Teams: UC Davis at Cal State Northridge; at Hawai’i Records: Aggies 5-10 (1-3); Matadors 9-8 (0-5); Rainbow Wahine 9-7 (3-2) Where: The Matadome — Northridge, Calif.; Stan Sheriff Center — Honolulu, Hawaii When: Thursday at 7:05 p.m.; Saturday at 10 p.m. Who to watch: Junior Ryan Sypkens has been a perimeter threat for the Aggies all season. He has banked 55 three-pointers for UC Davis thus far, earning him a shooting percentage of 48.7 from beyond the arc. The Elk Grove, Calif., native will be busy this week as the Aggies are traveling to face teams with imposing centers that might neutralize the production of sophomore J.T. Adenrele. Did you know? Cal State Northridge had a strong start to the season, managing a 9-3 record before Big West Conference play began. Since entering the conference season, the Matadors have gone 0-5 despite averaging about 72 points per game. Preview: It is time for the Aggies to turn it on. The loss against UC Santa Barbara dropped them to a 1-3... ...

The White House just denied a petition that called for the construction of a real life Death Star. A real Death Star. Almost 35,000 people went on the White House website to sign for the construction of a space station that is no more a moon than what popped up when Remus Lupin faced a boggart. I was extremely disappointed to hear the White House turned down the idea, despite all the upsides of an $852 quadrillion planet-destroying space station in a universe with no other life forms. Still, fear not, because there is a whole Star Wars galaxy of treasure trove ideas that can be tapped. Certainly we’ve already achieved the bionic hand. Like this, there are many ideas that could have happened, but haven’t … yet. In terms of UC Davis, there are a couple of things we’ve been hoping for that haven’t materialized. First, the men’s basketball team, a team that had high hopes. They are a thrill to watch. Much improved over last year. But still,... ...

As the first half of Thursday’s game against Cal Poly drew to a close, most Aggie fans got up and left. The first 20 minutes of play certainly justified their decision to leave. UC Davis’ offense stalled and the team fell behind by 18 points early in the game. However, a quick timeout and a completely new schematic started to change the direction of the scoreboard. The Aggies stopped trying to find the outside jump shots and started attacking the driving lanes to the hoop. Sophomores J.T. Adenrele and Corey Hawkins worked to cut the Aggies deficit to six points at the end of the half. Head coach Jim Les noted the sloppy start but he credited the squad that closed the half. “That group, they really got the energy going and it gave us something to build on in the second half,” Les said. UC Davis came out of the locker room trailing 31-37 and they simply exploded at the start of the second half. Junior Ryan Sypkens led... ...

UC Davis used the break to put together some of the best basketball Aggies fans have seen this season. After a hard loss at Stanford, the team bounced back to craft an exhilarating win over Eastern Washington at home. Junior Tyler Les spearheaded the Aggies offensive performance, scoring 18 of the team’s 87 points against the Eagles. Sophomore J.T. Adenrele followed up his impressive performance at Stanford with his first career double-double, landing 13 points and 10 rebounds. Five Aggies scored more than 10 points and head coach Jim Les was most impressed by his team’s knack for spreading the ball around. “To have 21 assists … that tells me we have a very unselfish team,” Les said. The win over Eastern Washington broke UC Davis’ four-game losing streak. The Aggies came out with incredible energy and the team’s chemistry is clearly improving. UC Davis followed it up with another win against Southern Illinois on the road. The 78-70 victory over the Salukis marked Adenrele’s second double-double in a row.... ...

Two games and two late-game scoring sprees add up to two losses for the Aggies. UC Davis traveled to Reno, Nev. and Moscow, Idaho this weekend with hopes of improving to 3-1 on the season. Instead, they came home 1-4, largely due to deficits that forced them to play catch-up in the second half. It started in Reno, when the Aggies squared off against the Wolf Pack but fell 84-83. There were several standout statistics from that night, including those from the four players who scored more than 10 points. Junior Ryan Sypkens led the team in scoring. His 24 points came solely from three-pointers, a total of eight that tied fellow junior Tyler Les’ record for most threes in a game. Sophomore Corey Hawkins continues to be an offensive staple for UC Davis. Hawkins shot .500 in the field and went 5-6 from the free throw line. He also managed four assists on the night. Junior Josh Ritchart had a big night for the Aggies. He scored 13 points... ...

UC Davis traveled across the Causeway on Tuesday night to face off against rival Sacramento State Hornets. The Aggies returned to Davis with their first victory of the season and some serious bragging rights. This game exemplified the explosiveness of the Aggie offense. Practically every player came away with a new personal record of some impressive statistic. Sophomore Corey Hawkins continued to establish his dominance, shooting 9-15 and hitting a perfect 9-9 from the free throw line. Hawkins’ 29 points earned him his second consecutive title as top scorer. The sophomore has now scored 59 points in two games for the Aggies. Hawkins’ impressive stats also earned him national recognition this week. According to ESPN, Hawkins is the nation’s eighth-best scorer at the moment. However, this offensive clinic did not start until the second half. UC Davis ended the first half with 24 points on the board, trailing the Hornets by nine. To start the second period, the Aggies went on a run. They scored 63 points in the second... ...

Teams: UC Davis at Sacramento State Records: Aggies 0-2, Hornets 3-0 Where: The Nest — Sacramento, Calif. When: Tuesday night 7:35 p.m. Who to watch: The Aggies have placed a huge emphasis on the importance of rebounding this season. Senior Ryan Howley has taken the message to heart, earning 22 rebounds through the first two games. Sixteen of his grabs have come on the defensive end of the paint, which is exactly what the UC Davis defense needs to do this year. The Flagstaff, Ariz. native was bested by his hometown Northern Arizona team in a 85-82 contest. The senior almost completed his second double-double of the season, managing 9 rebounds and 10 points. Did you know? Sophomore Corey Hawkins earned 30 points in his second ever collegiate game. He is the first Aggie to break the 30-point mark in a game since Eddie Miller scored 35 against UC Riverside last February. Preview: UC Davis is an incredibly dynamic team and while they are currently 0-2, that record should start... ...

Teams: UC Davis vs. Northern Arizona Records: Aggies 0-1, Lumberjacks 0-2 Where: ARC Pavilion — Davis, Calif. When: Sunday at 2 p.m. Who to watch: Sunday’s game will provide Aggie fans their first chance to watch sophomore Corey Hawkins in action. The Goodyear, Ariz. native will also get a chance to showcase his talents against a team from his home state. Hawkins emphasized the team above personal glory. “It doesn’t matter as long as the team walks away with a win,” he said. He played his first game in Aggie Blue against Oklahoma State last week and has already started to establish himself as a dominant talent on the court. He led the Aggies in scoring with 13 points and pulled in three rebounds to boot. Did you know? Northern Arizona lost their last game against No. 18 University of Nevada, Las Vegas. The Rebels held the Lumberjacks to a dismal 25.8 shot percentage in the first half. This will be a perfect opportunity for UC Davis to try out... ...

When UC Davis headed to Oklahoma last Friday, they forgot that they were the underdogs, slated to lose by a serious margin. Road games were not kind to the Aggies last year, but there is a new roster and a new energy this season. The game was a sparring match from start to finish. Oklahoma State was consistently ahead on the scoreboard but the Aggies kept the margin thin by winning the rebound advantage 43-29. Every Aggie that hit the court grabbed at least one rebound Friday night, but senior Ryan Howley was the standout contributor, earning a total of 13 rebounds in the game. That is the kind of hustle head coach Jim Les has been emphasizing this season.  He wants a squad with an unmatched work ethic on the defensive side of the paint and he saw the fruits of their labors on Friday night. “The players were ready to work hard and compete against a talented team,” Les said. Offensively, the Aggies were impressive but they were... ...

Teams: UC Davis at Oklahoma State Records: Aggies 2-0, Cowboys 1-0 Where: Gallagher-Iba Arena — Stillwater, Okla. When: Saturday at 6 p.m. Who to watch: The game against Menlo on Tuesday made it difficult to pick just one player to focus on. The Aggies played with an aggressive intensity that has not been seen in the Pavilion for some time. However, head coach Jim Les spotlighted the performance of sophomore J.T. Adenrele, and deservedly so. The Roseville, Calif. native looks like a completely different player on the court this year. “All the credit for his development goes to him. He wants to be coached and he wants to be better,” Les said. Adenrele’s improved play stems from his newly developed physique. “The weight room has really helped me develop during the offseason. We’ve been hitting it hard and it shows,” Adenrele said. Did you know? UC Davis was winless on the road last season, a statistic that Les aims to turn around starting this weekend in Stillwater, Okla. “It’s a... ...

UC Davis men’s basketball is ready to bury the memories of last year and start winning. After finishing last year’s season with a dismal 5-26 record, head coach Jim Les had some restructuring to do. He started by recruiting some promising young talent to help fill the holes in last year’s roster. Ultimately, the Aggies have to step up their game on both sides of the court. A winning percentage of .161 is the result of a lackluster defense and an unproductive offense. The biggest focus for UC Davis is offensive production. Last year, Aggie opponents averaged 74.4 points per game while UC Davis’ offense only managed 62 points a game. That 12-point margin needs to close if the team wants to add some more wins to their record this year. Luckily, the Aggies have an excellent offensive threat. Junior Tyler Les received national recognition for his talents in a recent CBSSports.com ranking. The coach’s son was named the 35th best shooter in the nation on the preseason list of... ...

Former Aggie basketball players Alex Tiffin and Mike Kurtz announced their departure from UC Davis earlier this quarter, and their destinations have now been confirmed. According to The Los Angeles Times, Tiffin will be crossing the Causeway to play for Sacramento State next year. The Thousand Oaks, Calif. native started 14 of the 30 games he played and posted an average of 3.3 points per game. Tiffin contributed one point and one rebound against his future team in the Aggies’ 61-69 loss to the Hornets this season. It was previously rumored that Tiffin was considering Chaminade University in Honolulu in addition to Sac State. Kurtz will take his talents down south to Biola University. The seven-footer red-shirted the 2011-12 season after seeing substantial playing time his freshman year, when he posted 2.4 points per game and a .323 shooting percentage from three-point range. Biola is an NAIA institution and Kurtz will have three years of eligibility remaining. In addition to Kurtz and Tiffin, sophomore Harrison Dupont and freshman Tyrell Corbin... ...

UC Davis men’s basketball coach Jim Les announced Tuesday night that freshman guard Tyrell Corbin would not be returning for the Aggies next season and will be looking to transfer at the end of the academic year. “We’re appreciative of Tyrell being part of our basketball program and we wish him well,” Les said. The announcement came less than two weeks after Les announced that sophomores Harrison Dupont, Alex Tiffin and Mike Kurtz would not be returning in 2012-13. Corbin was a member of Les’ first recruiting class and was a fixture of the starting lineup for the majority of the season. Overall, Corbin started 23 games, averaged 6.3 points per game and led the team with 91 assists in his sole season with UC Davis. Corbin also turned the ball over a team-high of 97 times. With the departure of Corbin, Dupont and Tiffin, the Aggies have lost their three team leaders in turnovers from the 2011-12 season. — Trevor Cramer ...