SANTA CLARA, Calif. - Santa Clara men's basketball is set to begin play at the 2026 Credit Union 1 WCC Men's Basketball Championship in Sunday's quarterfinal round. The No. 3 seed Broncos will play either 6-seed Pacific or 7-seed Seattle U. in the quarterfinal nightcap that is set to begin at 8:00 p.m. PT and will be aired live on ESPN2 with Dave Flemming and Sean Farnham on the call from Orleans Arena. Fans can also tune in to Anthony Passarelli and Henry Caruso's audio-only call via Sidearm Streaming.
SERIES HISTORY VS. PACIFIC/SEATTLE U.
Santa Clara leads the all-time series against Pacific 110-47 and has taken nine of the last 10 meetings. The Broncos are 2-0 against the Tigers this season and also 2-0 in the previous two meetings in the WCC Tournament. The last time the teams squared off in Vegas was in the 2021 quarterfinal where the Broncos won 81-76.
Seattle controls the series historically at 16-12, however prior to this season the teams had not met since 1987. The Broncos won the lone regular-season match up this year.
THIS SEASON AGAINST THE TIGERS/REDHAWKS
The Broncos swept Pacific in the regular-season series beginning with an 85-69 win in Leavey Center on Jan. 14. The Tigers gave SCU all they could handle in the first half with the Broncos holding just a two-point lead at the break, however Santa Clara won the second half 41-27 to cruise to the victory. Christian Hammond (18), Allen Graves (17) and Elijah Mahi (15) led the way with 15-plus scoring
efforts.
It was a tight game at the half yet again when the teams revisited in Stockton on Feb. 4, with SCU holding a 30-26 advantage. The Broncos finally mounted a double-digit lead in the final six minutes of the game to hold on for the 71-56 victory despite the Tigers holding SCU well below their season scoring average. Four Broncos scored in double figures led by 13 points from Jake Ensminger.
Santa Clara and Seattle faced off just one time in the regular season, doing so on Feb. 11 in Leavey Center. The Broncos led by four at the half and continued to lead the rest of the night despite the Redhawks constantly answering to keep the pressure on. Sash Gavalyugov came off the bench to score 21 points (5-9 3PT) to lead the way.
LAST TIME OUT
Santa Clara closed out the regular season on a high note with a 93-72 victory over Oregon State on senior night. Five Broncos scored in double figures led by a 19-point effort from senior Brenton Knapper in his final regular-season game at Leavey Center. Allen Graves chipped in 14 points in just 13 minutes of action while Elijah Mahi (12), Bukky Oboye (11) and KJ Cochran (10) also scored 10 or more. Jake Ensminger had an outstanding night of his own with eight points, 10 rebounds and a career-high seven assists. SCU knocked down 13 3-pointers, dished out 22 assists and outrebounded the Beavers 41-29 with 19 boards off the offensive glass.
LOOKING BACK AT THE REGULAR SEASON
With a 24-7 record, Santa Clara posted the second-most regular-season victories in program history, just two behind the program record of 26 set in 1968-69 when the Broncos reached No. 3 in the AP Poll in route to a 26-1 regular season before falling to Lew Alcindor and the UCLA Bruins in the NCAA Tournament.
The 24 wins are currently tied with the 2010-11 team for the third-most overall victories in program history. The Broncos picked up six postseason wins that season, including a 5-0 run in the CIT to win the championship.
A NEW RECORD FOR CONFERENCE WINS
Santa Clara set a new program record for conference victories with a 15-3 mark in WCC play. The mark was previously held by the 1967-68 and 1968-69 squads who both finished 13-1.
SCU posted the nation’s fifth-highest scoring average in conference games at 87.2 ppg.
TOP FOUR YET AGAIN
Santa Clara posted a top-four finish in the WCC standings for the fifth-consecutive year - the program’s longest streak since an eight-year stretch from 1995-2002. The Broncos finished in third place for the first time since doing so in back-to-back years in 2021-22 and 2022-23.
SENDEK JOINS ELITE COMPANY WITH 4TH COTY AWARD
Herb Sendek was voted by his peers as the 2025-26 WCC Coach of the Year. It is his first COTY Award in his 10-year tenure with the Broncos, and the fourth COTY Award of his 32-year career in total. Sendek has won the award at four different schools (Miami (OH), NC State, Arizona State, SCU) in four different conferences (MAC, ACC, PAC 10, WCC), and is one of just three coaches to do so in NCAA Division 1 history along with Dana Altman and Rick Pitino.
GRAVES TAKES HOME MULTIPLE MAJOR WCC AWARDS
Allen Graves earned a pair of major awards from the WCC after a sensational conference slate. The big man took home WCC Freshman of the Year and Sixth Man of the Year honors. He is the 10th Bronco in program history to win freshman and/or newcomer of the year honors - the first since Brandin Podziemski was both the league’s newcomer and co-player of the year in 2022-23 - and the first freshman to win the award since Jared Brownridge in 2013-14.
Graves came off the bench in all 18 of SCU’s conference games to average 13.5 points and 6.6 rebounds. He is the first Bronco to win the league’s sixth man award in its six years of existence.
A TRIO OF FIRST TEAMERS
Graves was one of three Broncos that earned a spot on the WCC’s 10-man all-conference first team, joining Christian Hammond and Elijah Mahi. It was the first All-WCC honor for all three players in their respective careers. The three honorees tied the 2006-07 squad’s total for the most first teamers in program history, and it is the first time that multiple Broncos have earned first team honors since 2022-23 (Podziemski and Carlos Stewart).
Santa Clara and Gonzaga are the only teams to have at least one player on the All-WCC First Team in each of the last six seasons dating back to 2020-21.
OFFENSE ON HISTORIC PACE
At 83.8 points per game, Santa Clara’s offense is on a record-setting pace. The Broncos are going toe-to-toe with the 1969-70 team (83.7) for the best average in program history. Their 11.4 scoring margin currently checks in at No. 3 on the all-time list.
WHAT’S ON THE LINE...
Another victory would give the Broncos their third 25-win season in program history, and would also punch SCU’s ticket to the WCC Championship semifinal round for the fourth time over the last six seasons.
