HAYWARD, Calif. -- Coming off its most impressive week of the season, the Cal State East Bay men's basketball team returns to action with perhaps its toughest set of California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) opponents to date. 

On Thursday evening, the Pioneers have their second showdown of the season with Cal State San Marcos, who picked up a 12-point victory over East Bay back on Nov. 30. They return to the court on Saturday to get their first look at UC San Diego with tip-off scheduled for 3:30 p.m in the afternoon. The Tritons and Cougars are currently in second and third place in the CCAA, respectively, and boast extremely talented rosters. 

Last week the Pioneers went 2-0 with a pair of outstanding defensive efforts against Northern California foes Sonoma State and Stanislaus State. Druce Asah paced the squad offensively on Tuesday, racking up 21 points of 6-for-9 shooting from three-point range as the Pioneers outlasted the Seawolves. On Saturday, they held the Warriors to a .321 field goal percentage, including 4-for-21 from beyond the arc, pulling away in the second half for a nine-point victory.

Junior Juwan Anderson turned in two of his best games of the season to lead the team, earning CSUEB Male Athlete of the Week honors. The Oakland native notched 14 points and seven assists against SSU, then posted season highs against Stanislaus with 16 points, eight assists, seven rebounds, and a 4-for-7 performance from long distance. He enters tonight's game ranked second in the CCAA in assists per game (4.8) and assist/turnover ratio (2.5).

For the season, the Pioneers are shooting 43.4 percent from the field and 35.5 percent from three-point range. Asah (12.6 ppg) and senior Drew Bender (12.1) are the team's top scorers, and freshman Keshawn Bruner has been impressive contributing 7.1 ppg on 50 percent shooting.

East Bay ranks second in the CCAA in rebounds per game and rebound margin, a stark improvement from last year. Their defense will be put to the test on Thursday against the Cougars, the top offensive squad in the league. San Marcos leads the conference in points per game and scoring margin, and they're at the top of the leaderboard for field goal percentage, three-point percentage, and three throw percentage. 

The Cougars are led by senior point guard Ethan Alvano, the leading candidate for CCAA Player of the Year. He tops the conference in scoring (20.3 ppg) and assists (6.7 apg), while shooting 49.7 percent from the floor. San Marcos also boasts two of the best outside shooters in the league in Josh Spiers (15.9 ppg, 5.7 rpg, 44.6 3FG%) and Dalton Soffer (10.1 ppg, 42.2 3FG%), and an excellent post player in Joe Boyd (11.2 ppg, 9.7 rpg, .521 FG%), who leads the CCAA in rebounding.

UC San Diego comes into Pioneer Gym on Saturday having won four straight and nine of its last 11 games, highlighted by an extremely impressive 73-50 victory over Chico State last weekend. The Tritons rank second to San Marcos in team field goal percentage, and they're out-scoring opponents by 6.2 points per game. The defending CCAA champions are led offensively by the trio of Christian Oshita (16.6 ppg, 6.6 rpg, 40.6 3FG%), Christian Bayne (15.7 ppg, 4.4 rpg, 46.2 FG%), and Scott Everman (11.9 ppg, 39.6 3FG%). The Pioneers have lost eight straight match-ups against the Tritons, with their last victory coming in February of 2013.