IRVINE, Calif. – The results of the 2021-22 Big West Conference preseason men's basketball polls were announced Wednesday afternoon, live on ESPN+ as part of the Big West men's basketball preview show. Heading into their second year in the league, the Roadrunners outperformed outside expectations in 2020-21, but CSUB only moved up slightly in the poll results this season.

Last year, Bakersfield was picked to finish seventh out of ten postseason-eligible teams in the media poll. One year later, the `Runners find themselves projected fifth in the media poll while the Big West coaches predicted a sixth-place finish. The full results of the poll are available in this linked PDF.

Reigning Big West Champion UC Santa Barbara earned a narrow edge at the top spot of each poll, mere points ahead of 2020 champ UC Irvine. Bakersfield did receive one first-place vote in the media poll, which featured four different teams getting a top-spot nod.

The two polls were largely the same, but Hawai'i and CSUB traded positions as No. 5 and No.6. Cal State Fullerton and Long Beach State also swapped spots at No. 7 and No. 8.

Both polls selected six-man Preseason All-Big West Teams, but no `Runners were voted for enough to land a spot and earn honors. Sixth-year `Runner Justin Edler-Davis appeared on multiple ballots in the media poll, but did not rank high enough to take one of the six coveted spots.

The CSUB `Runners are preparing to kick off the 2021-22 season with a home exhibition this Saturday, Nov. 6. Fans are welcome to return to the Icardo Center and tickets are on sale now at GoRunners.com/tickets. Those who cannot attend games in person can watch the `Runners live on ESPN+ and the ESPN family of networks.