GAME PREVIEW

• After 17 days without a game, Sacramento State (4-6) is finally back in action this Saturday at California Baptist (9-3). Tip at Fowler Events Center is set for 5:00 p.m.
• The Hornets have not played since falling at Baylor, 110-88, on Dec. 2.
• Last week was Finals Week at Sacramento State, which is part of the reason for the long layoff between games.
• The Hornets will play the final two non-league games over a three-day stretch, beginning with California Baptist on Saturday, and finishing at CSUN on Monday.
• Prior to the 17-day stretch of no games, the Hornets had played the most games (10) of any Big Sky Conference team (as of Dec. 2).
• The Hornets are playing the third leg of a season-long seven game road trip. In fact, this road trip is part of an incredible stretch of 49 straight days without a home game. The streak, which is the third longest in the nation among all Div. I teams, began on Nov. 26, and will conclude with the team's Big Sky home opener on Jan. 15 vs. Northern Arizona.
• The Hornets have played each of their last four games without senior center Jeremiah Cherry (15.5 ppg, 8.2 rpg), who went down with injury in the first half at UCLA.
• Sacramento State is seeking its first road win as the Hornets are 0-5, which includes losses to Baylor, UCLA, California, Pacific and UC Davis.
• California Baptist is coming off a 75-67 home win over Southern on Tuesday night, and the Lancers improved to a perfect 5-0 at home. Each of those five home wins have come by at least eight points. 
• The Lancers made a transition to Div. I status and the Western Athletic Conference in 2018-19. Prior to that, they were a Div. II program from 2013-18. And prior to that, California Baptist was a dominant force in the NAIA ranks from 1969-2013.
• Sacramento State and California Baptist split their only two meetings. Both were in Riverside, and took place on back-to-back days during the pandemic-shortened 2020-21 season. The Lancers won the first game on Feb. 13, 2021, by an 83-71 margin, followed by the Hornets winning the next day by a single point (70-69).
• That season featured a number of occasions where the Hornets played the same opponent at the same venue in back-to-back games as programs navigated the pandemic. Sacramento State would play just 20 games that season (finishing 8-12).
• One of the nation's top rebounding teams (+9.7 margin per game), the Lancers feature senior guard Dominique Daniels Jr., who is currently fourth in the nation in scoring at 21.6 points per contest. 

MULTIMEDIA OPTIONS

• For the fifth straight season, all Hornet home games, and games played at a Big Sky Conference venue, will stream on ESPN+. The subscription-based service will stream on watchespn.com and the ESPN App.
• In fact, every game the remainder of the season will be streamed on ESPN+.
• Links for all multimedia options, including live stats for every game, can be found next to each game on the men's basketball schedule at hornetsports.com..

BAYLOR LOSS RECAP

• Sacramento State jumped out to a fast start, but a late Baylor first half run and huge second half led the Bears to a 110-88 victory over the Hornets on Dec. 2 in Waco, Texas.
• Sacramento State led for over 13 minutes of the first half, opening up an advantage as large as nine points (14-5). The Hornets held a 47-46 lead with under a minute to play in the first half, but Baylor went on a 6-0 run in the final 37 seconds to go into halftime with a 52-47 lead.
• The Bears extended that lead to 10 points (61-51) early in the second half, and the Hornets would get no closer than seven points the rest of the way.

NEW ADDITION TO THE ROSTER

• On Nov. 25, the Hornets added 6-9, 245-pound center Davis Ambuehl to the roster. Ambuehl recently completed a season with the Sacramento State football team at tight end.
• The Hornets needed more size on the roster, and brought in a player in Ambuehl who spent the 2022-23 season on Ole Miss' basketball roster (he did not play a game).
• He spent the last two years playing football at UNLV (2024) and Sacramento State (2025).
• Ambuehl has been active for three games, but has yet to appear in a contest.

BIBBY ERA HAS BEGUN

• Head coach Mike Bibby, who spent half of his 14-year NBA career with the Sacramento Kings, has returned to the city where he became a fan favorite while helping the Kings to multiple playoff appearances in the early 2000s.
• A first team All-American, Pac-10 Conference Player of the Year and the No. 2 overall pick in the 1998 NBA draft, Bibby helped Arizona to a 1997 NCAA national championship.
• Recently, Bibby had assistant coaching stops with the Puerto Rican National Team, the Cleveland Cavaliers and Memphis Grizzlies summer league teams, and the NBA G-League Ignite.
• During his six seasons at Shadow Mountain High School (five as head coach), he coached the team to five state championships, a 157-21 overall record, a 72-game winning streak, and a six-year home winning streak.

SHAQ JOINS PROGRAM AS GENERAL MANAGER

• Shaquille O'Neal is currently in his first season as general manager of the Hornets. He joined the program shortly after the appointment of Mike Bibby to head coach.
• O'Neal played 19 years in the NBA and was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2016.
• He accepted the position in a volunteer capacity and will focus on recruitment, marketing, and holistic player development - both on and off the court.

FORMER KING BRAD MILLER ALSO ON STAFF

• Fourteen-year NBA veteran Brad Miller is also on staff as the team's Lead Advisor.
• Miller spent six years with the Kings where he and Bibby were teammates from 2003-07.
• A two-time All-Star, Miller finished his career with 11.2 points, 7.1 rebounds and 2.8 assists per game while shooting 48% from the field and 80% from the free throw line.

ENTIRE COACHING STAFF IS NEW

• Not only is Mike Bibby brand new to the program, so is his entire coaching staff. That includes his son, Michael Bibby, who is one of two associate head coaches.
• Joining the Bibbys on the staff are associate head coach Raymond Walcott, and assistant coaches Jason Fraser, Greg Moody II and Dr. August Mendes.
• The Hornets list two general managers, including Zach Chappell and Shaq. Chappell was an assistant coach on last year's coaching staff, and also played three highly successful seasons as player at Sacramento State (2020-23). An all-Big Sky Conference performer as a senior in 2022-23, he played one season of pro ball in Germany in 2024.
• The Hornets also have two new basketball operations guys in Michael Warren and Gerrard Carmichael, and new strength and conditioning coach Dr. Al Biancani. It was Biancani that developed a relationship with Bibby when he was the strength and conditioning coach with the Sacramento Kings while Bibby was a player.

THE MOVE TO HORNET PAVILION

• Sacramento State's 66-year run in the Nest has come to an end.
• The team moved its home games to The WELL on campus. The name of the facility is Hornet Pavilion. The project has converted a portion of the The WELL, an on-campus fitness facility, into a venue for both the men's and women's basketball teams.
• Overall capacity is 3,000, and the project was completed in late October. The fixed seating portion of the facility has sold out four of the team's first five home games. The only non-packed house came on a Sunday afternoon game vs. Presbyterian.
• The Hornets had played in the Nest every year since 1955, except four seasons (1996-00) when they spent their first four Big Sky years at downtown Memorial Auditorium.

BRAND NEW ROSTER

• All 15 players on the Hornets' roster are brand new to the program. Sacramento State is one of seven programs in the country with zero returning players from a year ago. 
• Of the 15 players on the roster, there are 11 Div. I transfers, two high school players, one junior college transfer, and one transfer from a Div. II school. 
• The 13 total transfers on the Hornets' roster are third most in the country, trailing only 14 by both Memphis and Southern Miss. There are seven teams that sit just below the Hornets with 12 transfers.

FINAL SEASON IN THE BIG SKY

• This season marks the Hornets' 30th in the Big Sky Conference (1996-pres.), but will also serve as the team's last.
• During the summer, Sacramento State announced that it will join the Big West Conference as a full member beginning in the 2026-27 academic year.
• In 2026, the Hornets will join a Big West lineup that includes California Baptist, Cal Poly, Cal State Bakersfield, Cal State Fullerton, Long Beach State, CSUN, UC Irvine, UC Riverside, UC San Diego, UC Santa Barbara, and Utah Valley.

NBA LINEAGE

• Sacramento State has two players on the roster that have fathers that played in the NBA.
• That includes Shaqir O'Neal's father, Shaq, who played 19 seasons in the NBA (1992-2011) and is a member of the Hall of Fame. Taj Glover's father, Dion, played in the NBA for six seasons (1999-05).
• In addition, Isaiah Bronson's father, Lorenzo, was an official in the NBA.
• Also, of course, assistant coach Michael Bibby's father, Mike, played 14 seasons in the NBA and is Sacramento State's head coach.

LAVRENOV FILLING IN WELL FOR INJURED BEAR

• Freshman forward Mark Lavrenov was thrust into action after Jeremiah Cherry went down with injury at UCLA. Cherry, who was having a big season (15.5 ppg, 8.2 rpg), was injured at the 8:18 mark of the first half against the Bruins and has not played since.
• In stepped in Lavrenov, who is a true freshman. He immediately posted a double-double (10 pts, 10 reb) in 29 minutes against the Bruins.
• He then followed that up at Cal where he had 14 points and eight rebounds while playing all 40 minutes. 
• Over the last five games, he is averaging 8.8 points, 9.0 rebounds and 30.2 minutes while going 22-of-28 from the free throw line. In addition, 21 of his 45 rebounds over that five-game stretch have come on the offensive glass.
• There is no time table for Cherry's return. The 6-foot-11, 250-pound forward is tied for the team lead in scoring (15.5 ppg) while ranking second in rebounding (8.2 rpg).
 
STAT SHEET STUFFING PROPHET

• A great rebounding guard at previous stops, the 6-foot-3, 195-pound Prophet Johnson is at it again. He is currently averaging 15.5 ppg, 8.7 rpg, 3.8 apg, 2.6 spg and 32.4 mpg.
• Despite standing 6-foot-3, he already has five double-doubles, and he is the third best rebounding guard in the nation.
• Among Big Sky leaders, he leads the conference in both rebounds and steals while ranking fifth in minutes, seventh in scoring and ninth in assists.
• He has been efficient, shooting 47% (50-106) from the field and 43% (17-40) from the 3-point line while also averaging 5.3 trips to the free throw line per game. That boils down to 155 total points on just 106 field goal attempts.
• Last season at Fairfield, Johnson led the team in scoring, rebounding and steals. In fact, the shooting guard now has 14 double-doubles in his career.
 
MIKEY MAKING HIS MARK

• Sophomore guard Mikey Williams, who is a nationally known player with over 3 million followers on Instagram, has been very good, including a 30-point explosion vs. UCSB.
• He also scored 21 points at Baylor, including going 10-for-12 from the free throw line.
• He ranks third on the team with 14.1 ppg, and has done a nice job setting up his teammates. He is averaging 5.2 assists, and has led the team in assists in all but two games. In addition, his 34.7 minutes per game leads the Big Sky and ranks 37th in the nation.
• He has scored in double figures seven times, and has 4+ assists in eight of 10 games.
 
SUMMERS HEATING UP

• Over the last three games, junior shooting guard Jahni Summers is averaging 14.3 points while shooting 52% (15-29) from the field and 57% (12-21) from the 3-point line.
• He has scored in double figures in each of those three games. Prior to burying 12 three balls over the last three games, he had nine triples through the first seven contests.