2022-23 Big West Men's Basketball Schedule | Standings | Stats | Week 8 Notes (.pdf)
What 2 Watch 4
Conference play in The Big West begins this week, highlighted by a trio of televised games.
On Thursday, Cal State Fullerton hosts UC Santa Barbara at 6 p.m. on ESPN U. Two games back-to-back will be featured Saturday on Spectrum SportsNet as CSU Bakersfield welcomes UC Irvine at 1 p.m., followed by UC Riverside at Long Beach State tipping off at 3 p.m.
One game on Thursday to watch, aside from the nationally-televised ESPN U game, is UC Davis (7-5) at Hawai’i (9-3). The Rainbow Warriors are hot, coming in with a four-game win streak, but will have their hand full trying to stop Elijah Pepper, the second-leading scorer in the conference, 24th in the nation, averaging 19.7 points per game.
Gauchos at Titans on ESPN U
Defending Big West champion Cal State Fullerton hosts preseason favorite UC Santa Barbara in the first ESPN national television wildcard selection of the 2022-23 season on Thursday at 6 p.m. PT. The broadcast is set to air on ESPN U with Eric Rothman providing play-by-play commentary and Richie Scheuler on the call as the analyst for the game.
Cal State Fullerton (6-6) had a bumpy non-conference slate that included a pair of double overtime wins. Latrell Wrightsell Jr. averages 15.5 points per game to pace the Titans.
UC Santa Barbara (9-2) come in as winners of five straight games. The Gauchos have excelled during non-conference play, going a perfect 5-0 at home and 2-0 at neutral sites. Ajay Mitchell leads the Gauchos averaging 15.4 points and 4.6 assists per contest.
The Big West on Spectrum SportsNet
The first date of Big West men’s basketball broadcasts on Spectrum SportsNet starts this week and will feature two contests back-to-back on Saturday, starting with CSU Bakersfield hosting UC Irvine at 1 p.m. PT.
The Roadrunners (4-7) have shown their defensive prowess, ranking 15th in the nation in scoring defense, holding opponents to an average of 59.1 points per game, and 22nd in field goal percentage defense at 38.3 percent. The Anteaters (7-5) are the 11th best 3-point shooting team in the NCAA at 40.3 percent.
UC Riverside (7-5) at Long Beach State (6-6) will be the second game on the network at 3 p.m. PT. The matchup will feature two of the top guards in the conference with Joel Murray (15.2 PPG, 3.8 RPG, 4.0 APG) propelling the Beach and Zyon Pullin (20.3 PPG, 4.6 RPG, 3.8 APG) leading the Highlanders.
Weekly Recap
The Big West concluded non-conference play with authority, highlighted by Hawai’i winning the Diamond Head Classic. The Rainbow Warriors defeated Pepperdine 76-70 in the quarterfinals and dominated Washington State in the second half for a 62-51 win in the semifinals. JoVon McClanahan hit a buzzer-beating 3-pointer as Hawai’i defeated SMU 58-57 in the title game. It is the first time in program history that Hawai’i has won the Diamond Head Classic. McClanahan was named the tournament MVP averaging 12.7 points, 3.3 rebounds and 2.3 assists per game.
UC Santa Barbara took care of Appalachian State 61-50 in the Jerry Colangelo Classic, held at the Footprint Center, home of the NBA’s Phoenix Suns. Ajay Mitchell tallied 22 points, six rebounds and four assists, while Miles Norris recorded a double-double with 17 points and 10 rebounds, leading the Gaucho to their fifth straight win.
CSUN enjoyed its first win against a Division I opponent this season with a 83-78 triumph over San Diego. Atin Wright completely took over the game, amassing a career-high 31 points, going 8-of-13 from the field, 5-for-8 from behind the arc and 10-for-10 from the charity stripe.
UC Riverside routed Portland 76-65 in its final non-conference tune-up. Zyon Pullin amassed 19 points, six rebounds and six assists, while Lachlan Olbrich pitched in 17 points and seven boards, and Luke Turner went 5-for-5 from deep for 15 points.
Cal State Fullerton capped of its non-conference slate with a 59-49 home win against Sacramento State. Jalen Harris scored 19 points and dished out four assists to pace the Titans.
Long Beach State had four score in double figures to defeat Idaho 82-75 to head into league play with momentum. Joel Murray compiled 21 points, five rebounds and four assists, and Marcus Tsohonis added 18 points. Lassina Traore collected his fifth double-double of the season with 10 points and 14 rebounds.
Traore(s) Breaking Boards
Long Beach State forwards Lassina Traore and Aboubacar Traore control the paint for the Beach and are the top two rebounders in The Big West averaging 8.9 and 8.7 boards per game, respectively. Lassina is 21st nationally in double-doubles with five, while Aboubacar is right behind with four. Aboubacar’s 3.58 offensive rebounds per game ranks 15th in the NCAA. Although they are not related, the pair grew up together in Abidjan, Ivory Coast and attended LABASE Academy in their home country where they played basketball with and against each other.
Anteaters From Deep
One of the reasons for UC Irvine’s success so far can be attributed to hot shooting from deep. The Anteaters are 11th in the nation in three-point percentage at 40.3 percent (93-of-231). UC Irvine has four players shooting above 40 percent from behind the arc with DJ Davis at 44.3 percent (31-of-70), Justin Hohn at 43.9 percent (18-of-41), Devin Tillis at 40 percent (10-of-25), JC Butler at 56.3 percent (9-of-16). Dawson Baker is third on the team in 3-pointers made, going 14-of-41 for 34.1 percent.
Pullin Away
UC Riverside’s Zyon Pullin eclipsed the 1,000 career-point milestone with a career-high 30-point effort at home against San Diego. The senior recorded 20+ points six times this season.
Pullin averaged 22.3 points, 4.7 rebounds, 3.3 assists and 1.0 steals in three wins at the Vegas 4 Tournament, Nov. 21-23, leading the Highlanders to the title. The UCR guard claimed both the Lou Henson and CollegeInsider.com Player of the Week awards on Nov. 28 for the performance.
Murray's Flurry
Long Beach State senior guard Joel Murray is currently third in active career points in the NCAA (all divisions) with 2,349 points. Murray compiled 1,616 points during his three seasons at Division II powerhouse West Texas A&M, before transferring to Long Beach State last season. Murray has 733 points representing the Beach.
Red Hot Chili Pepper
UC Davis guard Elijah Pepper eclipsed the milestone of 1,000 career points with a 17-point performance at Milwaukee on Nov. 26.
Pepper is currently second in The Big West, 24th nationally, in scoring at 19.7 points per game. The junior has logged five games scoring 20+ points, including a season- and career-high 32 against Loyola Marymount.
1K Club Watch
The Cal Poly duo of Alimamy Koroma (944) and Chance Hunter (958), are on the verge of hitting the milestone of 1,000 career points and are projected to break the mark with their current trajectory.
The Big West has four individuals who have eclipsed 1,000 career points in Long Beach State’s Joel Murray (2,328), UC Davis’ Elijah Pepper (1,122), UC Santa Barbara’s Andre Kelly (1,116) and UC Riverside’s Zyon Pullin (1,025).
Thanksgiving Feast
The Big West feasted on its competition during Thanksgiving week as four teams won MTEs (multiple-team events).
UC Riverside won the Vegas 4 Tournament with victories over Weber State (72-65), Wright State (70-65) and Abilene Christian (76-65). Flynn Cameron averaged 20.3 points, 7.3 rebounds, 3.0 assists and 1.7 steals per game, and Zyon Pullin recorded 22.3 points, 4.7 rebounds, 3.3 assists and 1.0 steals per contest to lead the Highlanders. The tournament was held at the Dollar Loan Center, site of The Big West Men’s and Women’s Basketball Championships.
Hawai’i went 2-0 to take the North Shore Classic, technically a neutral site tournament 30 minutes away from its campus. The Rainbow Warriors took down Sacramento State 74-61 and Texas State 72-65. Noel Coleman averaged 20.5 points in the two contests to lead Hawai’i to the title and was named the tournament MVP.
UC Santa Barbara hosted and won its own MTE, the Santa Barbara Beach Classic. The Gauchos defeated Hampton 79-66 and North Alabama 89-71. Ajay Mitchell and Andre Kelly logged 17.0 and 14.0 points per game, respectively. Miles Norris recorded 9.0 points and 11.0 rebounds per game.
UC Irvine dominated the Las Vegas Holiday Classic to claim the title with two wins. The Anteaters rocked Nicholls 83-56 and took out New Mexico State 85-68. DJ Davis tallied 21.5 points per game to be named the tournament MVP. Pierre Crockrell II made the all-tournament team dishing out 7.0 assists per game.
Also on Thanksgiving week, UC San Diego got two road wins at George Washington (75-70) and Eastern Michigan (66-63). Bryce Pope scored a career-high 31 points against the Colonials and 20 points against the Eagles.
Aggies Take Causeway Rivalry
UC Davis defeated Sacramento State 82-71 inside the Golden 1 Center, the home of NBA’s Sacramento Kings, on Nov. 21 in a battle between locals at the ends of the Yolo Causeway. Elijah Pepper and Christian Anigwe put away 24 and 22 points, respectively, to lead the Aggies to victory.
Roasted Duck
On Nov. 11, UC Irvine defeated then-No. 21 Oregon 69-56 in Eugene, backed by a 24-point, six 3-pointers made night from DJ Davis. The Anteaters forced 15 turnovers and held the Ducks to a mere 32.7 percent shooting, 19 percent from 3-point range. UC Irvine was selected as Andy Katz’s Team of the Week for the performance and Davis was named The Big West Player of the Week.
Time Change for Championship Games
ESPN has updated the game times for the men’s basketball championship game of the 2023 Big West Championships, presented by The Hawaiian Islands, in Henderson, Nev.
The men’s championship game will be played at 6:30 p.m. PT on ESPN2. With this adjustment, the women’s championship game will open the day at The Dollar Loan Center at 3 p.m. PT on March 11 and will be broadcast nationally on ESPN+. |
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