BricksIt Weekly
The new map
The champs moved east. The Gauchos and Anteaters didn't blink.
Hawai'i and UC Davis are gone to the Mountain West, three newcomers are in, and two of the old guard are playing their last Big West season. UC Santa Barbara and UC Irvine are 3-0 and on top.
By the Hardwood Bricks desk
The Big West tipped off this season missing its reigning champion. Hawai'i, which beat UC Irvine for the title in Henderson in March, left for the Mountain West along with UC Davis. In their place come Cal Baptist, Sacramento State and Utah Valley, which makes it a twelve-team league stretched from Orem to San Diego.
It is also a farewell tour. UC San Diego and UC Santa Barbara join the West Coast Conference on July 1, 2027, so every Gaucho and Triton road trip this winter is the last of its kind.
The Gauchos are making it count. UCSB is 3-0 and our model has it 83rd nationally, the best rating in the league. The latest win came Wednesday night at the Thunderdome, 76-63 over a Nevada team that had beaten Saint Mary's three nights earlier. The Gauchos were short underdogs and won by 13.
UC Irvine is 3-0 too and sits 132nd, second in the league, after beating San José State by 12 and winning its other two games by an average of 38. Behind them it gets crowded: Utah Valley (158th), UC San Diego (161st), UC Riverside (185th) and Long Beach State (186th) are packed within three points of each other.
The road has been kind to a few. Utah Valley won by eight at Weber State, Cal State Fullerton won by two at South Dakota, and CSU Bakersfield beat North Dakota State by 11 as a home underdog. The newcomers have had it rougher: Cal Baptist is 0-3 and rates 351st.
The farewell tour
UC San Diego and UC Santa Barbara leave for the WCC on July 1, 2027. This season's Big West tournament, March 8 to 13 at Lee's Family Forum in Henderson, Nevada, is their last.
Long Beach holds on
The Beach beat Pacific 62-59 at home as 5.5-point underdogs. It was their first win after losses at Utah, by three, and at Montana State.
Riverside's defense
UC Riverside beat Denver 64-60 and held La Verne to 47. Two games in, the Highlanders have allowed 53.5 points a night.
Welcome to Division I life
Cal Baptist has lost to North Florida, Oregon State and Chicago State. Two of the three came at home. The first win is still out there.
By the numbers
The pecking order
Our model's rating for every Big West team: points better or worse than an average Division I team over 100 possessions. Record alongside.