Game 26

UC Davis Aggies (21-4, 11-1 BWC)
at
UC Santa Barbara Gauchos (14-12, 7-5 BWC)

Thursday, Feb. 26 - 7 p.m.
The Thunderdome (5,600) - Santa Barbara, Calif.

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Radio: KSAC (105.5 FM) - Scott Marsh (PBP)
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Game 27

UC Davis Aggies
at
Cal Poly Mustangs (13-12, 6-7 BWC)

Saturday, Feb. 28 - 7 p.m.
Robert A. Mott Athletics Center (3,032) - San Luis Obispo, Calif.

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Radio: KSAC (105.5 FM) - Scott Marsh (PBP)
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Live Stats
In-game Twitter Updates


Game Notes


DAVIS, Calif. - Armed with a two-game lead atop the Big West standings, UC Davis will start its stretch run this week along the Central Coast starting with Thursday's game at UC Santa Barbara. Two days later, the Aggies will compete in their final road game of the regular season when men's basketball visits Cal Poly.

Thursday's contest will feature the league's best road team - the Aggies' have nearly twice as many road victories as the Big West's second-ranked team (UC Irvine, 5) - versus one of four conference teams that have only lost twice at home this season. At 12-0, UC Davis is the only team with an undefeated home record; UC Santa Barbara, Cal Poly, Long Beach State and UC Riverside have only lost two games on their home floor throughout the season.

UC Davis is responsible for handing Long Beach State and UC Riverside one of those home losses, and hope to accomplish the same thing on Thursday against the Gauchos.

Thursday's game will arguably feature the two best players in the Big West Conference when the Aggies, led by senior guard Corey Hawkins, face senior center Alan Williams and his Gaucho teammates. After missing seven games due to a shoulder injury, Williams has played 57 minutes combined in the last two games, and is coming off a 15 point, six rebound, three block performance last Saturday at Cal State Fullerton.

Series Record: UCSB leads 24-6
Last UC Davis Win: 70-64; 1/29/15 in Davis
Last UCSB Win: 67-54; 3/1/14 in Davis
Series Streak: UC Davis +1

In addition to the final road game of the season for UC Davis, Saturday's game at Cal Poly is the last home eventfor four Mustangs. Once Cal Poly's senior ceremony concludes, UC Davis will seek its second consecutive season sweep, andfourth victory in a row over CP before returning to Davis for its final home games of the season.

On Jan. 31, in a game televised from the Pavilion on ESPNU, the Aggies erased a 14-point deficit to defeat Cal Poly in overtime. Josh Ritchart hit six three-pointers, scored a season-high 24 points and led all Aggies with seven rebounds that evening.

A victory over the Mustangs will help UC Davis take one more step towards capturing a Big West title, Saturday's game is the penultimate one for a Cal Poly squad that slipped to sixth place last week, and will have only one game remaining before heading to Anaheim.

Series Record:Cal Poly leads 33-17
Last UC Davis Win:81-78 (OT); 1/31/15 in Davis
Last Cal Poly Win:64-41; 3/14/13 in Anaheim
Series Streak:UC Davis +3

TOP TURNAROUNDS
By defeating Hawai'i, UC Davis now leads the nation with its +12 win differential. New Hampshire (6-24/17-10) is enjoying a 11-win improvement compared to last season, and was tied with the Aggies until last weekend.

FIRST ONES THERE
By defeating Long Beach State on Feb. 19, UC Davis collected its 20th victory in a season for the first time in the program's Division-I history. The 1999-2000 campaign marked the last time UC Davis won 20 or more games in a season when that team won 22.

AND THEN THERE WERE THREE
The Aggies have won 12 of their last 13 games, their last seven in a row, and are now 21-4 overall and 11-1 in the Big West. UC Davis is the third Big West program to go from single-digit wins one season to 20 the next. Utah State went 4-23 in 1981-82 and 20-9 in 1982-83, while Fresno State was 7-20 in 1976-77 and 21-6 in 1977-78.

WE'RE NUMBER ONE! WE'RE NUMBER ONE!
For the eighth straight week, UC Davis is the No. 1 team in the country (out of 345 Div. I teams) with its three-point percentage. The Aggies sport a .463 clip from long range.

BATTLE FOR THE BIG WEST CROWN CONTINUES
With two weeks remaining, three teams have a shot at capturing a share of, or outright Big West title. A glance at the teams in contention, from UC Davis' point of view:

UC Davis (11-1 BWC, 1st): With a two-game cushion over second-place UC Irvine, the Aggies control their own destiny.
Games left: at UCSB (2/26), at Cal Poly (2/28), vs. UC Riverside (3/5), vs. UC Irvine (3/7)

UC Irvine (9-3 BWC, 2nd): The only other league team with a shot at claiming a league championship by itself. UC Davis defeated the Anteaters on Feb. 5, in Irvine, 75-56.
Games left: at Cal Poly (2/26), at UCSB (2/28), vs. Cal State Fullerton (3/5), at UC Davis (3/7)

UC Santa Barbara (7-5 BWC, T-3rd): A UC Davis victory in Thursday's matchup will eliminate the Gauchos from title contention. To have a shot of winning the league this season, UCSB must win its last four games and hope that UC Davis loses its remaining games to force a tiebreak situation since the Aggies won the previous head-to-head matchup on Jan. 29 (70-64).
Games left: vs. UC Davis (2/26), vs. UC Irvine (2/28), at Hawai'i (3/4), vs. Cal Poly (3/7)

Long Beach State (7-5 BWC, T-3rd): The 49ers are only listed because they enter the week tied for third place. Even if EVERY result that involves UC Irvine, UC Santa Barbara and UC Davis falls their way throughout the last two weeks of the season, Long Beach will lose the tiebreaker due to an Aggie sweep.
Games left: at Hawai'i (2/26), vs. Cal State Fullerton (2.28), vs. CSUN (3/5), at UC Riverside (3/7)

MAKE YOUR PLANS NOW
The schedule of events, at the upcoming Big West Men's Basketball Tournament, is as follows:

Thursday, March 12 - Honda Center, Anaheim
Session #3: Men's Quarterfinals - FSN West/Prime Ticket
#8 vs. #1; #7 vs. #2; #6 vs. #3; #5 vs. #4
Gm. 1 -12:00 noon; Gm. 2 - 30 minutes after; Gm. 3 - 6:00 p.m.; Gm. 4 - 30 minutes after

NOTE: The highest seeded team among Cal State Fullerton, Long Beach State and UC Irvine will play in Game 3 per the league's contract with the Honda Center and FOX Sports. The #1 seeded team will play no later than Game 3.

Friday, March 13 - Honda Center, Anaheim
Session #5: Men's Semifinals - ESPNU and ESPN3
Highest Remaining Seeded Team vs. Lowest Remaining Seeded Team - 6:30 p.m.; Other Quarterfinal Winners 9:00 p.m. or 30 min. after

Saturday, March 14 - Honda Center, Anaheim
Session #7: Men's Championship Game - ESPN2 8:30 p.m.

SOMEONE HAS TO "WIN"
If two or more teams are tied at the end of the season, seedings for the Big West Men's Basketball Tournament will be determined using the following procedures.

1.) Head-to-head results
2.) Won-lost record against the Conference champion (proceeding through the final standings in order of finish, if necessary)
3.) Coin toss conducted by the Big West commissioner

ALMOST 50/50 ODDS? I'LL TAKE THAT
UC Davis is also ranked No. 3 in the nation, and No. 1 in the Big West, with its .499 field goal percentage. The Aggies are the only Division I team in the country to hold a top-five three-point and field goal percentage.

HE'S NUMBER ONE! HE'S NUMBER ONE!
For the first time in the program's Division I history, a UC Davis player leads all players in the nation from behind the arc with his three-point percentage. Corey Hawkins is that individual, and for the fifth week in a row, holds a NCAA-high .528 figure.

YES, YOU READ THAT CORRECTLY
Corey Hawkins' percentage from three (.528) is nearly two percentage points higher than his field goal percentage (.509).

THEY'RE ON A ROLL
UC Davis' current seven-game win streak is the longest in the program's Division I history. The Aggies last won seven in a row during the 2003-04 season - UC Davis' final as a Division II athletics program.

SIX SHOOTER
Senior guard Corey Hawkins is ranked No. 6 among all Division I players in the nation with his 20.8 points per game average.

SHOOTING TO THE TOP OF THIS LIST, LITERALLY
Ranked No. 1 in the country with its .463 clip from three, UC Davis has an opportunity to post the highest percentage from long range since the NCAA pushed the three-point line back to its current position at 20 feet, 9 inches.

Instituted before the start of the 2008-09 season, Northern Colorado shot. 444 (199-for-448) to set the current all-time high from this distance.

The previous distance of 19 feet, 9 inches was utilized by the NCAA from the 1986-87 season, when initially introduced, through the 2007-08 campaign.

IF THE SEASON ENDED TODAY...
UC Davis' percentage from three (.463) would place the Aggies No. 17 all-time in NCAA history.

WE LIKE THE VIEW MUCH BETTER FROM HERE
With a two-game lead in the standings, UC Davis is on the verge of becoming just the third team in conference history to jump from last place, to first place, in a span of two seasons. The other two teams are:

Fresno State (1-11, last) in 1976-77, tied for first in 1977-78 at 11-3 with San Diego State
UC Santa Barbara finished last in 1997-98 (4-12) and first in 1998-99 at 12-4

If successful, the Aggies will become the first to do so outright in a single division setup. The switch from two divisions, to one, took place prior to the start of the 2000-01 season.

CONGRATULATIONS COACH LES
UC Davis head coach Jim Les collected career victory No. 200 when the Aggies defeated CSUN with their 68-55 road win on Feb. 7.

CLIMBING THE MID-MAJOR LADDER
For the eighth week, UC Davis earned a top 25 ranking when CollegeInsider.com released its mid-major poll Monday evening. In its latest listing, the Aggies are ranked No. 8 - the highest ranking in school history.

On Nov. 24, UC Davis made its inaugural Division I appearance on CollegeInsider.com's Mid-Major Top 25 poll when the Aggies received one vote. Five weeks later, UC Davis earned its first-ever, D-I national ranking when the media outlet listed the Aggies as the No. 25 mid-major team in the nation in its Dec. 22 poll.

SOMEONE IS ABOUT TO BE BUMPED
The way UC Davis is playing this season, numerous school, and Big West records, are on the verge of being rewritten. A list of potential records that may fall by the end of the season include (current record in parenthesis):

UC Davis

Scoring Avg. (season): Corey Hawkins, 20.8 ppg(Preston Neumayr, 21.3, `82-'83)
Scoring Total (three-year career): Corey Hawkins, 1,544(John Frost, 1,346, 1965-68)
Career 20+ point games: Corey Hawkins, 36(Audwin Thomas, 38, `75-'79)
3FG Pct. (season): Corey Hawkins, .528(Matt Cordova/Fowzi Abdelsamad, `89/'01, .500)
3FG Pct. (season): UC Davis, .499(.446, `88-'89)

Big West
3FG Pct. (season): Corey Hawkins, .528(Mike Doktorczyk, UCI, .519, `88-'89)
3FG Pct. (season): UC Davis, .463(New Mexico State, .455, `87-'88)

IT'S GOOD TO BE DIFFERENT
The Aggies have experienced a plus-12 win differential from last season to this season, one of the best in Big West history. UC Davis is one of just 16 teams to have made at least a 10-win improvement. The all-time biggest improvement in league history is 16 wins.

Utah State is the team with the +16 differential - that group went 4-23 in 1981-82 and improved to 20-9 in 1982-83

RITCHART RECEIVES PLAYER OF THE WEEK HONORS
By averaging 21.3 points and 4.5 rebounds per game, shooting .708 percent overall and .600 percent from three to help UC Davis, who began the week of Feb. 2 tied for first place with two other teams, remained atop the Big West standings by itself when the team ended its Southern California road trip with wins at UC Irvine (2/5) and CSUN (2/7).

At UC Irvine, the senior guard/forward led all players with 22 points on a season-high 10 of 11 shooting from the field. Ritchart knocked down 2 of 3 shots from three; that lone miss prevented him from recording his second perfect shooting line for the season. Two days later at CSUN, he led all players once again with 21 points and canned a three with 1:43 remaining to push the Aggies' lead to nine and seal the victory.

The league's announcement on Monday, Feb. 9, marked the third time that Ritchart received weekly honors as an Aggie.

THERE IS A FIRST TIME FOR EVERYTHING
When the league announced its Big West Player of the Week selection on Feb. 9, UC Davis received honors on consecutive weeks for the first time since joining the Big West in 2007.

On Feb. 2, Corey Hawkins received his second weekly award from the conference this year, his first was announced on Nov. 24.

OH, WHAT A NIGHT
Tyler Les conducted a shooting clinic for the standing-room only crowd that watched UC Davis win its 12th home win in a row on Feb. 21, against Hawai'i. That night Les canned a career-high nine threes and finished with a career-high 28 points.

DYNAMIC DUO
Avery Johnson also turned in a spectacular effort that same evening against the Rainbow Warriors. The senior guard tied a season high by finishing with 14 points, on a career-high five field goals, recorded two of the Aggies' five steals and tied another career high by blocking two shots.

A FIVE-TOOL PLAYER IN BASKETBALL?
As the numbers indicate, that's the best way to describe Corey Hawkins since the senior guard can defend, score, protect the ball, create open looks for teammates and force turnovers. Hawkins' NCAA and Big West rankings include (through games played on Feb. 22):

NCAA
Three-Point Field Goal Percentage - 1/.528
Points Per Game - 6/20.8
Three-Point Field Goals Per Game - 13/3.19
Total Three-Point Field Goals - 68/67
Field Goal Percentage - 71/.509

Big West Conference
Points per Game - 1/20.8
Three-Point Field Goals Made - 1/3.19 per gm.
Three-Point Field Goal Percentage - 1/.528
Field Goal Percentage - 3/.509
Assists Per Game - 5/3.67 per gm.
Free Throw Percentage - 5/.802
Defensive Rebounds - 7/4.38 per gm.
Steals - 7/1.43 per gm.
Assist-To-Turnover Ratio - 10/1.15
Rebounding - 12/5.1 per gm.

IMAGINE IF HE PLAYED ALL FOUR YEARS IN DAVIS
Currently in his third, and final season at UC Davis, Corey Hawkins continues to stamp his name throughout the team's records book. The senior guard is now ranked No. 3 in school history with 1,544 points and is 34 points shy of matching Preston Neumayr's second-place total (1,578).

HE'S DEFINITELY ON THE LIST
Corey Hawkins is on the Lou Henson Mid-Major Watch List - an award that is presented to the best mid-major player in the nation. Including his NCAA-high .528 percentage from three, the senior guard also holds numerous top-100 individual NCAA rankings.

Hawkins' 20.8 points per game scoring average is the best in the Big West Conference and the sixth -highest among all Division I players. UC Davis' first-ever Big West scoring champion is also ranked No. 13 nationally by averaging 3.19 three-point field goals per game.

RUST IS NOT AN ISSUE
Corey Hawkins wasted no time in making an impact on Feb. 19 when UC Davis visited Long Beach State as the senior guard returned from a three-game absence by making his first two shots. At one point in the second half, the senior guard scored 11 straight points for the Aggies to help them sweep Long Beach State for the first time in the program's history.

NO PROBLEM, WE'VE GOT THIS
Even with Corey Hawkins not in the lineup for the Aggies' Feb. 5 first-place battle at UC Irvine, the Aggies still routed the Anteaters, 75-56, to remain in a first place tie with Long Beach State.

Two days later, UC Davis won its second straight game without the senior guard by defeating CSUN by 13 points, then made it three in as many opportunities when the Titans left the Pavilion on Feb. 12 with a loss.

ADENRELE HOSTS AGGIES' BLOCK PARTY
Junior forward J.T. Adenrele is ranked No. 2 with 81 career blocked shots. Jason Cox (154, 1996-2000) is the only Aggie ahead of Adenrele in this all-time statistical category.

20 GOING ON 36 (AND COUNTING)
On Jan. 19, when UC Davis hosted Cal State Fullerton, Corey Hawkins scored 26 points to collect the 36th 20-plus point total of his career. With that effort, Hawkins is now two shy from sharing the all-time program record of 38 set by Audwin Thomas (1975-79).

Preston Neumayr and Mark Olson share the record for the most 20-plus point games in a season at 17, a mark that Hawkins also has a chance of possessing within the upcoming weeks. The senior guard has dropped 20 or more in 12 games this year.

THE CHASE TO NOTHING CONTINUES
UC Davis will look to remain perfect inside the Pavilion this season when men's basketball puts its 12-0 record on the line in its final two game of the season. Before heading to Anaheim, site of the Big West Men's Basketball Tournament, UC Riverside (3/5) and UC Irvine (3/7) will visit campus.

The Aggies are bidding to hold the Big West's first undefeated home record since Long Beach State finished 12-0 in 2011-12.

ANYONE, ANYTIME, ANYWHERE
UC Davis enters this week's games atop the Big West standings in first place and is the only league team with an undefeated home (12-0) and winning road record (9-4).

THE DEFINITION OF CONSISTENCY
UC Davis has shot .500 pct. in 15 games, and no worse than .435 pct. in any game.