a 92.5% clip at the charity stripe. Her 136 makes at the charity stripe has her at No. 6 on the program's list for made fee throws in a single season (Ta'Rea Cunnigan is all-time leader at 178).
Basallo has scored in double figures in 23 of her 25 games against Division I opponents and has reached the 20-point plateau in 13 of those. In addition, the point guard tops the Mountain West in both scoring and free throw percentage as the month of February comes to a close.
CARDIAC SPARTANS
The Spartans have been one of the conference's top teams in the clutch this season, winning nine games decided by one or two possessions. Four of those nine victories have come by three points or less.
ON THE BENCH
In addition to being the youngest staff in the conference, 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.
A RELIABLE START
Forward Tyra Whitehead has scored the Spartans first points in seven of the team's last eight games. On the year, the junior has tallied SJSU's first points in 11 total contests.
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)
Her Hoop Stats Becky Hammon Mid-Major Player of the Year
Semifinalist (Feb. 4)
Mountain West
Player of the Week (Nov. 18, Nov. 25)
San José State University
Student-Athlete of the Month (January, 2020)
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
College Sports Madness
Mountain West Player of the Week (Jan. 27)
Mountain West
Player of the Week (Jan. 27)
#BEATBOISE
San José State took down defending Mountain West champion and preseason favorite Boise State in a 74-61 last month. The victory marked the program's first-ever regular season win over the team picked in first place for the conference's preseason poll.
SPARTANS IN THE NEWS
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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.