Schedule
Game No. 26 - Quarterfinal
Thursday, Mar. 10 at 2:30 PM
UC Santa Barbara (16-10, 8-5) vs UC Irvine (15-9, 9-5)
at The Dollar Loan Center – Henderson, Nevada
ESPN+ | Audio
Game No. 27* - Semifinal
Friday, Mar. 11 at 6:00 PM
UC Santa Barbara (16-10, 8-5) vs TBA
at The Dollar Loan Center – Henderson, Nevada
Game No. 28* - Championship
Saturday, Mar. 12 at 8:30 PM
UC Santa Barbara (16-10, 8-5) vs TBA
at The Dollar Loan Center – Henderson, Nevada
* - With win in previous game
Gauchos on the Air
All games will be aired live on the ESPN+ and additional audio-only broadcasts featuring Steve Wendt will be available on UCSBGauchos.com. Live stats will also be available there.
All-Conference
The Big West Conference announced its 2022 All-Conference teams and major awards Monday evening honoring three Gauchos from the UCSB men's basketball team. Senior forward Amadou made program and league history being named First Team All-Conference, rookie guard Ajay Mitchell was named Freshman of The Year and to the second team, and senior Miles Norris was dubbed an honorable mention.Haw
Amadou Sow – First Team All-Conference
Sow became the first Gaucho in program history to be named Big West All-Conference all four years of his career and is just the third to do so in conference history following Michael Wiley (LBSU, 1977-80) and Greg Grant (Utah State, 1983-86). The Gaucho big was named Second Team All-Conference in his first two seasons and closed his career with two first team nods.
The future Gaucho Hall of Famer currently leads the conference in field goal percentage (56.6%), is second in rebounds per game (8.2), and is third in points per game (15.8) this season. He's notched six 20-point games, including a season-high 26 against CSUN this past Tuesday, and has collected four double-doubles.
Sow currently sits in 3rd all-time in program history with 838 career rebounds and ranks 8th with 1,594 career points.
Ajay Mitchell – Freshman of the Year, Second Team All-Conference
Mitchell emerged early this season as a reliable source of offense with his ability to be a facilitator and as the season progressed proved to be a gifted scorer. The guard leads The Big West with an assist-to-turnover ratio of 2.2, is third in both assists per game (3.8) and field goal percentage (.552), and is 17th in the league in scoring (11.8 points per game).
The freshman has been huge during the Gauchos' recent hot streak as he broke the freshman scoring record with 31 points in a win an overtime win at UC Davis and just two nights later became the first Gaucho since Orlando Johnson to have back-to-back 30-point games scoring 30 in a tough double-overtime win at UC Riverside.
Mitchell currently ranks 2nd on the all-time freshman assists list with 96 so far this season, is 7th on the scoring list with 294 points, is 3rd with a 11.8 points per game average, and is 4th with a 55.2 field goal percentage.
Miles Norris – All-Conference Honorable Mention
For the second straight season, the human highlight reel Norris was dubbed an honorable mention. This season the senior forward is averaging 10.3 points per game on 45.8% shooting from the field to go along with 5.5 rebounds per game and 1.3 assists.
He etched his name into Gaucho history in the win on the road at CSUN nailing nine three-pointers in a row to tie the all-time triple record and finished with 30 points going 9-for-10 from deep missing just his final attempt.
WWWWW
UCSB's longest win streak of the year of five games came at the perfect time as the Gauchos enter the Big West Torunament as the hottest team in the conference. This streak features a win over top-seeded Long Beach that effecitvely ended its 11-game win streak, back-to-back overtime wins on the road at UC Davis and UC Riverside, and a huge home win on senior night over Hawai'i that kept the Gauchos out of the bottom four seeds.
They Meet Again
After knocking off its rival of the last decade in the Big West Tournament last year, reigning champion UCSB will once again face UC Irvine in March. The Anteaters won the only regular season meeting between the two programs taking 53-52 win on February 3rd in the Thunderdome. It was a true defensive battle, and the Gauchos' recent surging offense could be the difference maker in this tournament matchup.
Best in the (Big) West
UCSB ranks atop the Big West Conference in several statistical categories this season
Assist-to-Turnover Ratio – 1.15
Assists Per Game – 15.6 apg (36th in NCAA DI)
Field Goal Percentage – 49.5% (4th in NCAA DI)
Scoring Margin – 8.5 ppg (55th in NCAA DI)
Total Assists – 405
The Gauchos also rank top three in defensive field goal percentage, total blocks, blocks per game, rebound margin, scoring defense, and three-point defense.
Mitchell Breaks Freshman Scoring Record
Freshman Ajay Mitchell was once again the answer this past week breaking the program's freshman scoring record with 31 points and topping his career-high for the for the third time this month. Mitchell's record-breaking night came on 10-of-15 shooting with 9-of-12 free-throws made and a handful of big time plays. He played 40+ minutes and added four rebounds, three assists, and a block. The previous record of 29 points was held by Michael Bryson who did so in the Big West Tournament. This is just the third time in school history that the Gauchos have had two 30-point games by different players thanks to the 31-point by game by Miles Norris earlier this year. The other two came in 2010 with Orlando Johnson and James Nunnally and in 1987 with Scott Fisher and Conner Henry.
He followed that up with another 30-point game leading the Gauchos to a double-overtime win at UC Riverside. He is the first Gaucho to have back-to-back 30-point games since Orlando Johnson.
Milestone Watch
Head Coach Joe Pasternack reached the milestone of 150 wins in his career after defeating CSUN on the road on January 25th. A few weeks he became the 6th coach in Gaucho history to pick up his 100th win with the program in a convincing 84-71 win over top-seeded Long Beach State.
1500-800 Club
In the Gauchos' win over Long Beach State, senior Amadou Sow reached two milestone surpassing 1,500 points and 800 rebounds for his career. He is just the third Gauchos in school history to reach those marks joining Alan Williams and Eric McArthur. He now boasts 1,594 career points (9th all-time) and 838 rebounds (4th all-time).
Rejected by Robinson
Veteran center Robinson Idehen, often referred to as the 'soul of the team' by Pasternack, has proved to be one of the top shot blockers in the conference ranking third with 1.00 blocks per game. His career-high five blocks against Chicago State are tied for the best performance by any Big West player this season and his 78 career blocks ranks tied for 9th all-time in program history.
On the offensive end, Idehen is on track to be the most efficient scorer in Gaucho history currently boasting a 67% field goal percentage for his career.
Sow Leads the Way
Senior center Amadou Sow is currently ranked top-10 in the Big West in several categories:
Field Goal Percentage – 56.6 % (1st – 40th in NCAA DI)
Rebounds Per Game – 8.2 (2nd )
Offensive Rebounds Per Game – 2.90 (2nd – 42nd in NCAA DI)
Defensive Rebounds Per Game – 5.33 (3rd)
Points Per Game – 15.8 (3rd )
Double-Doubles – 4 (4th)
Blocked Shots Per Game – 0.80 (7th)
Free-Throw Percentage – 78.6% (9th)
Freshman on Fire
Freshman guard Ajay Mitchell has emerged as one of the top guards in the Big West Conference and the country through the first year of his young career. He currently leads the conference and is 47th in the country with a 2.23 assist-to-turnover ratio. He is also third in assists per game with 3.8. Mitchell set an early career-high in the team's win over Arkansas-Pine Bluff dropping 10 dimes and committing zero turnovers, and followed that up with an eight assist-one turnover performance against Cal Lutheran. His 10-assist performance is the best by any Big West player this season.
SWishart
Junior guard Calvin Wishart had a remarkable first half performance off the bench in the team's victory over Pepperdine that ultimately helped the Gauchos keep pace with the Waves going into the locker room. Wishart scored a career-high 23 points, all in the first period, going a perfect 5-for-5 from the field, 4-for-4 from three, and 9-for-9 from the free throw line. He took and missed just one shot in the second half and totaled two rebounds, three assists, and two steals in the game.
Cerebro Sports Cali Jam All-Tournament Team
UCSB's games with Chicago State and Arkansas-Pine Bluff were a part of the Cerebro Sports Cali Jam tournament and at the contest's conclusion two Gauchos were named to the All-Tournament Team. Amadu Sow, who averaged 16.5 ppg, 6.5 rpg, and shot 77.8% from the field in the two games was named the Tournament MVP. Freshman Ajay Mitchell, who averaged 8.5 ppg and 7.0 apg while also leading the team in minutes, was named to the All-Tournament Team.
Dome Sweet Dome
The Gauchos win over Arkansas-Pine Bluff marked the 20th straight home win for the Gauchos, who were perfect in the Thunderdome from January 25, 2020 to November 24th 2021. It is the longest streak in UCSB history.
History Made
UCSB's 119-65 win over San Francisco State on opening night broke several top-ten marks in the Gaucho record book:
- 29 assists, 3rd most in program history
- 119 points, 4th most in program history
- 65 rebounds, T-5th most in program history
- 60 first half points, T-7th most in program history
- 59 second half points, T-8th most in program history
- 32 free throws made, T-10th most in program history
Run it Back
The reigning Big West champions return to the court with a new goal this season and it's becoming the first Big West team to repeat since the Gauchos did 10 years ago and get back to the NCAA Tournament.
Last season, UCSB went 22-5 overall and 13-3 in Big West Conference play on its way to a Big West regular season title, a Big West Tournament Championship, and a trip to the NCAA Tournament. In addition to Norris and Sow, their key returners include Big West Sixth Man of the Year Ajare Sanni, senior forward Robinson Idehen, and junior guard Calvin Wishart, who will be making his Gaucho debut after redshirting last season.
Sow Named to Lou Henson Watch List
Just one day after being named to the Big West Preseason All-Conference Team, senior center Amadou Sow earned another preseason nod being named to the 2021-22 Lou Henson National Player of the Year Award watch list. The award is presented to the best mid-major men's basketball player of the year. He is one of just two Big West players to be named joining UC Irvine's Collin Welp.
UCSB Picked to Repeat in Preseason Polls
UCSB was picked as the unanimous regular season champion of the Big West in the annual preseason coaches' and media polls. The Gauchos accumulated 69 points and five first place votes in the coaches' poll beating out second-seeded UC Irvine by a narrow margin of just one point and one first place vote. The two teams spilt the nine first place nods.
In the media poll the Gauchos garnered 103 points and six first place votes to the Anteater's 100 points and two first place votes. Rounding out the top-four in both polls are UC Riverside and UC Davis finishing third and fourth, respectively.
