Beach Basketball Welcomes Nevada To The Walter Pyramid For Sunday Matinee

Sunday, November 12

Long Beach, Calif.

1:00 PM

Long Beach State University

Nevada

Photo by: John Fajardo

Beach Basketball Welcomes Nevada To The Walter Pyramid For Sunday Matinee

11/11/2023 11:04:00 AM | Women's Basketball

LBSU Game Notes

Long Beach State and Nevada will tip-off at 1 p.m. on Sunday at the Walter Pyramid

By: Lindy Zamora, Associate Athletic Communications Director

LONG BEACH STATE (1-0) vs. NEVADA (1-0)
Date: Sunday, Nov. 12
Time: 1:00 p.m.
Location: Long Beach, Calif.
Venue: Walter Pyramid
TV: ESPN+
TV Talent: Jason Schwartz & Victoria Dennis
Radio: 22 West Radio
Live Stats: BeachLiveStats.com
Twitter: @LBSUWBB
Tickets: LongBeachState.com/Tickets

Beach Basketball Welcomes Nevada To The Walter Pyramid For Sunday Matinee
The Long Beach State Women's Basketball team opened the 2023-24 season strong with a 20-point victory over Biola on Wednesday. The Beach look to continue their fast-paced offense and tough defense this Sunday, November 12 when they host Nevada at 1 p.m. at the Walter Pyramid.

Catch All the Action
All Long Beach State home games will be broadcast live on ESPN+. Fans can sign up for ESPN+ for $9.99 per month ($99.99 per year) at ESPN.com, ESPNPlus.com, or on the ESPN App. It is also available as part of the Disney Bundle that gives subscribers access to Disney+, ESPN+, and Hulu for $14.99 per month (Hulu with ads) or $24.99 per month (Hulu without ads). Fans can also follow stats updates for all home contests on BeachLiveStats.com

Staying Social
Follow Long Beach State women's basketball on Twitter and Instagram at @LBSUWBB. You can also stay up-to-date on all things Long Beach State by following @LBSUAthletics on Twitter. Be sure to "like" us on Facebook and follow us on Instagram at @LBSU. And don't forget our hashtag #GoBeach.

Sunday Funday
Every Sunday game day, Long Beach State Women's Basketball will host a Sunday Funday Clinic. This Sunday's clinic will be the first of its kind and will take place at the Walter Pyramid at 11 a.m. The 30-minute clinic is FREE for Beach Kids Club members. During the clinic, kids will meet the team and learn drills. Friends are welcome to come to the clinic for the cost of admission. All BKC participants will receive up to 2 game tickets for their parents. For more information, please call: 562-985-4949.

About the Beach
• Long Beach State kicked off the 2023-24 season with a convincing win over Biola (82-62) at the Walter Pyramid on Wednesday.
• The victory marked the first of Head Coach Amy Wright's collegiate coaching career.
• Wright team is expected to bring "Fast, Furious, Fun" to the Beach as the team will showcase a fast offense, a furious defense, and a lot of fun both on and off the court.
• The Beach have a new look this season as they lost all five starters from a year ago, and are returning five letterwinners and three redshirts.
• Junior guard Savannah Tucker is one of the Beach's returners. She made her 2023-24 debut in a big way as she poured in a career-high 25 points in the 20-point victory over Biola. Tucker was exceptional as she connected on 10 field goals on 15 attempts, shooting 66.7 percent from the field. From long distance, Tucker was even more efficient making 4-of-7 from behind the arc to shoot 57.1 percent.
• Sophomore forward Abby Shoff came back to LBSU and led the team in rebounding against Biola. Shoff was just shy of a double-double in her season debut as she finished the game with 11 points and nine boards.
• Junior Patricia Chung was incredible in the season opener as she dished out a career-high eight assists, while also logging nine points and seven rebounds.
• LBSU is also welcoming in four newcomers - two freshmen and two transfers.
• Junior transfer Lovely Sonnier earned the start in her Long Beach State debut and finished with four assists, three points, three rebounds, two steals, and one block in an all-around solid effort.
• In the season opener, every single player saw action on the court as the squad was able to flex its depth. Off the bench, the Beach scored a whopping 35 points.
• The bench will have a different look to is as well. Coach Wright's coaching staff is comprised of Brian Rosario, Jashae Lee, and Raru Archer, while Brittany Klaman will be the squad's director of operations.
• The Beach have been picked to finish seventh in the Big West Preseason Coaches Poll with a total of 45 points. Hawaii, which garnered 95 points and six first-place votes was chosen as the league winner. Meanwhile UC Irvine (88 points, two first-place votes) and UC Davis (85 points, three first-place votes) were expected to finish second and third to round out the top three.

Player Notes
• Lauren Cummings is an incoming freshman guard who hails from Billings, Mont. The 6-foot Cummings made her collegiate debut in the season opener against Biola and recorded her first career rebound in just under three minutes of action.
• Lovely Sonnier comes to the Beach after playing two years at South Carolina State. The junior guard earned the start in Long Beach State's season opener against Biola and recorded three points, three rebounds, four assists, two steals, and one block in just over 13 minutes of action.
• Junior guard Savannah Tucker is back at the Beach and kicked off the 2023-24 season with a career-high 25-point performance against Biola. Tucker was excellent as she connected on 10-of-15 field goals to shoot 66.7 percent from the field. She was also solid from long distance as she shot 57.1 percent from three-point range after making 4-of-7 threes. In addition to her sharp shooting, Tucker also contributed six rebounds, two assists, and one steal in the contest.
• Patricia Chung earned a start in the 2023-24 season opener and did an excellent job. The junior guard finished the game with nine points, a career-high eight assists, and seven rebounds. Chung looks to be a solid component to the Beach Basketball team this season.
• Cheyenne Givens made her Long Beach State debut in the season opener against Biola. The graduate transfer from CSUN concluded the game with two points, two boards, two steals, and one block.
• Kennan Ka earned the start in the Long Beach State season opener against Biola and played in two minutes and 30 seconds before leaving the court due to an injury. In her short time on the hardwood, Ka posted two points and one rebound.
• After redshirting for the Beach a year ago, Casey Valenti Paea made her long awaited LBSU debut. She turned in a solid showing scoring eight points, while adding three steals two rebounds, and two assists in 16 minutes of action.
• Jada Crawshaw, a freshman from Sydney, Australia, made her collegiate debut in the LBSU season opener against Biola on Wednesday. Crawshaw played in just over 16 minutes of action and concluded the game with six points and two rebounds.
• Sophomore forward Abby Shoff came off the bench and helped lead the charge in Long Beach State's season opening victory over Biola. Shoff narrowly missed a double-double as she posted 11 points, nine rebounds, and one assist in 23 minutes of playing time.
• Sydney Woodley got the start for the Beach in her LBSU debut after redshirting last season. The junior guard played well and posted eight points, three boards, three steals, and two assists in just under 20 minutes on the court.
• Olivia Moore redshirted last season at Long Beach State and made her collegiate debut for the Beach on Wednesday in the season opener against Biola. Despite only playing four minutes, Moore recorded four points, three rebounds, and one assist.
• Davai Matthews came back to Long Beach State after seeing limited action last year due to an injury. In the 2023-24 season opening win over Biola, Matthews played in just under 17 minutes and finished the game with four points, two rebounds, one assist, and one steal.

Scouting Nevada
• Nevada opened the 2023-24 season with a 69-53 victory against Sacramento State in Reno, Nev., on Thursday.
• The Wolfpack defeated Cal State East Bay, 90-52, in a preseason exhibition game on October 29.
• Nevada is coming off of a 2022-23 season in which they posted a 10-21 overall record and went 6-12 in the Mountain West.
• Nevada returns nine letterwinners from last season, including three of its top four scorers in Lexie Givens, Audrey Roden, and Victoria Davis.
• The Wolfpack has also added eight newcomers, including a pair of graduate transfers to go along with six freshmen.
• In the Mountain West Preseason Poll, Nevada was chosen to finish eighth.
• In the 2023-24 season opener, Nevada was led by Roden's 21-point performance. She was efficient offensively, shooting 44.4 percent from the field as she made 8-of-18 field goals. In addition, she contributed three rebounds, two steals, one assist, and one block in the win.
• Newcomer Kaylen Banwareesingh led the Wolfpack with eight rebounds to go along with eight points, two blocks, and one assist.
• Givens returned to the hardwood for Nevada and posted eight points, eight steals, five boards, four assists, and two blocks in a solid outing to help lead the Wolfpack to a win over Sac State.

The Series: The Beach vs. The WolfPack
Long Beach State and Nevada will meet for the 23rd time in program history. In the series that dates back to 1986, the Beach leads the all-time series 15-7, including a 68-57 victory over the Wolfpack last season in Reno. When playing each other in Long Beach, LBSU leads 6-3. The Wolfpack is looking for their first win over the Beach since 2018 when they defeated LBSU, 76-67, at the Walter Pyramid.

Fast, Furious, and Fun
When asked what to expect from the Beach this season, sophomore forward Abby Shoff responded, "Fast, furious, and fun! That's really what we are. We're very energized. You can tell we're having a lot of fun out there."

Coach Wright expanded saying, "(The fans) should expect games in the 80s and 90s. A lot of threes going up. A lot of quick buckets. Playing fast is us trying to score between 8-12 seconds on the shot clock. So, we want to get the ball up and take a really good shot. We want to share the basketball.

"Furious is defensively, we want to get after you," Wright continued. "We want to create havoc on that end. We've got to have a chip on our shoulder. Not necessarily playing mad, but playing hectic. Playing with intentionality of being disruptive.

"And finally, fun explains itself. This is a game. The players should be having fun. The coaches should be having fun. The fans should be having fun. If we're playing the game the right way, it's going to be fun."

The Aussie Connection
Despite their being an 8,150 mile distance between Long Beach, Calif., and Australia, there is an Aussie connection at the Beach. Last season, when junior guard Casey Valenti Paea joined the squad from Melbourne, Australia by way of the University at Buffalo, she was the only one on the roster from Down Under. However, this season two more Aussies have joined her on the team in freshman forward Jada Crawshaw and director of operations Brittany Klaman.

Crawshaw hails from Sydney where she prepped at Barker College. She also gained experience playing for the Sydney Comets and the Sydney Flames. A a naturally gifted player, Crawshaw went on to be selected to the All-Australia Team and earned a spot on the U19 Aus Gems squad where she competed at the Centre of Excellence on one of four junior national team camps.

Klaman is originally from Point Cook in Melbourne where she played at Williamstown High School before heading to the United States for her collegiate career. In college, Klaman played at Eastern Washington and California Baptist, before joining the Long Beach State staff.

Team Identity
LB Grit has been long associated with the Long Beach State Men's Volleyball program. However, when asked to describe her team's identity, Coach Wright was quick to say, "Gritty. Scrappy. Chippy." She went on to explain that her current team is filled wiht physical players who "get in there and tangle up, and talk their talk." Wright likes the hard-nosed, blue collar style of play her team has on the court. "Those three words explain the personality of this team. And you've got to be that way. If you're going to be running fast, shooting these shots, and guarding hard, you've got to play with a little chip on your shoulder."

Pack The Pyramid
Long Beach State Women's Basketball is looking to Pack the Pyramid this year and set new attendance records inside the 'Mid. This year's staff and players are excited for the new team look, new style of play, and all around brand new identity. Junior guard Savannah Tucker thinks the Beach fans "can expect to see us get up and down the court, have lots of energy, and just get out there and have fun. It's a fun game to play and it's going to be a fun game to watch."

Adding to that, sophomore forward Abby Shoff said, "I feel like we're gelling great. We have a true sisterhood. It's a real family-like atmosphere. I'm very grateful. I'm looking forward to creating new memories with this team. I think we'll have a great season!"

Wright wants fans to Pack the Pyramid all season long. "Come out and see us play. Give us a chance. I understand there's a lot going on in this area, but I promise you, you will be entertained. You will want to be a part of what we're building here at Long Beach State."

Next Up
Long Beach State will hit the road for a four-game road trip where the Beach will play at California Baptist (Nov. 15), Fresno State (Nov. 21), Pepperdine (Nov. 27), and No. 13/14 Texas (Dec. 6).