’Runner men to play Davis; women to open with Hawaii

Having played nine of 10 possible opponents in its first Big West season, the Cal State Bakersfield men’s basketball team will naturally face its one unfamiliar foe to open the postseason.

The Roadrunners, who finished league play at 9-7, will begin their quest for an NCAA Tournament berth against UC Davis in the opening round of the Big West Championships in Las Vegas at approximately 2 p.m. Thursday.

The Aggies (6-4), clinched the fourth seed with a 74-66 win over Hawaii on Saturday. Davis came in ahead of CSUB in the standings due to having a better winning percentage in conference play.

The two teams did not play this season, as a scheduled double-header in Bakersfield on Dec. 27 and 28 was canceled due to a health order in Yolo County that prevented Davis from competing.

The Aggies and Roadrunners will follow an 11 a.m. game between top seed UC Santa Barbara and the winner of a Tuesday matchup between CSUN and Long Beach State.

Second-seeded UC Irvine will face either Cal State Fullerton or Cal Poly, who face off in a play-in game Tuesday, with third-seeded Riverside and sixthseeded Hawaii playing Thursday’s final game at approximately 8 p.m.

Semifinal games will take place at 6 and 9 p.m. Friday, with the title game set for 8:30 p.m. Saturday on ESPN2. Spectators will not be allowed at tournament games.

The CSUB women will play on the

same side of the bracket. The fourthseeded Roadrunners will open tournament play against fifth-seeded Hawaii at 2 p.m. Wednesday.

Both teams finished 7-6 in league play, but CSUB secured the tiebreaker by sweeping the Warriors in the regular season, defeating them 64-57 on Jan. 15 and 51-43 Jan. 16.

The ’Runners will follow an 11 a.m. game featuring top seed UC Davis and either UC Riverside or Cal State Fullerton, who play in an 8-9 matchup Tuesday.

No. 2 UC Irvine and No. 7 UC Santa Barbara are scheduled to play at 5 on Wednesday, with third-seed Long Beach State and sixth-seed Cal Poly closing the day at 8 p.m.

Semifinal games will be played at noon and 3 p.m. on Friday March 12 with the championship game at 5 p.m. Saturday.

Like the men’s tournament, fans will not be allowed into the arena. All games will be broadcast on ESPN3.