LA JOLLA, Calif. – Another split week begins for UC San Diego basketball when the Tritons travel to San Luis Obispo to face Cal Poly Thursday night. Winners of a conference-best seven straight, the Tritons will look to add to their program-best Division I win total. Cal Poly has won four of its last six games.
Thursday's matchup features the top two three-point shooting teams in The Big West. The Mustangs lead the conference in three-point field goals with 279 triples on the season. The Tritons are second at 277. When these teams met last month in La Jolla, UC San Diego trailed by four at halftime but earned a 95-68 win over Cal Poly.
Thursday's game tips at 7 p.m. from Mott Athletics Center. The game will air live on ESPN+ with live stats available on UCSDTritons.com.
DETAILS
Game 27
UC San Diego (22-4, 12-2 Big West) at Cal Poly (10-16, 4-10 Big West)
Thursday, Feb. 20 | 7 p.m.
Mott Athletics Center (3,032) | San Luis Obispo
TV:
ESPN+
Radio: [none]
Live Stats:
UCSDTritons.com
Series Record: Cal Poly leads 9-5 (UCSD 4-2 in Division I)
Last Meeting: at UC San Diego 95, Cal Poly 68 (Jan. 9)
ABOUT THE TRITONS
Roster |
Schedule |
Stats
Overall: 22-4
Big West: 12-2
Home: 10-2
Away: 9-2
Neutral: 3-0
vs. Ranked Opponents: 0-0
Streak: W7
TRITONS, STATISTICALLY SPEAKING
| Stat |
UCSD |
Opp. |
| Points |
80.3 |
62.5 |
| Field Goal Pct. |
.467 |
.410 |
| 3-Point FG Pct. |
.366 |
.343 |
| Free Throw Pct. |
.751 |
.735 |
| Rebounds |
33.8 |
33.7 |
| Assists |
15.4 |
11.2 |
| Turnovers |
9.2 |
16.3 |
| Steals |
10.3 |
4.8 |
| Blocks |
2.1 |
2.9 |
ABOUT THE MUSTANGS
Roster |
Schedule |
Stats
Overall: 10-16
Big West: 4-10
Home: 6-4
Away: 4-12
Neutral: 0-0
vs. Ranked Opponents: 0-0
Streak: L1
WHAT'S NEXT
UC San Diego returns to LionTree Arena to host Hawai'i at 7 p.m. Saturday night. The first 500 students and 1,000 alumni in attendance will receive a King Triton bobblehead. Tickets can be purchased through
Triton Box Office. The game will also air on ESPN+ and KSDT radio, with live stats on UCSDTritons.com.
LAST TIME OUT: TRITONS 85, UC DAVIS 60 | Box Score
UC San Diego extended its unbeaten streak to seven
, claiming an 85-60 victory over UC Davis at LionTree Arena on Saturday afternoon. The Tritons (22-4 overall, 12-2 Big West) maintain their first-place status in the Big West standings with six regular season games to play.
Tyler McGhie collected his 11th 20+ point game of the season on Saturday, shooting perfect from the free throw line on his way to a game-leading 22 points. Aniwaniwa Tait-Jones was a court-wide threat, recording 16 points, 6 rebounds and 6 assists. Defensively, Hayden Gray once again justified his Naismith Defensive Player of the Year nomination with 4 steals and a blocked shot, while contributing 13 points on the other end.
BIG WEST POSTSEASON
Thursday's win at Cal State Bakersfield clinched a spot in The Big West Championship next month in Henderson, Nev. Conference policy prohibited UC San Diego from taking part in this event in the past – despite the Tritons finishing second in the conference standings last season.
NATIONALLY RANKED
UC San Diego is ranked No. 3 in this week's Mid-Major Top 25® college basketball poll, the Tritons' highest-ever ranking in this survey. UC San Diego also received a first-place vote. Now in its 26th season, the Mid-Major Top 25® is voted on by 31 Division I coaches. The poll is announced every Monday.
NOTHIN' BUT NET
UC San Diego has a NET Ranking of 43 as of Tuesday and the Tritons are No. 40 in KenPom – both highest in The Big West.
MARGIN OF VICTORY
UC San Diego leads NCAA Division I with a turnover margin of +7.1. The Tritons have won the turnover battle in 25 of their first 26 games.
MARGIN OF VICTORY II
The Tritons are tops in The Big West with a scoring margin of 17.8. Nationally, UC San Diego's margin of victory sits fourth.
STINGY ON D
UC San Diego leads The Big West in scoring defense, allowing just 62.5 points per game for the season and 63.3 points per game in Big West play. Nationally, the 62.5 points per game allowed is 11th best.
TAIT-JONES TAKES CONTROL
Aniwaniwa Tait-Jones was named Big West Player of the Week twice in three weeks, and he earned Lou Henson National Player of the Week honors on Jan. 27. Tait-Jones leads the nation in free throws made (176) and free throw attempts (223). He ranks third in The Big West in scoring at 19.8 points per game. The New Zealand native was named to the Big West Preseason Coaches' Team. Last year, Tait-Jones captured Big West Newcomer of the Year honors – the first Triton to win this award – and he was also named Honorable Mention All-Big West.
UC SAN DIEGO 30-POINT GAMES, DIVISION I
| Name |
Date |
Opponent |
Points |
Game Score |
| Toni Rocak |
Dec. 30, 2021 |
vs. UC Santa Barbara |
34 |
W, 85-83 (OT) |
| Aniwaniwa Tait-Jones |
Jan. 25, 2025 |
vs. CSUN |
32 |
W, 79-54 |
| Aniwaniwa Tait-Jones |
Jan. 18, 2025 |
at UC Riverside |
32 |
L, 85-81 |
| Bryce Pope |
Feb. 24, 2024 |
vs. UC Irvine |
32 |
W, 92-88 (OT) |
| Bryce Pope |
Nov. 22, 2022 |
at George Washington |
31 |
W, 75-70 |
WEEKLY AWARD WINNERS
Hayden Gray, UCU Athlete of the Week, Feb. 17
Aniwaniwa Tait-Jones, Lou Henson National Player of the Week, Jan. 27
Aniwaniwa Tait-Jones, Big West Player of the Week, Jan. 27, Feb. 10
Aniwaniwa Tait-Jones, UCU Athlete of the Week, Dec. 16, Jan. 6, Jan. 20, Feb. 10
Tyler McGhie, Lou Henson National Player of the Week, Dec. 23
Tyler McGhie, Big West Player of the Week, Nov. 25, Dec. 23
Tyler McGhie, UCU Athlete of the Week, Nov. 11, Nov. 25, Dec. 23
Justin Rochelin, UCU Athlete of the Week, Dec. 2
Nordin Kapic, UCU Athlete of the Week, Dec. 9, Dec. 30
WHOLE LOTTA POINTS
UC San Diego is one of 11 Division I institutions with five or more active 1,000-point scorers on its roster. Here are the team's current leading scorers (includes games played at other institutions):
TY'S THE GUY
Tyler McGhie has made 87 three-pointers this season, sixth in Division I. His 3.3 threes per game is tops in The Big West and ranks sixth nationally. McGhie captured conference Player of the Week honors on Dec. 23 and Nov. 25. Last year, McGhie was named the conference's Best Sixth Player and captured Honorable Mention All-Big West recognition.
I'LL TAKE THAT!
Triton senior point guard
Hayden Gray leads the nation with 90 steals and 3.46 steals per game. Gray came away with a career-high seven thefts in the Tritons' win at USD (Dec. 21) and matched that total in a victory over UC Riverside (Feb. 6).
THIEVERY!
UC San Diego is one of three Division I programs to have two players averaging 2.0+ steals per game (Mississippi State and UTEP).
Hayden Gray (3.5) and
Chris Howell (2.1) lead the way for the Tritons.
HEAD COACH ERIC OLEN
After leading the Tritons to a second place finish in The Big West and more than doubling the team's win total from the prior season,
Eric Olen captured Big West Coach of the Year honors and was named a finalist for the Hugh Durham Award. Now in his 12th season as head coach, Olen has transformed the program. He is the program's all-time leader in victories.
In Division II, Olen led the Tritons to three California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) regular season titles, four consecutive CCAA tournament crowns over seven seasons. In Division II, he posted a .740 winning percentage, and he was named NABC West Region Coach of the Year for the first time in 2019-20 after leading the Tritons to a 30-1 record and the top seed in the NCAA West Region.
Olen's career coaching record stands at 232-118 (.663).
GAME DAY GOES DIGITAL
Triton fans can access game day information from their smart phones by visiting
UCSDTritons.com/MBBgameday or scanning the QR code at the entrance to LionTree Arena for everything they need to know about each home game, including updated rosters, schedules, and stats for each team, as well as links to watch on ESPN+.
UC SAN DIEGO ON THE WORLDWIDE LEADER
Most UC San Diego home men's and women's basketball games, men's and women's soccer matches, men's and women's volleyball matches, men's and women's water polo games, baseball and softball games are broadcast live on ESPN+. For more information on where to watch UC San Diego basketball, visit
UCSDTritons.com/live.
HOOPS TALK ON UC SAN DIEGO ATHLETICS' PODCAST
As part of UC San Diego's transition to Division I, the Athletics Department launched a weekly podcast,
Tritoncast. Produced by UC San Diego Athletics Communications, Tritoncast features in-depth interviews with UC San Diego personalities including scholar-athletes, alums, coaches, and administrators. Triton fans will get an inside look at the UC San Diego Athletics Department as the program transitions to NCAA Division I and The Big West. New episodes of Tritoncast are available each week on the most popular podcasting apps. In addition, each episode can be heard and downloaded on UCSDTritons.com. For individual show information and listen links, follow Tritoncast on X
@Tritoncast.
About UC San Diego Athletics
After two decades as one of the most successful programs in NCAA Division II, the UC San Diego intercollegiate athletics program began a new era in 2020 as a member of The Big West Conference in NCAA Division I. The 23-sport Tritons earned 30 team and nearly 150 individual national championships during its time in Divisions II and III and helped guide 1,400 scholar-athletes to All-America honors. A total of 84 Tritons have earned Academic All-America honors, while 38 have earned prestigious NCAA Post Graduate Scholarships. UC San Diego scholar-athletes exemplify the academic ideals of one of the world's preeminent institutions, graduating at an average rate of 90 percent, the highest rate among public institutions in Divisions I and II.
