SAN DIEGO — San Diego men's basketball (0-0, 0-0 WCC) is set to begin its 2023-2024 season on Monday night, hosting Division II Sonoma State (0-0, 0-0 CCAA) in the Jenny Craig Pavilion to get year two of the Steve Lavin era underway.

Tipoff against the Seawolves is set for 8:02 p.m. Monday night's matchup will be streamed live on ESPN+ with Jack Cronin and Braden Surprenant on the call, and live statistics for the game will be available on USDToreros.com.

ALL-TIME SERIES AGAINST SONOMA STATE
Monday night marks the second consecutive season that the Toreros have hosted the Seawolves in the JCP for a season opener after the two teams clashed in the first game of the 2022-2023 campaign.

San Diego won that matchup — which is the only previous meeting between SSU and USD on the hardwood —  by an 81-59 margin.

Current Toreros Dominic Muncey, Deuce Turner, Neel Beniwal, Bendji Pierre, and Deven Dahlke all saw action that night (November 7, 2022), combining to play 25 minutes.

Turner and Beniwal were the only two players out of that group to score, notching three points apiece.

YEAR TWO OF THE LAVIN ERA
• 2023-2024 marks head coach Steve Lavin's second season at the helm in San Diego after being hired in April of 2022.

• In 12 full seasons as a head coach, Lavin has accumulated a record of 248-171 (.591) with 10 postseason appearances.

• Prior to arriving at USD, he guided UCLA and St. John's to eight NCAA Tournament appearances in 11 years.

• A staple in college basketball for over three decades, Lavin is the 14th head coach in program history and the Toreros' seventh head coach since USD moved to the NCAA Division I ranks in 1979-80.

• Most recently, Lavin served as a national college basketball broadcaster for Fox Sports and CBS Sports. He previously worked with ESPN, ABC, and the Pac-12 Network.

THEY'RE BACK
• Junior guard Wayne McKinney III headlines a group of eight returning Toreros from last year's squad.

That group includes:
- Sophomore guards Neel Beniwal and Emmanuel Callas

- Juniors Deuce Turner (guard), Bendji Pierre (forward), Steven Jamerson II (center), and Dominic Muncey (guard)

- Senior guard Deven Dahlke

• McKinney III, who attended nearby Coronado High School, played in 30 games for the Toreros last year and made 24 starts.

• He averaged 25.6 minutes and 7.4 points per game and ranked in USD's top five in multiple categories, including being:

- First in starts (24)
- First in steals (34)
- First in blocks (12)
- Fourth in assists (52)
- Fourth in offensive rebounds (20)

A NEW GENERATION OF TOREROS
Nine freshmen and one transfer have been added to the San Diego roster for the 2023-2024 season, representing four countries and two states.

JOEY CHAMMAA
Height: 6-0
Position: Guard
Hometown/High School: Los Angeles, CA / Crossroads School for Arts & Sciences

• Averaged 22.6 points per game as a senior and won Team MVP honors

• Named First Team All-Conference on two occasions

• Won the Jordan classic three-point contest and set his school's record in made three-pointers in a game (nine)

• Led his team in both scoring and steals

• Was an honor roll student

PJ HAYES IV
Height: 6-6
Position: Guard
Hometown/High School/Previous School: Waconia, MN / Waconia HS / Black Hills State

COLLEGE NOTES:
• Averaged 8.0 points per game, 3.3 rebounds per game and has shot nearly 43 percent from three-point range

• Helped Black Hills State reach the Final Four of the NCAA Tournament for back-to-back seasons

• Named a 2023 All-RMAC Honorable Mention honoree and was selected to the South Central RegionAll-Tournament Team

• For half of the season, led the nation in three-point percentage and finished in the top-15 at 45 percent

• Set the second highest mark in school history for three pointers in game, with seven as part of a 26-point performance

• Held a 3.78 GPA and was on the Dean's List every semester and has been named to the RMAC All-Academic First Team (2023), CSC Academic All-District (2023) and RMAC All-Academic Honor Roll (2022)

OTHER NOTES:
• Averaged 17.8 points per game, 5.0 rebounds per game, 2.6 assists per game and 1.4 steals per game in his high school career

• Was a two-time Wright County Conference Player of the Year and three-time unanimous first team All-Conference at Waconia, while also being named to the Class AAA First Team All-State twice, being named the Section 6 Player of the Year and a three-time All-Area First Team selection

• Graduated cum laude from high school and in the National Honor Society

•His father, Pat, played basketball at Winona State, where he is in the program's top five in total games played

JOSH HECHT
Height: 6-1
Position: Guard
Hometown/High School: Santa Monica, CA / Santa Monica HS

• Averaged 15.7 points per game, 4.2 rebounds per game, 3.6 assists per game and 1.5 steals per game at Santa Monica

• Two-time All-Bay League honoree and was also selected to the All-CIF First Team this season

• Helped Santa Monica win a Bay League championship as a junior

• Father, James, played basketball at CSUN

KEYON KENSIE JR.
Height: 6-8
Position: Guard
Hometown/High School: Los Angeles, CA / Taft HS

• Was named the City Section and West League Most Valuable Player during his senior campaign

• Two-time first team All-Conference the last two seasons

• Averaged 25 points per game, eight rebounds per game and four assists per game as a high school senior

• Helped lead Taft to a City Section Open Division title this year

DRAGOS LUNGU
Height: 6-6
Position: Guard
Hometown/High School: Cluj-Napoca, Romania / NBA Global Academy

• Played in the Australian NBL1 for BA CoE, averaging 10 points per game, six assists per game and five rebounds per game

• In his native Romania, played for his local team, U-BT Cluj-Napoca

• Has represented Romania on the FIBA stage, competing in the 2021 FIBA U18 European Challengers

• Brother, Tudor, played basketball at the College of Wooster

KOLLEN MURPHY
Height: 6-3
Position: Guard
Hometown/High School: Pomona, CA / Rancho Christian HS

• Named First Team All-League and Second Team All-CIF

• Helped his team win the 2022 CIF Southern Section championship

• Won a junior NBA global championship when he was 14 in Orlando, Fla

• Played his club basketball for the Compton Magic

• Set to become a dual sport athlete at USD and will also compete in football as a wide receiver

JIMMY OLADOKUN
Height: 6-9
Position: Forward
Hometown/High School: Rancho Cucamonga, CA / Sierra Canyon HS

• Two-time First Team All-Baseline League as a sophomore and junior, before moving to Sierra Canyon as a senior

• Took home a state championship on the Division I level as a junior

• Played his club basketball with the Oakland Soldiers

• Highly accomplished student in high school, earning spots on the headmaster's list and dean's list, as well as being a member of the National Honor Society

KEVIN PATTON JR.
Height: 6-8
Position: Guard
Hometown/High School: Murrieta, CA / Rancho Christian HS

• 2023 CIF SS Division 2A & SS Ivy League Player of the Year

• 2022 AIA Regional Player of the Year and 2021 CAA Open Division State Championship
MVP

• 2023 CIF All-State, 2022 AIA First Team All-State and 2021 CAA Open Division First Team All-State

• Won several championships in his career, including the 2023 CIF SS Division 2A title and the 2021 CAA Open Division State title

• Scored over 1,700 points in his high school career

• Graduated with honors (4.2 GPA) and was both a three-time Excellence Award winner and National Society of High School Scholars member

DAVID SIMON
Height: 6-11
Position: Forward
Hometown/High School: Windsor, Ontario, Canada / Royal Crown Academy

• Named the 2023 Canadian National Player of the Year award winner

• Tabbed to the Provincial First Team and won an OSBA championship

• Averaged 18.7 points per game, 12.7 rebounds per game and 3.8 blocks per game as a
senior

• Played his club basketball for Northern Kings under head coach Vidal Messiah

SANTIAGO TROUET
Height: 6-10
Position: Forward
Hometown/High School: Cordoba, Argentina / American HS (FL)

• Competed extensively for his home country of Argentina, most recently with the senior national team in Spain this year

• Also competed for the U18 and U19 national teams, helping Argentina finish second at the U18 FIBA South American Championship in Venezuela, fourth at the U18 FIBA Americas Championship in Mexico and fifth at the U19 FIBA World Championship in Hungary

• Played his club basketball in Madrid, Spain for Movistar Estudiantes

• Prior to his time in Spain, he played for Benfica in Lisbon, Portugal