GREEN BAY, Wis. – The Green Bay men's basketball team is set to face UC Santa Barbara at the Kress Center in its final non-conference home game on Wednesday at 6 p.m. CST.
 
GAMEDAY INFORMATION
Green Bay (5-7) vs. UC Santa Barbara (8-3)
Wednesday, December 17, 2025
6 PM CST
Follow the action: Watch | Live Stats
 
HEAD COACH DOUG GOTTLIEB
"UCSB is an exciting opponent Wednesday night in the Kress. Coach Pasternak has had 20 wins in 6 of his 7 seasons for the Gauchos. Santa Barbara is lead by former St Mary's and UConn star Aiden Mahaney and former Baylor/Utah point guard Miro Little. They shoot the ball exceptionally well and rebound it even better. The Gauchos are one of the top 5 Mid Majors in the country, we need every man, woman and child to load up the Kress and give us your support!"

ABOUT UC SANTA BARBARA
UCSB is led by 13th-year head coach Joe Pasternack, who is in his 9th year at the helm of the Gauchos. UCSB is 8-3 so far this season, including a 2-0 record in Big West play. UConn transfer Aidan Mahaney leads the Gauchos, averaging 14.6 points per game, including an efficient 43.4-percent shooting percentage and 43.6-percent from three-point range. Three others also average in double figures. Colin Smith at 12.8, Miro Little at 11.7, and Zion Sensley at 11.4 to go with 8.1 rebounds per game. The Guachos are outscoring their opponents by an average of 7.9 points, pouring in 80.8 points per game while allowing just 72.9 points scored. UCSB is a strong team from deep, knocking down 37.1-percent of its attempts.
 
LAST TIME OUT
LeBron Thomas, C.J. O'Hara, and Preston Ruedinger each scored 20 points, as the Green Bay men's basketball team earned its first Horizon League win of the season, beating IU Indy 85-75, on the road Thursday night. Green Bay improved to 5-7 and 1-2 in Horizon League play with the win. Ruedinger also brought down six rebounds and a team-high five assists in addition to his 20 points. IU Indy (3-9, 0-3) was led by Micah Davis and D'Augustino, who each scored 17 points apiece. Jaxon Edwards also chipped in with 12 points and a team-high 7 rebounds.
 
PROTECT HOME COURT
Green Bay has had early success at home during the 2025-26 season, sitting at 2-1. Green Bay is also 2-1 in neutral-site contests. The Phoenix grabbed its first road win last Thursday over IU Indy, 85-75.
 
NET IMPROVEMENT
Green Bay cracked the top 200 in the NCAA's first NET rankings release on Dec. 1. The Phoenix currently sits at 225, sixth-best in the Horizon League.
 
WIN TOTAL
It took 12 games for the 2025-26 Phoenix to surpass the win total of the 2024-25 Phoenix. Green Bay sits at 5-7 through 12 games. Last year at the same point, GB was 2-10. GB will look to match and exceed its Horizon League win total from a year ago quickly, having finished 2-18 in league play last year.
 
MONEY MARCUS
Phoenix forward Marcus Hall is the highest returning leading scorer for the Phoenix this season. Through eight games, Hall is averaging 13.6  points and 5.1 rebounds in 33.8 minutes per game. Hall was named to the Horizon League Preseason First Team on October 8. On top of leading the Phoenix in scoring their game against Ripon, Hall became the first Phoenix player this season to record a double-double with his 21 points and 10 rebounds.
 
O'MAZING O'HARA
C.J. O'Hara is in his second season at Green Bay and has started in all 12 games so far this season. O'Hara is leading the team in scoring, averaging 13.8 points, second on the team in rebounds at 4.8, and third on the team at 31.7 minutes per game. O'Hara has scored in double figures in seven straight games, including 20 points on the road at IU Indy on Thursday.
 
CLUTCH RUDY
A prominent leader for the Phoenix is Redshirt Senior guard Preston Ruedinger. Ruedinger, along with C.J. O'Hara, has started all 12 games so far this season and plays the second-most minutes per game on the team at 33.4. Ruedinger scored a career-high 30 points in a win over Haskell on Nov. 29. He has scored 17+ points in three of Green Bay's last four games.
 
ALL-IN ALLEN
Senior guard Justin Allen had an outstanding weekend in the Virgin Islands from Nov. 21-14. The Carnegie Mellon transfer averaged 20.3 points per game in the three games and was named to the Paradise Jam All-Tournament Team. In Green Bay's final two games in the tournament, Allen scored 27 and 28 points off the bench for the Phoenix. Allen is the team's third leading scorer at 11.9 points per game.
 
LEBRON IN GREEN BAY
Junior guard LeBron Thomas had the best outing of his Phoenix career to date last week. The transfer from Vincennes CC led the way for Green Bay with 20 points on 3-of-4 shooting, including a historic 14-of-16 from the free throw line, ranking him seventh all-time in program history in free throws made in a game. LeBron also set season-highs in rebounds with five and in assists with two.
 
YEAR TWO
Heading into the 2025-26 season, Doug Gottlieb enters his second year as the head coach of Green Bay men's basketball. Gottlieb, well-known for his broadcasting career, brings with him a wealth of experience as a player, commentator, analyst, and coach in the basketball world. As a broadcaster, he currently hosts the Doug Gottlieb show on Fox Sports Radio and All Ball, a podcast covering the biggest stories across college basketball and the NBA.
 
INTERNATIONAL TALENT
The 2025-26 Phoenix roster features players from two different foreign countries and 11 from different U.S. states. Maruan Cicic is from Montenegro, and Vukasin Todorovic is from Slovenia.
 
NEW ERA SAME RISE
After a season with 12 newcomers a season ago, the 2025-26 Green Bay roster will bring in 10 newcomers this year. Of GB's rostered players, six are returners, six are transfers, and four are true freshmen.
 
FAMILIAR FACES
Multiple returners will play large roles in the upcoming 2025-26 season, including Marcus Hall, Preston Ruedinger, Mac Wrecke, and C.J. O'Hara. Last season, Hall averaged 13.9, Ruedinger averaged 8.0, Wrecke averaged 6.1, and O'Hara averaged 4.0 points per game. Caden Wilkins and Brady Fitzgerald are the other two returners to the Phoenix squad.
 
OFFSEASON RECAP
August 21 – Keifer Sykes named as General Manager
August 27 – Keil Ganz named as an assistant coach
August 28 – Kerry Rupp named as an assistant coach
 
Over the summer, The Phoenix brought in four freshmen for the 2025-26 season: Keegan Van Kauwenberg, Vukasin Todorovic, Trey Schachter, and Maruan Cicic. Six transfers make their way to Green Bay this season, including Ramel Bethea, Josh Hines, Justin Allen, Dontrell Hewlett, Rob Stroud, and LeBron Thomas.
 
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