2025–26 Santa Clara Broncos men's basketball team

2025–26 Santa Clara Broncos men's basketball
NCAA tournament, First Round
ConferenceWest Coast Conference
Record26–9 (15–3 WCC)
Head coach
Assistant coaches
  • Jason Ludwig
  • Ryan Madry
  • Will Burkett
  • Jackson Gion
  • Mitch Smith
Home arenaLeavey Center
2025–26 West Coast Conference men's basketball standings
Conf. Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
No. 12 Gonzaga † 16 – 2   .889 31 – 4   .886
No. 22 Saint Mary's 16 – 2   .889 27 – 6   .818
Santa Clara 15 – 3   .833 26 – 9   .743
Oregon State 9 – 9   .500 17 – 16   .515
San Francisco 8 – 10   .444 17 – 16   .515
Pacific 8 – 10   .444 18 – 15   .545
Seattle 8 – 10   .444 21 – 14   .600
Washington State 7 – 11   .389 12 – 20   .375
Portland 6 – 12   .333 15 – 19   .441
Loyola Marymount 6 – 12   .333 15 – 17   .469
San Diego 5 – 13   .278 12 – 21   .364
Pepperdine 4 – 14   .222 9 – 23   .281
† 2026 WCC tournament winner
Rankings from AP poll

The 2025–26 Santa Clara Broncos men's basketball team represented Santa Clara University during the 2025–26 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Broncos, led by tenth-year head coach Herb Sendek, played their home games at the Leavey Center as members of the West Coast Conference.

On July 21, 2025, the Broncos and Sendek agreed to an extension that last until the end of the 2029–30 season.[1]

Previous season

The Broncos finished the 2024–25 season 21–13, 12–6 in WCC play to finish in fourth place.[2] In the WCC tournament, they were upset in the first round by Perpperdine in the quarterfinals.[3] They received an at-large bid to the National Invitation Tournament as the No. 2 seed in the Irvine Region. They defeated UC Riverside 101–62 to record their first NIT win in 41 years before falling to UAB 88–84 in the second round.

Offseason

Departures

Name Number Pos. Height Weight Year Hometown Reason for departure
Tyeree Bryan 1 G 6'6" 205 Senior Orlando, FL Transferred to Texas Tech[4]
Kosy Akametu 3 G 6'5" 210 Sophomore Carson, CA Transferred to Iona
Adama Bal 4 G 6'7" 190 Senior Le Mans, France Graduated, signed with the Westchester Knicks
Carlos Stewart 10 G 6'1" 185 Senior Baton Rouge, LA Graduated
Christoph Tilly 13 C 7'0" 240 Junior Berlin, Germany Transferred to Ohio State[5]
Johnny O'Neil 14 F 6'10" 205 Senior Miami Shores, FL Graduated
Luke McEldon 20 F 6'10" 240 Sophomore London, England Transferred to Mount St. Mary's
Camaron Tongue 21 F 6'7" 220 Senior Medfield, MA Graduated

Incoming transfers

Name Number Pos. Height Weight Year Hometown Previous School
Sash Gavalyugov 2 G 6'3" 175 Freshman Botevgrad, Bulgaria Villanova[6]
Gehrig Normand 9 G 6'6" 190 Sophomore North Richland Hills, TX Michigan State[7]
Chris Tadjo 14 F 6'7" 250 Sophomore Montreal, Quebec Iowa

2025 recruiting class

On September 23, 2025, former G League Ignite and Delaware Blue Coats player Thierry Darlan signed with the Broncos after the NCAA granted him two years of eligibility, marking the first time a professional athlete who previously played in the NBA G League to play college basketball.[8] The decision has been widely criticized by other coaches.[9][10]

College recruiting information
Name Hometown School Height Weight Commit date
KJ Cochran
SG 		West Chester, PA Perkiomen School 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 165 lb (75 kg) Sep 27, 2024 
Recruit ratings: Rivals:    247Sports:    ESPN:    (79)
Francis Chukwudebelu
C 		McKinney, TX Argyle High School 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 217 lb (98 kg) Oct 8, 2024 
Recruit ratings: Rivals:    247Sports:    ESPN:    (79)
Bradley Longcor III
PG 		Quincy, IL Quincy High School 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 170 lb (77 kg) Jun 20, 2024 
Recruit ratings: 247Sports:    
Overall recruit ranking:    Rivals: 56    247Sports: 60    ESPN: NR
  • 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:

  • "Santa Clara 2025 Basketball Commitments". Rivals.
  • "2025 Santa Clara Basketball Commits". Scout.
  • "ESPN". ESPN.
  • "Scout.com Team Recruiting Rankings". Scout.
  • "2025 Team Ranking". Rivals.

Roster

2025–26 Santa Clara Broncos men's basketball team
Players Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Previous school Hometown
G 0 Brenton Knapper 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 175 lb (79 kg) RS Sr Colony HS Ontario, CA
G 1 Christian Hammond 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 195 lb (88 kg) RS So Dream City Christian (AZ) Denver, CO
G 2 Sash Gavalyugov 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 175 lb (79 kg) RS Fr NBA Global Academy
Villanova 		Botevgrad, Bulgaria
C 3 Francis Chukwudebelu 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 220 lb (100 kg) Fr Argyle High School McKinney, TX
G 4 Bradley Longcor III 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 180 lb (82 kg) Fr Quincy High School Quincy, IL
G 7 KJ Cochran 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 195 lb (88 kg) Fr Perkiomen School West Chester, PA
F 8 Elijah Mahi 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 220 lb (100 kg) Sr Potter's House Christian (FL)
West Valley College 		Toronto, ON
F 9 Gehrig Normand 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 190 lb (86 kg) RS So Birdville High School
Michigan State 		North Richland Hills, TX
F 10 Nolan Badibanga 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 185 lb (84 kg) Fr Élan Sportif Chalon Toulouse, France
C 12 Bukky Oboye 7 ft 1 in (2.16 m) 220 lb (100 kg) RS So Clements HS Sugar Land, TX
F 14 Chris Tadjo 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 250 lb (113 kg) So NBA Academy Latin America
Iowa 		Montreal, Quebec
G 15 Thierry Darlan 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 210 lb (95 kg) Jr NBA Academy Africa
NBA G League Ignite
Delaware Blue Coats 		Bangui, Central African Republic
F 22 Allen Graves 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 225 lb (102 kg) RS Fr Ponchatoula HS Ponchatoula, LA
G 44 Jake Ensminger 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 215 lb (98 kg) RS Jr Ratiopharm Ulm Ulm, Germany
G 50 Bradan Yarusso (W) 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 185 lb (84 kg) Sr St. Francis HS Lombard, IL
G 51 Juan Reyna III (W) 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 190 lb (86 kg) GS Duncanville High School
UTSA
Jackson State 		San Antonio, TX
G 54 Malachi Douyon (W) 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 185 lb (84 kg) Sr Pacific Collegiate Charter School Santa Cruz, CA
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
Non-conference regular season
November 4, 2025*
7:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		Cal Poly Humboldt W 83–53  1–0
  14 – Mahi   13 – Darlan   4 – Tied  Leavey Center (1,116)
Santa Clara, CA
November 7, 2025*
7:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		McNeese W 79–67  2–0
  19 – Tied   13 – Graves   6 – Ensminger  Leavey Center (1,205)
Santa Clara, CA
November 10, 2025*
5:30 p.m., FS1 		at Xavier W 87−68  3−0
  18 – Mahi   11 – Graves   3 – Tied  Cintas Center (9,830)
Cincinnati, OH
November 15, 2025*
4:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		Nevada W 98–83  4–0
  27 – Hammond   10 – Ensminger   6 – Toed  Leavey Center (1,741)
Santa Clara, CA
November 18, 2025*
7:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		Idaho State W 64–55  5–0
  16 – Hammond   9 – Tied   5 – Ensminger  Leavey Center (1,071)
Santa Clara, CA
November 21, 2025*
7:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		Louisiana
Acrisure Series campus-site game 		W 80–43  6–0
  19 – Hammond   11 – Ensminger   5 – Gavalyugov  Leavey Center (1,331)
Santa Clara, CA
November 27, 2025*
4:00 p.m., CBSSN 		vs. Saint Louis
Acrisure Invitational semifinal 		L 70–71  6–1
  18 – Mahi   7 – Mahi   3 – Tied  Acrisure Arena 
Thousand Palms, CA
November 28, 2025*
6:30 p.m., TruTV 		vs. Minnesota
Acrisure Invitational third-place game 		W 86–75  7–1
  20 – Hammond   6 – Darlan   6 – Graves  Acrisure Arena 
Thousand Palms, CA
December 3, 2025*
7:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		Utah Tech W 90–80  8–1
  14 – Tied   8 – Tied   8 – Knapper  Leavey Center (1,969)
Santa Clara, CA
December 6, 2025*
6:00 p.m., MW Network 		at New Mexico L 71–98  8–2
  22 – Hammond   8 – Mahi   5 – Knapper  The Pit (13,614)
Albuquerque, NM
December 13, 2025*
3:30 p.m., TNT/TruTV 		vs. Arizona State
Jack Jones Classic 		L 79–82  8–3
  22 – Hammond   6 – Mahi   5 – Ensminger  Lee's Family Forum 
Henderson, NV
December 17, 2025*
6:00 p.m., BallerTV 		vs. North Texas W 63−60  9–3
  17 – Mahi   8 – Graves   5 – Gavalyugov  Kaiser Permanente Arena (120)
Santa Cruz, CA
December 20, 2025*
2:00 p.m., BallerTV 		vs. Loyola Chicago L 78–80  9–4
  25 – Hammond   10 – Graves   5 – Ensminger  Kaiser Permanente Arena 
Santa Cruz, CA
WCC regular season
December 28, 2025
3:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		at Oregon State W 102–64  10–4
(1–0) 		 23 – Mahi   8 – Ensminger   5 – Knapper  Gill Coliseum (3,050)
Corvallis, OR
December 30, 2025
7:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		at Portland W 92–85  11–4
(2–0) 		 22 – Mahi   10 – Graves   5 – Hammond  Chiles Center (1,521)
Portland, OR
January 2, 2026
7:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		Pepperdine W 82–63  12–4
(3–0) 		 20 – Hammond   7 – Oboye   3 – Tied  Leavey Center (1,158)
Santa Clara, CA
January 4, 2026
4:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		San Diego W 98–70  13–4
(4–0) 		 21 – Hammond   9 – Graves   9 – Mahi  Leavey Center (1,378)
Santa Clara, CA
January 8, 2026
8:30 p.m., ESPN2 		at No. 8 Gonzaga L 77–89  13–5
(4–1) 		 18 – Graves   9 – Graves   3 – Tied  McCarthey Athletic Center (6,000)
Spokane, WA
January 10, 2026
7:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		Loyola Marymount W 103–72  14–5
(5–1) 		 37 – Gavalyugov   11 – Ensminger   4 – Ensminger  Leavey Center (2,000)
Santa Clara, CA
January 14, 2026
7:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		Pacific W 85–69  15–5
(6–1) 		 18 – Hammond   8 – Graves   4 – Gavalyugov  Leavey Center (1,558)
Santa Clara, CA
January 17, 2026
4:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		Saint Mary's W 62–54  16–5
(7–1) 		 25 – Hammond   8 – Graves   2 – Tied  Leavey Center (2,700)
Santa Clara, CA
January 24, 2026
6:30 p.m., ESPN+ 		at San Diego W 85–73  17–5
(8–1) 		 16 – Tied   8 – Oboye   5 – Ensminger  Jenny Craig Pavilion (1,619)
San Diego, CA
January 28, 2026
8:00 p.m., CBSSN 		San Francisco W 88–73  18–5
(9–1) 		 21 – Hammond   8 – Oboye   6 – Knapper  Leavey Center (2,000)
Santa Clara, CA
January 31, 2026
6:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		at Loyola Marymount W 104–73  19–5
(10–1) 		 22 – Knapper   10 – Graves   6 – Gavalyugov  Gersten Pavilion (1,178)
Los Angeles, CA
February 4, 2026
7:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		at Pacific W 71–56  20–5
(11–1) 		 13 – Ensminger   8 – Graves   3 – Tied  Alex G. Spanos Center (1,139)
Stockton, CA
February 7, 2026
3:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		at Washington State W 96–92  21–5
(12–1) 		 30 – Graves   13 – Graves   4 – Graves  Beasley Coliseum (2,965)
Pullman, WA
February 11, 2026
7:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		Seattle W 84–72  22–5
(13–1) 		 21 – Gavalyugov   6 – Hammond   7 – Mahi  Leavey Center (1,847)
Santa Clara, CA
February 14, 2026
7:30 p.m., ESPN 		No. 12 Gonzaga L 86–94  22–6
(13–2) 		 16 – Hammond   8 – Oboye   4 – Gavalyugov  Leavey Center (4,200)
Santa Clara, CA
February 21, 2026
7:00 p.m., CBSSN 		at San Francisco W 94–73  23–6
(14–2) 		 30 – Mahi   10 – Ensminger   3 – Tied  Sobrato Center (2,898)
San Francisco, CA
February 25, 2026
8:00 p.m., CBSSN 		at Saint Mary's L 67–86  23–7
(14–3) 		 20 – Graves   6 – Graves   3 – Gavalyugov  University Credit Union Pavilion (3,500)
Moraga, CA
February 28, 2026
5:00 p.m., CBSSN 		Oregon State W 93–72  24–7
(15–3) 		 19 – Knapper   10 – Ensminger   7 – Ensminger  Leavey Center (2,388)
Santa Clara, CA
WCC tournament
March 8, 2026
8:00 p.m., ESPN2 		(3) vs. (6) Pacific
Quarterfinal 		W 76–68  25–7
  19 – Graves   11 – Mahi   6 – Tied  Orleans Arena (3,664)
Paradise, NV
March 9, 2026
8:30 p.m., ESPN2 		(3) vs. (2) No. 21 Saint Mary's
Semifinal 		W 76–71  26–7
  23 – Gavalyugov   7 – Tied   6 – Gavalyugov  Orleans Arena (6,343)
Paradise, NV
March 10, 2026
6:00 p.m., ESPN 		(3) vs. (1) No. 12 Gonzaga
Championship 		L 68–79  26–8
  24 – Hammond   9 – Graves   5 – Gavalyugov  Orleans Arena (6,517)
Paradise, NV
NCAA tournament
March 20, 2026*
9:15 a.m., CBS 		(10 MW) vs. (7 MW) Kentucky
Round of 64 		L 84–89 OT 26–9
  20 – Mahi   8 – Ensminger   5 – Gavalyugov  Enterprise Center (17,192)
St. Louis, MO
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
MW=MW.
All times are in Pacific Time.

Source:[11]

Rankings

See also: 2025–26 NCAA Division I men's basketball rankings
Ranking movements
Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking
— = Not ranked RV = Received votes
Week
PollPre12345678910111213141516171819Final
AP[12]———RV—————————RVRV——RV—RV
Coaches——————————————RV————RV

References

  1. ^ "Herb Sendek's Contract Extended Through 2030". santaclarabroncos.com. July 21, 2025.
  2. ^ "2024-25 Santa Clara Broncos Men's Schedule and Results". College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved October 22, 2025.
  3. ^ "Pepperdine vs. Santa Clara Box Score (Men), March 9, 2025". College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved October 22, 2025.
  4. ^ "Officially Signed: Tyeree Bryan". texastech.com. April 9, 2025.
  5. ^ "Buckeyes Get Big Man Christoph Tilly from Santa Clara". ohiostatebuckeyes.com. April 15, 2025.
  6. ^ "Men's Hoops Adds Three Talented Transfers To 2025-26 Roster". santaclarabroncos.com. April 25, 2025.
  7. ^ Wenzel, Matt (April 20, 2025). "Michigan State guard names transfer destination". mlive. Retrieved April 21, 2025.
  8. ^ Woo, Jeremy (September 23, 2025). "NCAA rules former G League player Thierry Darlan eligible". ESPN. Retrieved September 26, 2025.
  9. ^ Nagel, Cody (October 22, 2025). "Tom Izzo questions NCAA direction after G League players deemed eligible for Division I basketball". CBS Sports. Retrieved October 22, 2025.
  10. ^ Bedore, Gary (October 22, 2025). "KU's Bill Self comments on NBA G League players returning to college basketball". Kansas City Star. Retrieved October 22, 2025.
  11. ^ "2025–26 Men's Basketball Schedule". santaclarabroncos.com.
  12. ^ "AP Top 25 Men's College Basketball Poll". AP News. Retrieved October 14, 2025.
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