Men's Basketball

Second ESPN Big West Men's Basketball Wildcard Selection Revealed

UC Santa Barbara hosts league-leading UC Irvine at the Thunderdome in the second game of the ESPN’s Big West Wildcard Selection on Feb. 7. It will be the first meeting this season between the Anteaters and Gauchos. Tip-off is scheduled for 7 p.m. PT on ESPNU.

UC Irvine (14-7, 7-2 BW) is currently tied for first in The Big West standings at the halfway point of the conference season, while UC Santa Barbara (13-7, 6-3 BW) is the hottest team in the league, riding a four-game win streak and sitting in third place. Dave Feldman (play-by-play) and Corey Williams (analyst) will be on the call from Santa Barbara.

Both teams have been in the upper echelon of the conference in the last handful of seasons, with UC Irvine having four regular-season titles and three runner-up finishes since 2017. Meanwhile, UC Santa Barbara has finished at the top in the regular-season standings twice and runner-up thrice during the same span. The two have combined to claim three of the last six Big West postseason titles as well.

The Anteaters, currently ranked No. 21 in the latest College Insider Mid-Major Madness Top 25 released on Jan. 26, are one of the top defensive teams in the nation. Nationally, UC Irvine ranks third in field goal percentage defense (.375 Opp FG%), sixth in blocks per game (6.1 BPG), and 10th in defensive rebounds per game (28.8 DRPG). Senior forward Kyle Evans is The Big West and nation’s leader in blocks with 67 total on the season, for an average of 3.2 per game. Evans also contributes 11.9 points, on a conference second-best 63.2 percent shooting, with 8.4 rebounds per outing, the second-most in the league. Sophomore guard Jurian Dixon, the reigning Big West Freshman of the Year, leads UC Irvine in scoring with a league fifth-best 15.6 points per contest. Junior guard Derin Saran pitches in 11.9 points, 5.7 rebounds and 3.9 assists per outing.

The Gauchos run one of the most efficient offenses, leading The Big West in effective field goal percentage (.567), field goal percentage (.486), 3-point percentage (.391) and free throw percentage (.760). Nationally those numbers rank 27th, 40th, 11th and 57th, respectively. Five Gauchos average double figures in the scoring department, with senior guard Aidan Mahaney, an All-Big West Preseason Team selection, leading the way with 14.8 points per game. Redshirt junior forward Colin Smith (11.1 PPG), junior guard Miro Little (11.8 PPG, 4.9 RPG, 4.6 APG), freshman guard CJ Shaw (11.3 PPG, .573 FG%) and sophomore guard Zion Sensley (10.8 PPG, 7.1 RPG) are all major contributors. The Gauchos are receiving votes in the latest College Insider Mid-Major Madness rankings.

Historically, UCI holds an 11-9 advantage in the last 20 meetings between the two squads, with the Anteaters on a five-game winning streak against the Gauchos. In last year’s contests, UCI needed a buzzer-beater from Devin Tillis to claim a two-point win in Irvine, and the Anteaters erased a 13-point halftime deficit at the Thunderdome to escape with the victory on the final day of the regular season.

There are three more regular-season Big West games slated to appear on ESPN2 or ESPNU, which will be selected through a “wildcard” format. Pairings are determined and announced at least 10 days prior to each contest. Three more Saturdays heading down the home stretch of the season will see a nationally televised Big West broadcast, culminating with a regular-season finale contest: Feb. 21 at 3 p.m. on ESPNU; Feb. 28 at 7:30 p.m. on ESPN2; March 7 at 5 p.m. on ESPNU.

More on this season’s The Big West’s robust national basketball broadcast slate across The Big West can be viewed here.

ESPN Networks will also broadcast both Big West men’s semifinal matchups at the 2026 Credit Union 1 Big West Men’s Basketball Championship on Friday, March 13 and the championship game on Saturday, March 14. For additional championship information, please visit BigWest.org/2026.

Along with these eight contests on the linear ESPN Networks, all additional Big West men’s and women’s basketball games throughout the 2025-26 regular season and Big West Championships are slated to air digitally to subscribers on ESPN+. To sign up, please visit espn.com/watch. Hawai’i home games will also air locally on Spectrum Sports.