Jonae Ervin can flat-out play. By Owen Main

Jonae, Jonae, Jonae.

Last week, Cal Poly’s senior point guard, Jonae Ervin, dropped 37 & 10 in a come from behind win over a team Coach Faith said should have been picked to finish first in Big West Conference Play? Good Lord girl! Put some water on that hot sauce!

What a week.

A few days later, the 5’3” guard weaved her 391^st career dime to surpass Laura Buehnin as the all time assists leader in Lady Mustang history. She clearly can do it all: third in points, first in assists, third in rebounds & first in steals. My only question is, do the Lady Mustangs have the depth to get themselves back to March’s big bracket?

I think they might.

Reigning Big West Player of the Year, Molly Schemer, has been dominant again this year. Averaging 18.5 points and 11.0 rebounds per game, Schlemer balances the outside attack of the small but speedy Ervin alongside Ariana Elegado. Elegado, anything but shy, is a guard who is willing to hoist and hoist until she catches fire. This less-than-bashful approach to her game (currently leading the team in shot attempts per game at 15.9) is a double edged sword, though she averages 16.5 points per game. Her and Ervin both shoot about 38 percent from the floor, but it’s their aggression that put teams out of position and on their heels. That’s when Schlemer, who shoots 57 percent from the floor, steps in.

Along with seniors Ervin and Schlemer, junior Ariana Elegado gives the Mustangs three players who can drop 30 points on a given night. By Owen Main

On to the role players.

It’s easy to see the firepower in the Mustangs’ Big Three, but I asked our own Mustang aficionado, Owen Main. He said that key role players include Taryn Garza, Kristen Ale, and Maddison Allen. Ale, a junior from Carson, CA is second only to Ervin in three-point shooting percentage, opening-up the floor for her teammates.

Garza, a scrappy forward, averages just six points per game, but is second on the team in rebounds per game (5.8) and provided the most-clutch moment of the season, scoring on a putback at the buzzer to send the Mustangs’ game last Wednesday vs. Hawai’i into overtime.

Allen is a remarkable athlete. Left-handed and long, the 6’4″ redshirt freshman from Australia is probably the team’s best defender, blocking over a shot per game.

Nwamaka Ofodu, another senior guard, has stepped in to a starting role recently and gets some minutes as a defensive stopper in the back court as well. These players, plus freshmen Hannah Gilbert (6′ 3″, Morro Bay High School), Sarah Lipton, and Rachel Koehler add a layered dimension to a team that could be better than last year’s squad that won the Big West Tournament and went to the NCAA Tournament for the first time ever. Main points to the continued dominance of Schlemer and the balanced guard play of Elegado and Ervin as the biggest reasons this year he’s bought in to the concept of a return to the dance.

If the defense chooses to sag on the reigning Big West Conference Player of the Year (Molly Schlemer), Cal Poly can put 3-4 shooters around the perimeter, including supersub Kristen Ale. By Owen Main

“They have so many weapons,” said Main. “You can double-team Schlemer in the post, but then Elegado, Ervin, Ale, and the others will kill you. If you don’t double Molly, she’s going to do something like score 37 points. Opponents really have to pick their poison and hope that whoever they leave open has a bad shooting night.”

I have a strong desire for Mustang glory. As a proud alumnus, I would more than love to see either the men or women’s basketball teams crowned champion in March. And while the majority of you might think I’m absolutely crazy (I am), I’m not stupid. I love the George Masons, VCU’s, St. Mary’s’ and Gonzagas of the world who prove that small schools can create a large legacy. Some mid-majors have shown they can compete at the highest of levels — yes, even in the Madness of the March bracket. All it takes are the few things happening lately in Mustang country: success, great coaching, a beautiful college town and setting, and great individual performances. The lady Mustangs have crowned four straight Big West Players of the Year. That really says something. And San Luis Obispo, as always, is heaven on earth.

Since I started watching them a few years ago, one thing has always been the case about Faith Mimnaugh’s Cal Poly women’s basketball team — almost every game is really entertaining to watch.

Last night, Mimnaugh’s team played at their usual high-tempo, besting the San Francisco Dons 76-65.

The game featured last year’s Big West Conference player of the year, Molly Schlemer, who poured-in 18 second-half points and finished with 21 points and 10 rebounds. Jonae Ervin and Ariana Elegado also had really good games, proving why Cal Poly should probably be the favorite to win the conference again this season.

It was the first time I’ve seen Mimnaugh’s team in-person this year, so here are some keys to the game and some generalizations I’m willing to make after game-eight of the 2013-14 season.

Along with Jonae Ervin, Ariana Elegado (pictured) is really skilled at driving to the basket. By Owen Main

Depth

This team seems really deep. They bring in two athletic players who are above six feet tall off the bench. Freshmen Maddison Allen (6’4″ – Brisbane, Australia) and Hannah Gilbert (6′ 3″ – Morro Bay, CA) coming into the game together means that Cal Poly can take their starting front-court, which includes the 6′ 5″ Schlemer, out of the game and get bigger overall on their front line.

Gilbert and Allen both move really well for post players and seem to play really solid defense. Gilbert seems to have a decently-polished offensive game, too, meaning that the Mustangs have four post players who can really dominate at least one end of the floor at any given time.

Last night, in a close game, Cal Poly played 11 players, nine of whom played double-digit minutes. When you play with the pace this team does, you need depth and depth is definitely something they have.

Shooting

Guards Jonae Ervin and Ariana Elegado have proven over the past few years that they can score as effectively as Schlemer on any given night. To compliment their drives and Schlemer’s post presence, Cal Poly has a number of players they can spot-up around the perimeter. Junior Kristen Ale and sophomore Beth Balbierz seem to always be open with all the attention Schlemer, Ervin, and Elegado draw collectively.

Lefties

This team sometimes plays three left-handed players at the same time. Allen, Balbierz and Ale are all southpaws (am I missing anyone?), providing a little different look for opposing defenders.

The “Big 3”

Whoever is in the game throughout the first 30 minutes, you know seniors Schlemer and Ervin along with Elegado — a junior — will be in the thick of things at the end. Last night, they collectively racked-up 44 points, 19 rebounds, and 10 assists. Together, they are the main reason why Cal Poly should be a strong contender to win the Big West regular season title for third time in four years en route to the Big West Conference Tournament, where they’ll contend for back-to-back titles this season.

[See image gallery at www.fansmanship.com]

Cal Poly head coach Faith Mimnaugh seemed to join her team in a defensive stance during every possession on Saturday. by Owen Main

On every glance at the Cal Poly bench, coach Faith Mimnaugh was either giving an order to her team, pumping her fist, or in what looked like a defensive stance.

When the final horn sounded Saturday afternoon at the Honda Center, Mimnaugh’s intensity turned to tears and smiles after the Mustangs came out on top of Pacific 63-49 to win the Big West Tournament Championship.

The game was one that Pacific, the regular season champs, could never quite get their arms around. Each time it looked like they had Cal Poly on their heels, the Mustangs got a bucket. Just when it seemed a Cal Poly player was trapped, the double-team would be split, or the Cal Poly player would draw a foul. It was a matter of one team matching the other’s aggression and welcoming the physicality that was sure to come.

Pacific played as hard as they could, generally kept the ball out of Molly Schlemer’s hands, and executed a good game plan. In the the final analysis, though things just didn’t go their way (the same can be said of the Cal Poly men’s team, who lost to Pacific the previous night in the tournament semifinal). Instead, in her 16th season at the helm for Cal Poly, Mimnaugh got her first Big West tournament title. Next week, Cal Poly will go to its first NCAA Tournament since the program moved to Division I.

Mimnaugh reflected after the game on what it took to get the Mustangs to this place. When she started, the coaching staff included just her and one other volunteer coach who also had a job as a sorority house mother to help pay the bills.

“To go from [a] place, where we were two people running this thing, to build the program to this level, it’s just, it’s a lot of work. More than I thought it’d take,” said Mimnaugh after the game. “I think when you’ve been doing it as long as I have and you keep dreaming and you keep pushing and kind of wondering if it was ever going to happen, that’s where the real satisfaction comes in for me.”

Molly Schelemer lets out a Shaq-like scream of joy after a basket late in the Big West Championship game. Schlemer averaged 16.5 points and 12.5 rebounds per game in the tournament. By Owen Main

To get to the game Mimnaugh’s team beat UCSB in the semifinals on Friday afternoon, setting-up a rematch with Pacific. UCSB did all they could to challenge the inside presence of Molly Schlemer, but couldn’t find an answer as Schlemer, the Big West Player of the Year, scored 26 points and grabbed 9 rebounds.

In the championship game, Schlemer’s presence continued to be felt. Double and triple-teamed from the beginning, Schlemer managed only 7 points in the final but managed to gather 16 rebounds, crucial after senior Kayla Griffin went down with a season — and career — ending injury.

While Pacific shut-down Schlemer’s offense, Ariana Elegado made the Tigers pay, scoring 22 points including three 3-pointers. Seniors Caroline Reeves and Nikol Allison stepped in and each scored 10 points as Pacific dared Cal Poly to beat them with someone other than Schlemer or the injured Griffin.

Cal Poly’s defense, a much-improved part of their game this season, held Pacific to 20-61 shooting in the game (32.8%).

Last year was supposed to be the year for Cal Poly. The tournament draw seemed just right, Kristina Santiago was healthy, and all signs pointed to Cal Poly as the tournament favorite. Instead, they didn’t even make the finals, bounced in their first game by an intrepid Long Beach State squad. The loss seemed crushing for a team that was losing a player who was clearly the best in the Big West.

Seniors Nikol Allison (13) and Caroline Reeves (22) had big contributions in Cal Poly’s first-ever Big West Tournament Championship. By Owen Main

Enter this year’s less-heralded bunch. Last season guard Jonae Ervin led the country in Assist-Turnover Ratio, but she was injured coming into the season and there were a fair number of questions marks. Ervin eventually made it back and those question marks were answered by break-out performances.

This year’s team has played better defense and has had break-out performances by Schlemer, a junior, and Ariana Elegado, a talented sophomore guard. While Schlemer earned Tournament MVP honors (16.5 points and 12.5 rebounds per game in the tournament), Elegado also was named to the all-tournament team. It was a fitting way to cap a season where Elegado has been asked to play both point guard and off-guard and be a source of points throughout the year.

The defensive stance by coach Faith Mimnaugh broke only once all game, when senior forward Kayla Griffin, a team leader and Cal Poly’s only player to start every game this season, tore two ligaments in her knee while chasing down a loose ball. Griffin collapsed on the baseline in front of the Cal Poly bench and, while Pacific went the other way, scoring a bucket about 10 seconds later, Mimnaugh’s total attention was on the senior forward, consoling her until the referees finally blew their whistle so that medical staff could attend to Griffin.

“That’s just the type of lady Coach Faith is,” said Schlemer. “She cares about us as human beings, not just her players… . I wasn’t surprised at all. It’s just the kind of thing she does and it’s amazing.”

In a year where a team finally found their identity, a coach not caring about what was going on on the floor may have been all you need to know about this year’s Big West Tournament champs.

See more photos of the championship game and celebration on our Facebook page: www.facebook.com/fansmanship .

Some video is now also up at www.youtube.com/fansmanship.

The Cal Poly women’s basketball team seems to once again be on their way toward a top-4 seed in the Big West Tournament. Faith Mimnaugh’s team took apart UC Riverside two nights after doing the same to Cal State Fullerton. The Cal Poly ladies are, like the men’s team, undefeated in conference at home.

Photos by David Livingston

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On Thursday night, Faith Mimnaugh’s Cal Poly women’s basketball team dismantled the Cal State Fullerton Titans, winning 78-40. Cal Poly junior center Molly Schlemer shot 8-10 from the field for 19 points and a team-high 7 rebounds. Guard Jonae Ervin filled up the stat sheet with 15 points, 6 rebounds, and 8 assists.

With the win, Cal Poly continues a strong trend toward an advantage at Mott that extends to the men’s team as well. The Mustang women are 4-0 at home so far in conference play, while the men are also 4-0 at home

Photos by David Livingston

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Jonae Ervin and the Mustangs seem headed in the right direction, but the player whose numbers may matter the most is not a guard. By Owen Main

Cal Poly’s Molly Schlemer has earned Big West Player of the Week honors for her performances in Cal Poly’s Big West home sweep last weekend. Schlemer, a Santa Maria native, led the Mustangs to a pair of wins by a total of three points and the Mustangs improved to 3-1 in conference play. In sweeping UC Davis and Pacific over the weekend, Schlemer scored 40 points and pulled down 15 rebounds.

Faith Mimnaugh’s two-time defending regular season championship team continues to be nothing if not interesting. Their run-and-gun style of play features two point guards on the floor at any time, usually four players who can shoot 3-pointers, and Schlemer who, at 6’5″, is one of the tallest and strongest players in the conference. No lead or deficit seems safe with this bunch.

On Thursday night, Cal Poly gave up a nine-point first half lead before holding on to win the game by two points behind Brittany Woodard’s career-high 21 points. On Saturday, Cal Poly eeked out a triple-overtime thriller at Mott Gym that saw four players foul-out, including Schlemer. Three players, Cal Poly’s Kayla Griffin and Pacific’s Kendall Rodriguez and Erica McKenzie played at least 50 minutes in the game. Cal Poly’s Jonae Ervin, last year’s national leader in assist to turnover ratio, sank two free throws with 8 seconds left in the third overtime to seal the victory.

What remains interesting is Mimnaugh’s tinkering with the Mustangs’ lineup. After a hot start to the season, Schlemer didn’t even start the game on Thursday, instead being used as a substitute. Schlemer has played limited minutes in conference despite being dominant at times. She has played 13, 14, 15, and 28 minutes. The only game the Mustangs lost was the only game Schlemer didn’t score in double-figures. As much as Mimnaugh loves guard play, the Mustangs’ bellwether in conference play this year may be Schlemer.

For last weekend, at least, that was fine for the home fans and home team at Mott Gym.

Photos by Owen Main

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Cal Poly split their two games leading up to Christmas. By Owen Main

Cal Poly women’s basketball hosted the University of San Francisco Dons on Monday night. After USF lost recently by over 40 points to Cal State Fullerton, Cal Poly got behind early and could not come back, losing 71-67.

On Thursday night, the Mustangs beat Loyola Marymount at Mott Gym 84-71, completing the per-conference portion of their schedule with a 6-5 record.

With a pair of fast, small point guards leading the way, Cal Poly is much more successful at a fast pace. Games in the high 70’s and 80’s are what coach Faith Mimnaugh wants. Now that Jonae Ervin is rounding back into form, she and Ariana Elegado are playing a lot together, pushing the already-torrid pace that the Mustangs prefer.

Two things I’ll watch for as the conference season begins are whether Cal Poly can continue to play fast-paced enough to score 75-plus points per game and how center Molly Schlemer fits-in to the fast-paced offense Mimnaugh so-clearly wants to maintain. In the loss to San Francisco, Schlemer played just 17 minutes, but still managed to score 13 points on 6-6 from the field.

In the win vs. LMU, Schlemer was back in the starting lineup, netting a double-double (14 points and 11 rebounds) and the Mustangs were able to score 84 points in the win.

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The women’s team, which is the number one seed in the Big West Tournament, received the most awards. Senior Rachel Clancy, who is a great student too, was the second Lady Mustang in two years to garner the Conference Player of the Year Award. In 2009-10, Kristina Santiago was the conference’s best player. In Santiago’s absence, Clancy has paced Cal Poly with 16.3 points per game and was also third on the team in rebounding.

Also receiving postseason awards were Clancy’s teammates Abby Bloetscher (2nd Team) and Jonae Ervin (Honorable Mention and All-Freshman Team).

Women’s Head Coach Faith Mimnaugh, in her 14th season at cal Poly, earned the Big West Coach of the Year honor by leading the Lady Mustangs to a share of the Big West regular season title despite losing the reigning conference player of the year during the first game of the season.

The Lady Mustangs start the conference tournament at home on Tuesday night. As the number one seed, they earned the right to host eighth-seeded Cal State Fullerton at Mott Gym. The game starts at 7:00 pm.

The men’s team also collected some hardware on Monday. Senior Shawn Lewis, who averaged 15.1 points per game to lead the Mustangs, earned First Team All-Conference honors.  Minnesota native, junior David Hanson, (15.1 points per game), earned All-Conference Second Team recognition and guard Maliik Love was the second Mustang guard in a row to be named to the All-Freshman team. Last season, Kyle Odister was named to the All-Freshman team. Odister has sat out this season due to injury. Love shared Fresman of the Year honors with Josh Ritchart from UC- Davis.

Coach Joe Callero’s team finished the regular season with a 15-14 record (10-6 in the Big West Conference) after finishing 12-19 (7-9 in the Big West Conference) in 2009-10. After being picked by many to finish the season near the bottom of the conference, Callero may have been deserving of coach of the year. The award, however, went to Long Beach State head coach Dan Monson. The 49ers, with Big West Player of the Year Casper Ware, finished in first place in the regular season.

The Mustang men start the Big West Tournament as the two-seed. They face 7th seeded UC Riverside on Thursday night at 6:00 at the Honda Center in Anaheim.