KALAMAZOO, Mich. – The Western Michigan men's basketball team opens up its 2025-26 season on Monday evening as it welcomes Coastal Carolina to University Arena.
 

GAME INFO

Matchup: Western Michigan (0-0) vs Coastal Carolina (0-0)

Date/Time: Monday, Nov. 3 – 7 pm

Site: University Arena (Kalamazoo, Mich.)

Tickets: wmubroncos.com/tickets

Video: ESPN+

Radio: Bronco Media Network

Live Stats: StatBroadcast

OPENING TIP

• Western Michigan opens up its 2025-26 season on Monday night as it welcomes Coastal Carolina to University Arena.
• Monday's game is the first of this year's MAC-Sun Belt Challenge, with the second wave of games to come in February.
• Western Michigan is 5-5 the last 10 years in season openers, but has won 13 of its last 14 home openers.
• The Broncos led the MAC in offensive rebounding for the third straight season last year, averaging 13.2 per contest.
• Western Michigan returns just 14.0% of its scoring from the 2024-25 campaign.
• WMU's returning leader in both scoring and rebounding is Max Burton, who averaged 5.8 points and 5.2 boards last year.
• Monday's contest marks just the second all-time meeting between Western Michigan and Coastal Carolina.
• The only prior meeting was last year's season opener down in Conway, S.C., which the Chanticleers won, 60-56.

FOR OPENERS
Western Michigan begins its 2025-26 season on Monday night as it welcomes Coastal Carolina to town for the first game of this year's MAC-Sun Belt Challenge. The Broncos have split their season openers the last 10 seasons, going 5-5 in lid-lifters. WMU has won 13 of its last 14 home openers. 

MAC-SUN BELT CHALLENGE
Monday's season opener also marks the first game of this season's MAC-Sun Belt Challenge, the third year of the scheduling alliance between the two leagues. Last season, the two conferences split the 24 matchups evenly, 12-12. The Broncos are 0-4 all-time in the challenge, including last year's road loss to Coastal Carolina in the season opener and a home setback against Georgia Southern in February. The second game of this year's challenge is slated for Feb. 7, with WMU set to go on the road to face a Sun Belt team which will be announced in January.

LAST TIME OUT
For the second straight year, Western Michigan closed out its season with a quarterfinal exit at the MAC Tournament in Cleveland. Trailing by 18 at halftime, the sixth-seeded Broncos fought all the way back to make it a one-possession game in the closing moments before eventually falling to No. 3 seed Kent State, 73-66. Last year marked the first time the Brown and Gold had reached Cleveland in back-to-back years since the 2013-14 and 2014-15 campaigns. 

CLEANING THE GLASS
Rebounding has been a staple for the Broncos in the first three seasons under head coach Dwayne Stephens. Western Michigan has paced the MAC in offensive rebounding and ranked in the top-35 in all of NCAA Division I in each of his three seasons at the helm. Stephens' squad has also been among the top-4 in the league in both total rebounding and rebounding margin each year. Last season, WMU's 13.2 offensive rebounds per game were 24th in NCAA DI and its 37.8 total rebounds per contest were the second-most in the MAC and ranked 54th in the nation. The leading returning rebounder for the Brown and Gold is redshirt junior forward Max Burton, who was 18th in the conference at 5.2 rebounds per game. 

HI MY NAME IS...
WMU enters the 2025-26 campaign with a total of 10 new players, among the highest number of newcomers in the nation. Between graduations and transfers out, Western Michigan brings back just 14.0 percent of its scoring from last year's squad. After once again being one of the top rebounding teams in the MAC, including having three individuals among the league's top-20 rebounders, only Max Burton (5.2 RPG, 18th) returns from that group. In total, WMU returns 21.3 percent of its rebounding.

DIALING LONG DISTANCE
Western Michigan enters the 2025-26 season having made at least one three-pointer in 455 straight games, dating back to the 2010-11 season. The Broncos bring back just 11 made three-pointers from last year's squad, 10 of which were made by EJ Ryans. Purdue Fort Wayne transfer Trey Lewis will try and replace some of the lost long-range production after shooting 38.0 percent from downtown last year with the Mastodons. 

WMU VS THE SUN BELT
Outside of former MAC member Marshall, Western Michigan has played just 14 games against current Sun Belt teams in its history. The Broncos are 5-9 against those SBC foes, including an 0-2 mark in last year's challenge. WMU's last win against a Sun Belt squad was a neutral site victory over Appalachian State on Nov. 17, 2017. 

SO WE MEET AGAIN
The Broncos and Chanticleers are meeting on Opening Night for the second consecutive season. Coastal Carolina won last year's contest down in Conway, S.C., 60-56, after holding off a second-half rally by Western Michigan. Rasheed Jones, one of CCU's top returners, led the home team in scoring with 15 points. Markhi Strickland and Donovan Williams netted 13 points apiece for a WMU squad which struggled from the floor, making just 34.6 percent, including 20.0 percent (3-for-15) from three-point range. 

ON THE HORIZON
Western Michigan continues its season-opening homestand on Thursday as it welcomes Northwood to University Arena.