Cal Poly wins double overtime thriller – Photos

After coming back from a seven point deficit with 1:24 to play in regulation, a five-point deficit with under :49 seconds left in regulation, and a three-point deficit in the first overtime, Cal Poly forced a second extra period and picked-up an important 96-92 home victory over visiting Long Beach State.

Cal Poly senior Joel Awich throws down a dunk in the first half of Saturday night’s thriller. By Owen Main

Cal Poly was down by five points with only 49 seconds left in the game when Long Beach State’s Travis Hammonds rebounded a missed Reese Morgan free throw. When Josh Martin pressured Hammonds in the back court, he picked up a foul, but also something much more valuable — a Hammonds elbow to his nose.

The foul — judged by officials to be a flagrant — gave Cal Poly two free throws and the ball. It was also Hammonds’ fifth foul. After Roschon Prince missed a pair of free throws, Morgan made a pair. On the ensuing possession, Morgan sized-up a three-pointer from about 26 feet out and knocked it down, completing a five-point possession that erased the five-point Cal Poly deficit.

The review of the flagrant foul lasted at least 5-10 minutes. I know there were at least three songs that were played in completion during the review, making an agonizingly close game seem even more so.

2 OT,s 188pts 2 lead changes 3 ties Only 23 total turnovers Clutch shots & FT's. Crazy student section. One of the best CP games ever.

— Tom Barket (@TomBarket) January 17, 2016

Back-to-back sell outs & an energized Mott lifted our team to a double OT victory over Long Beach St.! Total team effort! Loved #Area12

— Joe Callero (@CoachCallero) January 17, 2016

Packed to the gills

For the first time in the Joe Callero era, Cal Poly sold-out back-to-back home games this weekend. The crowd played a big role in Thursday night’s big comeback against UCSB, though it fell short in the end. Many, including myself, wondered whether the students would be burned-out by the tough, emotional rivalry loss.

The fans — students and community alike — answered resoundingly, helping to carry the Mustangs to another comeback. Saturday night’s was one that the home team could finish.

The way the first two conference games went at Mott, 3,032 might become a common number to see on Cal Poly box scores the rest of the way. Seriously, the place was kind of a zoo. Good stuff San Luis Obispo!

Going full Monson

Dan Monson is one of my favorite coaches to watch in the Big West. By Owen Main

With Cal Poly down by two in the first overtime, Joel Awich was fouled by Gabe Levin going to the hoop and awarded two shots with 1:46 to play. After Awich made the first free throw — his third , Long Beach State coach Dan Monson challenged that Levin committed the foul.

While Awich stood at the free throw line waiting, the referees took about a minute to review the play and confirm that the foul was on Levin.

Lo and behold, Awich’s next shot was way off and Long Beach State maintained a one-point lead that they quickly turned into a three-point lead. I suppose Awich had the last laugh when he nailed a three-pointer to tie it less than 30 seconds after being iced, but Monson’s late-game ability to ice-out an opponent was a move that less savvy coaches might not have made.

Bennett rounding into shape

Brian Bennett started the season injured and out of game shape. Over the last eight weeks or so, Bennett has done a lot of extra work to round back into shape and get back to the form that earned him second-team all-Big West honors last season. He’s much more active over the past week or two — six offensive rebounds on Saturday night are evidence of that.

He didn’t start in either game this past weekend, but the senior averaged 17 points and eight rebounds anyway. This Mustang team is 10 players deep and matchups are going to play a big role against some conference teams, but Bennett’s ability to dominate the offensive paint will be vital moving forward.

Brian Bennett is playing much more like the second-team all-conference player he was a year ago. By Owen Main

Bench Work

Cal Poly’s bench out-scored Long Beach State’s 58-32 for the game. 32 bench points seems like a lot. 58 is just obscene. Four Cal Poly players — Martin, Taylor Sutlive, Joel Awich, and Bennett tallied double-figure point totals on Saturday night.

After outscoring UCSB’s bench 40-6 on Thursday, Cal Poly’s bench outscored opponents 98-38 on the weekend. Cal Poly’s bench has bested their opponents in each of their first three conference games.

I know Joe Callero would like to start the players he feels are playing the best, but who starts doesn’t really matter on this team. If you are one of the players in the 10-man rotation, you’ll get your chance. If you play well, you’ll probably be on the floor in the second half when it matters most. The Mustangs switch-out for offense and defense in close games anyway, so you better know your role and you better be ready to play that part if you want time on this Mustangs team.

On the road again

Cal Poly hits the road in Southern California next week for two winnable road games — both of which can be found on ESPN3. On Thursday, the Mustangs will play the CSUN Matadors at 7:00pm. Reggie Theus’ team isn’t eligible for the postseason this year, but that doesn’t mean they aren’t hungry to play spoiler in the regular season. Kendall Smith, a UNLV transfer, is someone the Mustangs will have to keep track of on the perimeter and Tre Hale-Edmerson is an inside threat to contend with.

On Saturday, Cal Poly will play at Cal State Fullerton. The early 4:00 ESPN3 tip-off time will be an interesting one. If Cal Poly thinks they’re a top-half team in the Big West, these are two road wins that are important to get.

Programming Note

It was announced this week that Cal Poly’s home game againstconference frontrunner Hawai’i on February 6th will be televised on ESPNU.  Previously, Cal Poly didn’t have any televised or ESPN3 games scheduled to be broadcast from Mott Athletics Center this season.

Photos by Owen Main

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