The Big West ushers in its men's basketball regular season television package this week as Cal State Fullerton appears twice in road action, tangling with Cal Poly on ESPNU and UC Santa Barbara on FSN Prime Ticket.   
   
The television appearances are opportunities for the Titans, last season's Big West representative to the NCAA Tournament, to reverse their fortunes after an 0-2 start to league play.  It is the first time CSF has started Big West action 0-2 since the 2003-04 season, Bob Burton's first year as the program's head coach.  Burton remains two wins away from reaching career win No. 100, as he enters the week 98-68 in his sixth season.
   
The Thursday Cal State Fullerton-Cal Poly game is the first of five regular season games on either ESPNU or ESPN2.  The Mustangs also enter the game 0-2 in the conference standings, having lost four straight games overall.  CSF has won the last two meetings in Mott Gym and is 6-5 against the Mustangs during the Burton era.    
   
Fullerton then travels to face the only other winless team in Big West play when it invades UC Santa Barbara's Thunderdome Saturday.  It is the first of eight league contests to be televised on either FSN Prime Ticket or FSN West.  The Gauchos and Titans shared the Big West regular season crown in 2007-08 with Cal State Northridge.  UCSB (6-8, 0-2) last began a conference schedule 0-2 in 2005-06.  The Gauchos have lost four of their last five games.
   
CP and UCSB also host UC Irvine, which is off to a 1-0 start in conference play.
   
In a reversal of preseason poll predictions, Long Beach State and UC Riverside have commenced Big West play 2-0 after the coaches picked the 49ers and Highlanders to finish eighth and ninth, respectively.  Both teams won on their home courts last week and hope to translate that success to the road in this week's action.
   
LBSU is 6-1 this season in the Walter Pyramid, but just 1-6 in road games.  The 49ers journey to Northern California this week to take on Pacific and UC Davis.  The Tigers have won five of their last six games, including last week's Big West opener at preseason favorite Cal State Northridge.  It marked the third straight year and the 10th time in the last 11 seasons that the Tigers won their league opener.
   
Recent history suggests the 49ers will be hard pressed to pick up a victory against the Tigers.  After all, Pacific has won nine of the last 11 meetings and LBSU has won just once in Stockton in its last six trips.   
   
The 49ers have been much more successful against the Aggies, posting an 8-1 record in the all-time series matchup, including three straight wins in The Pavilion.
   
UCR has started a Big West season 2-0 for the first time in school history.  In addition, the Highlanders have already equaled last season's victory total of nine, and stand just three wins shy of the all-time record for most wins as a Division I program, which was 11 in 2003-04.