ABOUT THE MATADORS
Roster | Schedule | Stats
Overall: 20-7
Big West: 12-4
Home: 8-2
Away: 10-5
Neutral: 2-0
vs. Ranked Opponents: 0-1
Streak: W7
 
WHAT'S NEXT
UC San Diego returns to LionTree Arena to host Cal State Fullerton on Saturday night. The game tips at 7 p.m. and will air on ESPN+ and KSDT radio, with live stats on UCSDTritons.com. Tickets can be purchased through Triton Box Office.
 
LAST TIME OUT: TRITONS 83, HAWAI'I 44 | Box Score
UC San Diego used a suffocating defense, and three Tritons scored in double figures as the Tritons rolled to an 83-44 win over Hawai'i in front of 3,084 inside LionTree Arena Saturday night. The 39-point win was the Tritons' ninth straight, tying the largest margin of victory for the program in a Big West game. Aniwaniwa Tait-Jones scored 19 on 8-of-11 shooting, Tyler McGhie hit three three-pointers and scored 17, and Nordin Kapic added three triples and 13 points in the win. 
 
BIG WEST POSTSEASON
UC San Diego's win at Cal State Bakersfield (Feb. 13) 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.
 
POLL POSITION
UC San Diego is ranked No. 2 in this week's Mid-Major Top 25® college basketball poll, the Tritons' highest-ever ranking in this survey. UC San Diego also received votes in the USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll (15) and Associated Press Top 25 (8).
 
NOTHIN' BUT NET
UC San Diego has a NET Ranking of 36 as of Tuesday and the Tritons are No. 35 in KenPom – both highest in The Big West.
 
MARGIN OF VICTORY
UC San Diego leads NCAA Division I with a turnover margin of +7.2. The Tritons have won the turnover battle in 27 of their first 28 games.
 
MARGIN OF VICTORY II
The Tritons are tops in The Big West with a scoring margin of 18.4. Nationally, UC San Diego's margin of victory sits second.
 
STINGY ON D
UC San Diego leads The Big West in scoring defense, allowing just 62.0 points per game for the season and 62.3 points per game in Big West play. Nationally, the 62.0 points per game allowed is ninth best.
 
TAIT-JONES TAKES CHARGE
Aniwaniwa Tait-Jones scored his 2,000th career point in a win at Cal State Bakersfield (Feb. 13) and his 1,000th as a Triton in a win over Hawai'i (Feb. 22). He has been named Big West Player of the Week twice, and he earned Lou Henson National Player of the Week honors on Jan. 27. Tait-Jones leads the nation in free throw attempts (242) and is second in free throws made (187). 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 7 Division I institutions with six or more active 1,000-point scorers on its roster. Here are the team's current leading scorers (includes games played at other institutions):
 

Name	Games Played	Points
Aniwaniwa Tait-Jones	123	2,070
Tyler McGhie	121	1,711
Nordin Kapic	79	1,281
Milos Vicentic	74	1,229
Hayden Gray	122	1,189
Maximo Milovich	127	1,000

 
TY'S THE GUY
Tyler McGhie has made 95 three-pointers this season, fifth in Division I. His 3.39 threes per game is tops in The Big West and ranks sixth nationally. McGhie has captured conference Player of the Week honors twice. 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 97 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 234-118 (.665).
  
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.