DAVIS, Calif. — It's tournament time as UC Davis men's basketball begins their run in the Big West Championships run tomorrow, facing off against the winner of No. 3 Hawai'i and No. 7 CSUN with action scheduled to take place at the Dollar Loan Center in Henderson, Nev., Friday March 15 at 8:30 p.m. (PT).

Coverage of the contest will be featured on ESPN2. After originally being announced to air on ESPNU, the semifinal matchup will now hit the national market, with Roxy Bernstein and Corey Williams set to call.

This is UC Davis' first time being on ESPN2 since the 2015-2016 season.

Mar. 15 vs. No. 3 Hawai'i / No. 7 CSUN | 8:30 p.m. Tip-off (Henderson, Nev.) | ESPN2
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LAST TIME
UC Davis secured two road victories last week to secure the No. 2 seed in the Big West Championships, downing UC San Diego and Long Beach State. In the Aggies latest effort this past Saturday against Long Beach State, the Aggies drilled 62.5 percent of their three-point shots, propelling them to an 88-78 victory over the Beach. Kane Milling nearly matched his career-high, leading the Aggies' offensive onslaught with 24 points, including a remarkable six-of-eight from three-point range. Milling's stellar performance was complemented by Ty Johnson, who added 18 points and two steals, and Elijah Pepper, who contributed 17 points and four assists. All three players scored in double figures, marking the seventh occasion this season that Milling, Johnson, and Pepper have simultaneously achieved this feat.

In the Aggies other matchup of the week against the Tritons, it was again, Pepper, Milling, and Johnson who put forth an offensive showcase to hand UC San Diego only their second home defeat of the season. The trio tallied 53 points collectively, with each member surpassing the double-digit scoring threshold, driving the Aggies to a 70-63 triumph on the road at the LionTree Arena last Thursday evening. On the defensive end, UC Davis was disruptive, forcing 13 turnovers. The Aggies' defense consistently stifled the Tritons, preventing any significant scoring runs. Despite the narrow margin, UC Davis maintained control for more than 95% of the game, while at one juncture extending their lead to 16 points.


AGGIES IN THE RANKINGS

• #24 in NCAA in Turnovers Forced Per Game.
• Pepper ranked #26 in NCAA in Points Per Game, #26 in Three-Pointers Per Game.
• Ty Johnson and Pepper entered the season as the top returning backcourt scoring duo in the country and both are top-10 in the Big West in scoring this season.
• In Conference Only statistics, the Aggies rank:
  • #1 in steals
  • #1 in opponent 3-point FG percentage
  • #2 in scoring defense
• 14-1 in games in which Aggies are tied for or lead in rebounding battle.
• Elijah Pepper is averaging a conference leading 20.5 points per game. He is the lone player in conference averaging 20 or more points a contest. He was also announced as one of the 40 names to the 2023-24 Lou Henson mid-season Watch List.
• Ty Johnson is the sixth leading scorer in conference play with 18.4 points per game during Big West games while ranking as the eighth leading scorer overall. Johnson also ranks within the top-10 in assists.
• Niko Rocak ranks first in the conference in blocks per game during conference play.
• Pepper and Johnson are the lone players in Big West action to be averaging two or more steals.
• Ty Johnson and Elijah Pepper entered this season as the top returning scoring backcourt in all of the NCAA and this season are ranked second in all of the country in points per game as a guard duo (38.1 PPG between the pair).

ELIJAH PEPPER RECORD WATCH

• Pepper is the all-time leading scorer in Aggie history with 2,238 points and counting.
• He sits at second all-time in the Big West's history of leading scorers and trails the Big West career scoring record by 75 points, a record held by Lucious Harris (LBSU, 122 games - 1989-93).
• Pepper is also now UC Davis' holder for the all-time career steals record sitting atop the list with 222 in his career. He achieved the feat when the Aggies faced UC Riverside on Jan. 4. He set a single-game career-high mark of his recently in the Aggies win over CSUN on Feb. 22, recording seven steals. This trails Johnson's Division I single-game record for most steals in a game by just one.

ELIJAH PEPPER EARNS BIG WEST PLAYER OF THE YEAR; TY JOHNSON SLOTTED ON ALL-BIG WEST SECOND TEAM
UC Davis senior guard Elijah Pepper has been named the Big West Men's Basketball Player of the Year, as announced by the conference office on Tuesday.

Pepper has become UC Davis' first men's basketball player to secure the league's Player of the Year Award since TJ Shorts in 2018. He becomes just the 13th Aggie in program history to win a Conference Player of the Year Award, and just the third Aggie since UC Davis joined the Big West to secure the league's top honor.

Pepper is joined in his selection as Player of the Year and First Team All-Big West by junior guard, Ty Johnson who was selected to the All-Big West Second Team.

For the entirety of the season, Pepper averaged 20.5 points per game and was the lone player within the Big West to average 20 or more points per game. After a junior season in which he set the program's all-time single season scoring record, the senior from Selah, Washington continued to elevate his game this season and showed just how dynamic of a two-way player he is.

For the second consecutive year, Pepper was named a first team All-Big West member. And for a second consecutive year, Pepper was the class of the conference when it came to scoring with his 20.5 points per game ranking 27th in the country and first in the conference. Pepper also led the Big West in steals, steals per game, free throw percentage, three pointers per game, and total three pointers.

In Big West contests, Pepper averaged 20.8 points, 4.6 rebounds 2.3 assists, and 2.0 steals per game while being the league's premier marksman, sitting at the top as the only player to average three or more makes per game from three point range.

Johnson joins Pepper as the Aggies other All-Big West selection, having a breakout junior season to earn a Second Team All-Big West nod. The guard from Chicago, Illinois, Johnson set the pace for the Aggies all season with clutch buckets, timely playmaking, and disruptive point of attack defense.

After being an honorable mention last season, Johnson improved in nearly every statistical category while improving his efficiency in the process.

Johnson averaged a career-high 17.6 points per game, good for seventh in the Big West. He registered 23 double-figure scoring games and also led UC Davis in assists 16 times throughout the season. Making it even more impressive, he reached 20 or more points 13 times on the season and had a pair of 30 point games, highlighted by his 30 point effort against Hawai'i, a game in which he and Pepper traded buckets all night as the duo each registered 30 points in a pivotal win.

While Johnson registered a Big West Player of the Week for his other 30 point effort of the season in a non-conference win against Pacific, Johnson took his game to new heights during Big West action.

In Big West contests, Johnson averaged 18.4 points, 3.4 assists, and a league leading tie 2.0 steals per game.

Johnson was one of five players in Big West games to rank both top-10 in scoring average and assists per game, and finished his season with 17 straight double-figure scoring games with nine of those contests being 20 point or more outputs.

DEFENSIVE IMPACT
Niko Rocak has been one of the most impactful defenders in Big West play, as seen by him breaking a single game school-record with six blocks in the Aggies win against UC Irvine on Jan. 20. The six blocks still leads the conference for most in a game this season.

Ty Johnson and Elijah Pepper sit atop the Big West ranks for most steals per game in conference, play. The pair are the only two players averaging more than two steals per game.

These efforts have helped fuel the Aggies defensive presence the entire season, with UC Davis ranking 24th in turnovers forced per game.