Mustangs prove they can win away from Mott

Chris Eversley and company have proven they can win at Mott Athletic Center, but they did some work on the road over the weekend. By Owen Main

Over the weekend, Cal Poly proved they can do something they haven’t done yet this year — win a pair of games away from Mott Gym.

Going into this week’s games, Cal Poly was undefeated at home in the Big West, but had lost six straight on the road following a victory in Riverside in the conference opener. Winning at home is great during the regular season, but winning away from Mott is crucial if Cal Poly is to achieve Joe Callero’s goal of winning the Big West Tournament (played at the Honda Center in Anaheim).

What we learned this weekend:

An already-mature team hasn’t stopped developing.

I commented earlier this season on how mature this Cal Poly team seemed, even during non-conference play. Joe Callero has recruited specifically to get players whose heads are in the right place. When Chris Eversley was injured and out for a few weeks, Cal Poly found ways to compete and beat UCSB and Loyola Marymount at home, losing on the road to Cal State Fullerton during that stretch.

That being said, and as the Onion so nicely put it today, talent and shot-making become even more magnified in the conference tournaments. Shots that Cal Poly was missing consistently in earlier conference road games (see: Long Beach State and UC Irvine) were falling in Honolulu. Long two-pointers. Contested three-pointers. Chris Eversley made at least four on Saturday. Reese Morgan made a few. Dylan Royer knocked a few down. The Mustangs will have to be able to make tough, contested shots if they are to make any kind of run in the Big West Tournament. Making them takes poise and maturity, two things Cal Poly has continued to develop all year.

Freshman big-man Brian Bennett has been Cal Poly’s “Old Reliable” this year. By Owen Main

Brian Bennett is someone you can count on.

Brian Bennett is big-time. He’s been poised and consistent all year. While his numbers don’t stand-out a ton, he’s done a great job of playing excellent defense and kept his poise through thick and thin. His offensive game is developed out to 17 feet and he will be a cornerstone of the program for the next three years. He plays about the same at home and on the road, against super-tall or super-athletic players. It’s not often that a freshman is a steadying presence on a college team, but Bennett truly is that.

The Big West Tournament will be WILD.

In this year’s tournament, games will be closely contested and teams’ fates could come down to match-ups.

Hawai’i has traditionally had a hard time against Cal Poly. Cal Poly doesn’t match-up great against other, more athletic 3-point shooting teams like Fullerton and Irvine. Long Beach State is the favorite for sure, but they have shown signs of vulnerability. Pacific is a wild-card in head coach Bob Thomason’s final season, and Hawai’i’s size allows them to stay in games with any team, though I would like their chances better if the tournament was in Honolulu. Irvine is experienced and poised to make a run, too.

If the tournament started today, here’s what the matchups would be (Standings here):

(1) Long Beach State vs. (8) UCSB — UCSB can match-up against some teams and are capable of keeping this one close, but the 49ers would be clear favorites in this game and I see them cruising in the second half behind James Ennis and company.

(2) Pacific vs. (7) Cal State Fullerton — This is where things get REALLY interesting. Pacific has played great all season, but have lost 5 games in conference. The Tigers beat the Titans twice this year, including a nine-point victory in Orange County on Thursday. But beating any team three straight times is hard, especially with players like Kwame Vaughan in the back court for Fullerton. In the end, this would be a good matchup for Pacific and I think they would come out on top were this matchup to remain.

(3) UC Irvine vs. (6) UC Davis — Wow. Corey Hawkins vs. Daman Starring. J.T. Adenrele vs. Adam Folker. Ryan Sypkens vs. Mike Wilder. This game would be really fun to see. These two teams went to overtime in the conference opener and will bookend the conference schedule with one another this season. Playing two games in a row against each other this late in the season makes this one probably the game of the first round if things hold.

(4) Cal Poly vs. (5) Hawai’i — This matchup has favored Cal Poly over the last few years. The Mustangs won in Honolulu last night and would be favored going in, but not by much. Like I said before, winning three games in the same season against the same team is really tough. Hawai’i spent much of the conference season in third place, but has recently dropped to fifth. The Warriors have as much talent as anyone in the conference and this 4-5 match-up would be another close, grinding game like what we saw last night.

Of course, things are likely to change. Most teams have two games left and seedings will be different. No matter what they are, the Honda Center will feature a number of great games starting one week from Thursday. We’ll have a preview with the actual match-ups next week.

Hawai’i is all class.

Having the Warriors in the Big West has been really great for all teams. Even though they spent less than 40 total hours on Oahu, Cal Poly was able to hit the beach on Saturday morning and a trip to Hawai’i once a year is something I’m sure players don’t mind.

Watching their game on Big West TV this morning, their television broadcast is first-class. The three-man crew that was announcing the game did their homework and called a great game. In football especially, fans are often graced with broadcasters who are such big homers they make it hard to watch for an opposing fan. The Hawai’i broadcasters were Hawai’i broadcasters, but they knew enough about Cal Poly to be able to give them credit when and where it was due.

If broadcasters are an indication of how a program operates, the three gentlemen who called last night’s game (Kenoa Leahey, Tony Sellitto, and Artie Wilson of OC Sports) are really great representatives of the University of Hawai’i.