SAN BRUNO, Calif. - For the first time since 1995-96, Santa Clara has been voted as the preseason favorite to win the 2026-27 West Coast Conference regular-season title. The Broncos received nine first-place votes and 81 total points from the league's head coaches in the annual preseason poll, as announced by the conference office on Thursday.
On the heels of one of their most successful seasons in recent history that included a program-record 15 conference wins and a 26-9 overall record, Santa Clara is the first team outside of Gonzaga or Saint Mary's selected to win the league since the 2000-01 season. The Gaels rank second in the poll with 70 points and one first-place vote while San Francisco (58), Seattle U. (54) and Pacific (53) round out the top five of the standings.
Santa Clara also placed a pair of players on the league's 2026-27 Preseason All-WCC Team with returners
Jake Ensminger and
Sash Gavalyugov earning spots on the 10-man team. The Broncos are tied with Pepperdine and Seattle U. for the most selections on the team, and this is the third consecutive year that SCU has had multiple players voted to the annual preseason team.
Ensminger, returning for his fifth year with the Broncos, started 32-of-35 games last season in which he averaged 6.5 points, was second in rebounding (5.5) and led the team in assists (2.9). He ranked second in the WCC in assist-to-turnover ratio (3.2) and posted five double-figure scoring efforts, including a season-best 14 points to go with eight rebounds and three steals in the NCAA Tournament vs. Kentucky.
Gavalyugov, entering his second year with SCU after transferring from Villanova, was one of four players to appear in all 35 games last season. Averaging 9.0 points per game, the Bulgarian product logged 10 double-figure scoring games including a 37-point barrage at home against LMU that ranks as the second-highest point total ever scored by a Bronco in the Leavey Center. The guard earned a spot on the WCC's All-Tournament Team after averaging 14 points and 5.7 assists at the 2026 WCC Championship where he helped the Broncos reach the title game for the first time since 2007 after knocking down five treys as part of 23-point night in the semifinal vs. Saint Mary's.
Under the direction of 11th-year head coach
Herb Sendek, the 2025-26 WCC Coach of the Year, Santa Clara is looking to return to the NCAA Tournament after earning an at-large seed last season for the program's first March Madness bid since 1996. The Broncos are in the midst of one of the most successful five-year stretches in program history with 111 victories, including 58 conference wins, four postseason appearances and five-straight years finishing top-four in the WCC standings, including a third-place finish last season.
In addition to Ensminger and Gavalyugov, Santa Clara returns three players from last year's team that saw significant playing time (
Thierry Darlan,
KJ Cochran and
Francis Chukwudebelu, as well as a trio of players that sat out due with redshirts (
Noah Badibanga,
Brad Longcor III and
Chris Tadjo). The Broncos also brought in three transfers in the form of guards
David Castillo (Kansas State) and
Fedor Zugic (Creighton), and center
Sidi Gueye (Arizona), as well as three freshmen -
Eli Jolin,
Alex Ensor and
Brayde Kuykendall.
Santa Clara opens the season Nov. 2 against Towson in the first of three consecutive home contests to begin the 2026-27 campaign. Tickets are
available now.
2026-27 WCC Men's Basketball Preseason Coaches Poll
| Rank |
Team (First Place Votes) |
Points |
| 1. |
Santa Clara (9) |
81 |
| 2. |
Saint Mary's (1) |
70 |
| 3. |
San Francisco |
58 |
| 4. |
Seattle U. |
54 |
| 5. |
Pacific |
53 |
| 6. |
LMU |
46 |
| 7. |
Pepperdine |
30 |
| 8. |
San Diego |
26 |
| 9. |
Portland |
22 |
| 10. |
Denver |
10 |
2026-27 WCC Men's Basketball Preseason Team
| Name |
Year |
Position |
School |
| Joshua Dent |
Jr. |
Guard |
Saint Mary's |
| Jake Ensminger |
Grad |
Guard |
Santa Clara |
| Sash Gavalyugov |
Jr. |
Guard |
Santa Clara |
| Will Heimbrodt |
Sr. |
Forward |
Seattle U. |
| Carson Johnson |
Jr. |
Guard |
Denver |
| Petar Majstorovic |
Jr. |
Forward |
Pepperdine |
| Will McClendon |
Grad |
Guard |
Pepperdine |
| Ndewedo Newbury |
Grad |
Forward |
San Francisco |
| All Wright |
Jr. |
Guard |
LMU |
| Junseok Yeo |
5th Year |
Forward |
Seattle U. |
