2021 Big West Conference Preview

The 2021-2022 college basketball season will feature a fascinating race in the Big West. Many experts think this will ultimately be a three-team race, but with the favorite and defending champion being likely to go back-to-back.

Team Likely To Surprise

The reality of seeing a coach named an interim before being promoted to head coach could raise some questions and some anxiety about that coach’s preparedness and overall readiness to do the job well. Mike Magpayo was named the interim coach for the 2021 season, which was distorted and greatly affected by the coronavirus pandemic. He was then promoted before this 2022 season. If you appreciate the reality that the pandemic year was aberrational in a lot of ways, it could seem foolish and premature that UC Riverside felt it could safely promote Magpayo to the full-time job. Yet, many people in and around the Big West think Riverside will challenge UC-Santa Barbara and UC-Irvine for the league championship.

Team Likely To Disappoint

The UC-Davis Aggies made the NCAA Tournament in 2017 and were in a very good position in recent Big West seasons, owning a good chance to collect more March Madness appearances. However, they were denied. They couldn’t develop a three- or four-year string of NCAA berths and become the titan in the Big West Conference (not including the Titans of Cal State Fullerton). The Aggies missed their shot, and it seems as though they missed their window to take control of the league beyond a single season. Their 2017 breakthrough was great, but it hasn’t led to more riches. Viewed from that standpoint, and when one considers that UC Davis is not likely to finish in the top three of the league standings this season, that safely rates as a disappointment if we are being candid.

Conference Champion

The UC-Santa Barbara Gauchos lose key playmaker and do-everything ballhandler JaQuori McLaughlin, which forced them to make adjustments and roster alterations in the offseason. Two transfers, Calvin Wishart from Georgia Southern and Zach Harvey from Cincinnati, should do the trick for UCSB. Wishart will provide ballhandling and Harvey can light it up from 3-point range to give the Gauchos balance and structure with a little bit of potency. UCSB gave Creighton a strong run in the NCAA Tournament but fell just short of pulling off one of the fabled 12-seed-over-5-seed upsets. The Gauchos do not allow many live-ball turnovers. Opponents didn’t get many steals against them last season. They make the most of the possessions they get, and they are very good at dictating tempo. Coach Joe Pasternack is regarded as the best coach in the Big West and probably a guy who will get a look at a bigger coaching job before too long. Senior forward Miles Norris is likely to be the 2022 Big West Conference Defensive Player of the Year. There is so much to like about this team. It is versatile and resilient and can adapt to the changes taking place on its own roster. With most of the team coming back, plus Wishart and Harvey as new additions to the lineup, the Gauchos are in a position to withstand the loss of McLaughlin and return to March Madness this season.