LONG BEACH, Calif. – The UC Santa Barbara Men's Basketball team (15-13) are ready for the final week of Big West play as they take on Long Beach State and the Highlanders of UC Riverside. The Gauchos are looking to improve their seeding at The Big West Championships, which will take place between
 
LAST TIME OUT
The Gauchos were on the road as they took on the Cal State Fullerton Titans. Despite UC Santa Barbara earning the lead early on in the game, it was Cal State Fullerton who was up at the half. The Gauchos did their best to recover from the second half deficit, but it wasn't enough as they lost 79-70 to the Titans.
 
BATTLING THE BEACH
Long Beach State is on a three-game losing streak, dropping road games to Hawai'i and UC Irvine before losing at home to Cal State Fullerton. Prior to that, the Beach were on a five-game winning streak.
 
Lassina and Aboubacar Traore are two of the best rebounders in the country. Currently, Lassina is 18th in the NCAA in this category with 296 rebounds this season while Aboubacar has 239, which is good enough to rank 79th. Speaking of Lassina, he is currently averaging a double-double a game with 11.6 points and 10.2 rebounds per game.
 
Aboubacar also leads the team when it comes to assists. He has dished out the most this season, racking up 120. Not only that, but he is the team's leader in blocks as he currently has 51 on the season.
 
Marcus Tsohonis is the leading scorer for the Beach this season as he currently has 430 points on the year. His 17.2 points per game is the seventh-best average in The Big West.
 
HANDLING THE HIGHLANDERS
UC Riverside has been on a hot streak as of late. They are 5-2 over the last seven games, only losing to UC San Diego and Hawai'i in overtime. They went on their best winning streak of the season during that stretch.
 
The Highlanders are one of the best teams in the country when it comes to offensive rebounds. They currently average 12.5 per game, which is good enough to be the 35th-best team in the country.
 
Freshman guard Barrington Hargress is the leading scorer for the Highlanders. He has played in all 30 games for the team, racking up 371 points. Sophomore Isaiah Moses is coming in close behind with 361 points on the year. Along with that, these two lead the team in steals as they currently have 34 and 30, respectively.
 
When it comes to crashing the boards, Kyle Owens is the guy who gets it done for UC Riverside. He leads the team in this category, securing 168 on the season.
 
WHEREABOUTS
The first game of the week will take place in Walter Pyramid on the campus of Long Beach State. Tip-off will be at 7 p.m. with a live stream available through ESPN+. Then, the Gauchos will return to The Thunderdome for Senior Night as they take on the Highlanders. If fans would like to honor Gage Gomez and Josh Pierre-Louis, they should show up early. However, tip-off for that game will be at 7 p.m. with a live stream available through ESPN+.