2025–26 UC Irvine Anteaters men's basketball team

2025–26 UC Irvine Anteaters men's basketball
Big West regular season champions
Sun Bowl Invitational Champions
NIT, First Round
ConferenceBig West Conference
Record23–12 (15–5 Big West)
Head coach
Assistant coaches
  • Ali Ton (3rd season)
  • Patrick Scully (2nd season)
  • Julius Smith (2nd season)
  • Nick Booker (1st season)
  • Brady Boznanski (1st season)
Home arenaBren Events Center
(Capacity: 5,000)
2025–26 Big West Conference men's basketball standings
Conf. Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
UC Irvine 15 – 5   .750 23 – 12   .657
Hawai'i † 14 – 6   .700 24 – 8   .750
Cal State Fullerton 12 – 8   .600 18 – 16   .529
Cal State Northridge 12 – 8   .600 20 – 14   .588
UC San Diego 12 – 8   .600 23 – 11   .676
UC Davis 11 – 9   .550 19 – 14   .576
UC Santa Barbara 11 – 9   .550 18 – 14   .563
Cal Poly 10 – 10   .500 14 – 19   .424
Long Beach State 6 – 14   .300 10 – 22   .313
UC Riverside 5 – 15   .250 10 – 22   .313
Cal State Bakersfield 2 – 18   .100 8 – 24   .250
† 2026 Big West tournament winner
As of March 17, 2026

The 2025–26 UC Irvine Anteaters men's basketball team represented the University of California, Irvine in the 2025–26 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. They played their home games at the Bren Events Center in Irvine, California as a member of the Big West Conference. The Anteaters were led by 16th-year head coach Russell Turner. After losing to Hawai'i in the Big West championship, the Anteaters were not chosen for the NCAA tournament.[1] Since the Anteaters won the Big West regular season, they were offered an automatic bid and four seed in the NIT.[2] This was the fourth year in a row the Anteaters participated in the NIT, and second year in a row with the opportunity to host at least one game. Their season ended with their loss to UNLV in the first round, and officially failed to improve upon last year's record.

Previous season

See also: 2024–25 UC Irvine Anteaters men's basketball team

The 2024–25 Anteaters team finished 32–7, including a 17–3 conference record. They were ousted in the Big West tournament final by UC San Diego, losing 61–75. They finished as runner-up in the NIT tournament, losing 84–85 in overtime to Chattanooga.

Offseason

Preseason Polls

The Big West Media Poll was released on October 13, 2025. This is the inaugural media poll for the Big West Conference, conducted by the UCSD Guardian. It was sent out to student journalists and radio broadcasters from other member schools across the conference.[3] The Big West Coaches' Poll was released on October 16, 2025. This is the second consecutive year UC Irvine is predicted to win the Big West Conference.[4]

Big West Preseason Media Poll
Place Team Points
1 UC Irvine 103 (6)
2 UC Santa Barbara 98 (3)
3 UC San Diego 93 (2)
4 Cal State Northridge 60
5 UC Riverside 59
6 Cal Poly 51
7 UC Davis 50
8 Hawai'i 34
9 Cal State Bakersfield 26
10 Long Beach State 25
11 Cal State Fullerton 6
Big West Preseason Coaches' Poll
Place Team Points
1 UC Irvine 98 (8)
2 UC Santa Barbara 93 (3)
3 Hawai'i 76
4 UC San Diego 69
5 Cal State Northridge 63
6 UC Davis 58
7 Cal Poly 54
8 Long Beach State 31
9 UC Riverside 26
10 Cal State Bakersfield 20
11 Cal State Fullerton 17
(#) first-place votes

Departures

Five players from the 2024–25 roster departed Irvine, including three graduates and two transfers. Devin Tillis transferred to Virginia, while Myles Che transferred to UNLV.[5][6]

Departures
Name Number Pos. Height Weight Year Hometown Reason for departure
Justin Hohn 2 G 6'2" 190 Graduate Sioux Falls, SD Graduated
Ofure Ujadughele 10 G 6'4" 225 Graduate Long Beach, CA Graduated
Devin Tillis 11 F 6'7" 225 Redshirt Senior Los Angeles, CA Transferred to Virginia[5]
Bent Leuchten 15 C 7'1" 260 Senior Karlsfeld, Germany Graduated
Myles Che 77 G 6'3" 190 Sophomore Los Angeles, CA Transferred to UNLV[6]

Incoming transfers

On May 21, 2025, UC Irvine announced the addition of Derin Saran to the roster, a guard from Istanbul, Turkey, transferring back to UC Irvine after one season with Stanford.[7] On July 1, 2025, Irvine announced the addition of Harrison Carrington to the roster, a forward from Menlo Park, California, transferring after three seasons with Colorado.[8]

Incoming transfers
Name Number Pos. Height Weight Year Hometown Previous School
Harrison Carrington 2 F 6'7" 207 Redshirt Junior Menlo Park, CA Colorado
Derin Saran 13 G 6'5" 190 Redshirt Sophomore Istanbul, Turkey Stanford

Recruits

College recruiting information
Name Hometown School Height Weight Commit date
Bryce Goldman
G 		Tarzana, CA Chaminade College Prep 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 200 lb (91 kg) Nov 13, 2024 
Recruit ratings: No ratings found
Tamatoa Isaac
G 		Christchurch, New Zealand Christ's College High School 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 207 lb (94 kg) May 20, 2025 
Recruit ratings: No ratings found
Josh Palmer
G 		Carson, CA St. Bernard High School 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 160 lb (73 kg) Aug 18, 2025 
Recruit ratings: No ratings found
Luke Isaak
G 		Alamo, CA San Ramon High School 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 190 lb (86 kg) Nov 13, 2024 
Recruit ratings: No ratings found
Nes Emeneke
F 		Yaoundé, Cameroon Archbishop Riordan High School 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 225 lb (102 kg) Nov 13, 2024 
Recruit ratings: 247Sports:    
Mason Hodges
F 		San Juan Capistrano, CA San Juan Hills High School 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 215 lb (98 kg) Aug 18, 2025 
Recruit ratings: No ratings found
Overall recruit ranking:
  • Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, On3, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight.
  • In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale.

Sources:

Roster

2025–26 UC Irvine Anteaters men's basketball team
Players Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Previous school Hometown
G 0 Bryce Goldman 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 200 lb (91 kg) Fr Chaminade College Prep Tarzana, California
G 1 Torian Lee 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 165 lb (75 kg) So Orangeville Prep Surrey, British Columbia, Canada
F 2 Harrison Carrington 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 207 lb (94 kg) RS Jr Colorado Menlo Park, California
F/C 3 Elijah Chol 7 ft 0 in (2.13 m) 195 lb (88 kg) RS Jr Forsyth Central High School Cumming, Georgia
F 4 Andre Henry 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 190 lb (86 kg) GS Saint Francis High School La Cañada Flintridge, California
G 5 Ben Egbo 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 205 lb (93 kg) RS So Perry High School Gilbert, Arizona
G 6 Tamatoa Isaac 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 207 lb (94 kg) Fr Christ's College High School Christchurch, New Zealand
G 7 Josh Palmer 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 160 lb (73 kg) Fr St. Bernard High School Carson, California
G 8 Luke Isaak 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 190 lb (86 kg) Fr San Ramon High School Alamo, California
G 9 Jovan Jester Jr. 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 195 lb (88 kg) RS Fr Pasadena High School Pasadena, California
G 13 Derin Saran 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 190 lb (86 kg) RS So Stanford Istanbul, Turkey
F 14 Kyle Evans 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 210 lb (95 kg) Sr Colorado State Aliso Viejo, California
G 21 Langston Redfield (W) 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 205 lb (93 kg) GS Capistrano Valley High School Mission Viejo, California
F 23 Nes Emeneke 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 225 lb (102 kg) Fr Archbishop Riordan High School Yaoundé, Cameroon
G 24 Jurian Dixon 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 195 lb (88 kg) RS So St. Augustine High School San Diego, California
G 27 Tishan Ahir 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 150 lb (68 kg) So Crescenta Valley High School La Cañada Flintridge, California
F 43 Akiva McBirney-Griffin 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 225 lb (102 kg) RS Jr St John's College, Hamilton Hamilton, New Zealand
F 55 Mason Hodges 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 215 lb (98 kg) Fr San Juan Hills High School San Juan Capistrano, California
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • (W) Walk-on

Roster

Schedule and results

Date
time, TV 		Rank# Opponent# Result Record High points High rebounds High assists Site (attendance)
city, state
Exhibition
October 12, 2025*
12:00 pm, ESPN+ 		Arizona State W 72–68  –
  27 – Saran   12 – Evans   5 – Isaac  Bren Events Center (1,422)
Irvine, CA
October 28, 2025*
7:00 pm, B1G+ 		at No. 12 UCLA L 64–94  –
  15 – Saran   4 – Evans   4 – Saran  Pauley Pavilion (4,016)
Los Angeles, CA
Regular season
November 3, 2025*
7:00 pm, ESPN+ 		Bethesda W 125–49  1–0
  22 – Evans   11 – Chol   10 – Isaac  Bren Events Center (1,483)
Irvine, CA
November 7, 2025*
7:30 pm, ESPN+ 		California Baptist L 61–69  1–1
  16 – Tied   8 – Saran   4 – Tied  Bren Events Center (2,360)
Irvine, CA
November 10, 2025*
7:00 pm, ESPN+ 		Lincoln W 130–63  2–1
  20 – Saran   12 – Saran   10 – Saran  Bren Events Center (1,164)
Irvine, CA
November 15, 2025*
7:00 pm, ESPN+ 		Weber State W 79–70  3–1
  23 – Dixon   9 – Isaac   4 – McBirney-Griffin  Bren Events Center (1,964)
Irvine, CA
November 19, 2025*
5:00 pm, ESPN+ 		at Utah Valley
2025 Cancun Challenge 		L 72–79  3–2
  18 – Dixon   10 – Evans   5 – Jester Jr.  UCCU Center (1,374)
Orem, UT
November 22, 2025*
7:30 pm, ESPN+ 		Northern Iowa L 69–70 OT 3–3
  29 – Saran   10 – Saran   4 – Saran  Bren Events Center (1,618)
Irvine, CA
November 25, 2025*
5:30 pm, FloSports 		vs. New Mexico State
2025 Cancun Challenge 		L 45–57  3–4
  16 – Saran   6 – Evans   2 – Saran  Hard Rock Hotel Riviera Maya 
Cancún, Mexico
November 26, 2025*
5:30 pm, FloSports 		vs. South Dakota State
2025 Cancun Challenge 		W 64–52  4–4
  13 – Dixon   10 – Evans   3 – Saran  Hard Rock Hotel Riviera Maya (400)
Cancún, Mexico
November 30, 2025*
2:00 pm, ESPN+ 		at San José State W 72–63  5–4
  24 – Saran   7 – Saran   5 – Isaac  Provident Credit Union Event Center (1,382)
San José, CA
December 4, 2025
7:00 pm, ESPN+ 		UC Riverside
Big West Bold Week 		W 73–60  6–4
(1–0) 		 19 – Evans   8 – Evans   7 – Isaac  Bren Events Center (1,441)
Irvine, CA
December 6, 2025
7:00 pm, ESPN+ 		Cal State Northridge
Big West Bold Week 		W 85–71  7–4
(2–0) 		 17 – Saran   16 – Evans   3 – Saran  Bren Events Center (1,652)
Irvine, CA
December 19, 2025*
6:00 pm, ESPN+ 		Belmont L 58–84  7–5
  17 – Dixon   7 – Evans   5 – Isaac  Bren Events Center (1,853)
Irvine, CA
December 21, 2025*
4:00 pm, YouTube 		vs. North Dakota State
WestStar Don Haskins Sun Bowl Invitational Semifinal 		W 74–73  8–5
  24 – Evans   9 – Evans   6 – Isaac  Don Haskins Center (467)
El Paso, TX
December 22, 2025*
6:00 p.m., YouTube 		vs. Norfolk State
WestStar Don Haskins Sun Bowl Invitational Championship 		W 89–70  9–5
  22 – Evans   8 – Evans   9 – Saran  Don Haskins Center (2,816)
El Paso, TX
January 1, 2026
2:00 pm, ESPN+ 		at Cal State Bakersfield W 81–77  10–5
(3–0) 		 26 – Dixon   11 – Evans   6 – Isaac  Icardo Center (305)
Bakersfield, CA
January 3, 2026
4:00 pm, ESPN+ 		at Cal State Fullerton W 86–64  11–5
(4–0) 		 16 – Saran   11 – Saran   6 – Saran  Titan Gym (615)
Fullerton, CA
January 8, 2026
7:00 pm, ESPN+/SSN 		Long Beach State
Black and Blue Rivalry 		W 74–64  12–5
(5–0) 		 23 – Dixon   7 – Saran   3 – Dixon  Bren Events Center (2,354)
Irvine, CA
January 10, 2026
9:00 pm, ESPN+ 		at Hawai'i L 66–67  12–6
(5–1) 		 22 – Saran   8 – Tied   2 – Tied  Stan Sheriff Center (6,127)
Honolulu, HI
January 17, 2026
2:00 pm, ESPN+ 		at UC Davis L 72–75  12–7
(5–2) 		 16 – Dixon   10 – Evans   3 – Tied  University Credit Union Center (1,413)
Davis, CA
January 22, 2026
7:00 pm, ESPN+ 		at UC Riverside W 80–66  13–7
(6–2) 		 15 – Dixon   15 – Evans   5 – Jester Jr.  SRC Arena (647)
Riverside, CA
January 24, 2026
7:00 pm, ESPN+ 		at UC San Diego W 61–59  14–7
(7–2) 		 12 – Tied   8 – Saran   3 – Isaac  LionTree Arena (4,000)
San Diego, CA
January 29, 2026
8:00 pm, ESPNU 		Hawai'i W 87–76 OT 15–7
(8–2) 		 19 – Tied   11 – Evans   7 – Isaac  Bren Events Center (2,873)
Irvine, CA
February 5, 2026
7:00 pm, ESPN+ 		Cal State Bakersfield W 78–62  16–7
(9–2) 		 16 – Evans   8 – Carrington   13 – Isaac  Bren Events Center (2,301)
Irvine, CA
February 7, 2026
7:00 pm, ESPNU 		at UC Santa Barbara L 79–84  16–8
(9–3) 		 18 – Henry   7 – Dixon   5 – Isaac  The Thunderdome (3,908)
Santa Barbara, CA
February 12, 2026
7:00 pm, ESPN+ 		at Cal Poly L 73–79  16–9
(9–4) 		 19 – Tied   10 – Evans   6 – Isaac  Mott Athletics Center (1,823)
San Luis Obispo, CA
February 14, 2026
7:00 pm, ESPN+ 		Cal State Fullerton W 86–65  17–9
(10–4) 		 19 – Henry   11 – Evans   8 – Isaac  Bren Events Center (1,991)
Irvine, CA
February 19, 2026
7:00 pm, ESPN+ 		at Long Beach State
Black and Blue Rivalry 		W 69–58  18–9
(11–4) 		 14 – Evans   11 – Evans   4 – Tied  Walter Pyramid (1,711)
Long Beach, CA
February 21, 2026
7:00 pm, ESPN+/SSN 		UC San Diego L 69–71  18–10
(11–5) 		 22 – Dixon   12 – Evans   4 – Tied  Bren Events Center (3,750)
Irvine, CA
February 26, 2026
7:00 pm, ESPN+ 		at Cal State Northridge W 68–67  19–10
(12–5) 		 14 – Dixon   6 – Evans   7 – Jester Jr.  Premier America Credit Union Arena (1,487)
Northridge, CA
February 28, 2026
7:30 pm, ESPN2 		UC Santa Barbara
Homecoming 		W 64–60  20–10
(13–5) 		 13 – Tied   6 – Tied   2 – Tied  Bren Events Center (4,377)
Irvine, CA
March 5, 2026
7:00 pm, ESPN+ 		Cal Poly W 107–85  21–10
(14–5) 		 22 – Dixon   8 – Evans   5 – Tied  Bren Events Center (2,355)
Irvine, CA
March 7, 2026
5:00 pm, ESPNU 		UC Davis W 79–69 OT 22–10
(15–5) 		 23 – Dixon   8 – Dixon   3 – Saran  Bren Events Center (2,963)
Irvine, CA
Big West tournament
March 13, 2026
6:00 pm, ESPNU 		(1) vs. (4) Cal State Northridge
Semifinals 		W 93–78  23–10
  23 – Saran   9 – Saran   7 – Dixon  Lee's Family Forum (2,060)
Henderson, NV
March 14, 2026
7:00 pm, ESPN2 		(1) vs. (2) Hawai'i
Finals 		L 64–71  23–11
  17 – Dixon   10 – Evans   3 – Tied  Lee's Family Forum (3,488)
Henderson, NV
NIT tournament
March 17, 2026
8:00 pm, ESPNU 		(4) UNLV
First Round 		L 72–75  23–12
  18 – Saran   13 – Evans   6 – Saran  Bren Events Center (1,113)
Irvine, CA
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.

Source[9]

Awards and honors

Regular season

Weekly honors
Honors Player Position Date awarded Ref.
Lute Olson National Player of the Week Kyle Evans F February 2, 2026 [10]

References

  1. ^ "UC Irvine men lose to Hawaii in Big West final, denied another NCAA Tournament trip". San Gabriel Valley Tribune. March 15, 2026. Retrieved March 16, 2026.
  2. ^ "NIT bracket 2026: Tournament schedule, dates, times as Auburn, Wake Forest highlight No. 1 seeds". CBS Sports. March 16, 2026. Retrieved March 16, 2026.
  3. ^ "UC Irvine (men's), Hawai'i (women's) favorites in inaugural Big West Basketball Preseason Media Poll".
  4. ^ "UC Irvine Predicted to Win The Big West in 2025-26 Men's Basketball Preseason Poll". bigwest.org. October 16, 2025. Retrieved October 16, 2025.
  5. ^ a b https://www.si.com/college/virginia/basketball/devin-tillis-makes-his-jump-back-to-group-of-five-hoops-with-uva-01k60f6q1ba9
  6. ^ a b https://unlvrebels.com/news/2025/4/25/myles-che-to-join-mens-basketball-program.aspx
  7. ^ https://ucirvinesports.com/news/2025/5/21/mens-basketball-derin-saran-returns-to-uc-irvine-for-2025-26-season.aspx#:~:text=%2D%2D%20UC%20Irvine%20men's%20basketball,to%20rehab%20from%20an%20injury.
  8. ^ "Forward Harrison Carrington Transfers To UC Irvine". UCI Athletics. University of California, Irvine. July 1, 2025. Retrieved October 6, 2025.
  9. ^ "UCI Men's Basketball Schedule". UCI Athletics. Retrieved October 6, 2025.
  10. ^ "KYLE EVANS EARNS LUTE OLSON AWARD NATIONAL PLAYER OF WEEK HONORS". College Insider. Retrieved February 2, 2026.
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