UC Davis Aggies
Big West (22-10, 12-4)
UC Davis lost their star player in early February due to a suspension. Chima Moneke, a 6-6 forward, was leading the team with 18.4 points, 9.6 rebounds and 1.1 blocks per game through 21 contests. It took a couple games for the Aggies to find their way, but they won their last five regular season games to claim the Big West regular season title.
Big Wins: 12/2 at Washington State (81-67), 2/17 at UCSB (71-54), 3/3 at UC Irvine (90-84)
Bad Losses: 12/23 vs Radford (62-72), 1/20 at Hawaii (72-77), 2/10 Cal State Fullerton (66-68)
Coach: Jim Les
Why They Can Surprise:
Guards TJ Shorts and Siler Schneider stepped into starting spots this year and are the best scorers on the team. Shorts averages 15.0 points and 4.4 assists, while Schneider adds 14.0 points and 2.2 assists. Those two are not the most consistent outside shooters on the team, but will attack the basket effectively. Joe Mooney, Michael Onyebalu and AJ John are all capable three-point shooters and can add a much needed third scoring threat to compliment Shorts and Schneider.
Why They Can Disappoint:
Without Moneke, John has joined Garrison Goode in the starting frontcourt. That has left very little depth up front and has hurt the Aggies on the glass. While John and Goode, and the rest of the team for that matter, deserve a lot of credit for stepping up in Moneke’s absence, this is not quite the same team without him. And that is especially true when the competition will be getting tougher in the tournament.
Probable Starters:
TJ Shorts, Sophomore, Guard, 15.0 ppg, 4.4 apg, 3.7 rpg
Siler Schnedier, Junior, Guard, 14.0 ppg, 2.2 apg, 3.1 rpg
Michael Onyebalu, Senior, Guard, 5.7 ppg, 3.8 rpg
AJ John, Junior, Forward, 7.8 ppg, 4.0 rpg
Garrison Goode, Junior, Forward, 4.7 ppg, 3.7 rpg
Key Role Players:
Joe Mooney, Sophomore, Guard, 6.6 ppg
Rogers Printup, Sophomore, Guard, 4.0 ppg
Colin Russell, Junior, Forward, 1.7 ppg, 1.7 rpg
By the Numbers:
Scoring Offense: 73.5 (189th in nation, 4th in conference)
Scoring Defense: 68.4 (74, 2)
Field-Goal Percentage: 47.0 (63, 2)
Field-Goal Defense: 42.5 (86, 4)
Three-Point Field Goals Per Game: 6.5 (281, 4)
Three-Point Field-Goal Percentage: 37.4 (67, 2)
Free-Throw Percentage: 71.8(153, 4)
Rebound Margin: -1.9 (268, 6)
Assists Per Game: 12.4 (269, 7)
Turnovers Per Game: 13.1 (183, 4)
Recent Postseason Appearances:
2017 NCAA Opening Round win over North Carolina Central
2017 NCAA Round of 64 loss to Kansas
2015 NIT First Round loss to Stanford
*all team stats through 3/4
