Men's Basketball | 11/11/2025 3:31:00 PM

 LOS ANGELES, Calif. – Men's basketball began its season with a 106-74 win over Caltech on Saturday, November 8. With a game against Pacific (Ore.) coming up, here's everything you need to know about the Tigers heading into the 2025-26 season.
 
BACK AND BETTER
 
The Tigers return 10 from a season ago, only missing one rotational player for the 2024-25 squad. Sophomores Nasir Luna and Alex McCleery Brown are poised to be the centerpieces of the squad, while Nicky Clotfelter looks to return to dominance after missing most of last season.
 
Luna, who was the SCIAC Newcomer of the Year and D3hoops.com Region X Rookie of the Year, hopes to make a jump into stardom. Luna led the Tigers and was fifth in the SCIAC in scoring at 18.1 points per game. He was also fifth among all first years in the nation in scoring. He shot 49% from the field, 38% from three and 87% from the free-throw line. He was seventh in the SCIAC in shooting percentage and second in free throw percentage.
 
Before Clotfelter's absence he was averaging 14 points per game and scored 18 or more points in three games, including 28 against Whittier. The forward is also one of two players on the roster over 6-6.
 
The Tigers' other standout rookie from a season ago, McCleery Brown, soars all over the court. The guard led the team in blocks a season ago and was fourth in steals. He was also second on the team in rebounding, grabbing 130 – 55 of which came on the offensive glass.
 
Henry Wilson, Micah Breaux, Atticus Boba and Ethan Hanning are other notable returners. Of the quartet, Wilson and Breaux started in all 23 games they played in while Boba came off the bench in his 23 contests. Hanning saw the floor regularly through the first nine games before missing the remainder of the season.
 
NEW DIGS AND FAMILIAR FACES
 
Peter Noble and Zachary Jones are two NCAA Division I transfers joining the 25=26 squad. Noble comes to the program previously with Rutgers, who went 15-17 a season ago in the Big Ten.
 
Jones reached March Madness with St. Francis (PA) as a 16-seed after the Red Flash's miraculous run in the Northeast Conference Tournament. They narrowly fell 70-68 to Alabama State in the NCAA Tournament.
 
Isaiah Gibson and Knox Riemondi are the two freshmen in the program. Both from out of state, Gibson coming from North Carolina and Riemondi from Texas.
 
Jacob Koretz, a member of the 2023-24 team, returns to the Tigers after taking time away from the team last season. Koretz was the Tigers' leading scorer two years ago at 14.9 per game. He was a solid three-point shooter at 38.4% and led all guards in assists.
 
CONFERENCE OUTLOOK
 
Redlands looks to be one of the premiere programs in the nation, coming in at No. 6 in the preseason poll, even receiving one first place vote. The Bulldogs reached the Elite 8 in 2024-25 before losing to national runner-up NYU on their home court.
 
Cal Lutheran and Pomona-Pitzer lose two of the conference's top players, Devon Lewis and Joe Cookson respectively. The seniors were both First Team All-SCIAC selections – Lewis earned All-American honors and led his team to the NCAA Tournament.
 
Claremont-M-S was picked second in the SCIAC preseason poll. Reid Jones looks to be the top player on the Stags, averaging 27 points through the first two games of the 2025-26 season.
 
Whittier lost one of the nation's top scorers in Amari Smith. Smith averaged over 28 points per game for the Poets and led them to a SCIAC Tournament berth.
 
UP NEXT
 
The Tigers open the home slate against Pacific (Ore.) on November 15. The Tigers will catch a Boxers team coming off of a back-to-back against Redlands Friday evening.