An inconsistent season that ended with an early exit from the Big West Tournament led to some soul-searching for the UC Irvine men’s basketball program.

UCI coach Russell Turner thinks he identified the issue and knows how to get things back on track in a program that has been at or near the top of the Big West Conference for the bulk of his tenure.

“We just became distracted from the most important things. We need to get back to a level of humility that’s more competitive,” he said. “I’ve got belief in the commitment of our players. I’ve got belief in the character of our players. What I’m hoping is that we needed the type of result that we had last year to reset, to refocus. We just gotta get back to the most basic things, which is where I’m gonna direct my team – toward our core values.”

The Anteaters (15-10 overall, 9-5 Big West) hardly embarrassed themselves last season, but they fell short of the lofty standard they have set and Turner often talked about how his players weren’t as tough as he thought they would be, especially during conference play.

“We were a really good team last year in December,” Turner said. “We had some really good results early in the season, and then our whole team got COVID and the schedule was impacted by other teams also having COVID, and I don’t know that we ever fully recovered from that. That’s all in the past. We can learn a lot of lessons from it.”

The Anteaters will have to learn those lessons without a few familiar faces – three-time All-Big West selection Collin Welp and defensive specialist Austin Johnson are no longer here to anchor their frontcourt – but Turner is confident that the team’s offseason work in the weight room will pay dividends and that the outside shooting will also improve.

“We’re gonna shoot the ball better this year. As the year wore on last season, we just collectively had a poor shooting season,” he said. “We also played selfishly on the offensive end. Sometimes you need to go through a little bit of that type of experience in order to be as focused on improvement as you need to be.”

As usual, UCI will boast size and depth. Routinely among the nation’s top-ranked teams when it comes to defense and rebounding, those traits should continue with different faces inheriting expanded roles. German 7-footer Bent Leuchten and 6-11 senior Dean Keeler are atop that list, and former Mission Viejo High standout Chazz Hutchison (Fullerton College) could be in line to be an energetic glue guy.

Guards Dawson Baker, DJ Davis and Justin Hohn all return, and will be joined in the backcourt rotation by Pierre Crockrell II, a senior transfer from Pacific who was often among the West Coast Conference leaders in assists during his three seasons with the Tigers.

Forward JC Butler is another experienced returnee, and Devin Tillis could provide a jolt to UCI’s 3-point shooting after sitting out last season. Turner lists Ofure Ujadughele, Andre Henry, and Langston Redfield as players in line for potential breakout seasons.

The Big West preseason poll has UCSB as the favorite with Hawaii second, Long Beach State third and UCI fourth, which might be additional motivation for the Anteaters.

“We think we’re gonna be really good,” Turner said. “There are a number of (Big West) teams who probably expect to have teams that are as good as they’ve had in a long time. I’ve said many years in a row now that in the Big West, on any night, any team in the league can beat another. We’ve come out on top in a lot of those battles because of the consistency of our performance and our character. I think we’re gonna have consistency in our performance and in our character again if we do the things that I expect us to do as a team and as a staff.”

UC IRVINE

Coach: Russell Turner, 13th season

Big West Conference preseason poll: Fourth

Season opener: Monday, vs. Chapman, 7 p.m.

Last season: 15-10 overall, 9-5 Big West

Postseason: Lost to UC Santa Barbara in Big West Tournament quarterfinals

Top returnees: Dawson Baker, Jr., 6-4, G, 11.2 ppg; DJ Davis, Jr., 6-1, G, 8.8 ppg; Justin Hohn, Jr., 6-2, G, 7.9 ppg, 2.9 rpg; JC Butler, Sr., 6-5, F, 6.2 ppg, 2.5 rpg

Key losses: Collin Welp, F, 13.8 ppg, 6.8 rpg; Austin Johnson, F, 5.8 ppg, 6.0 rpg, 2.4 bpg

Newcomers to watch: Pierre Crockrell II, Sr., 6-0, G, transfer from Pacific; Chazz Hutchison, Jr., 6-9, F, Mission Viejo HS/Fullerton College; Devin Tillis, Jr., 6-6, G, transfer from UNLV; Hayden Welling, Fr., 6-8, F, Corner Canyon HS (Draper, Utah)

Coach’s quote: “We have to figure out ways to be at our competitive best in March because that’s what this league requires. That’s what mid-major basketball requires. I think we know how to do it.” — Turner