Which local team will be the one to stop the Gauchos?
Last season, the UC Irvine men’s basketball team won the Big West Conference regular-season championship, but when the conference tournament came around, UC Santa Barbara defeated Cal State Fullerton in the final to dance its way to the NCAA Tournament.
The 2023-24 season gets underway as soon as Monday for some teams and the Gauchos are the preseason favorite, followed closely by a veteran Long Beach State squad, based on voting by the Big West’s 11 head coaches.
Here’s a look at the five local teams, in alphabetical order:
Coach: Dedrique Taylor, 11th season
Last season: 20-13, 12-6 conference
Who’s back: Fullerton believes Max Jones is ready to take his game to another level after a solid first season with the Titans. The 6-foot-4 guard, who played two seasons at Tampa before coming to Fullerton, averaged 12.5 points per game last season, the third most on the team. He seemed to grow more comfortable and confident as the season unfolded, averaging 16.3 points over the final 11 games to help the Titans reach the Big West Tournament title game. Tory San Antonio also returns to the backcourt for his senior season. The reigning Big West Defensive Player of the Year also played his best during the postseason, averaging 14.3 points in three tournament games, nearly double his season average. Vincent Lee, Grayson Carper and John Mikey Square also played valuable roles last season.
Who’s gone: The Titans also saw their best player from last season depart for Alabama. Latrell Wrightsell Jr. led Fullerton in scoring (16.3), assists (2.4) and steals (1.5) and earned first-team all-conference honors. He wasn’t the only Titan to enter the transfer portal. Daeshawn Eaton (Cal State East Bay), Victor Panov (Le Moyne), Jayden White (Cal State San Marcos) and Lathaniel Bastian (UT Permian Basin) also decided to take their skills elsewhere, but none had remotely the impact of Wrightsell.
Who’s new: The Titans brought in a number of players from smaller programs and it will be interesting to see if they can replicate their success. Jalen Cooper spent the past three seasons at Palm Beach Atlantic, where the 6-6 power forward averaged team highs in points (17.4) and rebounds (8.7) last season. He also broke the single-season program record for total rebounds (234). Beril Kabamba, a 6-5 forward, averaged 28.6 points and 8.7 rebounds last season at Spring Hill College in Mobile, Alabama. Donovan Oday spent last season playing sparingly at McNeese State, while fellow guard DJ Brewton averaged 12 points last season at Alcorn State, earning All-Southwestern Athletic Conference first-team honors. Up front, the Titans welcome 6-9, 280-pound Zachary Visentin, who played two seasons at Idaho State before averaging 11.5 points and 6.6 rebounds for Snow College last season.
Coach’s quote: “Our chemistry will be really important, but I think the work that this group has been able to accomplish by working together will carry us a long way. But then also understanding how we need to win, how their work and how their skillset plays into those things.” — Dedrique Taylor
Coach: Andy Newman, first season
Last season: 7-25, 4-16 conference
Who’s back: The Matadors have just four returning players, but three were major contributors. Dionte Bostick was second on the team in scoring at 12.4 points per game and led in assists (2.7). He missed the final 10 games with an injury, so it’s been a long offseason. De’Sean Allen-Eikens was the only player for the Matadors to start all 32 games last season. The 6-6 wing averaged 11.1 points and five rebounds. Dearon Tucker is also back after the 6-10 forward averaged 5.2 points and 3.6 rebounds. Tucker, who began his collegiate career at Oregon State, started 16 of the final 17 games.
Who’s gone: The Matadors lost seven players to the transfer portal, most notably shooting guard Atin Wright, who departed for Drake after averaging 16.7 ppg last season, fourth in the Big West. CSUN also said goodbye to Christopher Carter (Kansas), Fidelis Okereke (Cal State Bakersfield), Adam Afifi (Chico State), Cam Slaymaker (Southern Nazarene), Johnnie Walter (Penn) and Marcel Stevens (Saint Martin’s). Among the players who wrapped up their eligibility, Ethan Igbanugo will be missed the most after averaging 6.1 points, fourth on the team.
Who’s new: While the biggest newcomer might be Newman after four successful seasons at Division II Cal State San Bernardino where he went 91-30 overall, the Matadors list 11 new players on the roster. Three are incoming freshmen and eight arrived via the transfer portal. Jordan Brinson was the Daily Breeze Player of the Year at Westchester High in 2018-19 before playing one season each at UAB, Utah Valley, Salt Lake Community College and last season at Fresno State, where he appeared in three games. Brinson will be reunited with former high school backcourt mate Jared Barnett, who played sparingly the past four seasons at San Diego State, culminating with a trip to the NCAA championship game last season. Gianni Hunt, a 6-4 guard, spent three seasons at Oregon State before averaging 6.9 points and 3.3 assists at Sacramento State last season. Hunt averaged 24.2 minutes a game with the Beavers during the 2021-22 season. A handful of other newcomers are taking a step up after starring for smaller programs. Keonte Jones earned All-Western Junior College Athletic Conference honors at Midland College last season after averaging 17 points and 6.5 rebounds while shooting 53.9% from the field. Mahmoud Fofana, a 6-6 forward, averaged 8.4 points, 6.1 rebounds and shot 65.2% from the field at Cal State San Bernardino, helping the team to a program-record 31 wins, a CCAA title and an NCAA Division II Final Four appearance in his only season there.
Coach’s quote: “I’m really excited about bringing these student-athletes home and giving them a chance to play in front of friends and family here in the Valley. There’s so much interest in basketball here, hopefully we can build a program that local talent will want to be a part of in the future.” — Andy Newman
Coach: Dan Monson, 17th season
Last season: 17-16, 11-9 conference
Who’s back: LBSU returns five of its top six players and 11 in all, led by 6-10 forward Lassina Traore, who was the Big West Newcomer of the Year last season after averaging 12.9 points and 10.5 rebounds. He posted 17 double-doubles and ranked fifth in the nation in rebounding. Aboubacar Traore, a fellow Ivory Coast native who lured Lassina Traore from Saint Louis before last season, was a Big West Honorable Mention selection for the second consecutive year after averaging 10.1 points and 8.8 rebounds. Marcus Tsohonis had a 46-point game for Long Beach last season before finishing with a 14.1 scoring average, the second-best mark on the team. AJ George, a 6-6 guard, is expected to take another step up after averaging 8.6 points as a freshman last season. He shot 56.2% from the field, which was better than both of the Traores, and a team-best 41.4% from 3-point range. Jadon Jones is another rangy wing who was the Big West Defensive Player of the Year in 2021-22. Amari Stroud is a 6-10 spark plug off the bench who keeps other teams honest when Lassina Traore is out of the game.
Who’s gone: Joel Murray used up his eligibility last season, finishing his college career on a disappointing note after the point guard suffered a season-ending broken wrist halfway through last season. He transferred from West Texas A&M the year before and made the All-Big West first team. The transfer portal was also fairly light on Long Beach, which lost only one player, Tone Hunter, to Oakland, after he was a solid contributor after Murray went down.
Who’s new: LBSU did not have a lot of room on its roster for additions but did grab a good one at the point guard position they desperately needed to restock. Isa Silva transferred from Stanford after he was ranked as high as No. 53 in the nation by ESPN coming out of Jesuit High in Sacramento. He chose Stanford over Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Texas and USC, but he averaged only 13 minutes for the Cardinal last season after averaging 13.9 the year before. Messiah Thompson will also provide LBSU with additional depth at point guard after transferring from Alabama A&M, where he started 26 games and was second on the team in scoring at 10.8 points.
Coach’s quote: “Coming into this spring, as a staff we identified the point guard position as our number one recruiting priority, and recruiting a point guard is all about finding the right fit. We believe Isa Silva is a perfect fit for the Beach.” — Dan Monson
Coach: Russell Turner, 14th season
Last season: 23-12, 15-5 conference
Who’s back: The Anteaters have plenty of length returning from last season, starting with 7-1 center Bent Leuchten, who averaged 9.3 points and 5.7 rebounds. He had a four-game stretch around the holidays in which he averaged 19.3 points, but he sustained a knee injury that sidelined him for a month. Other returners include Dean Keeler (6-11), Akiva McBirney-Griffin (6-10), Hayden Welling (6-9) and Eli Chol (6-11). Justin Hohn has been a solid backup point guard the past two seasons and he’ll likely move into a starting role. Devin Tillis started 31 games for UCI last season and the 6-6 small forward will be counted on to better his 7.3 scoring average. Pierre Crockrell II, Andre Henry and Ofure Ujadughele also provide considerable experience off the bench for the Anteaters.
Who’s gone: The transfer portal impacted UCI in a major way, as its top two scorers departed for higher-profile programs. DJ Davis transferred to Butler and Dawson Baker left for BYU, taking with them 30.3 points per game and a wealth of court savvy. Davis was a first-team All-Big West selection and Baker made the second team. They were also the first Irvine players to score more than 500 points in a season in seven years. No other player averaged double figures in scoring for UCI last season. The Anteaters also lost forward Chazz Hutchison to Southern Utah, but it’s the backcourt that was left thin.
Who’s new: Dylan Thoerner will try to fill the void beyond the 3-point line for the Anteaters after spending the past three seasons raining 3-pointers for Tufts University in Boston. The Irvine native averaged 15 ppg and shot 43% from 3-point range to rank second in the New England Small College Athletic Conference. The Anteaters will also be joined by three 6-4 freshman guards – Derin Saran, Ben Egbo and Jurian Dixon – which will add to the competition in the backcourt. Saran had two double-doubles over the summer to help UCI go 8-0 at the William Jones Cup in Taiwan and become the first U.S. team to win gold at the event since 2012.
Coach’s quote: “There will be different guys on different nights. Every one of them will be difference-makers on different nights. That is what’s going to be the fun part about following us.” — Russell Turner
Coach: Mike Magpayo, fourth season
Last season: 22-12, 14-6 conference
Who’s back: The Highlanders lost four of their top five scorers from last season. Kyle Owens is the lone returnee who averaged double figures in scoring and he’ll be looking to contribute even more after the 6-8 forward missed the last 14 games with a knee injury. Wil Tattersall is back after starting all 34 games last season and he’s looking to improve his overall performance after his scoring average dipped to 4.7 last season. He averaged eight points a game the season before. Jhaylon Martinez also returns for UCR and the 6-11 center should lock down a starting role in the middle. Nate Pickens, Luke Turner and Vladimer Salaridze were also valuable role players last season who have the potential to move into a starting role.
Who’s gone: Zyon Pullin led the Big West in scoring last season (18.3) and was the main reason UCR finished third in the Big West standings and advanced to the semifinals of the conference tournament. Pullin tested his stock before the NBA draft and then decided to check in to Florida as a graduate transfer. Two other contributors from last season, Flynn Cameron and Lachlan Olbrich, headed overseas to play professionally. Cameron had used up his eligibility, but Olbrich had three years remaining.
Who’s new: The Highlanders weren’t able to make up for the players they lost through the portal, but it’s possible they could find a diamond in the rough. Ben Griscti, a 6-11 post player from Australia, played the past two seasons at Incarnate Word. He started 16 games last season and averaged 5.3 points and 3.4 rebounds. Isaiah Moses averaged 16.5 points last season at the College of Southern Idaho. He was the 2020 Alaska Gatorade Player of the Year in high school. Gavin Davis played last season at West L.A. College, where he averaged 14.9 points and 4.6 rebounds
Coach’s quote: “I think the frontcourt is going to play a big, big role. We’re pretty deep there (and) we’ll surround them with shooters.” — Mike Magpayo
