SAN DIEGO – With the calendar officially flipped to November, the San Diego women's basketball program is excited to begin the 2025-26 season this week with a trio of games to start their new journey.
Under first year head coach Blanche Alverson, the Toreros are beginning a new era with a revamped roster that features seven new faces and eight returners.
USD will begin the new campaign at home as they will take on Bethesda on Monday, November 3 at 6:00 p.m. at the Jenny Craig Pavilion. The Toreros will then look forward to their first two road contests as they will stay in Southern California to face UC Irvine on Wednesday, November 5 at 11:00 a.m., and will wrap up opening week by facing CSUN on Saturday, November 8 at 2:00 p.m.
LAST TIME OUT
- San Diego closed out their 2024-25 season with a 7-24 overall record as they advanced to the second round of the West Coast Conference tournament after besting fellow Southern California institution Pepperdine in the opening round before ultimately coming up short against Pacific.
OPPONENT HISTORY
- Monday evening's season opener against Bethesda will be the first ever matchup between the Toreros and the Lion Angels who compete in the National Christian Collegiate Athletic Association, as part of the NAIA.
- Wednesday morning on the road will be the 32nd all-time matchup between the Toreros and Anteaters, as San Diego leads the head-to-head series 19-12 and have won the last five games between the two schools. The two sides last faced off during the 2023-24 postseason as USD earned a 58-48 victory to advance to the Sweet Sixteen of the WNIT.
- Saturday's game in Northridge will serve as the 25th all-time matchup between the schools. It's been a one-sided affair in San Diego's favor with a 20-4 record against the Matadors, including 13 consecutive victories for the Toreros. Both teams faced off a season ago in the JCP, where San Diego put together a complete team performance to earn 74-52 victory last December.
WHAT TO WATCH FOR
- Dresha Moore and Hallie Rhodes return as key starters from a season ago with experience competing in the West Coast Conference. After entering the team's starting lineup during conference play, Moore showed great promise playing key minutes and averaging 6.1 PPG and 5.2 rebounds in her debut season.
- USD transfers Helen Holley and Kylie Ray join San Diego after spending their freshmen seasons with Power Four programs as they look to be key contributors for San Diego in 2025-26.
- Malia Tharpe begins her junior season as a Torero after playing in 27 games last year and averaging three points per game. Sophomores Erica Carr and Eva Ruse are back after season-ending injuries kept them out of the stretch run of conference play as they look to play pivotal roles in USD's front court.
- Five freshmen join the Torero family this season as: Jessica Ajayi, Ryanne Bahnsen-Price, Olivia Owens, Ysabella Von Seipler and Ayla Williams are set to compete at the collegiate level and introduce themselves to USD fans in year one.
TORERO TIDBITS
- The Toreros have won their last four season openers dating back to the 2021-22 season.
- Monday evening's game at the Jenny Craig Pavilion will be one of three home games the Toreros will play during the month of November as they will host Arizona State (November 13) and New Mexico State (November 24) later this month.
- Alverson joins the Torero program after successful assistant coaching stops at Georgia Tech, USC and New Mexico State following her stellar playing career at Auburn. She will be the fourth ever head coach in USD women's basketball program history.
HOW TO FOLLOW
All three of USD's games this week will be streamed on ESPN+, live video, live statistics and tickets links to Monday's season opener can all be found via the team's schedule page. To stay up to date with San Diego women's basketball, please follow the team on Instagram and Twitter/X by searching "USDWBB".
