HAYWARD, Calif. -- The Cal State East Bay women's basketball team continues its California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) title defense this weekend with its third trip to Southern California this season. The Pioneers visit Cal State L.A. on Friday evening, followed by Cal State Dominguez Hills on Saturday, with both contests set to tip-off at 5:30 p.m.

WEEK IN REVIEW
CSUEB had just one game this past week, outlasting Cal State Monterey Bay 75-69 at home last Saturday. In a tight contest throughout, the Pioneers rode Remy Puou's hot hand in the first half and relied on Elayshia Woolridge and Shomari Harris down the stretch as they pulled away from the Otters late in the fourth quarter. Five players scored in double figures for East Bay, with Morgan Greene posting a double-double (10 points, 14 rebounds). 

PIONEER POINTS
The victory on Saturday allowed the Pioneers to keep pace in the CCAA standings as we near the midpoint of the conference schedule. With their 6-3 league record, East Bay is tied with Cal State San Bernardino and Cal Poly Pomona for third place, and sits one game behind Stanislaus State in second place. The Pioneers will look to secure a bid to the CCAA Tournament for the sixth consecutive season.

The 2016-17 Pioneers continue to perform solidly on both sides of the ball. They rank third among CCAA teams in field goal percentage (.408) and third in rebound margin (+5.5). The annual SoCal trip to take on the Golden Eagles and Toros is always a tough test, but this CSUEB squad has been successful away from Pioneer Gym, posting a 5-3 record on the road so far.

Perhaps most impressively, the Pioneers top the CCAA in the major individual stat categories. Harris is the conference's leading scorer at 15.5 points per contest, and also she ranks first averaging 4.5 assists per game. Greene, meanwhile, paces all CCAA players with 9.1 rebounds per night. 

GUAGING THE GOLDEN EAGLES
Cal State L.A. is just behind the Pioneers in the CCAA standings at 6-4. They have dropped four of their last six after beating East Bay 78-67 on Dec. 19 at Pioneer Gym. The Pioneers struggled to defend LA's frontcourt in the game, led by Rikke Fabricius (13.5 ppg, 5.4 rpg, 47.7 FG%). Point guard Da'Jah Jackson leads the team in scoring (14.6 ppg) and assists (3.1 apg). Overall, CSULA is being out-scored by its opponents by 3.4 points per game. They shoot 39.7 percent from the field as a team, while opponents shoot 41.3 percent against them, second-worst in the conference. The Golden Eagles have not been beaten at home this season, posting a perfect 6-0 record.

TRACKING THE TOROS
Both Cal State Dominguez Hills and Cal State East Bay finished 18-2 in CCAA play last year for a share of the regular season crown. Both graduated multiple All-CCAA players and turned over a significant chunk of their rosters, and both entered 2016-17 with new head coaches. This season, it's been a different story. While the Pioneers are in postseason contention, CSUDH has struggled to a 4-11 record. They have lost four straight and nine of their last 10 entering this weekend. The Toros are shooting just 37.5 percent from the field as a team, and they allow the most points in the conference (71.5 per game). Dominguez has three players averaging in double figures, led by Imari Brown (15.3 ppg, 5.5 rpg, 45.5 FG%), the third-leading scorer in the CCAA.