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UC-Davis at UC-Irvine, 10:00 PM Eastern, espn3
The UTR Game of the Day heads to Irvine, California tonight for a first place battle in the Big West Conference. Entering play tonight, UC-Davis, UC-Irvine and Long Beach State are locked in a three way tie for first place at 6-1 in league play. With Long Beach scheduled to host UC-Riverside tonight, this game may decide which team remains tied with the 49ers at the top of the standings and which one will have to start playing catch up.
The UC-Davis Aggies are currently 16-4 on the season, though have done so against the #290 Strength of Schedule in the country (as opposed to Long Beach’s #38 SOS). Regardless of their SOS this has already been the most successful season in Davis’ short D1 history and they can build on that with a road victory tonight. Given that they already have a head-to-head win over Long Beach under their belts, a win tonight will also give the Aggies the early lead in the battle for any potential Big West conference tournament seeding tiebreakers. Corey Hawkins has been leading the way for Davis this season with 59 made three pointers and double digits in scoring every game out so far.
UC-Irvine is currently 13-8 overall with the best BPI and KenPom ratings in the conference (though they are behind Long Beach in the RPI). The Anteaters, who like UC-Davis are seeking their first ever NCAA tournament appearance, enter tonight’s contest on a six game winning streak. Irvine’s recent success has been especially surprising given the continuing injuries that have kept their 7-6 300 pound big man, Mamadou Ndiaye, out of the lineup. The Anteaters have been led by the combined efforts of Will Davis, Alex Young and Luke Nelson, and will need solid games from all three tonight in order to remain tied for first place.