ABOUT THE HIGHLANDERS
Roster | Schedule | Stats
Overall: 6-10
Big West: 1-3
Home: 3-2
Away: 3-8
Neutral: 0-0
vs. Ranked Opponents: 0-1
Streak: L4

WHAT'S NEXT
It's another split week on The Big West schedule, as UC San Diego returns to La Jolla to host CSUN Thursday night. The first 2,500 fans in attendance will receive a replica jersey. Tickets can be purchased through the Triton Box Office. The game will be broadcast on ESPN+ and KSDT radio, with a link to live stats on UCSDTritons.com.
  
LAST TIME OUT: CAL STATE FULLERTON 88, TRITONS 71 Stats
Visiting Cal State Fullerton had five players in double figures and the Titans committed just six turnovers in an 88-71 victory over UC San Diego Thursday night at LionTree Arena. Christian Williams scored a game high 22 to pace Fullerton (7-10 overall, 2-3 Big West) in the win.
 
Bol Dengdit scored 15 points and grabbed five rebounds for UC San Diego, one of three Tritons in double figures (Alex Chaikin, 14, and Aidan Burke, 10). The Tritons (12-4, 2-2) dropped a Big West home game for the first time since Jan. 11, 2025.
 
LAST TIME VS. UC RIVERSIDE: TRITONS 91, UCR 71 (2/06/2025) Stats
Five Tritons scored in double figures as UC San Diego claimed a convincing 91-71 victory over UC Riverside inside LionTree Arena. Aniwaniwa Tait-Jones dialed in for another team-leading campaign, going 9-for-15 for 28 points, seven rebounds and a block. Hayden Gray — recently named on the watch list for the Naismith Defensive Player of the Year Award — backed up the nomination, matching his career high with seven steals, two blocks and five rebounds over 34 minutes. Tyler McGhie drained three triples and finished with 19, Nordin Kapic added 11 points and six boards, and Justin Rochelin poured in ten in the win. 
 
BOUNCING BACK
The Tritons have not lost back-to-back Big West games since Feb. 3 and Feb. 8, 2024, when UC San Diego fell at Long Beach State and then in overtime at Hawai'i.
 
FINDING SUCCESS AT THE FREE THROW LINE
The Tritons enter Saturday as the leading free throw shooting team in The Big West during conference play, knocking down 83.6% of their attempts against conference foes. UC San Diego hit only 66% of its free throw tries in non-conference games.
 
ON THE REBOUND
UC San Diego handed Hawai'i its first conference loss, 83-73 (Jan. 3). The Tritons outrebounded the Rainbow Warriors, 33-29, despite UH holding a league-best +11.2 rebound margin coming in.
 
LOWEST OF LOWS
UC San Diego's 67-65 loss at Cal Poly (Jan. 1) snapped a 16-game win streak against conference opponents. The Tritons scored a season low 65 points, shot under 40% for the first time in a game this season (35%), and hit just 21% of their second half field goal tries – the program's worst shooting half since opening night last season (18% first half in a five-point loss at San Diego State). The Tritons' 23 points after halftime at Cal Poly is UC San Diego's lowest scoring half this season.
 
MAYES MAKES HIS MARK
Freshman Hudson Mayes matched his career high with 12 points and pulled down a personal best 12 rebounds in a career-high 27 minutes off the bench at Cal Poly (Jan. 1) – marking his first career double-double. Mayes leads the team in field goal percentage, connecting on 65.6% of his attempts.
 
DOUBLE TROUBLE
First-year Triton Bol Dengdit posted a double-double in back-to-back games: 10 points, 10 rebounds vs. Stanton (Dec. 28) and 12 points, 12 rebounds at Cal Poly (Jan. 1). He is averaging 14.8 points per game over the last five.
 
BOL WITH THE BLOCKS
Bol Dengdit blocked three shots in back-to-back games (Dec. 19 vs. USD, Dec. 28 vs. Stanton).
 
DRAINING 'EM FROM DISTANCE
UC San Diego tied an NCAA Division I single game record when nine Tritons sank three-pointers in a win over Towson at Walt Disney World (Nov. 26). Over the three-day tournament, UC San Diego shot 51.9% from beyond the arc – hitting 40 of 77 attempts.
 
A PROSPERE-OUS NIGHT
First year Triton Emanuel Prospere II paced UC San Diego in a 26-point victory over Tulane in the Jack Jones Classic (Dec. 13). He scored 20 points on 8-of-14 shooting in the win. Prospere's 20 points, eight rebounds, and four steals were all a season high. 
 
KEEPING IT IN THE FAMILY
With a 26-point victory over Tulane in the Jack Jones Classic (Dec. 13), UC San Diego has won all three games it's played three games at Lee's Family Forum in Henderson, Nevada. The Tritons also downed UC Santa Barbara in the 2025 Big West semifinal and UC Irvine in the 2025 Big West Championship. The conference's postseason tournament will be held at that venue again in 2026.
 
THE LONG ROAD
UC San Diego wrapped up a 34-day stretch between home games – the longest such stretch for the Tritons in their Division I or II era (2000-present). This year's squad traveled 6,042 miles between their Nov. 15 home game vs. Idaho and Dec. 19 home game vs. USD. The last time UC San Diego was away from La Jolla for more than 30 days was a 31-day stint in 2007-08.
 
LISTEN UP!
UC San Diego and Audacy have partnered to bring Tritons basketball to 97.3 The Fan – home of the San Diego Padres – in a multi-year deal. All remaining Big West road games this season – plus postseason games – will air live on 97.3 The Fan and stream on the Audacy app.
 
MICKEY'S MOST VALUABLE
First year Triton Leo Beath was named Most Valuable Player at the Terry's Chocolate ESPN Events Invitational, leading UC San Diego to three wins in three days at Walt Disney World (Nov. 24-26). Beath averaged 23.7 points per game, shooting 61.9% over three games. He drained 9-of-13 three-point attempts (69.2%) and averaged four rebounds and 1.7 steals per game in the victories over Temple, Bradley, and Towson.
 
RACKING UP THE AWARDS
After being named tournament MVP at the Terry's Chocolate ESPN Events Invitational, Leo Beath piled up the awards. The following week, he was selected Oscar Robertson National Player of the Week by the USBWA, named the Lou Henson Award-winner as mid-major's top performer, voted Big West Player of the Week, and garnered UCU Athlete of the Week honors on campus. The Big West honor was Beath's second of the season (also Nov. 17). Beath was named to the Lou Henson Award watch list on Dec. 18.
 
A YEAR TO REMEMBER
Including the postseason, the Tritons were 29-5 in 2025.
 
NO PLACE LIKE HOME
UC San Diego has turned LionTree Arena into a true home court advantage, boasting a 32-6 record in La Jolla over the past two-plus seasons.
 
TRITONS IN THE PROS
Three Tritons from last year's Big West Championship team are playing professionally this year. Tyler McGhie is playing for Gipuzkoa Basket in Spain, Aniwaniwa Tait-Jones is competing with Valmiera Glass in Latvia, and Hayden Gray is playing in the NBA G League for the Maine Celtics (Boston).
 
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 has begun a new era as a member of The Big West in NCAA Division I. The 24-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 garnered 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 NCAA Division I or II. For more information on the Tritons, visit UCSDtritons.com or follow UC San Diego Athletics on social media @UCSDtritons.