CBB Rank 2025: No. 94, UC Irvine Basketball

There are few better bets in college basketball than Russell Turner, and he hopes to prove that once again with this UC Irvine basketball team.

Since Russell Turner took over in 2010, it’s been mostly success for UC Irvine. The team has finished with a winning record in the last 13 seasons, including two 30-win seasons. One of those was last year, when they went 32-7, the most wins in a single season in program history.

Unfortunately, they had to go face to face with UC San Diego, one of the best mid-major programs in the country, last year and couldn’t earn the auto bid. The begging by the college basketball fandom for a two-bid Big West fell on deaf ears, but UC Irvine proved their worth, making the NIT final.

This year, things will look different. Their top four scorers from last season are all gone, all of whom averaged double-digit scoring. They didn’t bring in much either, betting on the guys who had lesser roles last year to take that leap. As mentioned earlier, bet on Russell Turner, and you’ll get a good return, and with the Big West being competitive again this year, UC Irvine should be towards the top all season long.

Head coach: Russell Turner (16th season at UC Irvine, 16th season overall)

2024-25 record: 32-7 (17-3)

2025 postseason finish: NIT Runner Up

Notable departures: 

• Bent Leuchten (15.4 PPG, 9.1 RPG, 1.6 APG)
• Devin Tillis (13.7 PPG, 7.8 RPG, 2.4 APG)
• Justin Hohn (12.2 PPG, 3.8 APG, 3.2 RPG)
• Myles Che (12.1 PPG, 2.8 APG, 2.4 RPG)

Notable non-conference games: 

• N/A

Projected Rotation

PG: Derrin Saran (6-4,190, Jr.)

2024-2025 stats: 0.6 PPG, 0.6 RPG, 0.2 APG, 5 games played (Stanford)

SG: Jurian Dixon (6-4,195, So.)

2024-2025 stats: 8.8 PPG, 3.0 RPG, 1.7 APG, 0.9 SPG, 43.2 FG%, 76.3FT%)

SF: Andre Henry (6-4,185, Gr.-Sr.)

2024-2025 stats: 7.6 PPG, 2.9 RPG, 1.1 APG, 1.3 SPG, 91.7 FT%)

PF: Harrison Carrington (6-7,207, Jr.)

2024-2025 stats: 3.1 PPG, 1.2 RPG, 0.2 APG, 60.9 FG%, 76.9 FT% (Colorado)

C: Kyle Evans (6-10, 210, Sr.)

2024-2025 stats: 4.4 PPG, 3.4 RPG, 0.3 APG, 1.2 BPG, 67.0 FG%, 85.3 FT%

6: Torian Lee (5-11, 170, So.)

2024-2025 stats: 4.1 PPG, 1.1 RPG, 0.6 APG, 0.6 SPG, 43.0 FG%, 37.6 3P%, 80.0 FT%

7. Ben Egbo (6-4,200, So.)

2024-2025 stats: 1.0 PPG, 0.8 RPG, 0.2 APG, 5.9 minutes per game

8: Akiva McBirney-Griffin (6-10,225, Jr.)

Redshirted Last Year

9. Tamatoa Isaac (6-2, Fr.)

10. Elijah Chol (6-11, 190, Jr.)

2024-2025 stats: 0.9 PPG, 0.9 RPG, 0.7 BPG, 3.6 minutes per game

UC Irvine Basketball team MVP: Andre Henry

Andre Henry will suit up for his sixth season for UC Irvine. He played just nine games, starting in all of them last year before a season-ending injury. In the previous season, he was great, starting all 34 games and averaging 10.3 PPG, and shot the ball efficiently from the field. Henry is the second-highest recruit in UC Irvine history, and with the keys finally his and a full year to recover from injury, this could be his breakout year.

More importantly, he is a veteran on a very young team. UC Irvine basketball has six freshmen and only three seniors. His leadership, especially being with the program for so long, will be crucial to the team’s success. If he can average double figures and a couple of assists, UC Irvine will be dancing once again.

UC Irvine Basketball make-or-break player: Derin Saran

Saran had a terrific freshman year at UC Irvine, averaging 10.1 PPG, the third most on the team despite not having a single start. He shot the ball efficiently and made the most of just 19.1 minutes a game. He decided to test the power conference level last year, transferring to Stanford, but after five games of limited minutes and a season-ending injury, he’s back with Coach Turner and UC Irvine Basketball.

Saran should start, and with the increase in minutes, he could be a breakout player for this team, similar to what we saw from several players last year. It’s been a year of recovery, and it’s never easy getting back to full speed, especially since he was playing limited minutes at Stanford. UC Irvine will always have a solid floor, but if they want to win the Big West conference and make a tournament appearance, they’ll need a breakout star, and Saran is the leading candidate for that.

Key analytic: Opponent Two-Point Percentage

Scoring on UC Irvine is never easy, but once you’re inside the arc, there aren’t many teams better at forcing tough shots than UC Irvine basketball. They finished second last year at 42.8% allowed, just 0.2% behind the leader. This is nothing new to them; they’ve finished in the top ten the last three seasons, and don’t look to change that now.

Losing Bent Leuchten is going to make it tough to replicate that, but with Russell Turner’s scheme, they should plug guys in right away and make an impact. UC Irvine will rarely kill you offensively, but the defense, especially inside will make any team’s night just a little tougher.