California Baptist University
Tarleton State University
MBB Preview: CBU Enters Final Week of Regular Season with Seeding on the Line
3/4/2025 4:09:00 PM | Men's Basketball
RIVERSIDE--- The California Baptist University men's basketball team enters the final week of the regular season as the Western Athletic Conference Tournament in Las Vegas looms.
The Lancers enter the week 7-7 after splitting last week's road trip with a loss at Seattle U and a win at Utah Tech. CBU is currently tied with Tarleton and Abilene Christian but holds the third seed via tiebreakers. The final week of competition will feature a pair of teams who are also in the hunt for favorable seeding in the tournament in Tarleton and UT Arlington.
The first matchup of the week is perhaps the most critical as the Lancers welcome the Tarleton Texans to Riverside on Thursday night. The matchup is very crucial as the Texans and Lancers enter the matchup with an equal record of 7-7, and the Texans won the first matchup of the season in Stephenville. A win over the Texans on Thursday would guarantee the Lancers a top-four seed in the tournament, which would tie or exceed the program's best seeding in WAC Vegas in program history. In the earlier matchup this season, Tarleton defeated CBU 67-57 in Wisdom Gym as the Lancers struggled to generate offense in the double-digit defeat. Historically, the Lancers have never lost to Tarleton in the confines of the Fowler Events Center and will look to keep that trend alive on Thursday.
The final matchup of the week will be against the UT Arlington Mavericks for senior night. CBU will honor five seniors on Saturday as they look to finalize their place in the WAC standings. UTA will only play one game this week as they head up from Arlington for the Saturday matchup. UTA is currently 6-9 in conference action and equally has a lot at stake for seeding in the final week. The Mavericks, likewise, got the better of the Lancers during the regular season matchup in overtime by a final score of 82-79. CBU let a 17-point second-half lead slip away at the College Park Center as UTA stormed all the way back to force overtime. In the extra session, UTA would use a sizable free-throw disparity to put away the Lancers. CBU was outshot 43-8 from the free-throw in the game as UTA cashed in 24 of those opportunities.
Dominique Daniels Jr., who missed the last three games, is set to make his return this week as well barring any unforseen setbacks. Daniels Jr. is still the WAC's leading scorer at 20 points per game and has been the driving force of the Lancer offense this season. Daniels Jr. has scored at least 20 points in 12 games this season including a season-high 36 points against Utah Tech on Homecoming Night.
CBU vs Tarleton
DATE/TIME: Mar. 6 @7PM PT
LOCATION: Fowler Events Center- Riverside, CA
WATCH: ESPN+
CBU at Grand Canyon
DATE/TIME: Mar. 8 @5PM PT
LOCATION: Fowler Events Center- Riverside, CA
WATCH: ESPN+
