Cal State L.A. Athletics

2009-10 CSULA Record: 4-15. CCAA Record: 2-12

 

Golden Eagles Set To Begin Final Four-Game Road Stretch: Cal State L.A.’s women’s basketball team, which dropped three games at home last week, will begin its final four-game road swing of the season with a pair of California Collegiate Athletic Association contests this week. The Golden Eagles will face CCAA newcomer Cal State East Bay on Thursday before heading down to La Jolla for a Saturday matchup with conference-leading UC San Diego. Cal State L.A. has lost four straight games since its win at Chico State on Jan. 22. The Golden Eagles are currently 11^th in the CCAA, two games behind San Francisco State and Cal State Stanislaus and four games back of eighth-place Cal State Dominguez Hills. The top eight teams will qualify for the CCAA Championship Tournament. Cal State L.A. will play at San Francisco State and Cal State Monterey Bay next week before playing its final four games of the season at home. Cal State L.A. is 3-6 so far this season at home and just 1-9 away from the Eagles Nest. Cal State L.A. has nine players returning from last year’s team, including four redshirts who will be on the active roster this season. Cal State L.A. also has five newcomers who are expected to bolster the team.

 

Golden Eagles Are On The Web: Cal State L.A.’s home basketball games are streamed live with video and audio on the Golden Eagles’ athletic website. Log onto www.CSULAathletics.com/FanZone and follow the action. Cal State L.A. alum Michael Nemetz provides the play-by-play for all Golden Eagle home basketball games. Fans can also follow live stats on the same page as well as receive text messages with final scores and stat leaders just minutes after the final buzzer. The next Cal State L.A. home game is on Friday, Feb. 19, against Cal Poly Pomona.

 

Head To Head: Cal State L.A. is 4-2 all-time against Cal State East Bay and beat the Pioneers, 68-59, on Jan. 3 in the Eagles Nest in the first meeting between the two programs as conference foes. The previous five meetings came when Cal State East Bay was known as “Cal State Hayward.” Prior to the contest earlier this season, Cal State L.A. and Cal State East Bay had not met since Dec. 14, 1997. Cal State L.A. is 4-17 all-time against UC San Diego and lost to the Tritons, 65-61, in the Eagles Nest on Jan. 2. It was a bitter defeat for the Golden Eagles, who out-rebounded the Tritons, 40-32, took only eight shots from behind the 3-point arc to 20 for UC San Diego, shot 50.9 percent to 38.3 percent for the Tritons, yet attempted four free throws to 19 for UC San Diego. Cal State L.A. committed 25 fouls to 12 for UC San Diego, three of which were committed down the stretch on purpose by the Tritons because they had fouls still to give. The Golden Eagles led by four points with 6:05 to go and were tied with two minutes remaining before the Tritons pulled away for the win. UC San Diego has won eight straight games in the series and hasn’t lost to the Golden Eagles since Dec. 3, 2005.

 

About Last Week: Cal State L.A. suffered through a tough week, dropping three consecutive home games. The Golden Eagles opened the week with a 78-60 loss to Cal State Dominguez Hills. Jazzi Johnson had 19 points and three rebounds for the Golden Eagles, while Jameiz Terrell had 13 points and three rebounds. Stacie Whitley had a team-high eight rebounds to go along with four points. Cal State L.A. was out-rebounded, 46-35, and shot just 33.8 percent to 50.9 percent for Cal State Dominguez Hills. The Golden Eagles trailed by as many as 34 points before a strong second-half surge. Cal State L.A. then dropped a 52-36 decision to Sonoma State on Friday. The Golden Eagles shot just 24.4 percent against the Seawolves’ tough defense. Cal State L.A. also played solid defense and limited Sonoma State to just 30.4 percent shooting. Johnson had 12 points, nine rebounds and three assists. Jordan Kuzma had 11 points and four blocks. The Golden Eagles ended the week with a 69-52 loss to Humboldt State in a game much more tightly-contested than the final score would indicate. The Golden Eagles held a six-point lead, 44-38, with 12:48 to go, but went without a field goal over the final 10:57 of the game. The Golden Eagles trailed by only three points, 55-52, with five minutes left, but gave up the final 14 points of the game. Johnson had 14 points and 11 rebounds, while Kuzma had 12 points and 15 rebounds. Shatori Dearman had eight points and seven rebounds.

 

How We Stand: Cal State L.A. is 12^th in the California Collegiate Athletic Association in scoring at 51.8 points per game and ninth in defense, allowing 62.2 points per game. In conference games only, Cal State L.A. is 11th in scoring at 52.6 points per game and ninth in defense at 62.7 points per game. Several Golden Eagles are among conference leaders. Jazzi Johnson leads the CCAA in shooting percentage (83-142 for 58.5 percent) and is eighth in scoring at 12.7 points per game. In conference games only, she is making 59 percent (59-of-100) of her shots. Jordan Kuzma is sixth in the conference in rebounding (7.8 per game) and third in blocked shots (1.7 per game). Jameiz Terrell is eighth in the conference in 3-point shooting percentage (36.1 percent) and eighth in 3-pointers made.

 

All That Jazzi: Junior guard Jazzi Johnson is enjoying her best season at Cal State L.A. She currently leads the team in scoring with 12.7 points per game and also leads the conference in shooting percentage by making 58.5 percent of her shots (83-of-142). She has reached double figures in scoring in 11 straight games and is averaging 15.6 points and 6.3 rebounds per game over that stretch. She has three double-doubles this year – she had 14 points and 10 rebounds against Cal State East Bay on Jan. 3, she had a season-high 23 points and 12 rebounds against San Francisco State on Jan. 9 and she had 14 points and 11 rebounds against Humboldt State last Saturday. Johnson averaged 8.5 points per game as a freshman and 6.2 points per game last season as a sophomore.

On The Bench With Coach Turner-Lewis: Tuonisia Turner-Lewis returns for her third season as the Cal State L.A. head coach. She guided the Golden Eagles to a 5-22 record last season that included a 4-16 conference mark. Cal State L.A. ended the season on an upswing, winning two of its final five games, including a season-ending victory at Sonoma State. Turner-Lewis led the Golden Eagles to a 9-17 record in her first year with the program. Cal State L.A. won six more games than it had won the previous season and picked up five more victories in conference play. She came to Cal State L.A. from JSerra Catholic High School, where she led the girls basketball program to a 36-17 record over two years. Before that, she was an NCAA Division I assistant or associate head coach for 12 years at the University of Texas at Arlington, Long Beach State and Winthrop University. As a player, she was the Most Valuable Player at the University of Louisville in 1992 and is one of only four players in program history to score more than 1,000 point and collect more than 500 assists in a career. After receiving her degree in communications, Turner-Lewis served as a color commentator on women’s basketball broadcasts for her alma mater. Her coaching career began at the University of Texas at Arlington, where she was an assistant coach from 1993-96. She then moved on to Long Beach State, where she was an assistant coach and later an associate head coach. She was with the program from 1996-2004 and was responsible for coordinating national and international recruiting efforts, scouting opponents, developing practice plans, training programs and monitoring the academic progress of her student-athletes. With players she helped recruit to Long Beach State, the program produced seven professional basketball players, one WNBA player, two conference Player of the Year recipients, eight first-team All-Conference selections, eight second-team All-Conference selections, four All-Freshman Team selections, two Defensive Player of the Year selections and two Sixth Man of the Year selections. She was then an assistant coach at Winthrop University in South Carolina from 2004-05 where she was in charge of coordinating recruiting student-athletes, scouting opponents and monitoring team academic progress. She then became a faculty member and the girls varsity basketball coach at JSerra Catholic High School in San Juan Capistrano, where she spent two seasons.

 

Look Who’s Back: There are nine returning players for the Golden Eagles, although only five saw action for the team last season. Junior center Shatori Dearman, who shared the team leading scoring honors last year with 9.0 points per game, leads the list of returners. Junior guard Jazzi Johnson is back for her third year with the program after averaging 6.2 points and 3.9 rebounds per game, while sophomore guards Jameiz Terrell, Lacie Jacobsen and Desiree Dominguez also return. In addition, four players who red-shirted last season join the active roster. Junior guard Brionna Baker, freshman guard Sonia Miller, junior forward Danielle Snyder and freshman center Martina Njoku have all seen playing time this season.

 

Look Who’s New: The Golden Eagles have five newcomers who are expected to bolster a young Cal State L.A. squad. Junior forward/center Jordan Kuzma, who is second on the team in scoring and leads the team in rebounding, heads the list of newcomers. She comes to Cal State L.A. from Mt. San Antonio College. Another former Mt. San Antonio College player, sophomore guard Kelli McClintick, also joins the squad. Sophomore guard Stacie Whitley and junior guard Michelle Salemi also have joined the team. Megan Iloff, a top recruit for the Golden Eagles out of East Los Angeles College, is also new to the team, but might miss the season with an injury.

 

CCAA Tourney Back For A Third Year: The California Collegiate Athletic Association added an eight-team championship tournament in 2007-08 and the tourney will have the same format – although a new championship location for 2009-10. The top eight teams in the conference will compete in a postseason tourney. The first-round games will be held at campus locations, while the semi-final and championship games will be held at Humboldt State. Cal State San Bernardino’s Coussoulis Arena was the location for the first two years. The winner of the tournament will receive the conference’s automatic bid to the NCAA Division II playoffs. Last season, Cal State Dominguez Hills punched its ticket to the NCAA playoffs by winning the tournament as the No. 3 seed. In the first year of the tourney, Chico State beat UC San Diego in the finals to win the championship.

What The Coaches Predict: UC San Diego was picked to win the California Collegiate Athletic Association championship in voting done by the conference coaches. Cal Poly Pomona was picked second, Humboldt State was third, Cal State Dominguez Hills was fourth, Chico State was fifth, Cal State San Bernardino was sixth, San Francisco State was seventh, Cal State Monterey Bay was eighth, Sonoma State was ninth, Cal State Stanislaus was 10^th, Cal State L.A. was 11^th and Cal State East Bay was 12^th.

 

Last Week: Did not score while playing in the final minute against Sonoma State on Friday; DNP-CD against Cal State Dominguez Hills on Wednesday and Humboldt State on Saturday.

2009-10: Averaging 0.9 points, 1.1 rebounds and 0.4 assists per game.

Season Highs: Points – 6 at Sonoma State (12-5-09); Rebounds – 4 vs. Academy of Art (12-12-09); Assists – 2 at Sonoma State (12-5-09).

Career Highs: First year with the program.

Last Week: Had seven points, two rebounds and one assist against Humboldt State on Saturday; had seven points and two rebounds against Cal State Dominguez Hills on Wednesday; had five points, three rebounds and two assists against Sonoma State on Friday.

2009-10: Averaging 3.9 points, 2.1 rebounds and 1.9 assists per game. Leads the team in assists.

Season Highs: Points – 9 at Cal State Stanislaus (1-23-10); Rebounds – 4 at Chico State (1-22-10), at San Diego Christian (11-21-09); Assists – 5 at Cal State San Bernardino (1-15-10), vs. Dixie State College (12-22-09).

Career Highs: First year with the program.

            Last Week: DNP-CD (injury).

            2009-10: Has not played yet.

            Season Highs: Has not played yet.

            Career Highs: First year with the program.

Last Week: Had three rebounds and two assists against Cal State Dominguez Hills on Wednesday; had one rebound and one steal against Sonoma State on Friday; had one rebound and one steal against Humboldt State on Saturday.

2009-10: Averaging 0.0 points, 1.0 rebound and 0.3 assists per game.

Season Highs: Points – 0; Rebounds – 3 vs. Cal State Dominguez Hills (1-27-10); Assists – 2 vs. Cal State Dominguez Hills (1-27-10).

Career Highs: Points – 5 at Chico State (1-17-09); Rebounds – 4 at Sonoma State (2-27-09); Assists – 3 at Cal State San Bernardino (1-31-09).

Last Week: Had four points, eight rebounds and three assists against Cal State Dominguez Hills on Wednesday; had one point and two rebounds against Sonoma State on Friday; went scoreless in limited playing time against Humboldt State on Saturday.

2009-10: Averaging 4.2 points, 3.8 rebounds and 1.4 assists per game.

Season Highs: Points – 10 vs. UC San Diego (1-2-10); Rebounds – 9 vs. UC San Diego (1-2-10); Assists – 3 vs. Cal State East Bay (1-3-10), vs. UC San Diego (1-2-10).

Career Highs: First year with the program.

 

12        JAZZI JOHNSON (G, Jr., Sacramento, Kennedy High School)

Last Week: Had 19 points and three rebounds against Cal State Dominguez Hills on Wednesday; had 14 points and 11 rebounds against Humboldt State on Saturday; had 12 points, nine rebounds and three assists against Sonoma State on Friday.

2009-10: Averaging 12.7 points, 5.2 rebounds and 1.1 assists per game. Leads the team in scoring. Leads the CCAA in shooting percentage (.585)

Season Highs: Points – 23 vs. San Francisco State (1-9-10); Rebounds – 12 vs. San Francisco State (1-9-10); Assists – 5 vs. UC San Diego (1-2-10).

Career Highs: Points – 23 vs. San Francisco State (1-9-10), at Concordia (12-22-07); Rebounds – 12 vs. San Francisco State (1-9-10); Assists – 5 vs. UC San Diego (1-2-10).

 

Last Week: Had 13 points, three rebounds and one assist against Cal State Dominguez Hills on Wednesday; had nine points and four rebounds against Sonoma State on Friday; had three points, two rebounds and one assist against Humboldt State on Saturday.

2009-10: Averaging 7.8 points, 2.5 rebounds and 1.2 assists per game. Is third on the team in scoring and leads the team in 3-pointers (28).

Season Highs: Points – 17 at Cal State Dominguez Hills (11-18-09); Rebounds – 5 at Chico State (1-22-10), vs. San Francisco State (1-9-10); Assists – 4 at Cal State Dominguez Hills (11-18-09).

Career Highs: Points – 17 at Cal State Dominguez Hills (11-18-09); Rebounds – 5 at Chico State (1-22-10), vs. San Francisco State (1-9-10); Assists – 4 at Cal State Dominguez Hills (11-18-09), vs. San Francisco State (1-10-09), at UC San Diego (1-2-09).

 

Last Week: Had six points and one rebound against Cal State Dominguez Hills on Wednesday; had three points and one rebound against Sonoma State on Friday; went scoreless in five minutes against Humboldt State on Saturday.

2009-10: Averaging 3.3 points, 2.6 rebounds and 0.2 assists per game.

Season Highs: Points – 13 at Cal Poly Pomona (1-16-10); Rebounds – 6 at Cal Poly Pomona (1-16-10); Assists – 1 at Chico State (1-22-10), vs. Cal State Monterey Bay (1-8-10), vs. Academy of Art (12-12-09).

Career Highs: First year on the active roster.

 

Last Week: DNP-CD

2009-10: Averaging 0.5 points, 1.0 rebound and 0.8 assists per game.

Season Highs: Points – 2 at Cal State Dominguez Hills (11-18-09); Rebounds – 2 at Sonoma State (12-5-09), at San Diego Christian (11-21-09); Assists – 2 at Cal State Dominguez Hills (11-18-09).

Career Highs: Points – 6 at UC San Diego (1-2-09); Rebounds – 4 at Cal State San Bernardino (1-31-09); Assists – 3 at Humboldt State (2-26-09).

 

Last Week: Had four points, four rebounds and one assist against Humboldt State on Saturday; had three points and four rebounds against Sonoma State on Friday; had one rebound and one assist against Cal State Dominguez Hills on Wednesday.

2009-10: Averaging 4.2 points, 1.8 rebounds, 0.6 assists per game.

Season Highs: Points – 14 vs. UC San Diego (1-2-10); Rebounds – 4 vs. Humboldt State (1-30-10), vs. Sonoma State (1-29-10), vs. Cal State Monterey Bay (1-8-10); Assists – 2 at Cal State Stanislaus (1-23-10), at Humboldt State (12-3-09).

Career Highs: First year on the active roster.

Last Week: Had 12 points, 15 rebounds and one assist against Humboldt State on Saturday; had one point, 11 rebounds and four blocks against Sonoma State on Friday; had four points, four rebounds and one assist against Cal State Dominguez Hills on Wednesday.

2009-10: Averaging 8.3 points, 7.8 rebounds and 0.7 assists per game. Leads the team in rebounding and is second in scoring.

Season Highs: Points – 15 vs. Cal State East Bay (1-3-10), vs. UC San Diego (1-2-10); Rebounds – 16 vs. Cal State East Bay (1-3-10); Assists – 2 at Cal State Stanislaus (1-23-10), at Cal State Dominguez Hills (11-18-09).

            Career Highs: First year with the program.

Last Week: Played in the final minute and grabbed one rebound against Sonoma State on Friday; DNP-CD against Cal State Dominguez Hills on Wednesday and Humboldt State on Saturday.

            2009-10: Averaging 0.0 points, 1.0 rebound and 0.0 assists per game.

Season Highs: Points – 0; Rebounds – 1 vs. Cal State Dominguez Hills (1-27-10), at San Diego Christian (11-21-09); Assists -- 0

            Career Highs: First year on the active roster.

 

Last Week: Had eight points, seven rebounds and one assist against Humboldt State on Saturday; had seven points, five rebounds and one assist against Cal State Dominguez Hills on Wednesday; had two points, four rebounds and one assist against Sonoma State on Friday.

2009-10: Averaging 6.0 points, 4.7 rebounds and 0.4 assists per game.

Season Highs: Points – 16 at Cal State Stanislaus (1-23-10); Rebounds – 10 at Chico State (1-22-10); Assists – 1 vs. Humboldt State (1-30-10), vs. Sonoma State (1-29-10), vs. Cal State Dominguez Hills (1-27-10), at Cal Poly Pomona (1-16-10), at Cal State San Bernardino (1-15-10), vs. UC San Diego (1-2-10), at Cal State Dominguez Hills (11-18-09).

Career Highs: Points – 20 at Humboldt State (2-26-09); Rebounds – 11 vs. Sonoma State (1-23-09); Assists – 2 at Sonoma State (2-27-09), at Humboldt State (2-26-09), vs. Humboldt State (1-24-09).

 

Last Week: Had four points and two rebounds against Humboldt State on Saturday; had two rebounds against Cal State Dominguez Hills on Wednesday; DNP-CD against Sonoma State on Friday.

2009-10: Averaging 0.7 points, 1.8 rebounds and 0.6 assists per game.

Season Highs: Points – 4 vs. Humboldt State (1-30-10); Rebounds – 4 at Cal State Stanislaus (1-23-10), at Northwest Nazarene (12-18-09); Assists – 3 at Northwest Nazarene (12-18-09).

Career Highs: First year on the active roster.