Following the first two weeks of conference play, UC Santa Barbara, under the helm of first-year coach Lindsay Gottlieb, is a perfect 4-0 in Big West play. Preseason favorite UC Riverside, who fell to the Gauchos opening week, sits second in the league with a 3-1 mark. Pacific, UC Davis and Cal State Fullerton are tied for third with a 2-1 record.
The Gauchos take a break from conference action with a midweek tilt against Portland State. They welcome the Vikings to The Thunderdome, where the Gauchos are 6-1 this season, Wednesday, Jan. 14 at 7:00 p.m. UC Santa Barbara returns to conference play Saturday afternoon when they host central coast rival Cal Poly. The two teams square off at 2:00 p.m.
UC Riverside, who owns an unblemished record of 4-0 at home, leaves the familiar confines of the Student Recreation Center for a conference matchup against Cal State Northridge. Despite dropping the last three contests to the Highlanders, the Matadors hold a 22-20 advantage in the series. The two teams tangle at The Matadome Wednesday, Jan. 14 at 7:00 p.m.
While the midweek outing is the lone contest of the week for UC Riverside, Cal State Northridge plays its second game Saturday afternoon when it entertains Long Beach State. Both teams are looking for their first league win of the season. The 49ers lead the series with a 28-10 record.
Before taking on the Matadors Saturday at 4:00 p.m., Long Beach State travels to Cal State Bakersfield Tuesday evening for a nonconference battle against the Roadrunners. Tipoff is slated for 7:00 p.m.
Coming off a week where they split their conference road series and collected their first road victory of the season, the Pacific Tigers return to the Alex G. Spanos Center where they are a perfect 7-0. The Tigers host UC Irvine Thursday evening and Cal State Fullerton Saturday afternoon. Pacific holds a 30-24 advantage over the Anteaters and leads the all-time series with the Titans 31-18.
Like Pacific, UC Davis also hosts both UC Irvine and Cal State Fullerton this week. The Aggies begin with a matchup against the Titans on Thursday. They follow that up with a showdown versus the Anteaters on Saturday night. Both games are scheduled with a 7:00 p.m. start. UC Davis owns a combined record of 15-5 against its upcoming opponents.