Sacramento State kicked off their season in commanding fashion, with all four of their wins coming by double digits.
The Hornets stand at 4-1 through the first two weeks of the season and have looked like the team expected to finish in the top half of the Big Sky Conference in the coaches’ preseason poll.
Backcourt ballers
Sac State’s guard play has been top-notch through the first five games of the season.
Of the team’s top-5 per game scorers, four are guards. The two starting guards, sophomore guard Lina Falk and redshirt junior guard Benthe Versteeg, are averaging 15.4 and 8.0 points per game, respectively.
Falk has been the offensive focal point early on, improving on her career high in points nearly every game. She dropped a new career-high 20 points in the loss against Long Beach State on Sunday.
The latter of the duo, Versteeg, is the lowest-scoring of the top guards but adds over five assists a night. Her impact as the team’s main distributor can’t be understated; she is the engine behind the Hornet offense.
Versteeg’s court vision opens up looks for her teammates, especially the other guards.
Common beneficiaries of Versteeg’s selfless play are redshirt freshman guard Sofia Alonso and redshirt sophomore guard Madison Butcher. Both Alonso and Butcher have been top options off the bench for Sac State head coach Aaron Kallhoff.
Alonso and Butcher provide relief on the offensive end, stretching the floor with their 3-point shot. Alonso is averaging 11.6 points per game, while knocking down 38% of her attempts from deep. Butcher adds in 8.3 points on 44% from three.
Coming off a season-ending injury in 2023-2024, Alonso has brought an array of strengths aside from 3-point shooting. She is second in assists only to Versteeg with 22 and has racked up 12 steals, the most on the team.
Five of Alonso’s team-leading steals came in the team’s stout defensive performance against Cal State Fullerton on Nov. 14, where they held the Titans to 40 points, the lowest for an opponent since 2011.
Worrisome whistle
Discipline has been an issue so far this season with the Hornets picking up at least 20 fouls in each of their first five games.
Sac State’s starting five, notably senior forward Jaydia Martin, have struggled to stay on the floor due to picking up quick fouls. Martin and junior forward Fatoumata Jaiteh lead the team in total fouls at 18 each.
Martin’s nights have been cut short twice after fouling out against UC San Diego and Fullerton. She was sent to the bench after playing a total of three minutes in the first half against Long Beach.
As a collective group, the starting five have racked up personal fouls and accounted for four or more fouls per player eight times over their 4-1 start.
This pattern is creating a large free throw discrepancy, sending opponents to the line for a staggering 21 attempts more than the Hornets. Opponents have frequently visited the line, attempting more free throws than the Hornets in four of five games.
Despite having fewer free throw attempts, the Hornets are deadeyes at the line, knocking them down at a 79% clip compared to opponents’ 72%. Alonso is impressively perfect from the stripe, sinking all 18 of her free throw attempts this season.
This week’s hot hand
While it’s hard to choose just one outstanding performer this week, the nod has to go to Alonso.
Alonso flashed her talent on the offensive side of the ball all season but took it to the next level over Sac State’s two games this week, dropping 13 points against Fullerton and 17 against Long Beach.
On the road in Fullerton, Alonso was an efficient shooter and was tied for a game-high 13 points. Shooting 75% from three, the guard’s showcase helped Sac State close out Fullerton with eight third-quarter points.
Knocking down shots at a high clip wasn’t the only skill set Alonso flashed in Fullerton; she managed to swipe away a season-high five steals in a dominant defensive performance.
In Sunday’s matchup against Long Beach, the guard struggled to get going in the first half, piling up five turnovers, but flipped the switch in the second half.
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Alonso’s 17 points on 6-of-13 shooting ranked her as the team’s second-leading scorer in a tough game with Long Beach.
She took the reins of the offense when starting guard Versteeg was forced to the bench. As the current lead passer Versteeg remained on the bench, Alonso took advantage of Long Beach’s defense and dished out five assists after starting to receive double teams.
A look ahead
Sac State only has one game this week, taking on the UC Davis Aggies on Wednesday at 6 p.m.
Davis is on a 3-game losing skid, kicking off their 2024-25 campaign with a 1-3 record. During their losing streak, the Aggies have scored over 60 points once.
The Aggies were predicted to finish third in the Big West Conference preseason poll but currently sit in seventh place.
The Aggies are struggling to protect the ball as of late, averaging 20 turnovers per game over their losing streak. Sac State has also had the turnover bug in their last four matchups, giving it away 20 times per game.
Winning the turnover battle against Davis will be key for the Hornets to achieve a 5-1 record.
