UC Santa Barbara vs UC Davis Prediction 3/11/2026 Today’s College Basketball Picks

The UC Santa Barbara Gauchos and the UC Davis Aggies meet Wednesday in Big West Tournament college basketball action from Dollar Loan Center in Las Vegas. Here’s a UC Santa Barbara vs UC Davis prediction. We will look at this from a betting perspective and determine the best UCSB vs UC Davis pick. We will examine the recent form and player performances for both teams, as well as the recent betting trends and streaks pertaining to this matchup. As we conclude, we will tie it all together with a summary that produces a sensible pick for a favorable betting outcome in this game.

UC Santa Barbara Gauchos Betting Preview

The Gauchos were 9-7 over their first 16 games this year, then hit a nice six-game win streak that lasted from January 15 to January 31. UC Santa Barbara is just 3-6 in the last nine games though, falling to UC Davis, Cal Poly, Cal State Northridge, Hawaii, UC Irvine and UC San Diego in that time. Over 31 games so far this year that gives the Gauchos an 18-13 run.

On Saturday versus UC San Diego, the Gauchos were down by two points 31-29 going into the second half. UC Santa Barbara hit a 34-33 advantage the rest of the way but it wasn’t enough to make the comeback in an eventual 64-63 loss on their home court. UC Santa Barbara was led by CJ Shaw and Colin Smith this time, each with 13 points in the losing effort.

UC Davis Aggies Betting Preview

Over on the Aggies’ side, they finished off January with a 12-9 run through their first 21 games. Wins came in the next three against Cal State Bakersfield, UC Santa Barbara and Cal Poly. After that it was a 2-2 run with losses to UC San Diego and Cal State Fullerton alongside wins over Long Beach State and UC Riverside, then losses to Hawaii and UC Irvine over the next three games.

In the UC Irvine game last weekend the Aggies were looking good on a pretty comfortable 10-point lead 38-28 by the end of the first half. UC Davis was outscored 37-27 the rest of the way however, and had to go to overtime. After the extra period the Aggies finished with a 79-69 loss on the road. Niko Rocak was tops in scoring on 20 options with five rebounds and two blocks.

UC Santa Barbara Gauchos @ UC Davis Aggies Betting Trends: March 11, 2026

Why the UC Davis Aggies will win

• UC Santa Barbara has lost five of its last six games against Conference opponents.
• UC Davis has won three of its last four games after coming off overtime.

Why the UC Santa Barbara Gauchos will win

• UC Davis has lost four of its last five games against Conference opponents at Lee’s Family Forum.
• UC Santa Barbara has won nine of its last 12 Conference Tournament games.

Matchup/League Facts

• UC Davis ranks 44th among Division 1 teams for free throws made per game this season (17.6).
• UC Santa Barbara ranks 27th among Division 1 teams for opponent field goal attempts per game this season (54.3).
• UC Santa Barbara ranks 32nd among Division 1 teams for true shooting percentage this season (59.7%).

UC Santa Barbara vs UC Davis Prediction

I’ll just stick with the Aggies. UC Davis needs a quality bounce-back effort here after their loss to UC Irvine last weekend, though. In that one the Aggies shot just 38.5 percent from the field while giving up 50.9 percent on defense. The 46-20 rebounding deficit and 36-22 disadvantage on points in the paint didn’t help either. UC Davis is just 3-4 in their last seven games and playing pretty erratically right now.

The Aggies managed to win both contests between these teams this year: 93-86 on the road January 8 and 85-75 at home on February 5. In that most recent game UC Davis shot a nice 52 percent from the field and 55.6 percent (10-of-18) from outside along with 23-of-26 (88.5 percent) at the line. The hot shooting helped offset a 29-20 rebounding deficit and a 40-30 disadvantage in the paint. UC Davis needs to sharpen up under the basket in this tournament rematch.

Andrew Jett's Pick: UC Davis Aggies +5.5