Reloading with 15 newcomers this season, the new-look men’s basketball team at University of the Pacific is driven to finish higher in the West Coast Conference standings when the dust settles in early March.

The Tigers were predicted to finish 10th in the league’s Preseason Coaches Poll, but are on the upswing heading into the 2025-26 campaign. Second-year head coach Dave Smart gave a positive outlook Thursday at West Coast Conference Media Day in Las Vegas.

“I really like our group. We’re moving in the right direction and I think we’re going to surprise some people this year,” Smart said. “I like our depth, I like how we compete and I like how we play together. We shoot the ball way better than we did last year, we take care of the ball better and we're really deep at a lot of positions.  I believe we’re going to be a hard team to play against, and on days where we shoot the ball well, we're going to be tough to beat.”

One familiar face on the roster is fifth-year forward Elias Ralph ’26, a health & exercise sciences major who was named to the WCC Preseason All-Conference Team. Ralph fielded several questions at Media Day on why he chose to return to Pacific when he could have chased opportunities at institutions in Power 4 conferences.

“Loyalty is a lost virtue these days, especially with the transfer portal, and that’s one thing that’s really important to me,” he said. “Not everything is about money, and I wanted to come back to Coach Smart and the staff who trusted me after no one even knew who I was in U SPORTS. I really wanted to build something here at Pacific. I didn’t want to just come for a year and leave it behind. I’m excited about the upcoming season.”

Ralph averaged 14.8 points per game last year and was the team’s leading rebounder with 7.3 per outing. He submitted 10 double-doubles, which ranked top 40 nationally.

Ralph is one of six Canadians on the roster and one of 10 international student-athletes, which includes two from Lithuania and one each from  the Dominican Republic and Israel. The Tigers have been developing a Canadian pipeline, which also includes four of seven staff members.

At the same time, Pacific has been able to keep a local flavor on its roster with five California natives. It includes senior guard TJ Wainwright ’26 from Los Angeles, a business-economics major who accompanied Smart and Ralph at Media Day.

Wainwright averaged 13.4 points per game and shot 40.7% from three-point range and 84.1% from the free throw line last year at Long Beach State. He said he transferred to Pacific because he was attracted to Smart’s coaching style and the way he runs his program.

“It’s all about how hard you work—that’s what Coach Smart preaches, that’s what I’ve known all my life and that was a big reason why I wanted to come play at Pacific,” Wainwright said. “It’s so refreshing being around this team because there are no egos, everyone is trying to get better each day and we know nothing is going to be handed to us this year. Everything is going to come down to how hard we are willing to work and how much work are we willing to put in. Coach Smart holds us to the highest standard and makes sure we’re doing that every day.”

The Tigers begin the year at home against Life Pacific Wednesday, Nov. 5 at 7 p.m. at the Alex G. Spanos Center. See the men's basketball schedule.