The UC Davis Aggies will attempt to become the first team to win the Big West Tournament in back-to-back seasons since the UC Santa Barbara Gauchos did it in 2010 and 2011 when they take to the Honda Center floor on Thursday night. If they find a way to pull off the feat, they will have held serve as the top seed in the tournament. That would be a triumph in and of itself as wide open the regular season played throughout the conference.
Big West Tournament Schedule
Don't miss the hardwood action from the Honda Center from Thursday, March 8, 2018 through Saturday, March 10 on ESPN2. We'll have NCAA odds at BookMaker.eu available for this and every game of the Big West Tournament.
Quarterfinals - Thursday, March 8th
No. 8 UC Riverside vs No. 1 UC Davis, 3 p.m.
No. 4 Cal State Fullerton vs No. 5 Long Beach State, 5:30 p.m.
No. 3 UC Irvine vs No. 6 Hawaii, 9 p.m.
No. 7 Cal Poly Slo vs No. 2 UC Santa Barbara, 11:30 p.m.
Semifinals - Friday, March 9th
TBD at 9:30 p.m.
TBD at 11:59 p.m.
Championship - Saturday, March 10th
TBD at 11:59 p.m.
Odds Analysis
The Big West was excitingly inconsistent over the course of the regular season. Of the nine teams that make up the conference, five sat in the catbird seat atop the standings at some point leading up to this tournament. If that doesn’t let you know just how wide open the league is, I don’t know what will!
In winning the regular season title, UC Davis has been installed the odds on favorite to cut the nets down at the tourney’s conclusion. However, there isn’t a ton separating them from the rest of the upper echelon. Take for instance Cal State Fullerton who won two less games than the Aggies in conference play, but swept the regular season rivalry.
If UC Santa Barbara had any sort of defense to complement its fantastic offense, Joe Pasternack’s Gauchos would be a shoe-in for the finals. If sharpshooter Max Heidegger and his mates are able to shoot their way past a solid UC Irvine defense, the No. 2 seed could punch its ticket to the dance!
Player to Watch
TJ Shorts II – There are a number of excelled offensive players in the Big West, but none have made the impact this youngster has made in his first go round at the Division I level. Shorts II leads the Aggies in scoring with an average of 15.3 points per game, but he also leads the team in assists ( 4.3 APG ), steals ( 2.0 SPG ) and field goal percentage ( 53.5% ).
Chima Moneke is the unit’s primary scorer down low ( 18.4 PPG ), but Shorts II is the straw that stirs the Aggies’ drink. Should he get into foul trouble in any game, UC Davis will find out just how valuable he is to the overall success of the team. Should that occur, it would be very surprising since the freshman only averaged 2.0 fouls per game. Look for him to be in it for the long haul and be one of the main reasons why the Aggies find themselves in a position to repeat.
Free NCAA ATS Picks
With UC Irvine and UC Santa Barbara installed in the lower half of the bracket, top-seeded UC Davis has what I see is the easier route to the finals. A first round matchup against a UC Riverside squad it swept in the regular season shouldn’t offer up much of an issue. Should Cal State Fullerton get by the Beach in its quarterfinal matchup, it would present the Aggies with a shot to avenge their pair of regular season losses to the Titans. I fully expect Moneke and company to rise to the occasion if that turns out being the case.
While UC Irvine’s defense will be extremely tough for any foe that gets in its way, I just don’t foresee the Anteaters having enough in the tank offensively to get the best of the Gauchos should the team’s meet up in the semifinals. Both teams held serve at home against one another in the regular season, but I expect Max Heidegger and company to come up with the big shots when needed to advance.
That will set up a third go round between the Aggies and UCSB in the finals, and it’s sure to deliver. Neither team was able to defend its court against the other in the regular season, and if they do meet for a third time, it should go down to the wire. Expect the rims at the Honda Center to get a workout and for the Aggies to punch their ticket to the dance in a spectacular fashion!
NCAA Odds: UC Davis 91, UC Santa Barbara 89 in Big West Tournament Championship Game
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