Record Setting Performances Highlight Another Successful Season
April 27, 2026 | Men's Basketball
Once again UC Irvine proved to be a powerhouse in the Big West, claiming their eighth regular season titles in the last 13 seasons, reaching the post-season for the fourth consecutive season.
After exhibitions against Arizona State and UCLA, it didn't take long for the impressive performances to start.
November 3, 2025
The season opener at the Bren Events Center saw UC Irvine shared the ball a school record 34 times in a 125-49 victory over Bethesda. The Anteaters bettered the old school mark of 31 against Bethesda in 2020. Eight different players recorded at least one assist, led by freshman Tama Isaacโs 10, which were the most since Pierre Crockrell II had 11 versus Cal Poly on March 7, 2024. Forward Kyle Evans had career-best 22 points in just 13 minutes of action. He went 7-11 from the floor and 8-10 from the free throw line, while pulling down five rebounds.
November 10, 2025
It was another record setting night as UC Irvine defeated Lincoln, 130-63 at the Bren Events Center. For the second consecutive game, the Anteaters bettered the school record for assists in a game again, with 40. The team recorded 59 field goals, a school and Bren Center record, while their 88 attempts are also a new Bren Center record, just one shy of the overall school mark. The Anteaters 71 second half points are a Bren Center record, surpassing the old record of 70 set twice before, the last in 2020. UCI's 130 points are the most since the Anteaters scored a school record 135 in a victory over Bethesda on Nov. 28, 2020. The Anteaters 67.0 field goal percentage (59-88) was also the best since that Bethesda game when UCI shot 69.1 percent (56-81). UCI out-rebounded the Oaklanders 55-21, the most boards since the Anteaters had 55 versus Life Pacific on Nov. 21, 2022.
Another highlight was guard Derin Saran posting a triple-double, the first Anteater to accomplish the feat. The redshirt sophomore poured in a career-high 20 points, a career and game-best 10 assists and 12 rebounds in the victory. He went 9-16 from the floor with a three-pointer and 1-1 from the line.
November 15, 2025
Guard Jurian Dixon tied his career-high with 23 points in UC Irvine's 79-70 victory over Weber State at the Bren Events Center to close out UCIโs four game homestand to start the season.
Dixon's career-best 23 points came on 7-13 shooting from the floor and 7-8 from the line.
Weber State would rally late on an 8-0 run to close within eight (70-62) with 1:55 remaining before Derin Saran would score UCI's final eight points, including 6-6 from the line to secure the win.
November 25, 2025
UC Irvine closed out the Cancun Challenge with a 64-52 victory over South Dakota State at the Hard Rock Cancun Riviera Maya. Forward Kyle Evans was named Player of the Game after a double-double performance with 10 points and a game and season-high 10 rebounds. He had two assists and a blocked shot. The Anteaters had five players in double-digit points led by Dixonโs 13 followed by Andre Henryโs 11 points.
November 30, 2025
The Anteaters closed out November with a 72-63 victory at San Jose State on the strength of shooting 49.1% from the field (30-61) overall. Saran and forward Harrison Carrington led the way with the guard pouring in 24 points and a team-best seven rebounds and the forward coming off the bench to score 17 points, on an efficient 8-10 shooting from the field. The redshirt junior added six rebounds in addition to his scoring.
December 4 & 6, 2025
UCI opened Big West action with a 73-60 victory over UC Riverside then an 85-71 victory over CSUN at the Bren Events Center.
Against the Roadrunners, Evans led the way for the Anteaters, scoring 19 points, grabbing eight rebounds and adding five blocks. The senior went 7-11 from the floor, including knocking down his first career three-pointer.
Versus the Matadors, Saran scored nine of his team-high 17 points in the final 4:36 of the game to help secure a victory. UCI finished the game on a 17-4 run in the last five minutes, holding CSUN scoreless for the last 1:49 of play. Evans pulled down a career-high 16 rebounds and scored 12 points.
December 22, 2025
UC Irvine captured the WestStar Don Haskins Sun Bowl Invitational for the second time in program history with victories over Norfolk State (89-70) and North Dakota State (74-73) at the Don Haskins Center in El Paso, TX.
Against Norfolk State, the Anteaters shot 57.6% (19-33) in the first half to lead 46-25 at the break and never looked back. UCI finished the game, going 32-60 from the field (53.3%), including eight threes and 17-20 (85.0%) from the free throw line.
Kyle Evans was named the Invitational MVP after recording a career-best 24 points on 11-12 shooting from the floor versus North Dakota State then followed with a 22-point performance in the final game. Jurian Dixon was named to the All-Invitational team, totaling 13 points on 5-11 shooting from the floor, knocking down three three-pointers.
Evans was named Big West Player of the Week for his efforts.
January 1, 2026
UC Irvine returned to Big West action, starting the new year on a winning note with a 81-77 victory over CSU Bakersfield on the road. Jurian Dixon poured in a career-high 24 points, hitting 6-7 from long distance. The Anteaters shot 53.8 percent (28-52) from the field, the third consecutive game the offensive has gone over 50 percent from the floor.
January 3, 2026
The Anteaters were impressive on both sides of the ball in an 86-64 victory at Cal State Fullerton. UCI shot 56.1 percent (32-57) from the floor and held the league's leading offense to just 64 points and a 32.8% mark (22-67) from the field. UCI's .561 field goal percentage was the third highest of the season and best against a Division I team. The Anteaters came out hot, knocking down 67.9% (19-28) of their shots in the first half then limited the Titans to just 9-31 shooting from the floor in the final 20 minutes. The Anteaters knocked down a season-high 11 three-pointers with five players hitting from long range. Derin Saran recorded his third double-double of the season with 16 points and a game-high 11 rebounds. Center Elijah Chol totaled a career-high 15 points, draining 3-4 from three-point range.
Following the two games, Dixon was named Big West Player of the Week.
January 22, 2026
After two close losses on the road to Hawaii and UC Davis, UCI rebounded with an 80-66 win at UC Riverside. The Anteaters exploded with a 19-0 run out of halftime and never looked back. The team swiped 12 steals, the second most for the season.
Dixon led five Anteaters in double-digit scoring with 15 points. Forward Harrison Carrington was impressive, knocking down 6-8 from the floor and 2-3 from the line for 14 points.
January 24, 2026
Jurian Dixon had a layup with 28 seconds left to take down UC San Diego, 61-59, at LionTree Arena. The UC Irvine defense held UC San Diego scoreless for the final 3:47 to capture the victory. Dixon joined guard Andre Henry with a team-high 12 points.
January 29, 2026
Andre Henry took control in overtime, scoring eight of UCI's 15 points in extra time, as UCI defeated Hawaii 84-76 at the Bren Center. Henry ended the game with a season-high 17 points. The Anteaters were led by a pair of double-doubles from Kyle Evans and Jurian Dixon. Evans grabbed 11 rebounds and recording a career-high tying eight blocks. Dixon pulled down a career-high 10 rebounds and had four assists in the win.
February 5, 2026
Freshman guard Tama Isaac recorded his second career double-double in UC Irvine's 78-62 victory over CSU Bakersfield, the 11th straight over the Roadrunners. Isaac dished a career-high 13 assists, the most since Pierre Crockrell II had 16 against the Roadrunners in 2023. He also scored 14 points on 5-9 shooting from the floor and 4-8 from the free throw line as well as pulling down six rebounds and grabbing two steals in the win. Evans led the Anteaters with 16 points, going 8-11 from the floor to go with seven rebounds and four blocks.
February 14, 2026
Andre Henry posted a season-high 19 points in UC Irvine's 86-65 victory over Cal State Fullerton on Valentineโs Day. Henry had a perfect night, going 8-8 from the field, including 3-3 from three-point range for his season-best. He also added three rebounds and a steal on the night.
February 26, 2026
At the Premier America Credit Union Arena, CSUN would score four in a row to hold a 67-64 lead with 55 seconds remaining before Jurian Dixon pulled up for a free throw line jumper with 38 ticks on the clock to get UCI with in one, 67-66. Following a Matador timeout, Tama Isaac stole the ball but missed a layup which bounced off several hands, the last by a CSUN player, giving the Anteaters one more possession. With 1.3 on the clock, Isaac would inbound the ball on the baseline, finding Derin Saran who circled across the paint and through the defense right under the basket to bank it off the glass as time expired for a 68-67 win.
Dixon would lead UCI with 14 points, hitting 6-12 from the floor, while Seran followed with 13 points, five rebounds and four steals.
February 28, 2026
An electric Homecoming crowd of 4,377 watched UC Irvine defeat UC Santa Barbara 64-60 at the Bren Events Center. Andre Henry stole the ball on the defensive end then drained a jumper on the other. A Gaucho technical foul following the play put Henry on the line for two more, giving UCI a 63-57 lead with 25 seconds to go. The Gauchos responded with a quick three-pointer, but fouled Tama Isaac who made the second of two free throws with four seconds left to seal the victory. Jovan Jester Jr. and Dixon paced UCI with 13 points each.
March 5, 2026
Kyle Evans put his name in the record books in UC Irvine's 107-85 victory over Cal Poly. He recorded five blocks to set the UC Irvine and Big West single season block record, surpassing the old mark of 106 held by former Anteater Mamadou Ndiaye in 2013-14. The forward also poured in 17 points on 7-11 shooting from the floor and 3-4 from the free throw line and a team-best eight rebounds. Jurian Dixon totaled a game-high 22 points, hitting 8-16 from the field.
March 7, 2026
The Anteaters captured their 10th Big West regular season title with a 79-69 overtime victory over UC Davis in the regular season finale. A UC Davis three-pointer with 59 seconds to play knotted the score at 65-65, the last score of regulation. UCI dominated overtime, out-scoring the Aggies 14-4. After UC Davis scored the first basket of the extra period, UCI opened up a six-point advantage (73-67) on buckets from Dixon, Evans, Saran and Henry. UCD would hit their final points, a pair of free throws, with 1:06 on the clock.
March 13 & 14, 2026
UC Irvine, the No. 1 seed, started the Credit Union 1 Big West Basketball Championships with a 93-78 victory over fourth-seeded CSUN at Lee's Family Forum. UCI led wire-to-wire and used a big first half, shooting 58.1 percent (18-31) from the floor to hold a 49-37 halftime lead. The Anteaters ended the game shooting 51.6% (33-64) from the field and 17-22 from the line (77.3%). UCI dominated the glass, out-rebounding the Matadors 44-26. Four Anteaters scored in double-digits led by Derin Saranโs 23 points.
UCI would end up falling 71-64 to Hawaii in the championship game. The Anteaters trailed by seven with 1:30 to play, before UCI rallied on five straight Kyle Evan's points to get within 64-66 with 38 seconds to play. Those would be the final points for the Anteaters as UH would score the final five.
Jurian Dixon and Derin Saran were named to the all-tournament team.
March 17, 2026
UC Irvine made their fourth consecutive trip to the NIT, hosting UNLV at the Bren Events Center. UC Irvine started slowly, trailing by as many 18-points in the first half lead and watched the Runninโ Rebels take a 37-24 lead at the break. UCI's 24 first half points were tied for the second fewest this season.
The Anteaters rallied on the strength of an 18-5 run, coming within three on several occasions, and trailed by five with 1:45 to play. Dunks by Harrison Carrington and Kyle Evans put UCI within three (70-73) with 38 seconds remaining. After UNLV missed the front and of and one twice, Jurian Dixon hit a pair of free throws to draw UCI to 72-73 with three seconds left. UNLV's Kimani Hamilton sunk two free throws with two seconds on the clock and UCI was unable convert on their final possession, dropping a 75-72 loss. Saran led UCI with 18 points, going 7-18 from the floor, including two three-pointers and 2-2 from the line.
UC Irvine was 23-12 overall, recording 20-plus wins for the 11th time under head coach Russell Turner and 16th all-time.
The Anteaters were the Big West regular season champs for the 10th time in program history and third in the last four years with a 15-5 Big West record.
Nationally, UC Irvine ranked fifth in blocks (5.8) and field goal percentage defense (38.8), eighth in defensive rebounds (28.66) and 13th in rebounds per game (40.29).
Guard Jurian Dixon led UCI with a 15.9 scoring average, the highest mark since Luke Nelson paced the Anteaters with a 16.9 average in 2016-17.
Senior Kyle Evans, who became the UC Irvine and Big West single season block record holder with 115, led the nation in total blocks and block average at 3.29 per contest. The forward ranks third all-time at UCI in blocks with 163.
Jurian Dixon and Kyle Evans were named first team All-Big West, Andre Henry was tabbed Best Sixth Man. Henry along with Derin Saran was named to the honorable mention squad.
Evans grabbed 303 rebounds, which ranked fourth in UCI single season rebounds on his way to being named NABC second team All-District, first team All-Big West and Big West Defensive Player of the Year. The forwardโs list of accolades in 2025-26 included Lefty Driesell Defensive Player of the Year finalist as well as the Lou Henson Award finalist for best mid-major player. He was named to the Naismith Defensive Player of the Year watch list as well as earning Lute Olson Award National Player of the Week on Feb. 2, Big West Player of the Week on December 29, 2025 and the WestStar Don Haskins Sun Bowl Invitational MVP.
Andre Henry ended his career, playing 146 games, which was fifth most by an Anteater, becoming the sixth โEater to reach the 140-games played plateau in program history.
The Anteaters ended the year ranked 18th in the final CollegeInsider Mid Major poll.
