SANTA CLARA, Calif. – Santa Clara men's basketball has officially unveiled their full 2023-24 nonconference schedule. The Broncos are set to face a total of 15 opponents before the calendar flips to WCC play in January.
Seven of those 15 games are to be played inside the Leavey Center, beginning with back-to-back home games to open the season. The Broncos tip off the year on Nov. 8 against Utah Tech.
Other home games include St. Francis (Pa.) (Nov. 11), Southeastern Louisiana (Nov. 18), Mississippi Valley State (Nov. 20), Menlo College (Nov. 29), Utah State (Dec. 13) and Yale University (Dec. 30).
The Broncos are set to spend their Thanksgiving Holiday in the previously announced Emerald Coast Classic in Niceville, Fla., Nov. 24-25. There they will square off against the Oregon Ducks and either Alabama or Ohio State.
The Sunshine State is not the only neutral site that Santa Clara will head to this year. Three single game neutral site events are on the calendar for December beginning on Dec. 9 when the Broncos will take on New Mexico at the Jack Jones Classic, hosted at the Dollar Loan Center in Henderson, Nev.
The following weekend sees the Broncos heading to Phoenix to take on a familiar foe in the Washington State Cougars as part of the Jerry Colangelo Classic on Dec. 16, and the following Saturday (Dec. 23), Santa Clara will be off for Las Vegas again for a neutral site game against Duquesne.
The Broncos will visit three Bay Area campuses as their true road slate. First will be Stanford on Nov. 15 followed by Cal on Dec. 2 and rounded out by a short trip up the Alameda to San Jose State on Dec. 20.
Game times and television/streaming information will be announced at a later date. Place your season ticket deposit for the 2023-24 basketball season
here or by calling the Bronco Ticket Office at
408-554-4660. Single-game tickets will go on sale once the entire 2023-24 schedule has been announced.
Game and Series Information
Nov. 8 vs. Utah Tech | Leavey Center
- This will be the first-ever meeting between the programs.
- The Trailblazers were 14-19 last season, which included an 80-76 OT victory over Stephen F. Austin in the opening round of the WAC Tournament – the program's first-ever postseason victory as a NCAA D1 program.
- The Trailblazers lost their top three scorers from a year ago. Their top returner is junior Tanner Christensen, who led the team with 7.0 rpg and was fourth in scoring at 9.5 ppg.
Nov. 11 vs. St. Francis (Pa.) | Leavey Center
- This will be the first-ever meeting between the programs.
- The Red Flash finished third in the Northeastern Conference (NEC) with a 9-7 league record and was 13-17 overall.
- SFU has a very youthful roster that looks much different from a year before with the team's top five scorers no longer with the program. That includes NEC Co-Player of the Year Josh Cohen.
Nov. 15 at Stanford | Maples Pavilion (Stanford, Calif.)
- The Broncos and Cardinal will be meeting for the 79th time on the hardwood. Stanford holds the lead in the all-time series, 52-26.
- Santa Clara won the last meeting, 88-72, on Nov. 12, 2021 inside the Leavey Center.
- The Cardinal is coming off a 14-19 record from last season.
- Stanford returns four of their top five scorers from a season ago, including leading scorer Spencer Jones (14.1 ppg) and Maxime Raynaud, who recently was teammates with SCU's Adama Bal on the French National U20 Team that captured the FIBA U20 European Championship.
Nov. 18 vs. Southeastern Louisiana University | Leavey Center
- This will be the first-ever meeting between the programs.
- Southeastern finished third in the Southland Conference in 2022-23 with a 12-6 record and was 18-14 overall. They were upset in their opening game of the conference tournament, 82-78, by seventh-seeded New Orleans.
- The Lions return two of their top three scorers from last season in Roger McFarlane (12.3) and Nick Caldwell (11.1).
Nov. 20 vs. Mississippi Valley State | Leavey Center
- This will be the fourth meeting between the programs. Santa Clara won the previous three games, most recently on Dec. 20, 2019 (100-71).
- The Delta Devils had three players average north of 10 ppg last season, including first team all-conference pick Terry Collins (14.7)
Nov. 24 vs. Oregon | Niceville, Fla. | 2023 Emerald Coast Classic
- Oregon and Santa Clara have squared off 13 times prior with the Ducks holding a slim 7-6 lead in the series with the last meeting coming on Dec. 13, 2005.
- The Broncos last victory over the Ducks was on Nov. 29, 1997 in Eugene (67-58).
- The Ducks are coming off a 21-15 campaign that included a postseason bid to the NIT. They fell in the quarterfinals to Wisconsin.
- Oregon signed a consensus top-10 recruiting class that features a pair of McDonald's All-Americans, including five star forward Kwame Evans Jr.
Nov. 25 vs. Alabama/Ohio State | Niceville, Fla. | 2023 Emerald Coast Classic
- The Broncos will face either the Crimson Tide or the Buckeyes on the final day of the Emerald Coast Classic.
- Santa Clara is 1-2 all-time vs. Alabama and 1-1 against Ohio State.
- Alabama was the No. 1 seed in the 2023 NCAA Tournament and advanced to the Sweet 16 where they were upset by San Diego State.
- Ohio State was 16-19 overall a season ago, but finished No. 52 in the final NET rankings.
Nov. 29 vs. Menlo College | Leavey Center
- Santa Clara and Menlo have met twice before, including a 64-51 victory last season.
- The Oaks were 16-12 overall last season.
Dec. 2 at Cal | Haas Pavilion (Berkeley, Calif.)
- December's match-up will be the 76th installment of the series. The Golden Bears hold a 45-30 advantage all-time, however Santa Clara has won two of the last three, including a 71-62 victory last season.
- The Golden Bears are under the leadership of first-year head coach Mark Madsen, the 2023 WAC Coach of the Year at Utah Valley.
- Cal returns leading scorer Devin Askew (15.3) and added five transfers to the roster, including former Portland Pilot Mike Meadows.
Dec. 9 vs. New Mexico | Dollar Loan Center (Henderson, Nev.)
- Santa Clara is 3-4 all-time against the Lobos. The teams last met on Dec. 24, 2011 – a 79-76 overtime victory for the Broncos.
- The Lobos were 22-12 last season and received an invite to the NIT where they fell in the opening round to Utah Valley.
- New Mexico returns their top two scorers in Jamal Mashburn, Jr. (19.1) and Jaelen House (16.9). Both players were named All-Mountain West and were honored as all-region selections.
Dec. 13 vs. Utah State | Leavey Center
- This will be the 11th meeting between the programs. Utah State holds a 7-3 lead in the series and, most recently, handed Santa Clara their first loss of the season last year in Logan, Utah.
- The Broncos are looking for their first win over the Aggies since Dec. 23, 2006 (77-75 in OT).
- The Aggies are under the leadership of first-year head coach Danny Sprinkle.
- The Aggies were 26-9 last season. They fell to San Diego State in the Mountain West Championship Title game and were selected to the NCAA Tournament where they dropped their opening game against Missouri.
- Utah State will have a much different roster from last year's team, sporting 13 newcomers for 2023-24.
Dec. 16 vs. Washington State | Footprint Center (Phoenix, Ariz.) | 2023 Jerry Colangelo Classic
- The Broncos and Cougars are meeting for the 10th time. Washington State has won six of the previous nine games, including in the opening round of the 2022 NIT. Despite that loss, Santa Clara has won two of the last three dating back to 2018.
- Washington State finished 2022-23 at an even .500 (17-17), culminating in another NIT bid. The Cougars dropped their opening NIT game to Eastern Washington.
- The Cougars lost their top four scorers, including second round NBA Draft pick Mouhamed Gueye. Jabe Mullins serves as the team's top returning scorer at 8.4 ppg.
Dec. 20 at San Jose State | Provident Credit Union Event Center (San Jose, Calif.)
- The long-time rivals will be playing each other for the 115th time in their storied history that dates back to 1909. Santa Clara holds an 82-32 advantage all-time, however San Jose State was the victor in last year's match up.
- The Spartans are coming off by-far their best season of recent history with a 21-14 overall record and postseason appearance.
- SJSU will have to replace three of their top five scorers from a season ago, including Mountain West Player of the Year Omari Moore. Alvaro Cardenas (10 ppg) is the team's top returning scorer.
Dec. 23 vs. Duquesne | Las Vegas
- Santa Clara and Duquesne have met five times prior, most recently in 2004. The Dukes have won four out of the five with the lone exception being that 2004 meeting.
- The Dukes were 20-13 last season and accepted an invite to the College Basketball Invitational where they fell to Rice in the opening round.
- Duquesne returns both of their top scorers from last season in all-conference players Dae Dae Grant (15.5) and Jimmy Clark III (12.2).
Dec. 30 vs. Yale | Leavey Center
- This will be just the third meeting all-time between the programs. Yale won the previous two games in 1955 and 2004.
- The Bulldogs had a great 2022-23 season with a 21-9 mark and 10-4 record in league play. They won nine of their last 10 regular season games and was selected for the NIT where they dropped their first game to Vanderbilt.
- Head coach James Jones was honored as the Ivy League Coach of the Year last season while Bez Mbeng was the league's defensive player of the year and Matt Knowling was a first team all-league pick. All return for the upcoming season.
