HAYWARD, Calif. -- The Cal State East Bay women's basketball team officially begins its California Collegiate Athletic Association championship defense this weekend as conference play opens with a pair of road games. 

The Pioneers take on two northern California rivals, starting with Cal State Monterey Bay on Friday at 5:30 p.m. The following evening, they visit SF State with yet another 5:30 tip-off.

WEEK IN REVIEW
East Bay is coming off a busy Thanksgiving week that started with a trip to western Utah via Las Vegas to do battle with Dixie State. The Pioneers pulled off an impressive 68-52 win, led by Shomari Harris with 15 points (7-12 FG) and four assists. 

They returned home to celebrate the holiday before hosting the second annual Thanksgiving Shootout last Saturday and Sunday at Pioneer Gym. The tournament started off well for CSUEB as the team secured its second straight 16-point win, 78-62 over Dominican. Harris had 17 points and five assists to lead a group of four Pioneers in double figures, and East Bay out-rebounded the Penguins 48-25 in a dominant effort.

The following afternoon, the Pioneers suffered a narrow 57-54 defeat at the hands of Academy of Art. Harris posted a double-double and redshirt freshman Morgan Greene notched 16 points, nine rebounds, and four blocks, but the Urban Knights out-scored East Bay 14-5 in the fourth quarter to complete the comeback.

LEADERBOARD WATCH
Harris has proven to be an enormous addition for CSUEB this year throughout the non-conference schedule. Through six games, she leads the CCAA in minutes per game (35.17), ranks second in scoring (15.8 ppg) and three point percentage (.455), and third in assists (4.3 per game). 

Greene and senior Remy Puou are the second and third leading rebounders in the league, averaging 9.8 and 9.2 per game, respectively. Greene has pulled in double-digit boards four times in six games.

As a team, the Pioneers have been solid in many areas. They're shooting 42 percent from the field and holding opponents to 37.8 percent. They're second in the league in scoring defense (60.3 ppg allowed) and are out-scoring teams by 3.8 points per night. Most impressively, they lead the conference in rebounding margin, topping their opponents on the glass by 9.0 boards per game.

OUTLOOK ON THE OTTERS
CSUMB had won three straight games in non-conference play over Notre Dame de Namur, Fresno Pacific, and Holy Names before losing on Tuesday 70-66 at Dominican. The Otters commit the fewest turnovers in the CCAA and hold opponents to the lowest field goal percentage (.331). They're also an excellent squad on the glass, led by McKenna Hill (10.5 ppg, 10.2), the league's leading rebounder. Monterey's top scorer is Victoria Dern at 14.2 ppg, most of which has come from long distance, where she has hit 50 percent (23-for-46).

GAUGING THE GATORS
SF State is off to a tough start at 2-5, most recently coming off a 73-62 loss at Fresno Pacific. They're being outscored by 5.6 points per game overall, and they lead the conference in fouls committed. The Gators have two players averaging in double figures in Lauryn Catchings (12.7 ppg, .447 FG%) and Donae Moguel (11.0 ppg, 6.6 rpg, .554 FG%).