This week's men's basketball schedule includes games in frigid locales such as South Dakota, Montana and Wisconsin, while a key matchup in the Golden State features Utah State visiting Long Beach State's Walter Pyramid.
NOTEWORTHY
Keep An Eye On
Demetrece Young, Pacific
Young took over the starting point guard reins on Dec. 1 at Fresno State and the Tigers have responded with wins against the Bulldogs, as well as Nevada and Sacramento State with him in that role. In his four starts, Young is averaging 11.0 points and 3.3 assists while shooting 50.0% (11 of 22) from three-point range. He made just two three-pointers in his first five contests as a reserve. Young has an outstanding assist to turnover ratio with 25 assists against just seven turnovers on the year.
MORE NOTABLES
Big West Stellar On Home Courts
Big West schools own a superb 25-6 combined record in home games this season. The home court success contributes heavily to the league’s overall 39-33 non-conference record at the mid-point of December. Six teams are unbeaten on their home court, led by UC Riverside’s 4-0 mark. Cal State Fullerton and UC Irvine are 3-0 on their respective home floors.
Road Triumphs A Different Story
Non-conference road success is not as easy to come by. Big West teams are a cumulative 9-21 in true road games while posting a 5-6 record on neutral courts. Revealed within the league’s combined road and neutral court record of 14-27 are a conference-high two road wins apiece from Long Beach State and Pacific. Only two schools - UC Santa Barbara and Pacific - have played more home than road or neutral games to this point. And judging from this week’s schedule - seven road games to just four home games - the onus will be on Big West schools to win those challenging road contests.
Former Conference Foes To Battle
Preseason Big West favorite Long Beach State hosts former conference member Utah State in a key non-conference matchup on Friday at the Walter Pyramid. The 49ers, which have played one of the nation’s toughest non-conference schedules with games against No. 8 West Virginia, No. 19 Clemson and No. 2 Texas, now get the preseason favorite to win the Western Athletic Conference in Utah State. USU has won the last eight meetings against LBSU, including a 68-52 final on Feb. 24, 2005 in Logan, Utah. The Aggies exited the Big West following the 2004-05 season.
Frigidity Factor
Stepping off a plane and into the winter wonderland of such places as South Dakota, Wisconsin and Montana can be quite challenging for those adjusted to the warmer climes of California. But thankfully the games are played indoors and not on ice or in a snowstorm. This week’s non-conference schedule includes jaunts by Cal Poly to play at South Dakota State and Wisconsin on back-to-back nights, as well as UC Santa Barbara’s trip to Montana State and UC Riverside’s trek to Montana. UC Irvine will need to bundle up as well when it travels to Seattle University for a Tuesday matchup, although that locale might be considered balmy compared to the others. These were the temperatures as of Monday afternoon:
Destination Temp Big West Visitor
Brookings, South Dakota 2 Cal Poly
Madison, Wisconsin 28 Cal Poly
Seattle, Washington 41 UC Irvine
Bozeman, Montana 7 UC Santa Barbara
Missoula, Montana 26 UC Riverside
Powell On Cusp Of 1,000 Point Mark
UC Santa Barbara senior James Powell is nearing the 1,000 point career mark, needing 19 points to become the 23rd Gaucho to achieve the milestone. He will be plenty rested as the Gauchos will have had a 13-day layoff before taking the floor on Friday at Montana State. Powell has had two 20-point performances in his last three outings.
Westernly Wins
The Big West is on a roll against some of its primary competition on the west coast - namely opponents from the West Coast and Western Athletic Conferences. Against those two leagues, the Big West is a combined 15-4 with at least nine more matchups on tap in the remainder of non-conference play. The Big West has an opportunity to pick up four more wins this week. Long Beach State and UC Irvine host Utah State and San Jose State of the WAC, respectively. Meanwhile, Pacific travels to the WCC’s Saint Mary’s and UC Davis visits the WAC’s Fresno State.
Hunter Chasing 1,000 Point Mark
UC Irvine senior guard Michael Hunter is on the prowl to reach the 1,000-point career plateau. He enters the week with 976 career points and could become the 19th UCI player to achieve the milestone when the Anteaters play Seattle University on Tuesday.
Donahue Making Impact In First Season At Cal Poly
Sophomore Will Donahue is providing key contributions in his first campaign with the Cal Poly program. A junior college transfer, Donahue has scored in double figures in six straight games, including a season-high 17 points against Pepperdine on Dec. 5. The 6-8 center also posted double-digit rebounds against Stanford, Arkansas-Little Rock and Seattle University to capture the first three double-doubles of his career. Donahue is the Big West’s field goal percentage leader at 66.7% (32 of 48), while ranking No. 2 in rebounding (8.6 rpg) and No. 15 in scoring (11.7 ppg).
Payne Trying To Fill Void
UC Davis has been hampered by the loss of third-leading scorer Joe Harden (15.0 ppg) to an ankle injury. Harden, who also is tied for sixth in the Big West in scoring, is expected to be sidelined until at least late December. Junior Mark Payne, a preseason all-conference selection by the media, is attempting to fill the scoring void. Payne has strung together three straight 20-point efforts and leads the Big West with four 20-point performances this season. He has reached double figures in scoring in all nine games for the Aggies. His 17.8 points per game also leads the conference.
Daniel Impressing For The 'Dors
Junior Lenny Daniel is excelling in his first season with Cal State Northridge - especially so in the last five games. Over that span, Daniel is averaging 14.6 points and 10.0 rebounds in addition to shooting 52.0% (26 of 50) from the field. The 6-7 forward notched his second double-double of the season with 14 points and 13 rebounds against Denver in the Matadors’ last outing. Daniel’s 7.3 boards per game is good for fifth-best in the Big West.
Wooldridge’s Contract Extended Through 2013-14
UC Riverside rewarded head coach Jim Wooldridge with a one-year contract extension through the 2013-14 season last week in response to Wooldridge’s successful rebuilding effort. After an initial 9-21 campaign in 2007-08, Wooldridge turned around the Highlanders in his second year. UCR posted a Division I program record for wins (17), Big West wins (8) and conference finish (t-4th). UCR has had a solid start to the 2009-10 season as well with a 5-3 record, including a five-game winning streak that was just snapped at Northern Arizona on Sunday.
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