FULLERTON, Calif. — The No. 12 UC Santa Barbara Men's Water polo team begins conference play on Saturday, traveling to take on Cal State Fullerton in their 2024 Big West opener. It will be the Gauchos' first trip to Fullerton since the Titans revived their water polo program last year.
 
WHEN AND WHERE TO WATCH
Santa Barbara and Fullerton will hit the water at 5 p.m. on Saturday at the new Titan Aquatics Center in Fullerton. The game will be broadcast live on ESPN+ with live stats available through ucsbgauchos.com.
 
LAST TIME OUT
The Gauchos split a twin bill on their final non-conference road trip of the year last weekend, falling to No. 11 San Jose State before defeating No. 15 Santa Clara in San Jose. Brock Zamanian and Luke Bachler each posted four-goal games in the Bay Area.
 
GAUCHOS TO KNOW
Zamanian's four-goal game against San Jose State pushed his career-high goal total into the 40s; the Orinda native now has 42 on the season and continues to lead the squad. Zamanian also has 36 assists on the year, which is also a career high for him and the most on the team this year. Bachler, the other four-goal scorer for Santa Barbara last weekend, ranks third on the team behind Zamanian with a career-high 34 goals.
 
Elsewhere in the attack, the Gauchos have a pair of European powerhouses in senior Adam Gyenis and freshman Danilo Dragovic. Gyenis is second on the team in both goals and total points with 35 goals and 25 assists, with Dragovic third in total points. The rookie from Montenegro is approaching a 30-30 campaign with 29 goals and 27 assists this year.
 
Two weeks ago, the Gauchos welcomed another stellar European talent into the pool when Marko Ilic returned from a foot injury to get his first minutes in the Blue and Gold. In limited minutes over his first five games, the Serbian defender has five goals to his name and is one of just three Gauchos averaging more than one steal per game.
 
SCOUTING THE TITANS
Cal State Fullerton (10-9) is still looking for their first win over a Division-I opponent this season, but they have played a number of ranked teams close, including the Gauchos. Santa Barbara had to fend off a fourth-quarter rally to earn a 14-12 win when these teams met in non-conference action on Sept. 20. The next day, the Titans had No. 4 Pepperdine on the ropes, falling by just two goals.
 
Togan Ozbek scored five times against the Gauchos in that Sept. 20 meeting, and he leads the Titans with 37 goals on the season. Nico D'Angelo and Julian Nichols, Fullerton's second- and third-leading goal scorers with 34 and 30 respectively, each scored four times in that close loss to Pepperdine.
 
When these two teams met in Santa Barbara last year, Ozbek, D'Angelo and Nichols combined for just one goal (and four assists), with Dominic Hernandez causing the most problems for the Gauchos, to the tune of three goals and two assists.
 
UP NEXT
The Gauchos' home opener is up next, as Santa Barbara will host UC Davis on Oct. 19 at Dos Pueblos High School. The match will get underway at 12 noon and also kicks off the Gauchos' Alumni Weekend festivities.