Two more wildcard selections have been made by ESPN, with Hawai’i set to host UC Santa Barbara on Saturday, Feb. 21 at 7 p.m. PT/5 p.m. HT on ESPNU as part of AC Carter Night at Bankoh Arena at Stan Sheriff Center. Additionally, the Gauchos will head to UC Irvine on Saturday, Feb. 28 for a 7:30 p.m. PT tip from The Bren Events Center on ESPN2 as the top three teams in The Big West are showcased nationally in consecutive weekends to close out the month. 

The Rainbow Warriors (17-5, 9-3 BW) currently sit in a tie at the top of the league standings with UCI. UC Santa Barbara (16-8, 9-4 BW) is just a half a game back in third place. Hawai’i, winners of four of the last five and 10 straight home contests, just took down defending champion UC San Diego last night on O’ahu, 72-67. The Rainbow Warriors were ranked 12th in the last College Insider Mid-Major Madness Top 25. 

Hawai’i boasts four double-digit scorers on offense, paced by 13.5 points per game for senior center and Utah State transfer Isaac Johnson. The 7-foot-0 big man is also averaging 5.9 rebounds and 1.0 blocks per game in 21.1 minutes on the court. Getting to the free throw line 94 times on the year, Johnson connects on a team-high 86.2 percent clip. The offense is bolstered by Dre Bullock (12.6 PPG, 5.8 RPG, 2.1 APG), Harry Rouhliadeff (11.0 PPG, 4.7 RPG, 1.5 APG) and Gytis Nemelksa (10.5 PPG, 5.5 RPG, 1.0 APG) as the four account for nearly 60 percent of the ’Bows’ scoring. UH leads The Big West in a diverse set of statistical categories, including free throws made per game (18.3), rebound margin (7.1), three-point percentage defense (27.4), scoring defense (66.8), scoring margin (13.5). The arc guarding prowess currently ranks fifth in NCAA Division I.  

The Gauchos run one of the most efficient offenses in The Big West, leading the league in effective field goal percentage (.563), field goal percentage (.483) and three-point percentage (.382). The mark from distance ranks 18th nationally, setting up a must-watch dynamic from the perimeter against UH. 

Five Gauchos average double figures in the scoring department, with senior guard Aidan Mahaney leading the way with 14.6 points per game to go along with 2.8 assists and 2.0 rebounds a night. Junior guard Miro Little (12.0 PPG, 5.2 RPG, 4.5 APG, 1.5 SPG), redshirt junior forward Colin Smith (11.5 PPG, 3.8 RPG, 1.4 APG) freshman guard CJ Shaw (11.9 PPG, .570 FG%) and sophomore guard Zion Sensley (10.8 PPG, 7.5 RPG) are all major contributors. The Gauchos were 24th in last week's College Insider Mid-Major Madness rankings. 

UCSB has won the last eight in the all-time series against UH, starting the streak on March 3, 2022. In the last meeting between the two, the Gauchos got off to a hot start at home on Jan. 17 to build a 19-point halftime advantage before going on to win 77-62. Five UCSB players finished the contest in double figures, with Mahaney’s 17 leading all scorers while Rouhliadeff and Isaiah Kerr each contributed a baker’s dozen for the ’Bows.  

Fresh off an exciting Wildcard Saturday night that saw UCSB and UCI battle at The Thunderdome on ESPNU, with the Gauchos posting an 84-79 win to knock off the Anteaters to edge within a half a game of The Big West co-leaders Hawai’i and UCI.  

All five UCSB starters finished the night with double figure scoring accounting for all but nine points of the Gauchos’ offensive production as the team shot 51 percent from the field. Mahaney’s 21 paced the scoring in the victorious effort with UC Irvine’s Andre Henry finishing with a team-high 18 points off the bench.  

The Anteaters, who entered the weekend ranked No. 13 in the Feb. 2 edition of the College Insider Mid-Major Madness Top 25, are one of the top defensive teams in the nation. Nationally, UC Irvine ranks third in blocks per game (6.1), fourth in field goal percentage defense (37.8) and eighth in defensive rebounds per game (28.71). Senior forward Kyle Evans is The Big West and nation’s leader in blocks with 81 total on the season, for an average of 3.38 per game. Evans also contributes 12.1 points and 8.4 rebounds per outing. Sophomore guard Jurian Dixon, the reigning Big West Freshman of the Year, leads UC Irvine in scoring (15.4 PPG, 3.4 RPG, 2.1 APG) with unior guard Derin Saran (11.2 PPG, 5.5 RPG, 3.6 APG) rounding out the double-digit contributors.  

UCSB’s Saturday night win halted a five-game streak for UCI in the all-time series. The Anteaters hold a 6-4 advantage in the last 10 meetings and a 14-6 mark in the last 20, dating back to the 2016-17 season. 

There is one final Big West game which will be selected through a “wildcard” format this season. Sure to have seeding and standings implications heading into The Big West Championship, a regular-season finale on March 7 at 5 p.m. on ESPNU will round out the five wildcard contests. Pairings are determined and announced at least 10 days prior to each contest. 

ESPN Networks is airing every game of the 2026 Credit Union 1 Big West Basketball Championships, including three linear men’s basketball matchups. Both Big West men’s semifinal matchups on Friday, March 13 and the championship game on Saturday, March 14 will be televised, with additional broadcast information set to be announced at a later date. 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.