SANTA BARBARA, Calif. (Jan. 10, 2023) -- The UC Santa Barbara Men's Basketball team (12-2, 3-0 Big West) is back in action after going 3-0 to start Big West play. They will continue with the conference schedule as they take on the Roadrunners of Cal State Bakersfield. The last time these two teams faced was in Feb. 2022 when the Gauchos defeated the Roadrunners in The Thunderdome. UC Santa Barbara currently owns the series 5-1.
LAST TIME OUT
The Gauchos hit the road as they played their rivals Cal Poly in SLO for an afternoon tip. Despite the low-scoring first half, UC Santa Barbara battled back and scored over 40 points to take the game 62-57. Miles Norris led the charge for the Gauchos, scoring 16 points while tying for the most rebounds on the team with six.
SCOUTING THE ROADRUNNERS
Cal State Bakersfield is coming into this contest after a loss to UC Davis in Big West play. The Roadrunners hold a 1-3 conference record, defeating Cal Poly at home. They also played UC Irvine and UC Riverside to start the season.
As a team, the Roadrunners are ranked highly when it comes to field goal percentage defense. In this category, the team is 31st in the NCAA and No. 1 in The Big West, holding their opponets to a low field goal percentage. They are also 22nd in the NCAA when it comes to scoring defense. The teams they face only average 61.2 points per game.
Kaleb Higgins is the most efficient free throw shooter in the country. He is currently No. 1 in The Big West and 13th in the NCAA in this category, shooting at an impressive 90.7 percent from the charity stripe. He is also the team's leading scorer, earning 170 points so far this season. With those numbers, he averages 13.1 points per gamen through 13 games as he is the only player averaging double-digit points. Not only that, but he is also the team's leader in assists. He distributes the ball on offense, tallying 51 on the year.
Junior guard Marvin McGhee III is the only Roadrunner to start in all 15 games for Cal State Bakersfield. He is third on the team in points averaging 8.2 per game snatching 11 steals.
Senior Cameron Smith is the top rebounder for the Roadrunners. The forward crashes the boards the most as he grabbed 89 in the 15 games played. This averages out to 5.93 rebounds per game.
The Roadrunners are coached by Rod Barnes, who is in his 12th season with the team. Since taking over the program in 2011, he boasts an overall record of 176-181. Prior to coaching the Roadrunners, Barnes coached at his alma mater, Ole Miss, as well as Georgia Tech.
WHEREABOUTS
The Gauchos will tipoff against the Roadrunners at 7 p.m. at the Icardo Center in Bakersfield. The game will be streamed through ESPN+ with live stats also available.
