ATHERTON, Calif. – Now freshly-minted NCAA Division II members, Menlo Men's Basketball prepares to bring energy and excitement to the 2026-27 season ahead. Head Coach Jamison Montgomery's second year at the program's helm features a brotherhood of eight returners and eight new faces collectively focused on making the Oaks' 40th campaign one to remember.

Returning Oaks – A Strong Core
Composing the nucleus of Menlo's selfless culture, returners to the roster in the upcoming season combine for nearly 20 years of collegiate experience. All playing over 60 percent of the team's games last season, the eight to don Menlo's navy blue and white once again are battle-tested with plenty of leadership capability.

Among the notables are junior guard Kai Brown and senior guard Devon Woods who rank first and second respectively in terms of minutes per game among returners. Both in their first season with the team in 2025-26, Brown's explosive scoring ability propelled him to pace the Oaks in scoring (15.0 points per game) and 3-pointers made (31) despite missing 10 games due to injury while Woods confidently orchestrated the offense to the tune of a team-best 3.6 assists per game including at least one in all of his 26 contests.

Each carrying multiple years as part of the Menlo program, senior forward Salim Arikat, junior guard Jonathan Moxie, and junior guard Quentin Thompson further deepen the squad's talent pool. Arikat, a dangerous deep threat, comes off three seasons in which he made at least 16 triples including the third-most among returners from last season behind Moxie, a reliable points producer, who scored in all but one contest and was one of three Oaks with at least 50 assists during the 2025-26 campaign. The proven athletic abilities of Thompson will again be on display as he looks to build upon a sophomore year that saw him lead the Oaks with 21 steals and shoot over 50 percent from the field (most among returners).

Newcomers – Teaming With Talent
Ready to debut with the program in 2026-27, four junior transfers and four freshmen bring a host of new abilities to the table. Among those additions are athletic standouts like First Team All-Coast Conference honoree junior guard Amani Johnson. Averaging 13.2 points, 5.7 rebounds, 2.8 assists, and 2.1 steals per game in his two seasons with Chabot College, Johnson was a crucial part of each and every one of the Gladiators' nearly 40 wins over the past two seasons.

Complementing the Oaks' offensive punch, junior guard Daniel Huerta will provide long-range firepower after his two years at Modesto Junior College saw him make over 100 3-pointers (including nine in one game) and earn First Team All-Big 8 as well as a conference title. Meanwhile, in the front court, junior forward James "JP" Porter III comes off a dynamic season in which he produced 14 double-doubles while averaging 15.5 points and 8.9 rebounds en route to a Region 16 NJCAA First Team All-Conference with North Central Missouri College. Alongside Porter, junior center Faris Mucharbach, the program's first Oak to stand 7-0 tall since Michael Hauser in 2017-18, brings a defensive ferocity encapsulated by his 40 blocks for Northern Oklahoma College last season as well as NCAA DI experience from his freshman campaign with UNLV.

Schedule Highlights – New Postseason Potential
After facing NCAA Division I UC Davis in an exhibition on Nov. 5, Menlo officially tips off its 2026-27 campaign versus both Central Washington (Nov. 13) and Western Oregon (Nov. 14) for the second consecutive year as part of the GNAC/CCAA Challenge in Oregon. The Oaks then welcome Lincoln to Haynes-Prim Pavilion for the year's home opener on Nov. 17 then another road exhibition against NCAA DI Saint Mary's is set for Nov. 22. Local for the next four contests, Menlo hosts Jessup on Nov. 25, travels to Dominican on Nov. 28, then hosts Chico State (Dec. 3) and Cal Poly Humboldt (Dec. 5) to commence CCAA play. A journey Southern California for matchups with Cal State Dominguez Hills (Dec. 18) and Cal Poly Pomona (Dec. 20) lead the Oaks into an 11-day break followed by a home rematch with the Toros on New Year's Eve and another home pairing with Cal State San Marcos on Jan. 2.

Only home three more times thereafter in January, Menlo first will rematch the Lumberjacks in Arcata on Jan. 7 before heading to Chico State (Jan. 9). Hosting San Francisco State (Jan. 14), spending Jan. 16 at Cal State Monterey Bay, and returning to Atherton to face Cal State LA (Jan. 21) put the Oaks past the midpoint of conference play with trips to Stanislaus State (Jan. 23) and Cal State East Bay (Jan. 28) plus a home rematch with the Warriors closing out the month.

A second road swing through SoCal features another game against Cal State San Marcos (Feb. 4) and a first meeting with Cal State San Bernardino (Feb. 6) ahead of quite a bit of local action to finish the regular season. Exchanging home and road contests with UC Merced on Feb. 11 and Feb. 18, the Oaks will also be at SFSU on Feb. 13 all before three home matchups with Fresno Pacific (Feb. 20), CSUMB (Feb. 25), and CSUSB (Feb. 27) give way to the CCAA Championship Tournament to be hosted by Cal State San Bernardino on Mar. 3-6 as well as the NCAA Tournament spanning Mar. 12-27.