(Photos) Cal beats Arizona State 24-21 in Berkeley

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Photos by Connor Buestad - Section925

(Photos) Juan Soto's two homers lead San Diego over Oakland 10-1

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(Photos) Cal falls to Auburn 14-10 in a frustrating home opener in Berkeley

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(Photos) The Blue Jays hold off the A's in Extra Innings on Labor Day

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(Photos) Pittsburg visits SF's Kezar Stadium to take on Sacred Heart Cathedral

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Photos by Connor Buestad - Section925

(Photos) Baltimore visits Oakland in the Dog Days of August

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Photos by Connor Buestad - Section925

The A’s are getting dangerously close to having the worst 162-game baseball season ever

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(Photo by Morry Gash / Associated Press)

By Connor Buestad | Connor@Section925.com

We are coming down the back stretch of the baseball season and the A’s are firmly on pace to achieve the dubious honor of being the worst team in franchise history since they moved to Oakalnd in 1968. Now in their 56th season by the Bay, Oakland has lost 100 games just twice during their time at the Coliseum. Back in 1979 they turned in their lowest win total at 54-108 and just last year the A’s went 60-102. Now in 2023, with ownership doing everything they can to break their fanbase’s collective heart and move them to Vegas, the A’s are on pace to finish 45-117. Currently, the A’s are sitting at 33-87 and they must play .500 ball over their last 42 games to avoid eclipsing Oakland’s 108 loss β€œrecord.”

.500 ball might be a lot to ask for from a team that is currently playing .275 ball, but at 39 games back of Texas in the AL West, at this point you can only hope the A’s can stave off the 2003 Tigers and finish a bit better than their 43-119 record-setting 162-game season. Have there been worse seasons in Major League Baseball history? Yes, maybe a few. But there has never been a team that’s lost 120 games or more in the modern era of a 162-game schedule. 

Right now you know John Fischer and Dave Kaval are somewhere other than Oakland, checking the scores daily on their phones, smiling at every A’s loss, knowing it only helps their cause of uprooting the team from Oakland and shipping them off to the highest bidding city in waiting. We can only hope the A’s can somehow rally and avoid making history for all the wrong reasons. But as August slowly starts turning into September, the possibility of 120 losses is starting to get a bit too real. It only begs the question: where’s the Rally Possum when you need him most? One of those 20 game win streaks certainly wouldn’t hurt in times like these.

Deem 2023 β€œThe Year of the Transfer” for Cal Football

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Cal’s roster now includes 36 players from around college football. A few of the notables are pictured above.

By Connor Buestad | Connor@Section925.com

When Cal welcomes the Auburn Tigers to Memorial Stadium on the 9th of September for their home opener, upwards of 20 impact players on the Golden Bears side will be by way of the Transfer Portal. Yes, you’re reading that right, the transfer admissions department at UC Berkeley has been burning the midnight oil. Cal football is quietly becoming Transfer U. Seventh year head coach Justin Wilcox has suddenly become a portal devotee and as a result the 2023 Bears roster will look almost nothing like a year ago. Will the transfer method get the Bears back into a much needed bowl game? Only time will tell. 

Staying with the theme of change, even Cal’s best player, Jaydn Ott (one of the few non-transfer starters on the team), will look a bit different to fans this year as he’s shed the #6 jersey and adopted the #1 made famous by DeSean Jackson. Standout wide receiver Jeremiah Hunter will also be back for the Bears, but beside that, a whole lot has changed from Cal’s disappointing 4-8 record in 2022. Three years in-a-row falling short of bowl eligibility has sent Wilcox searching high and low around the country for D1 transfers that can help him win now, before his seat gets too hot. 

But before we look forward to who the Bears have added to their roster, let’s quickly mourn the losses of who walked out the door and headed to a new school during the offseason. We’ll start of course with Cal’s tough, gutsy and productive QB1, Jack Plummer. Did he win much at Cal? Not exactly. But he certainly kept the Bears in plenty of games (including at Notre Dame) and put up some good offensive stats at quarterback despite a shaky O-line and unreliable defense. He originally came to Berkeley by way of Purdue and now he’s off to his third school, Louisville. We wish him luck in Kentucky. 

Not only did the Bears lose their starting quarterback from last year, but they also lost one of their best receivers to UCLA. The future BIG 10 Bruins (don’t tell Bill Walton) took J. Michael Sturdivant from us, not to mention starting linebacker Oluwafemi Oladejo, who also has taken his talents to Los Angeles. 

Two of Cal’s running backs decided to leave Berkeley as well, as Damien Moore left for Fresno State and DeCarlos Brooks is now at Arizona State. Speaking of ASU, kicker Dario Longhetto also decided it was time to leave and he is now also a Sun Devil. But enough about the bad news. Who was Cal able to convince to come? Let’s take a look by position. 

For starters, Cal’s quarterback in 2023 will almost assuredly be a transfer student. Sam Jackson V, who is the fifth of five Sam Jacksons in his family will wear #5 and most likely be the Bears’ opening day starter at North Texas. He’s a running quarterback who played last year at TCU under Sonny Dykes. He made the National Championship Game and lost to Georgia, the only catch being he was the third QB on Dykes’ depth chart and saw very limited action for the Horned Frogs. New offensive coordinator and running-quarterback-whisperer Jake Spavital will try to mold him into the likes of a Kyler Murray, Johnny Manziel or Geno Smith, all QB’s he’s coached up in the past. Jackson’s likely backup will be Ben Finley who has seen time on the field at NC State and has recently transferred into Cal. 

One of Cal’s top receivers this year figures to be Taj Davis, who previously played at the University of Washington. Another transfer wideout will be Marquez Dortch who comes to Cal by way of Mississippi State. 

The running backs room at Cal will be full of players who have started their college careers elsewhere. Byron Cardwell comes to Cal from the Oregon Ducks, Justin Williams-Thomas has transferred in from Tennessee,  King Doerue comes in from Purdue and Isaiah Ifanse comes from both San Jose State and Montana State. 

At tight end the Bears are bringing in J.T. Byrne from Oregon State as well as Asher Alberding from North Texas University. On the offensive line the Bears brought in Matthew Wykoff from Texas A&M and even Barrett Miller who came over from Stanford. 

On the defensive side of the ball, the Bears will be led by Jackson Sirmon. Sirmon played a pivotal role as a Cal linebacker last year, but before that, he did spend some time in Washington as a Husky linebacker wearing purple. His defensive coordinator dad coaching at Cal helped convince him to give Berkeley a shot. In addition to Sirmon at linebacker, you have Sergio Allen coming in from a big time program in Clemson and even David Reese from the Florida Gators. 

The defensive back position will also look a lot different due to Cal’s newfound dedication to the transfer portal as Patrick McMorris has come from San Diego State and Nohl Williams is coming from UNLV. Williams in particular comes with tons of hype surrounding his talents covering elite receivers. 

The list of transfers doesn’t stop there, stick with me here. You also have the likes of defensive backs Kaylin Moore from Colorado and Raymond Woodie III from Florida State, as well as receiver Brian Hightower from both Miami and Illinois. The list goes on when you include some JUCO guys, etc. All told the Bears will have 36 guys on their roster who have played football at another college before Cal. In summary, the Transfer Portal has been raging.

Starting with Auburn’s visit to Berkeley, Cal will play a good team virtually every single week. Sports Illustrated believes they have the 12th hardest schedule in the nation. Cal will have to play Washington, Utah, Oregon, Stanford and UCLA all on the road. Not to mention USC, who will come to Berkeley with the defending Heisman Trophy winner at quarterback. 

By the time Cal gets through that gauntlet of a schedule, Vegas is pinning the Bears as a 5-7 or 6-6 type team. Justin Wilcox and his staff could really use a seven win season. They’ve certainly pushed all their chips in on the Transfer Portal Lottery, Old Blues would love to see it cash out.

Cal’s 2023 roster is a melting pot of players from around the nation. It’s not where you start, it’s where you finish, as they say. And all roads lead to Berkeley…

  1. Nohl Williams, UNLV

  2. Kaylin Moore, Colorado

  3. Justin Williams-Thomas, Tennessee 

  4. Sam Jackson V, TCU

  5. Raymond Woodie III, Florida State

  6. Brian Hightower, Illinois and Miami

  7. David Reese, Florida

  8. Jackson Sirmon, Washington

  9. Taj Davis, Washington

  10. Patrick McMorris, San Diego State

  11. Sergio Allen, Clemson

  12. Ben Finley, North Carolina State

  13. Luke Bottari, Utah

  14. Mason Starling, College of San Mateo

  15. Tyler Jensen, Louisville

  16. Byron Cardwell, Oregon

  17. Isaiah Ifanse, San Jose State and Montana State

  18. Matthew Littlejohn, Citrus College

  19. King Doerue, Purdue

  20. Marcus Scott II, Missouri

  21. Thomas Lee, Cal Poly

  22. Lachlan Wilson, Tulsa

  23. Xavier Carlton, Utah

  24. Beaux Tagaloa, San Jose State

  25. Wesley Brown, College of San Mateo

  26. Darius Long Jr, College of San Mateo

  27. Tidiane Jalloh, Independence Community College

  28. Barrett Miller, Stanford

  29. Martin Tine, East Los Angeles College

  30. T.J. Session, Montana State

  31. Matthew Wykoff, Texas A&M

  32. Marquez Dortch, Mississippi State

  33. Kenden Robinson Jr., Northern Iowa and CCSF

  34. Marquis Montgomery, Snow College

  35. J.T. Byrne, Oregon State

  36. Asher Alberding, North Texas

(Photos) Sunday baseball at the Coliseum between the White Sox and A's

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Photos by Connor Buestad - Section925

Read this fantastic article by Dan Moore on A's fans fight to keep their team in Oakland

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Jane Tyska/Digital First Media/East Bay Times via Getty Images

By Dan Moore

I learned of the Nevada state Senate’s vote to move forward with subsidizing Fisher’s stadium at the same time many A’s fans did: on my way to the Coliseum for the reverse boycott.

I arrived at the Coliseum around 3:45. I made my way to the south lot’s far southeastern corner, where the portable grandstands that ground crews once used to turn the Coliseum into a football stadium still unceremoniously sit, discolored by the sun. That was where the Oakland 68s, an A’s supporters group and the unofficial organizers of the boycott, were setting up. Between iron scaffolds, the group had hung a massive green-and-gold flag emblazoned with Oakland’s official crest: a proud green oak tree, set against a bold gold backdrop. Musicβ€”Too $hort, Mac Dreβ€”was already pulsing out of several sets of large speakers. Other flags, raised from lowered tailgates farther out in the parking lot, snapped in the breeze. A food truck was preparing street tacos. Behind a beachhead of tables and lowered tailgates, the 68s were handing out the shirts they’d printed for the event: 7,000 kelly-green shirts reading SELL in white letters across the chest. Before the tables, a sea of fans spilled westward, out into the rest of the parking lot, which was filling up with more fans repurposing the hoods and bumpers of their own cars into drink-making stations and outdoor grills. On open stretches of asphalt, fathers and sons played catch. Between them, middle-aged women snapped back tequila shots.

The festival atmosphere recalled, to my eye, the Oakland tailgates of old, the ones I’d grown up on, the breeze off the estuary carrying a familiar electric bite. The smells that wafted through the air were several different kinds of tantalizing: the sweet grease of grilled meat, the curious zip of gasoline, the seduction of weed smoke. I found this heartening because I had not been sure, after learning of the Nevada state Senate’s affirmative vote earlier in the day, what its effect on the boycott would be. I’d wondered whether the vote would deflate it, skew its vibes more funereal than revelrous. The opposite turned out to be true. By 4:30, the sheer mass of fansβ€”many donning the SELL shirtsβ€”had grown from the kind of crowd you’d expect to see at a tailgate to the kind of crowd you might see at a rock concert. News crews were everywhere. Oakland mayor Sheng Thao was there, wearing a Matt Chapman jersey and making statements for the cameras. Chants spontaneously erupted. They’d spark up in pockets, then spread in waves across the lot. SELL THE TEAM! STAY IN OAK-LAND! At first the chants came from fans who sounded more amused than enraged, but as the crowd grew and as more people joined in, the calls acquired cohesion and spine, and soon they were thundering across the parking lot with power-chord force. These were not the laments of the unreachable and wounded. They were exhortations of the ballistic and battle ready. β€œThis is war!” an A’s fan and member of the 68s, Alejandra Leon, said to me at one point, raising her voice over the crowd.

But I don’t want to make it seem like the tailgate was all that serious, exactly. This might have been war, but as Melissa Lockard of The Athletic would later put it, it was also a β€œcelebration of life.” Many fans expressed their frustration with the A’s ownership by placing paper bags over their heads, but they gladly lifted the bags to answer questions or tend to their drinks. People I spoke to told me they’d flown in from Australia, New York, British Columbia. Billie Joe Armstrong of Green Day was there. At some point, ex-A’s pitcher and the team’s current color commentator, Dallas Braden, showed up, and fans mauled him. A’s fan Paul Bailey had brought a pair of cornhole boards painted with the likenesses of Fisher and MLB commissioner Rob Manfred. He’d used their giant mouths as the holes. He’d embossed the bags with poop emojis. β€œI think he’s just a really great guy,” Bailey told me, referring to Fisher, as we watched a quartet of kids play. β€œJust a really great guy.”

By 5 p.m., the parking lot seemed to be totally full. The almost gold of the falling sun threw a thousand sparks of light off the tops of the parked cars. On one end of the lot, now, a Latino brass band was playing; not far away, a DJ had set up. I was handed a beer by a young man I’d never identify, thanks to the brown paper bag over his head. β€œFuck John Fisher,” he said as he handed me a Modelo and wandered off. I drank it happily.

(Photos) A special night in Coliseum history: Oakland fans perform a Reverse Boycott to protest A's ownership

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Where do the Warriors go from here?

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(photo by Ashley Landis/New York Times)

By Will Schell

The Warriors had a disappointing end to their season losing to their rival, the Los Angeles Lakers in six games. This did not come as a shock to most Warriors players and fans, as it seemed like the Warriors never found their identity throughout the rollercoaster which was the regular season. They finished 44-38, which earned them the sixth seed, just escaping the play-in tournament. But overall according to head coach Steve Kerr this team was β€œmaxed out.” This has many wondering what the Warriors will do in this much anticipated offseason. 

The first order of business is to work out a contract with Draymond Green. Green has a player option worth $27.6 million for the upcoming season. Many expect him to decline that and request a new contract. This seems very important to the Warriors and especially to Steve Kerr, who stated in his closing press conference that, β€œIf Draymond’s not back, we’re not a championship contender.” Draymond knows his value and so do the Warriors. Green is coming off a Second Team all defensive appearance, a title he is very familiar with. According to Vegas odds, Draymond has a 33.3% chance of returning to the dubs. But in Draymond’s eyes and in the eyes of many fans, it's 100%. 

The next big thing for the Warriors is figuring out what to do with Jordan Poole. Poole was a key factor in the Warriors championship squad last year. He shined in the playoffs and proved many people wrong. That’s what earned him his contract worth $128 million over four years. Poole had an up and down 2022-23 season, but was still very reliable for them. He averaged 20.4 ppg and was needed when Steph Curry sustained injuries, playing in all 82 games. But during the regular season Poole had a turnover problem. Turning it over in clutch situations, which frustrated many. Now what everyone is focused on is Poole’s struggles during this year's playoffs. Many expected him to have another excellent postseason, just like in 2022.  He unfortunately did not live up to those expectations. Poole only averaged 10.3 ppg and shot 34% from the field on 25% from three. But the organization still has hope for him, knowing his potential and seeing what he has done before. On the other hand, it would be tough to trade him, Poole’s very expensive contract will kick in next year. Which may not be something teams are willing to pay. This will definitely be something to watch during the offseason. 

The final thing they need to address is bringing in free agents. Someone the Warriors should have in mind is Milwaukee Bucks center Brook Lopez. Lopez was a key success to the number 1 seed in the East last year. Lopez earned himself all defensive first team, while also being a nominee for DPOY. He averaged 2.5 blocks a game, which is something the Warriors could use alongside Draymond Green. But Lopez does not just provide shot blocking, he can shoot it too. He shot 37.4% from three. A center who can stretch the floor and provide space for the two greatest shooters of all time does not sound too bad. 

This offseason should definitely be one of the most entertaining offseasons the Warriors have had in a while. They look to continue their dynasty and get back to what won them the championship in 2022.


(Photos) Oakland falls to Cleveland to complete a tough first homestand

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Photos by Connor Buestad - Section925

Will The 49ers Defense Keep Rolling Under Steve Wilks?

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By Will Schell

The 49ers once again ended their season losing on the road in an NFC Championship game, but former 49ers defensive Domeco Ryans had this defense ranked first in the NFL. As expected, Ryans was hired to be a head coach and the Houston Texans inked him to a six year deal. Ryans has spent most of his NFL career in Houston alongside future hall of famer J.J. Watt.

The 49ers needed a new defensive coordinator and they’ve hired Panthers interim coach Steve Wilks. Wilks took over for Matt Rhule after he was fired by the Panthers five games into this past season. Wilks did a fine job this season going 6-6 and nearly leading the Panthers to a playoff berth. Just months into his job, Wilks has already started bringing some Panther talent to this 49ers team. One of them is safety Myles Hartsfield. Hartsfield started fifteen games last year for the Panthers and was a vital part of their defense.

Hartsfield will have an important role with the 49ers after defensive leader Jimmie Ward signed with Demeco Ryans’ Texans to lead their young defense. Lots of 49er fans question whether Wilks can replicate Ryans success in San Francisco. These same questions were asked a few years ago about Domeco Ryans when Robert Saleh left to coach the New York Jets. Wilks should do just fine, after all it's not everyday you join a team that just happens to have the Defensive Player of the Year on it in Nick Bosa. Bosa looks to have another outstanding season after putting up 18.5 sacks and getting some hardware to go along with it in 2022. Wilks also has other All Pro talent like Fred Warner, Talanoa Hufanga, and Mooney Ward to work with. The 49ers should expect Wilks to succeed just like the past two defensive coordinators have done with this ultra talented squad heading into the 2023-24 season.

(Photos) Aidan Mahaney leads Saint Mary's to a thrilling comeback win over Gonzaga

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(Photos) Section925 visits the Dominican Winter League

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Photos by Connor Buestad - Section925

The 2022 World Cup is here and the Americans are finally involved again. A preview:

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By Connor Buestad | Connor@Section925.com

Well here we are, five years removed from Taylor Twellman’s infamous β€œWhat Are We Doing!?!?” rant the night the U.S. Men’s National Team failed to qualify for the 2018 World Cup after a gutwrenching loss to Trinidad and Tobago. It was the first time the U.S. men had missed the World Cup since 1986 and since that disaster of a night, the Stars and Stripes have all but cleaned house and completely retooled. A new coach and 25 brand new players will head to the Middle East to throw their weight around in the 2022 Qatar World Cup, starting next week. It’s been eight years since Section925 could preview a USMNT World Cup appearance, so we figured why the hell not? Here goes...

Team USA will kick off their 11th ever appearance in the World Cup against Wales as slight favorites in their first match. Set to air on Monday November 21st at 11am PST on FOX, the Americans will trot out a 26-man squad, with only one player (DeAndre Yedlin) holding any World Cup experience. With an average age of 25, the USMNT will feature the youngest roster in the entire 32-team World Cup field. The man leading them, Gregg Berhalter, will also be coaching his first World Cup match. The atmosphere figures to be a bit different than your typical Columbus Crew match that he grew used to in his last coaching job.

The aforementioned Yedlin was just 20-years-old when he came off the bench for the Americans in the 2014 Brazil World Cup. Placed in the β€œGroup of Death” with Germany, Portugal and Ghana that year, the Americans somehow made it out alive and squared off with Belgium in the round of 16. With the game tied at zero, we all remember De La Salle/Chico State alum Chris Wondolowski going over the crossbar in the 92nd minute, leaving 300 million Americans with their faces in their palms, hunched over the bar in agony. Now if we’re being honest, Team USA had no business winning that game and eventually lost 2-1, but the agony of that defeat still simmers, no matter how many records Wondo would go on to break in San Jose. 

The only time the USMNT has made the quarterfinals of the World Cup (no, we're not counting 1930) was at the Korea/Japan World Cup in 2002. Managed by Bruce Arena and captained by Claudio Reyna, that team had much more experience than this year’s squad. The likes of Cobi Jones were coming off the bench with Landon Donovan and Brian McBride leading up front. Eddie Pope was patrolling the backline with the incredibly chill Frankie Hejduk in the midfield. After beating Mexico in the round of 16, the U.S. men lost a commendable quarterfinal match to the eventual tournament runner-up, Germany. Unfortunately, the Americans haven’t tasted that much success in the last 20 years. If anything, they may have regressed as a major player on the world stage. 

One unsung player on that β€˜02 team was Berhalter, who has been picked by U.S. Soccer brass to find a way to bring the USA back to world soccer respectability. They have the budget and resources to do it, but actually making it happen is another story entirely. 

Berhalter’s first test will be to slow down Wales and their celebrated winger Gareth Bale. At 33-years-old, Bale is coming off a championship season for Will Ferrell’s LAFC. His experience and savvy which he accumulated over a decade-long career with Real Madrid most certainly should strike fear in the U.S. side and their young keeper, Matt Turner. 

The United States’ group is led by England, who have the fourth best odds to win the entire tournament. England V. USA is slated for 11am the day after Thanksgiving, making for quite a treat for Americans hungover on Detroit Lions football. The Three Lions, as they are called across the pond, will be led by Harry Kane, who in 2018, led the World Cup in goals. He’s the favorite to repeat that feat here in 2022, surrounded by a squad filled with Premier League stars. The USMNT, on the other hand has only six Premier League players, the most notable being Christian Pulisic of Chelsea, who lately has been relegated to coming off the bench. 

About a third of this year’s American squad hails from the MLS, including Yedlin, who currently plays for β€œInter” Miami. Unfortunately no San Jose Earthquakes will be represented on the U.S. side this World Cup, but Stanford’s Jordan Morris, who plays striker for the Seattle Sounders, will be suiting up in Qatar. 

The stars-to-watch list on this year’s USMNT starts of course with Pulisic, who is the most celebrated U.S. player in the last decade and will lead FOX’s PR campaign over the next three weeks. But one should also take note of Turner between the posts (Arsenal), Sergio Dest (AC Milan), Antonee Robinson (Fulham), Weston McKennie (Juventus) and Gio Reyna (Dortmund). All of whom have proven themselves on the world stage, despite their young age. Freddy Adu is still only 33 and maybe still the face of American soccer, but sadly no, he is still not on the roster. 

On November 29th, the Americans will round out group stage play when they face Iran, a team picked by most to finish 30th in the 32 team field. If the Americans lose this one, steer clear of Mr. Twellman if he gets in front of a microphone. If we somehow win the group, the Americans will likely play the Netherlands in the round of 16. A second place finish would likely set up a date with Senegal. Beyond that? France or Argentina would be lurking. 

The odds on favorite to win the whole thing are the Brazillians, who with five titles, have won it more than anybody. Neymar is still their best goal scorer, but not far behind him are world stars such as Vinicius Junior, Gabriel Jesus and Richarlison, all of whom make the Beautiful Game look easy. 

At 35-years-old, Lionel Messi has said this will be his final World Cup as he looks to go out a winner with Argentina. Meanwhile, Kylian Mbappe and Karim Benzema will have a great shot of bringing the French a repeat title. Lest we forget Cristiano Ronaldo, who at 37 seems washed up on Manchester United, but still figures to punch home his fair share of goals in Qatar before tournament’s end. 

A winter World Cup in Qatar brought to us by our corrupt friends over at FIFA is certainly not what any of us expected, but after the Trinidad and Tobago debacle, coupled with the darkness of the past two winters clouded with Covid, American soccer fans don’t have much room left on their holiday plate to complain. The World Cup is back in our lives and the Americans are involved. We can all raise a Budweiser to that. Enjoy the football this holiday season.

(Photos) Oregon runs wild in Berkeley en route to a 42-24 win over Cal

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West Coast Conference Men's Basketball Preview 2022-2023

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Photo by Connor Buestad - Section925

By Seth Miller

With the NCAA men's basketball season about to kick off next week, it's time to look into what each team in the West Coast Conference has to offer this season. This year's transfer portal has every team donning new faces which makes it hard to predict just how much of an impact they will have on their respective teams.

The WCC is looking to be a very competitive conference, with teams like Santa Clara, San Francisco and St. Mary's who are looking to put together a resume good enough to find a way into the tournament. Front runner Gonzaga returns too many familiar faces for them not to be considered the heavy favorite to win the conference.

With the departure of Todd Golden (Florida) the conference returns 9 of its 10 head coaches. San Francisco replaced him with an in-house coach Chris Gerlufsen, but they should have enough talent left over to still be one of the better teams. Look out for Portland to be the surprise breakout teams as they return one of the most experienced rosters. All in all 2022-23 season should be an interesting one

BYU COUGARS 

The Cougars are coming off a 5th place finish in the WCC and are hoping to improve this season with a haul of transfers. Mark Pope has his hands full after losing 10 players from his 21-22 team (three to graduation, including leading scorer Alex Barcello, one left for his Morman Mission, and six to the transfer portal). Their top returning player is Fousseyni Traore, a 6'6" sophomore forward who averaged 9.5 points in 23.6 minutes per game last season. It will be interesting to see how this team comes together but the competitiveness of this BYU squad might just hinge on the development of Atiki Ally Atiki. The extremely athletic big man will hopefully take a leap in his second season under Pope. Incoming point guard, and Coastal Carolina transfer, Rudi Williams (who averaged 14.7 ppg last season) will be taking over for Barcello this year. Williams will need to score at a high level and this new iteration of the BYU Cougars will need to gel quickly for Mark Pope's team to maintain the level of success of which their boosters are accustom. 

GONZAGA BULLDOGS

Mark Few brings back another loaded squad hoping to make a long run in March. Headlined by preseason favorite to win National Player of the Year, and the WCC's reigning POY, Drew Timme announcing his return, along with junior small forward Julian Strawther (both pulling their names out of the NBA draft) there is legitimate cause for the "Championship-or-bust" buzz in Spokane once again. They also return starting shooting guard Rasir Bolton, who shot 46% from deep last season. The Zags add Southern Conference player of the year in guard Malachi Smith, and LSU big man Efton Reid. A major key to this season's success might land on the shoulders of sophomore point guard Nolan Hickman, who takes over the offensive reins from Andrew Nembhard (now playing for the Indiana Pacers). The Zags are hoping this is the season they can finally get over the hump and win their first national championship...and honestly, anything less than cutting down the nets will be a giant let down for a fan base whose expectations are reasonably "sky high".

LOYOLA MARYMOUNT LIONS

Coming off a season with only 3 conference wins, LMU is hoping to climb up the ladder in the WCC. They return point guard Jalin Anderson who will need to fill in for Eli Scott who graduated. They added a few nice pieces in the transfer portal including 7'1" center Rick Issanza from Oklahoma. Stan Johnson in his third season at the helm has a real chance to turn this LMU squad into a competitive team this season. To do so their defense must improve from last season where opponents averaged 74.1 points against them.

PACIFIC TIGERS

After only winning 8 games last season it seems like the only place this team can go is up. Coach Leonard Perry is in his second year after taking over from Damon Stoudamire. They landed 2 transfers from Oklahoma St. that they are hoping can both become impact players for the Tigers. They return Luke Avdalovic who averaged 10 points per game, the 6'5" senior out of Folsom high school should improve on that scoring average this season. Overall this seems to be another rebuilding year for the Tigers in this competitive conference.

PEPPERDINE WAVES

The Waves spent 2021-22 season in the cellar of the WCC. After only accumulating one win during conference play, Lorenzo Romar is hoping for a turnaround this season. Pepperdine returns Maxwell Lewis, a promising 6'7" sophomore who averaged 11 points a game last season. Also returning is sophomore guard Mike Mitchell Jr. who along with Lewis were both all WCC freshman. Romar has some nice developmental pieces, but for this season to be successful their interior defense will need to be vastly improved.

PORTLAND PILOTS

This team could be very good this season! The Pilots return 4 starters, all of whom averaged over 10 points a game, and are headlined by senior Tyler Robertson (15.3 ppg). Along with Robertson, are guards Chris Austin (14.4 ppg) and Mike Meadows (10.2 ppg) as well as 6'8" forward Moses Wood (14.2 ppg). The one weakness this team has is size, so their hope is that one of their bigs makes a jump to being a rim protector that they desperately need. The Pilots are looking to improve on their 7-7 record in the WCC in head coach Shantay Legans second year as the head coach.

SAN DIEGO TOREROS

After another down year in 21-22, San Diego made a big splash by hiring new head coach Steve Lavin, formerly the head coach of St. John's and UCLA. Lavin takes over a program that, despite a massive roster turnover, returns five players; four of whom contributed meaningful minutes for the underperforming Toreros. The returners are led by Senior Marcellus Earlington (6'7" 230lb guard/small forward) who received All-WCC Honorable Mention last season after leading the team in scoring with 13.2 ppg and was second on the team in rebounding with 6.7 rpg, as well as grad student guard Jase Townsend who pitched in 11.3 ppg. Lavin will be surrounding Earlington and Townsend with 12 newcomers, two of whom were starters in the Pac-12 last season. Eric Williams Jr., a 6'7" wing, rode the portal from Oregon and Jaiden Delaire, a 6'9" forward, left Stanford to join the re-tooled Torero roster. Lavin has enough athletes, not to mention plenty of players with high level experience, to vault his new team to the top half of the WCC in his first year, but it will be heavy lifting to integrate a new system with all the new players at his disposal.

SAN FRANCISCO DONS

The former university of the recently deceased NBA Hall of Famer Bill Russell, will look to start anew after losing Todd Golden this season to University of Florida. On the bright side they return guard Khalil Shabazz, who should be one of the league's top scorers after averaging 13.7 points per game last year while playing second-fiddle to the explosive Jamaree Bouyea who graduated. Bouyea (Palma High School in Salinas) and his 17.3 points a game last year will be missed, but his leadership on and off the court creates some big shoes for Shabazz to fill. Golden's departure was the biggest news for the Dons in the offseason, but they still have some solid pieces for a team that has been tough to beat over the last few seasons. The big question ahead of this season is what first year head coach Chris Gerlufsen will do with his first opportunity at the helm.

SANTA CLARA BRONCOS

The Broncos are coming off a stellar 2021-22 campaign that found them as the #3 team in the WCC. This season is going to be a step back though after losing 1st round draft pick Jalen Williams to the NBA, as well as losing Josip Vrankic to graduation. This year's team will revolve around 5th year senior forward Keshawn Justice. Justice averaged 13 points per game while shooting 42% from beyond the arc. Coach Herb Sandek and his high tempo offense should still be able to put up points this year, but losing 2 players the caliber of Williams and Vrankic will be difficult for them to overcome if they want to stay in the top half of the WCC.

SAINT MARY'S GAELS

Randy Bennet has been one of the best coaches in college basketball for a long time. The Gaels lose their top 2 scorers from a year ago, a season that led them to a #18 overall ranking in the AP poll. However, they do bring back shooting guard Logan Johnson, who looks to be the team leader this season. Alex Ducas also returns, but the Gaels are going to need several players to take a leap forward and step up in a big way. Look for Augustas Marciulionis, the son of former Golden State Warriors great Sarunas Marciulionis, to see a significant amount of meaningful minutes this year. The sophomore guard is a good shooter with a great family lineage. Incoming freshman from Campolindo high school (Moraga) and top 125 recruit Aidan Mahaney joins the Gaels this year. Mahaney played with Randy Bennet's son, Cade, in high school and adds some depth to the backcourt as a combo guard who can get to the basket as well as shoot the 3. Hopefully this season will be the one in which 7'4" center Matt Van Komen can stay healthy and provide them with the rim protection they need after losing Mathias Tass to graduation.