Sac State men’s basketball to face March Madness staple for 1st time ever in 2025
After finishing last in the Big Sky last season, Sacramento State men’s basketball will face off against March Madness staple and 2021 NCAA champion Baylor for the first time while in the first year of former Sacramento Kings star Mike Bibby’s tenure as head coach.
After going 7-25 overall, 3-15 in Big Sky play, Sacramento State’s former coach David Patrick resigned to take a job coaching at LSU. Now, under Bibby, the Hornets will hope to flip the script in their last Big Sky season ahead of their move to the Big West for non-football sports.
“I expect to win,” Bibby said soon after taking over the role. “...I want to play anyone. We may take a beating, we may win some games, but don’t overlook us.”
The 2025 season will also be Sac State’s first on its new home court at The Well, which is expected to be completed in September and seat roughly 3,000 people. The Hornets played their home games at the Nest for 66 years before moving to the on-campus fitness and wellness facility this year.
Who will the Hornets play?
The university on Thursday released the full 2025-26 men’s basketball schedule.
Of the team’s 30 games this season, 18 will take place in Big Sky play where the Hornets will see each team both on the road and at home.
Sac State will also face off against 12 non-league opponents including three teams from their future league: UC Davis, UC Santa Barbara and California State University Northridge.
The Hornets’ annual matchup with their cross-causeway rival Aggies will take place Nov. 14, on the road at University Credit Union Center after UC Davis took last year’s matchup 69-62.
The game against Baylor will take place on the road at Foster Pavilion in Waco, Texas, on Dec. 2.
Before Big Sky play, Sac State will take part in the Empire Classic that includes their first-ever matchup with Presbyterian as well as bouts with two in-state powerhouses in UCLA and Cal.
The middle of the season will take the Hornets on an extended, seven-game road trip. After hosting San Francisco State on Nov. 25, they won’t play at The Well again until Jan. 15, when they’ll face Northern Arizona.
The Hornets’ three conference wins last season came against two of the league’s top finishers No. 3 Portland State (19-13, 11-7) and No. 4 Idaho State (15-15, 10-8) as well as second-to-last-place Webber State (12-22, 5-13). Weber later eliminated Sac State from the Big Sky tournament in the first round, 83-70.
The Hornets’ season tips off with a non-league game against Dominican on Nov. 4 at 7 p.m. in their first game at The Well. All home games outside of the matchup with Presbyterian on Nov. 16 will begin at 7 p.m. That inaugural bout will tip off at 1 p.m.
‘Shaq’ State and more changes
Another big name, NBA Hall of Famer Shaquille O’Neal, assumed the role as men’s basketball general manager in late April after his youngest son became Bibby’s first signing as head coach.
Shaqir O’Neal, a senior forward, averaged 6.7 points and 3.2 rebounds on 50% shooting last season for Florida A&M.
But the son of Shaq was only the beginning for Bibby.
Alongside O’Neal, the other 13 players on the Sac State roster are all new to the program — one of just eight programs in the country with complete turnover, according to the university news release announcing the schedule.
Outside of assistant general manager Zach Chappell, the coaching staff is completely new as well.
