LOS ANGELES (Interstat) — Two Big West women’s basketball teams seeking to halt late-season slides will meet Thursday when Cal State Bakersfield visits Cal State Northridge at the Matadome.

The Matadors (9-18 overall) have lost three straight, most recently a 70-61 home defeat to UC Riverside on Saturday. The Roadrunners (7-21) have dropped five consecutive games, including a 72-62 overtime loss at Long Beach State on Feb. 28.

Cal State Northridge won the season’s first meeting 59-57 at Bakersfield on Dec. 4, 2025.

A key matchup will feature each team’s top performer. Northridge relies on forward Jite Gbemuotor, who is coming off a 19-point effort against UC Riverside and has been a consistent force. She posted a double-double of 16 points and 10 rebounds in a win over Long Beach State on Feb. 21.

Bakersfield counters with guard Morgan Hawkins, who logged 45 minutes and scored 16 points with five assists in the overtime loss to Long Beach State. Hawkins will need to catalyze an offense that has struggled to find consistent scoring outside of Tianna Sutherland, who had 19 points in that same game.

Both teams have found victories hard to secure in conference play, making this a critical opportunity to build momentum before their regular-season finales on Saturday. Northridge will look to protect its home court, where it last won on Feb. 21. Bakersfield aims to break a skid defined by narrow defeats, including three losses by five points or fewer during their current five-game streak.

Tipoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. PST Thursday at the Matadome.