SANTA BARBARA, Calif.- The UC Santa Barbara's Men's Basketball team has continued their strong start to the season at 3-0 for the 2025-26 season with matchups upcoming against undefeated LMU (5-0) on Monday, Nov,. 17 and then head to Reno to take on the Nevada Wolf Pack on Saturday, Nov. 22.
PROMOTIONS
Monday's game against LMU, UC Santa Barbara is hosting a food drive giving out complementary tickets to the Long Beach State game on Dec. 4. The Gauchos are also hosting Youth Night, for all kids who play for PAGE Youth, YMCA, Goleta Valley Little League, and AYSO getting in free!
By clicking here and entering the promo code "YOUTH" you can receive your complementary tickets for Monday's game.
A LOOK BACK AT LAST WEEK
UC Santa Barbara picked up two wins last week against San Jose State and Sacramento State. The offense was on full display putting up 85 and 92 point totals, with a nailbiting victory at Sacramento State 92-87. The Gauchos look to keep things rolling offensively with the Lions and Wolf Pack ahead.
SCOUTING THE LIONS
Last season, LMU finished with a 17-15 record and 8-10 in conference record under Head Coach Stan Johnson. Johnson returns for sixth seasons for the Lions program, totaling three winning records in that span.
LMU looks at new faces to build off last season's winning record after losing their top four leading scorers from last season. 11 new student-athletes look to make an impact immediately. The Lions fell in the Second Round of the West Coast Conference playoffs, and with the majority of the team being newcomers, the Lions look to advance farther.
Defensively, the Lions have started their season strong with a Defensive Rating ranking of 40th to start the year giving up 61.5 points a game to their 93 point per game average. This season the Lions were picked to finish sixth in the West Coast Conference.
SCOUTING THE WOLF PACK
The Gauchos will travel to Nevada on Nov. 22, following their home game against LMU. Nevada will play twice before their matchup with the Gauchos against Santa Clara and UC Davis. Nevada coming off a OT win against Southern Illinois looks to keep their spirits high headed into these next week of games.
The Wolfpack come into the 2025-26 season looking to make it back to the playoffs with a completely different roster from last year. The Wolfpack lost its top five scorers from last year and look to improve in their conference games from last year with their six transfer portal acquisitions.
The new additions from the Wolfpack look to match the same defensive presence as last year giving up 68.1 points per game. With veteran Steve Alford at the helm the Wolfpack look to make the NCAA tournament hoping to find magic with new players but the same defensive scheme that led them in years past.
FOLLOW ALONG
Monday's game against LMU will tip off at 6 p.m. inside The Thunderdome. Doors will open at 5 p.m. The match will be streamed on ESPN+ with live stats available. On Saturday, the Gauchos and Wolfpack will tip at 2 p.m. and the door will open at 1 p.m. The Saturday contest will be streamed on Mountain West Network and live stats will be available for both games.
