Oregon State Women’s Basketball: Opponent Preview - Cal State Bakersfield

The 11th ranked Oregon State Beavers Women’s basketball team takes on the Cal State Bakersfield Road Runners in game 12 of the season. Tip-off is slated for 1 PM PST on Saturday, December 29th. Check out the team’s Twitter page for ways to follow along live. Let’s take a closer look at the Road Runners.

CSU Baskersfield (4-7 overall, 0-0 conference)

Last season: 18-14 overall, 10-4 in WAC (2nd), lost in first round of WBI

Cal State Bakersfield comes to Gill Coliseum for Oregon State’s final non-conference game. The Road Runners are currently on a five game losing streak while on a six game road trip that ends in Corvallis. While they have lost seven games, they have been competitive with only one game with a scoring margin of over ten points.

While they aren’t offensive juggernauts, CSU Bakersfield is a formidable defensive team. They have held teams to 37.3% shooting while also averaging an impressive 12.2 steals per game, good for 22nd in the country. Those pickpockets have contributed to 20 points off of turnovers that keeps the Road Runners in games.

Who to watch

#12 - Alexxus Gilbert, Senior Guard

As the Road Runners’ leading scorer at 15.7 points per game, Gilbert isn’t afraid to the take a lot of shots. Two games ago against Southern Methodist, she racked up 24 attempts. She’s also a bit of an ironwoman as she has had to complete games where she played all 40 minutes.

#54 - Vanessa Austin, Sophomore Center

The WAC’s returning Newcomer of the Year leads CSU Bakersfield again in shooting efficiency again this year, connecting on 54.4% of her shots. While the 6’3’’ center still has some consistency issues, she can catch fire as she has reached double figures in five games this season highlighted by a 21 point outburst against San Jose State.

#20 - JJ Johnson, Senior Guard

Johnson is a big reason why the Road Runners have tallied so many steals this season. Currently she ranks 31st in the country for steals per game with three per contest. Look out for her to pick off any errant passes and take them the opposite direction.

Prediction

While the Road Runners will present some challenges for the Beavers, particularly when it comes to creating turnovers, they likely won’t be finding enough offensive firepower to complement their defense in this contest. Oregon State should get an easy win heading into PAC-12 play.