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2024–25 UC Irvine Anteaters men's basketball team

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2024–25 UC Irvine Anteaters men's basketball
Western Slam Champions
ConferenceBig West Conference
Record32–6 (17–3 Big West)
Head coach
Assistant coaches
  • Michael Wilder (9th season)
  • Sean O'Donnell (1st season)
  • Ali Ton (2nd season)
Home arenaBren Events Center
(Capacity: 5,000)
Seasons
← 2023–24
2025–26 →
2024–25 Big West men's basketball standings
Conf. Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
UC San Diego † 18 – 2   .900 30 – 5   .857
UC Irvine 17 – 3   .850 32 – 6   .842
UC Riverside 14 – 6   .700 21 – 13   .618
Cal State Northridge 14 – 6   .700 22 – 11   .667
UC Santa Barbara 11 – 9   .550 21 – 13   .618
UC Davis 9 – 11   .450 15 – 17   .469
Cal Poly 8 – 12   .400 16 – 19   .457
Cal State Bakersfield 8 – 12   .400 14 – 19   .424
Hawai'i 7 – 13   .350 15 – 16   .484
Long Beach State 3 – 17   .150 7 – 25   .219
Cal State Fullerton 1 – 19   .050 6 – 26   .188
† 2025 Big West tournament winner
As of April 1, 2025

The 2024–25 UC Irvine Anteaters men's basketball team represents the University of California, Irvine in the 2024–25 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. They play their home games at the Bren Events Center in Irvine, California as a member of the Big West Conference. The Anteaters are led by 15th-year head coach Russell Turner.

This year the Anteaters matched their best start since the 1980–81 season, as both teams won nine straight to open the season.[1] This year, the Anteaters also have won the most games on the road in team history during the regular season (14), and led the nation with that number. Conference champion UCSD is tied for second in the nation following the regular season at 12 road wins.[2]

This year marks the first time in program history where the Anteaters have been ranked number one in the Mid-Major College Basketball Insider Poll. Additionally, UC Irvine received votes in both the AP Top 25 and the USA Today Coaches Poll for multiple weeks. The team ranked twenty-fourth in the first NCAA NET Rankings of the 2024-25 season, the highest ranking in program history. Despite their 28 regular season wins, they were not invited to the NCAA tournament, and thus received a #1 seed in the NIT tournament. This is the third consecutive year UC Irvine has been invited to the tournament. This is the first time UC Irvine has won a National Invitation Tournament game since 1986, and the furthest they've ever gotten.

Previous season

[edit]
See also: 2023–24 UC Irvine Anteaters men's basketball team

The 2023–24 Anteaters team finished 24–10, including a 17–3 conference record. They were ousted in the Big West Tournament by Long Beach State, losing 79-83.

Offseason

[edit]

Departures

[edit]

Six players from the 2023–24 roster departed Irvine, including three graduates and three transfers. Derin Saran transferred to Stanford, while brothers Hayden and Carter Welling transferred to Utah Valley.[3][4]

Departures
Name Number Pos. Height Weight Year Hometown Reason for departure
Dylan Thoerner 0 G 6'6" 200 Graduate Irvine, CA Graduated
Derin Saran 1 G 6'4" 190 Freshman Istanbul, Turkey Transferred to Stanford[3]
Pierre Crockrell II 3 G 6'0" 180 Fifth-year Tacoma, WA Graduated
Hayden Welling 13 F 6'9" 205 Sophomore Draper, UT Transferred to Utah Valley[4]
Carter Welling 22 F 6'10" 225 Freshman Draper, UT Transferred to Utah Valley[4]
Dean Keeler 31 F 6'11" 240 Fifth-year Westminster, CA Graduated

Incoming transfers

[edit]

On July 19, 2024, Irvine announced the addition of Kyle Evans to the roster, a forward from Aliso Viejo, California, transferring after two seasons with Colorado State. Irvine had previously recruited Evans out of high school.[5] On July 24, the team announced the addition of Myles Che, a guard from Los Angeles who spent his freshman year at Chattanooga. Head coach Russell Turner stated that Che was Irvine's highest-priority guard target on the transfer market.[6]

Incoming transfers
Name Number Pos. Height Weight Year Hometown Previous School
Kyle Evans 14 F 6'10" 215 Junior Aliso Viejo, CA Colorado State
Myles Che 77 G 6'2" 190 Sophomore Los Angeles, CA Chattanooga

Recruits

[edit]
College recruiting information
Name Hometown High school / college Height Weight Commit date
Torian Lee
G 		Surrey, BC, Canada Orangeville Prep 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) 158 lb (72 kg)  
Star ratings: Rivals: N/A   247Sports: N/A
Berk Can Akin
G 		Istanbul, Turkey Ozluce Sinav Koleji 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 185 lb (84 kg)  
Star ratings: Rivals: N/A   247Sports: N/A
Jovan Jester Jr.
G 		Pasadena, CA Pasadena HS 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 180 lb (82 kg)  
Star ratings: Rivals: N/A   247Sports: N/A
Tishan Ahir
G 		La Cañada Flintridge, CA Crescenta Valley HS 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 150 lb (68 kg)  
Star ratings: Rivals: N/A   247Sports: N/A
Overall recruiting rankings:
  • Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, 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

[edit]
2022–23 UC Irvine Anteaters men's basketball team
Players Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Previous school Hometown
G 1 Torian Lee 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) 158 lb (72 kg) Fr Orangeville Prep Surrey, British Columbia, Canada
G 2 Justin Hohn 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 185 lb (84 kg) GS Tea High School Sioux Falls, South Dakota
G 4 Andre Henry Injured 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 185 lb (84 kg) GS Saint Francis High School La Cañada Flintridge, California
F 5 Ben Egbo 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 200 lb (91 kg) RS Fr Perry High School Gilbert, Arizona
G 7 Berk Can Akin 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 185 lb (84 kg) Fr Ozluce Sinav Koleji Istanbul, Turkey
G 9 Jovan Jester Jr. Current redshirt 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 180 lb (82 kg) RS Fr Pasadena High School Pasadena, California
G 10 Ofure Ujadughele (W) 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 215 lb (98 kg) GS Chino Hills High School Long Beach, California
F 11 Devin Tillis 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 215 lb (98 kg) RS Sr UNLV Los Angeles, California
F 14 Kyle Evans 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 215 lb (98 kg) Jr Colorado State Aliso Viejo, California
C 15 Bent Leuchten 7 ft 1 in (2.16 m) 265 lb (120 kg) Sr Josef-Effner Gymnasium Karlsfeld, Bavaria, Germany
G 21 Langston Redfield Injured (W) 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 185 lb (84 kg) RS Jr Capistrano Valley High School Mission Viejo, California
G 24 Jurian Dixon 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 195 lb (88 kg) RS Fr St. Augustine High School San Diego, California
G 27 Tishan Ahir 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 150 lb (68 kg) Fr Crescenta Valley High School La Cañada Flintridge, California
F/C 33 Elijah Chol 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 185 lb (84 kg) RS So Forsyth Central High School Cumming, Georgia
F 43 Akiva McBirney-Griffin Injured 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 215 lb (98 kg) RS So St John's College, Hamilton Hamilton, New Zealand
G 77 Myles Che 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 190 lb (86 kg) So Chattanooga Los Angeles, California
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • (W) Walk-on

Roster

Schedule and results

[edit]
Date
time, TV 		Rank# Opponent# Result Record High points High rebounds High assists Site (attendance)
city, state
Exhibition
October 30, 2024*
7:00 pm, ESPN+ 		Vanguard W 81–58  –
  14 – Tied   9 – Tillis   4 – Tied  Bren Events Center (1,375)
Irvine, CA
Regular season
November 4, 2024*
8:00 pm, ESPN+ 		Chapman W 82–52  1–0
  19 – Leuchten   7 – Tied   3 – Tied  Bren Events Center (1,862)
Irvine, CA
November 8, 2024*
7:00 pm, ESPN+ 		at Loyola Marymount W 66–51  2–0
  17 – Henry   11 – Leuchten   4 – Tied  Gersten Pavilion (1,144)
Los Angeles, CA
November 10, 2024*
11:00 am, ESPN+ 		at Northern Iowa W 80–60  3–0
  18 – Leuchten   9 – Tillis   3 – Hohn  McLeod Center (3,513)
Cedar Falls, IA
November 16, 2024*
7:00 pm, ESPN+ 		Pepperdine W 80–62  4–0
  25 – Tillis   15 – Leuchten   4 – High  Bren Events Center (2,123)
Irvine, CA
November 22, 2024*
6:00 pm, ESPN+ 		at Weber State W 93–87  5–0
  29 – Leuchten   11 – Tied   6 – Hohn  Dee Events Center (3,559)
Ogden, UT
November 28, 2024*
4:30 pm, ESPN+ 		vs. Kennesaw State
Western Slam 		W 76–59  6–0
  15 – Tied   6 – Tied   6 – Hohn  Enmax Centre (704)
Lethbridge, AB, Canada
November 29, 2024*
6:30 pm, ESPN+ 		vs. Kent State
Western Slam 		W 51–39  7–0
  17 – Leuchten   11 – Tillis   4 – Hohn  Enmax Centre (1,478)
Lethbridge, AB, Canada
November 30, 2024*
6:30 pm, ESPN+ 		vs. Towson
Western Slam 		W 67–60  8–0
  25 – Tillis   7 – Tied   4 – Hohn  Enmax Centre (1,603)
Lethbridge, AB, Canada
December 5, 2024
7:00 pm, ESPN+ 		Cal State Bakersfield W 82–66  9–0
(1–0) 		 19 – Hohn   7 – Tied   8 – Hohn  Bren Events Center (2,074)
Irvine, CA
December 14, 2024*
2:00 pm, ESPN+ 		at Oregon State L 55–67  9–1
  10 – Hohn   7 – Tillis   3 – Che  Gill Coliseum (2,740)
Corvallis, Oregon
December 19, 2024*
4:30 pm, ESPN+ 		at Belmont W 92–84  10–1
  23 – Leuchten   15 – Leuchten   4 – Hohn  Curb Event Center (1,732)
Nashville, TN
December 21, 2024*
11:30 am, ESPN+ 		at Duquesne L 54–70  10–2
  9 – Che   7 – Tillis   2 – Tied  UPMC Cooper Fieldhouse (2,010)
Pittsburgh, PA
December 30, 2024*
7:00 pm, ESPN+ 		at California Baptist W 71–63  11–2
  20 – Leuchten   10 – Leuchten   4 – Che  Fowler Events Center (2,720)
Riverside, CA
January 2, 2025
5:00 pm, ESPN+ 		at Cal Poly W 98–89 OT 12–2
(2–0) 		 25 – Tillis   11 – Leuchten   4 – Tillis  Mott Athletics Center (1,834)
San Luis Obispo, CA
January 4, 2025
7:00 pm, ESPN+ 		UC Riverside W 81–57  13–2
(3–0) 		 17 – Hohn   8 – Tillis   7 – Che  Bren Events Center (3,316)
Irvine, CA
January 9, 2025
7:00 pm, ESPN+ 		at Cal State Northridge W 77–67  14–2
(4–0) 		 17 – Leuchten   12 – Leuchten   5 – Hohn  Premier America Credit Union Arena (453)
Northridge, CA
January 11, 2025
7:00 pm, ESPNU 		at UC San Diego W 60–52  15–2
(5–0) 		 23 – Leuchten   13 – Leuchten   4 – Che  LionTree Arena (4,000)
San Diego, CA
January 16, 2025
7:00 pm, ESPN+ 		Cal State Fullerton W 82–62  16–2
(6–0) 		 21 – Leuchten   11 – Evans   5 – Tied  Bren Events Center (3,106)
Irvine, CA
January 18, 2025
7:00 pm, ESPN+ 		Cal Poly W 101–71  17–2
(7–0) 		 21 – Tillis   8 – Leuchten   6 – Che  Bren Events Center (2,678)
Irvine, CA
January 23, 2025
7:00 pm, ESPN+ 		at UC Riverside L 80–84 OT 17–3
(7–1) 		 20 – Che   12 – Leuchten   3 – Che  SRC Arena (1,479)
Riverside, CA
January 25, 2025
7:00 pm, ESPN+ 		Hawaii W 71–55  18–3
(8–1) 		 17 – Che   13 – Tillis   5 – Che  Bren Events Center (3,148)
Irvine, CA
January 30, 2025
7:00 pm, ESPN+ 		at Long Beach State
Black and Blue Rivalry 		W 80–75 OT 19–3
(9–1) 		 20 – Che   10 – Leuchten   6 – Hohn  Walter Pyramid (2,012)
Long Beach, CA
February 1, 2025
1:00 pm, ESPN+ 		UC Davis W 73–66  20–3
(10–1) 		 21 – Leuchten   13 – Leuchten   6 – Leuchten  Bren Events Center (2,325)
Irvine, CA
February 8, 2025
7:00 pm, ESPNU 		UC San Diego L 67–85  20–4
(10–2) 		 23 – Leuchten   9 – Tillis   4 – Tillis  Bren Events Center (5,000)
Irvine, CA
February 13, 2025
8:00 pm, ESPNU 		UC Santa Barbara W 62–60  21–4
(11–2) 		 22 – Tillis   8 – Tillis   4 – Tied  Bren Events Center (2,781)
Irvine, CA
February 15, 2025
9:00 pm, ESPN+ 		at Hawaii W 66–49  22–4
(12–2) 		 21 – Leuchten   7 – Leuchten   4 – Hohn  Stan Sheriff Center (5,475)
Honolulu, HI
February 20, 2025
7:00 pm, ESPN+ 		Cal State Northridge L 72–84  22–5
(12–3) 		 20 – Lee   6 – Tillis   6 – Hohn  Bren Events Center (2,540)
Irvine, CA
February 22, 2025
6:30 pm, ESPN+ 		at Cal State Bakersfield W 73–64  23–5
(13–3) 		 16 – Dixon   11 – Leuchten   5 – Dixon  Icardo Center (1,351)
Bakersfield, CA
February 27, 2025
7:00 pm, ESPN+ 		at Cal State Fullerton W 76–51  24–5
(14–3) 		 21 – Dixon   10 – Leuchten   5 – Che  Titan Gym (1,013)
Fullerton, CA
March 1, 2025
7:00 pm, ESPN+ 		Long Beach State
Homecoming 		W 70–60  25–5
(15–3) 		 19 – Che   12 – Leuchten   5 – Tillis  Bren Events Center (4,722)
Irvine, CA
March 6, 2025
6:00 pm, ESPN+ 		at UC Davis W 88–59  26–5
(16–3) 		 31 – Che   12 – Leuchten   5 – Ujadughele  University Credit Union Center (2,472)
Davis, CA
March 8, 2025
7:00 pm, ESPN+ 		at UC Santa Barbara W 97–88  27–5
(17–3) 		 23 – Dixon   10 – Leuchten   9 – Hohn  The Thunderdome (2,903)
Santa Barbara, CA
Big West tournament
March 14, 2025
8:30 pm, ESPN2 		(2) vs. (7) Cal Poly
Semifinals 		W 96–78  28–5
  21 – Leuchten   10 – Leuchten   6 – Tillis  Lee's Family Forum (2,006)
Henderson, NV
March 15, 2025
6:40 pm, ESPN2 		(2) vs. (1) UC San Diego
Championship 		L 61–75  28–6
  18 – Hohn   7 – Tied   8 – Tillis  Lee's Family Forum (2,632)
Henderson, NV
NIT
March 19, 2025
7:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		(1) Northern Colorado
First round – Irvine Region 		W 82–72  29–6
  24 – Tillis   10 – Leuchten   5 – Hohn  Bren Events Center (1,241)
Irvine, CA
March 23, 2025
6:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		(1) Jacksonville State
Second round – Irvine Region 		W 66–61  30–6
  22 – Hohn   9 – Tillis   3 – Tied  Bren Events Center (1,304)
Irvine, CA
March 26, 2025*
6:00 p.m., ESPN2 		(1) UAB
Quarterfinals – Irvine Region 		W 81–77 OT 31–6
  22 – Tillis   11 – Tillis   5 – Tied  Bren Events Center (1,378)
Irvine, CA
April 1, 2025*
4:00 p.m., ESPN 		(1) vs. (2) North Texas
Semifinals 		W 69–67  32–6
  16 – Tillis   11 – Tillis   8 – Hohn  Hinkle Fieldhouse (3,288)
Indianapolis, IN
April 3, 2025*
6:00 p.m., ESPN 		(1) vs. Chattanooga
Championship 		      Hinkle Fieldhouse 
Indianapolis, IN
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.

Source[7]

Rankings

[edit]
See also: 2024–25 NCAA Division I men's basketball rankings
Ranking movements
Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking
— = Not ranked RV = Received votes
Week
PollPre12345678910111213141516171819Final
AP————RV—————RVRV————————
Coaches————RVRV————RVRVRVRV——————

Awards and honors

[edit]

Regular season

[edit]
Weekly honors
Honors Player Position Date awarded Ref.
Big West Player of the Week Bent Leuchten C January 13, 2025 [8]

Postseason

[edit]

All five of Irvine's regular starters received varying conference honors, with Bent Leuchten earning a first-team selection at center and Jurian Dixon being named the freshman of the year after redshirting in his first season with the Anteaters.[9]

Postseason honors
Honors Honoree
Big West Freshman of the Year Jurian Dixon
All-Big West First Team Bent Leuchten
All-Big West Second Team Devin Tillis
All-Big West Honorable Mention Myles Che
Justin Hohn

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "Men's Basketball Ranked No. 1 In CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major Poll; Garners National Attention". UCI Athletics. Retrieved December 3, 2024.
  2. ^ "Records - Best Road Records 2025 College Basketball | WarrenNolan.com". www.warrennolan.com. Retrieved March 9, 2025.
  3. ^ a b "Men's Basketball Announces Addition of Saran". Stanford Cardinal. Stanford University. May 10, 2024. Retrieved October 4, 2024.
  4. ^ a b c "Welling Brothers Sign with Utah Valley". Utah Valley Wolverines. Utah Valley University. May 7, 2024. Retrieved October 4, 2024.
  5. ^ "Men's Basketball Signs Forward Kyle Evans". UCI Athletics. University of California, Irvine. July 19, 2024. Retrieved March 18, 2025.
  6. ^ "Men's Basketball Signs Guard Myles Che". UCI Athletics. University of California, Irvine. July 24, 2024. Retrieved March 18, 2025.
  7. ^ "2024–25 Men's Basketball Schedule". University of California, Irvine. Retrieved October 4, 2024.
  8. ^ "Pair of Double-Double Performances Net UC Irvine's Bent Leuchten Player of the Week Honor". Big West Conference. January 13, 2025. Retrieved March 13, 2025.
  9. ^ "Five Anteaters Honored by the Big West". UC Irvine Athletics. University of California, Irvine. March 11, 2025. Retrieved March 13, 2025.
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