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MEDIA DAY PRESEASON POLL:
- UC Santa Barbara
- UC Irvine
- UC Riverside
- UC Davis
- Hawaii
- Cal State Bakersfield
- Cal State Fullerton
- Long Beach State
- Cal Poly
- Cal State Northridge
MEDIA DAY COACHES PRESEASON ALL CONFERENCE 1ST TEAM:
-Tray Maddox Jr – SR, G – Cal State Fullerton
-Ezra Manjon – SO, G – UC Davis
-Miles Norris – SR, F – UC Santa Barbara
-Zyon Pullin – SO, G – UC Riverside
-Amadou Sow – SR, F – UC Santa Barbara
-Collin Welp – SR, F – UC Irvine
MEDIA DAY MEDIA PRESEASON ALL CONFERENCE 2ND TEAM:
-Darius Brown – SR, G – Cal State Northridge
-Tray Maddox Jr – SR, G – Cal State Fullerton
-Ezra Manjon – SO, G – UC Davis
-Elijah Pepper – SO, G – UC Davis
-Amadou Sow – SR, F – UC Santa Barbara
-Collin Welp – SR, F – UC Irvine
COMMENTS FROM DAVID:
-A lot of schools and conferences struggled with COVID last year, but some struggled more than others, and the Big West collectively seemed to struggle more than most.
-UC Santa Barbara has some pieces to replace. They won the league last year and earned a #12 seed in the NCAA Tournament, and I think they fell into the category that a lot of Under the Radar teams fall into, and that’s being much better than their season’s profile indicated. I bet Creighton, who BARELY beat them in the Round of 64 before advancing to the Sweet Sixteen, would completely agree. The Gauchos, on the court, were a legit top-30ish caliber team last year. With just two starters back they may digress a little bit, but they do have some guys that came off the bench last year who can step up, and given Joe Pasternack’s track record as a coach, I would never underestimate the Gauchos.
-The Eaters of UC Irvine will not be far behind the Gauchos, and it wouldn’t shock me at all to see them finish atop the league. Three key starters are back, Russell Turner is a proven coach (which may be the understatement of the year), and with guys who came off the bench last year stepping into bigger roles this year this team will once again be a force in this league.
-UC Riverside is an incredible story. For a time it looked like they were going to shut down athletics entirely as an institution, so the huge improvements in basketball could not have come at a more crucial period. Like every one else they battled COVID last season, but with three key starters back from a team that finished in 3rd place all signs point to them being high in the standings again.
-UC Davis had a really hard time getting on the court last year (as did a lot of teams in this league), but they had an impressive run in the latter part of the season, and with three key starters back, including two who averaged double digits, there is reason for optimism this year.
-Hawaii had a rough time getting on the court last year as well, especially in the non-conference portion of the season. They are in somewhat of a reset mode with just two starters back, but they add a couple of key transfers and it will be interesting to see what they can do now that practices and games appear to be at a more normal pace.
-Cal State Bakersfield returns three starters from a team that finished in the middle of the pack last year, and seem to have the feel of a team that will finish in the middle of the pack again this year.
-Cal State Fullerton had a rough season last year, and finished with just five wins. Four starters are back and that experience should help them this year. Being able to play a normal year should also help them.
-After a rough season last year, Long Beach State is in reset mode. Just one starter is back, so their roster has been overhauled somewhat. Coach Dan Monson has had success with this program, but hasn’t quite broken through to where The Beach is a consistent Big West frontrunner and top-ten UTR program. They could be in for another long season this year.
-Cal State Northridge had a rough year last year, and had some off the court issues over the summer on top of that. That could add up to another rough year this year.
-Cal Poly could also be in for a long haul. They’ve won fewer than ten games for the last four years and could be in for another rough ride this year.