IRVINE, Calif. -- The UC Irvine men's basketball team starts 2023-24 action on the road at San Jose State on Tuesday Nov. 7 before hosting New Mexico State on Nov. 11 (Saturday).

UC Irvine at San Jose State
Tuesday, Nov. 7 | 7:00 p.m. PT
Provident Credit Union Event Center | San Jose, Calif.
AM 830 | Live Stats | Watch (Mountain West Network) | Tickets | Notes

New Mexico State vs. UC Irvine
Wednesday, Mar. 15 | 8:00 p.m. PT
Bren Events Center | Irvine, Calif.
AM 830 | Live Stats | Watch (ESPN) | Tickets | UC Irvine Notes | New Mexico State Notes | Gameday Program

ABOUT NEW MEXICO STATE
> New Mexico State hold a 1-1 record entering the contest, dropping to No. 16/16 Kentucky in their season opener before picking up a win over Sul Ross State
> The Aggies finished the 2022-23 season with a 9-15 overall record and 2-12 in the WAC before their season was canceled
> NMSU earned Division I wins over San Diego, UTEP, Duquesne, North Carolina A&T, Stephen F. Austin, and Seattle last year
> Jason Hooten was tabbed as their head coach at the end of March to rebuild the program
> In the offseason, Hooten added transfers in Jaden Harris (South Plains), Clarence Jackson (Jackson State), Jaylin Jackson-Posey (Stephen F. Austin), Brandon Suggs (UCF), Kaosi Ezeagu (Sam Houston), Femi Odukale (Seton Hall), Jordan Rawls (Western Kentucky), Christian Cook (Northeastern State), Robert Carpenter (Mississippi Valley State), Jonathan Kanyanga (Edward Waters), and Davios Bradford (Wake Forest)
> Jackson-Posey was the WAC Sixth Man of the Year with SFA
> Rawls ranked 15th in the C-USA in assists last year
> Cook led the RiverHawks with 16 ppg
> Bradford shot at a 0.757 clip (28-37) in 2022-23 with the Demon Deacons
> Ezeagu and Rawls currently lead the Aggies with 18 total points each, 9.0 per game
> Clarence Jackson is the leader off the glass with 13 rebounds in two games
> Only 11 of the 13 Aggies have seen time on the court in two contests

HANG IT FROM THE RAFTERS
Prior to the start of Saturday's game, the Anteaters will unveil their new championship banner from the rafters of the Bren Events Center after going 15-5 in Big West play to win the program their eighth regular season title and sixth under head coach Russell Turner.

HISTORY IN HOME OPENERS
All time, UC Irvine is 41-17 (0.707) in their first home game of the year. In the last thirteen years, Head Coach Russell Turner is 9-4 all time in season home opening games. The 2023-24 Anteaters look to improve the mark to 10-4 against the Aggies. The two squads have not yet met on a home opening day in Irvine and had one season opening meeting in Las Cruces in program history.

OLD CONFERENCE FOE'S
UCI and New Mexico State used to compete against each other in the Big West from 1984-2000 before the Aggies left the conference. NM State held the 7-23 advantage over UCI in league play. 

LAST TIME OUT VS. AGGIES
UC Irvine downed New Mexico State, 85-68, on Nov. 26, 2022, to take home the Las Vegas Classic championship crown. In a game where the Anteaters never trailed, Justin Hohn was one of three players to score in double figures (16) backed by perfect 4-4 shooting from three-point range. Dean Keeler had a career night with bests in assists (2), rebounds (10), and blocks (3). Pierre Crockrell II led UCI with five assists to help earn the tournament's MVP title. UC Irvine knocked down a season best 14 three-pointers (14-24) in the victory.

TALE OF TWO HALVES IN SAN JOSE
After a strong start in the second half, the Anteaters dropped 72-64 to San Jose State in their season opener. UC Irvine shot at a 0.418 clip (23-55) in the contest but could not get a shot to fall from deep as only two fell in the game (2-12). The Spartans went on runs and as soon as the 'Eaters closed in, SJSU would find away to escape turning a UCI comeback to close within three points to a 13 point advantage.

BIG MEN DOING BIG THINGS
Center Bent Leuchten and forward Devin Tillis led UC Irvine in points and rebounds in the loss at San Jose State. Leuchten led the Anteaters with 14 points and pulled down a team best six rebounds. Tillis was second best in both categories, recording 12 points along with five boards. 

WELCOME TO THE FLOOR
Graduate student Dylan Thoerner and freshman Derin Saran made their Anteater debut on Tuesday night against the Spartans. Thoerner only had on rebound in the contest, but was a vital part of the UCI offense on their scoring runs. Saran poured in eight points along with a rebound and a steal.

GAP YEAR
Sophomore Eli Chol and freshmen Jurian Dixon, Ben Egbo, and Carter Welling were announced on Tuesday as the 2023-24 season redshirt class. All four players will return to the floor or make their debut in 2024-25.
 

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ABOUT SAN JOSE STATE
> San Jose State finished the 2022-23 season with a 21-14 overall record and 10-8 in the Mountain West 
> The Spartans dropped to NCAA Runner-Up San Diego State in the Mountain West semifinals
> SJSU advanced to the postseason, taking the 77-52 victory against Southern Indiana in the College Basketball Invitational (CBI) first round
> The Spartans ended up falling to Radford in the CBI quarterfinals, 67-57
> San Jose State was projected to finish 7th in the Mountain West with 124 points
> The Spartans return their second leading scorer in junior Alvaro Cardenas who scored 350 points in 35 games played and started
> Cardenas was also second on the team in assists, dishing out 120
> Junior Robert Viahola played a big role off the bench last season averaging 6.5 boards in 35 games
> Trey Anderson is the last returning player to have started in all 35 games last season
> SJSU adds talent in sophomore Washington State transfer Adrame Diongue, freshman Diogo Seixas, and freshman Ricky Mitchell Jr. 

HISTORY IN SEASON OPENERS
All time, UC Irvine is 27-31 (0.466) in their first game of the year. In the last thirteen years, Head Coach Russell Turner is 6-7 all time in season opening games and 1-4 on the road. The 2023-24 Anteaters look to improve the mark to 7-7 against a tough Mountain West opponent in San Jose State. The two squads have not yet met on an opening day in series history.

HITTING THE ROAD
UC Irvine plays nine of their 12 non-conference games on the road, including their three games played in Henderson, Nevada at a neutral site MTE. This is the most UCI has been on the road since the 2019-2020 season where 10 games were not at home with four played at neutral sites.

OLD CONFERENCE FOE'S
UCI and San Jose State used to compete against each other in the Big West from 1978-1996 before the Spartans left the conference. UCI held the 23-15 advantage over SJSU in league play.

PRESEASON PROGNOSTICS
UC Irvine is ranked 24th in both KenPom's Mid-Major Top-25 and Field of 68's Mid-Major Poll. UCI comes in at the 94 slot in the KenPom rankings, the highest ranked team in the Big West and the highest preseason ranking under Coach Turner's reign. Additionally, the Anteaters are receiving votes in the College Insider Mid-Major Poll. 

EXHIBITION RECAP
In Friday's early competition start, UC Irvine took down Division II Cal State San Marcos 75-67. In a game where all 16 players saw action on the floor, 14 scored in the team effort. Redshirt junior Devin Tillis and redshirt senior Justin Hohn scored in double-figures, 11 and 10 points, respectively. Tillis was also one rebound shy of an early year double-double. Fifth year Pierre Crockrell II continued his leadership at the point and dished out a game best five assists. In the first half of the contest, the Anteaters shot at a volatile 0.593 clip (16-27) from the floor.

SHARING THE BALL
For the upcoming 2023-24 season, the 'Eaters return every player from the 2022-23 roster who recorded a positive assist-turnover ratio. 

COACHING ACHIEVEMENT
Alum and assistant coach Michael Wilder enters his tenth season as a coach for the Anteaters. In his ten years as a coach, Wilder has helped lead UCI to two conference tournament titles, five regular season championships, and the programs first NCAA March Madness win. As a player, Wilder finished up his career fourth in program history in three-pointers made, 17th in rebounds, and was one of 32 1,000-point scorers.

WE ARE THE CHAMPIONS
The UC Irvine Anteaters are coming off a championship campaign in the 2022-23 season where they earned the Big West regular season crown behind their 15-5 league record. UCI already has a championship under their belt prior to the start of the 2023-24 campaign as they went an undefeated 8-0 at the 42nd annual Jones Cup in Taiwan.

NOT THE ROOKIES, BUT THE VETS
For the first time in three seasons, UCI will graduate more than one player from the program while also returning academic seniors who have up to two years of eligibility left. Graduate student Dylan Thoerner along with fifth years in Pierre Crockrell II and Dean Keeler will complete their athletic eligibility this season.