By Nick Bartlett, SuperWest Sports
The Big West should receive just one NCAA Tournament bid, but three teams are currently within a game of each other atop the standings.
UC Irvine holds the top spot at 11-4 after defeating Long Beach State yesterday.
Hawaii and Cal State Northridge both have 10-5 conference records after losses on Thursday to Cal Poly and UC Santa Barbara, respectively.
The Anteaters and Rainbow Warriors have the better overall records with meaningful games still on their slates, so we take a look at those two teams here.
The players at both Hawai’i and UC Irvine have easy access to the beach, but they find themselves in different basketball situations.
Hawai’i (10-5, 18-7)
The Rainbows rely on a no-switching man-to-man defense when necessary, but in a limited way.
A lot of teams switch everything in this era, and it’s probably smart in power conferences, but UH is holding it down to a minimum.
Here’s a nerdy breakdown of why it works.
Hawai’i’s big men play a drop action in the pick-and-roll. This means the big man doesn’t defend the guard, but provides just enough of a presence to be annoying.
If the ball handler gets hot from 15 feet, a post player pops for some threes, or if there’s a vertical threat, it can be beaten.
Since the Big West lacks elite athleticism, this defense is effective.
The other guiding principle, and the main one, is no-help defense. This forces the opponent to win one-on-one matchups, which is difficult for most college players.
The justification for this defense is that it helps stymie ball movement.
The Bows rank first in the nation, only allowing 9.0 assists per game this year. UH also ranked in the Top 25 in this same category a season ago.
Hawai’i is also sixth in the country in defensive rating and 35th in points allowed per game.
Offensively, the Rainbow Warriors are decent, ranking 104th in points scored per contest.
They have four different players who average 10 points or more per game, led by center Isaac Johnson, who averages 13.4.
Head Coach Eran Ganot is on pace to lead Hawaii to its third 20-win season in the last four years, and has recorded just one losing season in his 11-year tenure as the coach at UH.
UC Irvine (11-4, 18-9)
UC Irvine is like that reliable worker who always gets overlooked. Last year, if not for a missed point-blank layup, they would have won the NIT.
Scarcely any mid-major program will make the Big Dance each season like Gonzaga, but the Anteaters are back at the top of the Big West standings again in 2026.
Offensively, the ‘Eaters are led by Jurian Dixon, who averages 15.5 points per game.
Dixon has proven a bit inconsistent at times, but can also take over a game, as was the case with his 26-point explosion against CSU Bakersfield.
The Big West Freshman of the Year in 2024-25 decided to stay after a tough end to his freshman season, aided by a bunch of players transferring out, meaning he would get more shots.
Irvine has two other players who average more than 10 points per game, and Kyle Evans is one of those guys.
But Evans isn’t known for his offense; he’s a defensive menace, leading the NCAA in blocked shots, averaging 3.35 blocks per contest.
He has 87 total denials on the year, 15 more than the second-place shot-blocker.
Evans’ defensive presence helps anchor a team that ranks seventh in defensive rating and 43rd in points allowed per game. He also averages 8.5 rebounds per contest.
The third player averaging more than ten points per game is Derin Saran, who also averages 3.5 assists and 1.4 steals per contest.
Russell Turner has done a marvelous job at UC Irvine. Most of his players impact the game in multiple facets, a staple of a winning program.
Not surprisingly, he is the winningest coach in ‘Eaters history.
Writes about football and basketball as a Senior Writer and hosts “The Nick Bartlett Show” for SuperWest Sports.
