SANTA CLARA, Calif.- Santa Clara men’s basketball returns home this week for a matchup with UC Riverside (2-2) on Tuesday at 7:00 p.m. The game will be streamed live on ESPN+ with Anthony Passarelli and Brian Hudson on the call.
The Broncos are coming off a tough stretch in their schedule following back-to-back losses against North Dakota State and Nevada. Newcomer junior forward Elijah Mahi led the Broncos with a career high 22 points at Nevada, his fourth straight game in double figures as a Bronco, while Johnny O’Neil posted a career high 14 rebounds against North Dakota St.
Coming into the third week of the season, the Broncos currently rank second in the WCC and 80th nationally with 31 bench points per game. Santa Clara boasts a third place ranking in the WCC and 73rd nationally with 13.25 offensive rebounds per game, and fourth place in the conference with 8.8 steals per game. Meanwhile, Elijah Mahi is second in the conference and ranks 55th nationally, shooting 64.3 percent from the field.
Led by fifth-year head coach Mike Magpayo, UC Riverside is 2-2 on the year with wins over Cal Baptist (70-69) and La Sierra (79-51) and road losses at Oregon (91-76) and BYU (86-80). The Highlanders were tabbed to finish fourth in the Big West preseason poll while reigning Big West Freshman of the Year Barrington Hargress was selected to the league’s preseason team. Hargress leads the team with 19.3 ppg as one of four players averaging north of 10 ppg.
Santa Clara and UC Riverside have met just three times prior to Tuesday night’s showdown in Leavey. SCU is 2-1 in such games, both wins coming inside the Leavey Center. The Broncos won the last meeting 77-53 on Dec. 13, 2016.
For more information, click on the game notes link above.
STREAMING INFO
The game will be streamed on ESPN+ and can be accessed here.
Broncos At A Glance…
Lethal Duo: Adama-Alpha Bal and Elijah Mahi each rank inside the top 15 in the WCC in scoring through three games. Mahi ranks 8th at 16.8 ppg, while Bal is 15th at 15.0 ppg.
On the Boards: Santa Clara ranks third in the WCC and 73rd nationally in offensive rebounds per game (13.7). Johnny O’Neil (2.75 per game) and Camaron Tongue (2.50 per game) lead the way individually, which ranks sixth and ninth in the WCC.
Band of Thieves: ??Santa Clara also ranks fourth in the league with 8.8 steals per game. Carlos Stewart Jr. leads the way with eight steals through four games (2.0 average), which ranks sixth in the conference, while Elijah Mahi is not far behind with seven steals (1.75 average), which ranks eighth.
Hot Start for Mahi: Junior forward Elijah Mahi has started his SCU career with a bang, scoring in double figures in all four games to open the season. The Toronto product opened with 10 points against Saint Louis and followed with a team-best 19 points (8-15 FG) in 28 minutes vs. Arizona State. He most recently tallied 16 points in the loss against North Dakota State, and was a major bright spot on the road against Nevada, scoring a career-best 22 points on 9-of-12 shooting. Mahi currently ranks second in the league and is 59th nationally in field goal percentage (64.3).
Sustained success: The Broncos have won 20 or more games in three consecutive seasons and four if you exclude the 2020-21 covid season.
Bal Back: After flirting with the NBA Draft, Adama-Alpha Bal decided to return to the Broncos for one last season. The Le Mans, France, product is poised to once again be among the top players in the WCC in 2024-25 after an outstanding showing last year. Bal was a First Team All-WCC and Second Team NABC All-Dis-trict selection after averaging 14.4 ppg (7th best in WCC) in a team-high 31.2 minutes of work. He also ranked ninth in the league with 3.1 assists per game and led the Broncos with nine 20-point games. Through four games, Bal ranks second on the team in scoring at 15.0 ppg. He opened the year with 24 points on 7-of-13 shooting against Saint Louis and logged 12 and 18 points against ASU and NDSU, respectively.
Familiar Faces: In addition to Bal, who was a First Team All-WCC selection last year, the Broncos brought back six other key rotation pieces. Among them, All-WCC Honorable Mention last season Christoph Tilly, and All-WCC Freshman Team selection sophomore forward Jake Ensminger. In addition, the Broncos return senior forward Johnny O’Neil, senior guard Tyeree Bryan, junior guard Brenton Knapper, and senior forward Camaron Tongue, all key rotation pieces for the Broncos last season.
Added Experience: The Broncos also bring back senior guard and former Bronco standout Carlos Stewart Jr. As a sophomore at Santa Clara, Stewart Jr. was a First Team All-WCC selection, avg.15.2 ppg. The Broncos also added West Valley College transfer Elijah Mahi, who joins the Broncos after leading West Valley College to an undefeated 33-0 season in 2023-24, capturing the state championship title, and being named California Player of the Year and winning MVP in the state tournament.
Louisiana Ties: Santa Clara has not one, but two Gatorade Louisiana Basketball Player of Year winners on the roster - Stewart (2020-21) and freshman Allen Graves (2023-24).
Preseason Poll: The Broncos were picked to finish third in the WCC preseason poll, while Bal and Stewart Jr. were named to the Preseason First Team All-WCC.
Career Marks: Carlos Stewart Jr. tied a career high 5 assists in the season opener against Saint Louis, while Camaron Tongue scored a career high 18 pts. Christoph Tilly made a career high two three pointers in the victory, and Elijah Mahi scored a career high 22 pts against Nevada. Johnny O’Neil posted a career high 14 rebounds against North Dakota State.
