UCSB faces UC Davis in Big West semis

UC Davis (10-7, 8-5) vs. UC Santa Barbara (20-4, 16-3)

Big West Conference Tourney Semifinals, Michelob Ultra Arena, Las Vegas; Friday, 9 p.m. EST

BOTTOM LINE: A ticket to the Big West championship game is about to be punched as UC Davis and UC Santa Barbara are set to do battle. In the regular season, UC Santa Barbara won both of the head-to-head matchups. The teams last played each other on Jan. 30, when the Gauchos shot 49.1 percent from the field while limiting UC Davis's shooters to just 44.3 percent on their way to the three-point victory.

BIG MEN ON CAMPUS: JaQuori McLaughlin has averaged 15.9 points and 5.3 assists to lead the charge for the Gauchos. Amadou Sow has complemented McLaughlin and is producing 13.3 points and 7.5 rebounds per game. The Aggies have been led by Ezra Manjon, who is averaging 15.9 points.

KEY CONTRIBUTOR: McLaughlin has either made or assisted on 40 percent of all UC Santa Barbara field goals over the last five games. The senior guard has 27 field goals and 25 assists in those games.

SCORING THRESHOLDS: UC Davis is 5-0 when it limits opponents to 63 or fewer points, and 5-7 when opposing teams exceed 63 points. UC Santa Barbara is 16-0 when holding opponents to 66 points or fewer, and 4-4 whenever teams score more than 66 on the Gauchos.

ASSIST-TO-FG RATIO: The Gauchos have recently gotten baskets via assists more often than the Aggies. UC Santa Barbara has an assist on 53 of 83 field goals (63.9 percent) over its previous three games while UC Davis has assists on 28 of 78 field goals (35.9 percent) during its past three games.

GETTING DEFENSIVE: UC Davis has forced opponents into committing turnovers on 24.7 percent of all possessions this year, the ninth-highest rate among all Division I teams. The Aggies have forced conference foes into turnovers on 24.9 percent of all possessions.

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