March 1, 2010

Complete Game Notes

DAVIS, Calif. - Fresh off of a stirring 23-point victory in its home finale on Senior Day, the UC Davis men's basketball team is preparing for its final two games of the regular season later this week. The Aggies begin the two-game trip Thursday at Cal State Northridge before taking on Cal State Fullerton Saturday night. All of the action will be available on KFSG 1690-AM as well as www.ucdavisaggies.com.

Sunday's 66-43 win against UC Riverside vaulted UC Davis into fourth-place in the Big West Conference. The position is critical as teams are jockeying for seeds in next week's Big West Tournament. The top two seeds get byes into the semifinals of the tournament while the No. 3 and No. 4 seeds get a first round bye. The no. 5-8 seeds must begin play on Wednesday and win four games in four days to claim the Big West's automatic berth into the NCAA Tournament.

The current standings have UC Santa Barbara at the top of the league with an 11-4 mark. Pacific is second at 10-4. Next is Cal State Fullerton at 8-6, followed by UC Davis at 7-7. The Aggies hold a slim edge over Long Beach State and Cal Poly, with both teams tied for fifth at 7-8.

More good news for the Aggies is the return of Mark Payne. The junior missed four games before starting the past two games. He's coming off a 19-point performance against UCR and is third in the Big West with 16.4 ppg. Senior Dominic Calegari, who was honored prior to Sunday's game, is also averaging 16.4 ppg. and is fourth in the conference in scoring average.

UC Davis (12-16) will hope to duplicate its efforts from earlier in the season against both upcoming opponents. The Aggies swept a homestand against the Titans and Northridge to open Big West play in January at The Pavilion. UC Davis topped Cal State Fullerton, 67-63, on Jan. 2 before defeating CSUN by an 85-73 decision.

Cal State Northridge enters Thursday's game with a 10-19 record and a 5-9 mark in the Big West. Last year's Big West champions have struggled this season and are battling to qualify for next week's Big West Tournament. Most recently, the Matadors have lost three straight and six of their last seven. Senior Kenny Daniels leads the team with 15.2 points per game. Junior Lenny Daniel is averaging 11.8 points and a team-high 7.6 rebounds.

Cal State Fullerton is 15-12 overall and hosts Pacific Thursday night. The Titans have posted a 10-5 record since falling to the Aggies earlier this season.

Thursday's game tips at 7:05 p.m., and Saturday's is scheduled for 6:05 p.m.