# 2021–22 UC San Diego Tritons men's basketball team

The 2021–22 UC San Diego Tritons men's basketball team represented the University of California, San Diego in the 2021–22 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Tritons, led by ninth-year head coach Eric Olen, played their games at the RIMAC Arena as members of the Big West Conference.
The Tritons were ineligible for postseason tournaments, including the NCAA tournament and Big West tournament, as they were in the second year of the a four-year mandatory transition period to Division I. Their conference games did not count on the records of UCSD or any other member of the Big West.

## Previous season

In a season limited due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the Tritons finished the 2020–21 season 7–10, 4–8 in Big West play, although their Big West games were not counted in the conference standings. They were ineligible for the NCAA tournament and Big West tournament as they were in the first year of their transition period from the California Collegiate Athletic Association in Division II.

## Schedule and results

| Date time, TV | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | Site (attendance) city, state |
| Exhibition ||||||
| November 5, 2021* 7:00 pm, ESPN+ | at Loyola Marymount | L 44–57 | – | Gersten Pavilion Los Angeles, CA |
| Non-conference regular season ||||||
| November 9, 2021* 2:00 pm, P12N | at California | W 80–67 | 1–0 | Haas Pavilion (3,936) Berkeley, CA |
| November 13, 2021* 7:00 pm, ESPN+ | George Washington | W 75–55 | 2–0 | RIMAC Arena (2,415) La Jolla, CA |
| November 16, 2021* 7:00 pm | San Diego Christian | W 97–60 | 3–0 | RIMAC Arena (2,415) La Jolla, CA |
| November 20, 2021* 7:00 pm, ESPN+ | at Sacramento State | W 71–56 | 4–0 | Hornets Nest (845) Sacramento, CA |
| November 24, 2021* 6:30 pm, ESPN+ | at Montana Zootown Classic | L 61–71 | 4–1 | Dahlberg Arena (2,917) Missoula, MT |
| November 25, 2021* 4:00 pm | vs. Southern Miss Zootown Classic | L 55–56 | 4–2 | Dahlberg Arena (127) Missoula, MT |
| November 26, 2021* 4:00 pm | vs. UNC Wilmington Zootown Classic | Canceled due to COVID-19 protocols | Canceled due to COVID-19 protocols | Dahlberg Arena Missoula, MT |
| December 2, 2021* 7:00 pm, ESPN+ | Eastern Michigan | W 83–74 | 5–2 | RIMAC Arena (838) La Jolla, CA |
| December 12, 2021* 5:00 pm, ESPN+ | at Seattle | L 51–73 | 5–3 | Climate Pledge Arena (1,998) Seattle, WA |
| December 15, 2021* 6:00 pm, Altitude | at Denver | L 56–64 | 5–4 | Magness Arena (318) Denver, CO |
| December 18, 2021* 4:00 pm | Caltech | W 93–52 | 6–4 | RIMAC Arena (404) La Jolla, CA |
| December 22, 2021* 6:00 pm, Stadium | at San Diego State | L 57–78 | 6–5 | Viejas Arena (10,912) San Diego, CA |
| Big West regular season ||||||
| December 30, 2021 7:00 pm, ESPN+ | UC Santa Barbara | W 85–83 $^{OT}$ | 7–5 (1–0) | RIMAC Arena (0) La Jolla, CA |
| January 1, 2022 7:00 pm, ESPN+ | CSUN | W 72–64 | 8–5 (2–0) | RIMAC Arena (0) La Jolla, CA |
| January 6, 2022 7:00 pm, ESPN+ | at UC Riverside | L 51–59 | 8–6 (2–1) | UC Riverside Student Recreation Center (0) Riverside, CA |
| January 8, 2022 7:00 pm, ESPN+ | at UC Davis | L 71–78 | 8–7 (2–2) | University Credit Union Center (0) Davis, CA |
| January 11, 2022 7:00 pm, ESPN+ | at UC Irvine | Canceled due to COVID-19 protocols | Canceled due to COVID-19 protocols | Bren Events Center Irvine, CA |
| January 15, 2022 9:00 pm, SPECTSN | at Hawaii | L 56–79 | 8–8 (2–3) | Stan Sheriff Center (3,376) Honolulu, HI |
| January 20, 2022 7:00 pm, ESPN+ | Long Beach State | L 69–87 | 8–9 (2–4) | RIMAC Arena (0) La Jolla, CA |
| January 22, 2022 6:00 pm, ESPN+ | at Cal State Fullerton | L 80–83 | 8–10 (2–5) | Titan Gym (389) Fullerton, CA |
| January 27, 2022 7:00 pm, ESPN+ | Cal Poly | L 55–59 | 8–11 (2–6) | RIMAC Arena (0) La Jolla, CA |
| January 29, 2022 7:00 pm, ESPN+ | Cal State Bakersfield | W 83–75 | 9–11 (3–6) | RIMAC Arena (0) La Jolla, CA |
| February 3, 2022 7:00 pm, ESPN+ | at CSUN | W 83–77 | 10–11 (4–6) | Matadome (240) Northridge, CA |
| February 5, 2022 1:00 pm, Spectrum SportsNet | at UC Santa Barbara | L 48–84 | 10–12 (4–7) | The Thunderdome (999) Santa Barbara, CA |
| February 10, 2022 7:00 pm, ESPN+ | UC Davis | Canceled due to COVID-19 protocols | Canceled due to COVID-19 protocols | RIMAC Arena La Jolla, CA |
| February 12, 2022 1:00 pm, Spectrum SportsNet/ESPN+ | UC Riverside | W 85–62 | 11–12 (5–7) | RIMAC Arena (724) La Jolla, CA |
| February 15, 2022 7:00 pm, ESPN+ | UC Irvine | L 50–56 | 11–13 (5–8) | RIMAC Arena (1,753) La Jolla, CA |
| February 17, 2022 7:00 pm, ESPN+ | Hawaii | L 53–65 | 11–14 (5–9) | RIMAC Arena (831) La Jolla, CA |
| February 24, 2022 7:00 pm, ESPN+ | at Long Beach State | L 87–103 | 11–15 (5–10) | Walter Pyramid (1,284) Long Beach, CA |
| February 26, 2022 1:00 pm, Spectrum SportsNet/ESPN+ | Cal State Fullerton | W 81–76 | 12–15 (6–10) | RIMAC Arena (808) La Jolla, CA |
| March 3, 2022 7:00 pm, ESPN+ | at Cal State Bakersfield | W 72–70 | 13–15 (7–10) | Icardo Center (1,207) Bakersfield, CA |
| March 5, 2022 7:00 pm, ESPN+ | at Cal Poly | L 76–80 | 13–16 (7–11) | Mott Athletics Center (1,642) San Luis Obispo, CA |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Pacific Time Zone. ||||||
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