Cuesta Men's Basketball opens its 2025 Western State Conference schedule this Wednesday (7 PM) when the Cougars welcome defending WSC Champion Moorpark.  The Cougars are ranked 27th in the CCCMBCA Poll and shall batted the 28th-ranked Raiders in a game the pollsters are eager to see.  The Cougars shall be back on the road for Saturday's (3 PM) re-match against Oxnard.  The Condors got the best of the Cougars, 71-59, in the Santa Barbara Tournament Title Game on December 14.  However, this week, unlike the back-to-back-back schedule of the tournament, the Cougars will enjoy a three-day break before the two teams hit the floor as part of their WSC schedule.  Both games are part of WSC Men's and Women's Doubleheaders and will be preceded by the women's games- Moorpark (5 PM) and Oxnard (1 PM)

On Saturday, the Cougars dropped their 2025 WSC Opener against local rival Allan Hancock, 66-63, in Santa Maria.  The contest lived up to the rivalry as the Cougars took a one-point advantage into the intermission, 36-35.  An early three-pointer, briefly, gave the host Bulldogs back the lead to start the second half, but Cuesta went on a tear and held a ten-point lead midway through the period.  The Bulldogs finally caught the Cougars and took the lead, 54-53, with seven minutes to play.  The teams traded the lead back-and-forth, but, eventually, Hancock held their homecourt, 66-63.  Sophomore Center Alessandro Perotti posted a double-double, with game-highs of both 26 points and 17 rebounds, to lead the way for the Cougars.  Freshman Guard Shinichi Itoh also added 12 points to the Cougars' cause and was the Perotti's only teammate to score in double-digits.  The Cougars are 11-6 on the season and 0-1 in WSC play.