California Baptist University is in Riverside, California, and the Lancers are Kansas’ first-round opponent in the 2026 NCAA Tournament. California Baptist’s admissions page says the university has more than 12,000 total students and an acceptance rate of about 80%. Kansas and Cal Baptist meet Friday night in San Diego, so the geography answer is tied directly to a live bracket moment.
Readers searching “Where is California Baptist University?” are usually trying to place a school that sounds familiar but still needs a region attached to it. “Riverside” is the detail that makes the story work. Cal Baptist is in Riverside, not Los Angeles or San Diego proper, which makes the school becomes much easier to identify, and the bracket piece gains a more specific Southern California identity.
Where is California Baptist University?
Cal Baptist is in Riverside, in Inland Southern California. That is the useful sports-reader answer. “California” alone is too broad to do much work, while Riverside gives the program a distinct region and keeps readers from lumping it in with every other California school on the board.
California Baptist enrollment and acceptance rate
CBU says it has more than 12,000 total students, including more than 6,500 traditional undergraduates, and an acceptance rate of about 80%. The school reads as a sizable private Christian university rather than a vague mid-major mystery campus.
How did California Baptist make the tournament?
California Baptist got here by winning the WAC Tournament and earning the first NCAA Tournament berth in program history. Kansas’ official first-round preview lists the Lancers at 25-8 and identifies them as the No. 13 seed and as a first-time meeting between the two teams.
Kansas, on the other hand, will be making its 53rd NCAA tournament appearance, including a 47-6 first round record, meaning California Baptist will have to shake a remarkable Kansas history to earn the win.
Has California Baptist ever won an NCAA tournament game?
No. This is California Baptist’s first NCAA Tournament appearance, so the Lancers are chasing their first March Madness win right away against Kansas. Cal Baptist is new to this stage, but will do everything it can to write a new Cinderella story.
California Baptist stats and top scorers
Cal Baptist enters at 25-8 with one obvious headliner. Dominique Daniels Jr. averaged 23.2 points per game and was the player multiple March previews singled out as the engine of the WAC champs. ESPN’s game preview also noted Daniels averaging 26.3 points over his last 10 games, which gives the matchup an easy star angle. The Lancers’ clearest path to hanging around against Kansas is to let Daniels control the game offensively, keep the favorite out of transition, and turn this into a possession-by-possession test instead of a talent race.
Prediction: Can California Baptist upset Kansas?
Cal Baptist has enough shot creation to become a trendy 13-seed pick, and Daniels is the sort of scorer who can make a bracket game stressful. But the cleaner prediction is still the favorite. Prediction: Kansas 77, California Baptist 69. A competitive game would not be surprising; the upset still would be.
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