The 2023 Big West basketball tournament should be an intriguing one. There are two top dogs and a couple of under the radar teams that can make some noise here in the conference tournament. No matter what, the representative of the Big West in the NCAA tournament should be a team that a top four seed should not want to play in the first round of the NCAA tournament.
The Betting Odds
UC Irvine +250
UC Santa Barbara +250
Cal State Fullerton +450
Hawaii +800
UC Davis +900
Long Beach State +1000
UC Riverside +1100
Cal State Bakersfield +10000
CS Northridge +25000
Cal Poly +35000
The Bracket
Does UC Irvine or UC Santa Barbara Have Your Trust?
The top two teams yet again in the Big West are UC Irvine and UC Santa Barbara. UC Santa Barbara finished the season 24-7, while UC Irvine was 22-10 on the season. Santa Barbara is led by the duo of sophomore guard Ajay Mitchell and senior forward Miles Norris. Mitchell averages 15.7 points per game to go along with 5.1 assists per game. Norris averages 14.2 points per game to go along with 6.4 rebounds per game and a 50/39/84 shooting split. The Gauchos need these two guys in order to be successful. If they struggle, the Gauchos struggle. Do they have enough to lead UC Santa Barbara back to the tournament?
UC Irvine is led by the duo of junior guards Dawson Baker and DJ Davis. Baker and Davis average around 15+ points per game and are key to their offense. They average 75.1 points per game on the season and they only allow 66.7 points per game. The Anteaters also have the best point differential in the conference. If the Anteaters want to succeed in the conference tournament, they need their dynamic duo to come to play and they need their defense to keep up that good point differential.
Who Else Should You Look At?
The one team that I really have my eyes on is Cal State Fullerton. The Titans are led by the trio of guards in Latrell Wrightsell Jr., Jalen Harris, and Max Jones. Wrightsell Jr averages 16.3 points per game to go along with a 43/40/84 shooting split. Harris averages 12.7 points per game and Jones averages 12.1 points per game on a 44/40/80 shooting split. Fullerton split with UC Irvine and beat UC Santa Barbara comfortably. Look for the Titans to showcase why they can win this tournament.
The Don’s Winner
This is a hard one, because coming in I thought this was going to be an easy one to decide who was going to win. However, after careful consideration I finally have my winner for this tournament. My winner is Cal State Fullerton +450. They have what it takes to win this conference tournament and I am putting my faith in the Titans to be the representative of the Big West in the NCAA tournament.
The Don’s Game By Game Predictions
First Round
8 Cal State Bakersfield over 9 Cal State Northridge
7 Long Beach State over 10 Cal Poly
Quarterfinals
1 UC Irvine over 8 Cal State Bakersfield
4 Cal State Fullerton over 5 Hawaii
2 UC Santa Barbara over 7 Long Beach State
3 UC Riverside over 6 UC Davis
Semifinals
4 Cal State Fullerton over 1 UC Irvine
3 UC Riverside over 2 UC Santa Barbara
Finals
4 Cal State Fullerton over 3 UC Riverside
