A conference tournament celebration is a wonderful thing to behold.

Last night, after its first ever conference tournament win, fans who drove the 220 miles were treated with an opportunity to storm the court and celebrate with the team.

Celebrate they did.

It’s really hard to describe being in the middle of a scrum like this, so I won’t try too hard. Instead, here are a bunch of photos. We’ll have more videos up over the next 24 hours on our YouTube page, so you can check there. In the mean time, here are a bunch of pictures, starting with “THE SHOT” that Ridge Shipley hit.

[See image gallery at www.fansmanship.com]

The Cal Poly men’s basketball team got back on track in a big way Thursday night at Mott Gym.  Their opponent, the Hawai’i Warriors ended up being more of a punching bag than an adversary in the 88-59 routing.  Riding a three-game losing streak, the Mustangs seemed to take out their frustration on the overmatched Warriors.

Chris Eversley lead the way by filling up the score sheet with 19 points, 8 rebounds, 2 assists and 4 steals.  Reese Morgan was unconscious from distance, Brian Bennett scored and boarded with consistency inside (17 points, 9 rebounds), and Drake U’u’s career high 14 points and an 8 to 1 assist to turnover ratio also significantly contributed to the victory.

Chris Eversley executes a jump-hook in the lane, one of many moves in his entire arsenal. Photo by Owen Main

Poly’s big win came down to three main measurements:  a more-than 2 to 1 assist to turnover ratio, dead-eye 3 point shooting, and authoritative offensive rebounding.  The Mustangs also almost doubled-up the Warriors in total rebounding by a margin of 38-21.   Cal Poly improves to 4-0 in the Big West when they out rebound their opponent.

The Warriors opened play on a 4-0 run that was halted by Poly’s first points, a 3-pointer from Dylan Royer, and after a Brian Bennett left-handed hook, the Mustangs led 5-4 at the under 16:00 timeout.

Drake U’u’s 3-pointer out of the timeout, inside scoring from Bennett and two free throws from U’u helped Poly go on a 14-0 run, opening the game up to a 14-4 Mustang lead at the 14:00 mark.  The hustle of Chris Eversley allowed the Mustangs to win the early turnover battle, a tendancy that would continue throughout the entire game.

After a Reese Morgan bomb from long distance, Coach Joe Callero snapped off a quit timeout, and with 10:18 left in the first half, Poly held a 19-10 advantage.  Morgan dialed long distance again out of the timeout to bring the score to 22-12 Mustangs with 7:41 to go in the half.

Eversley showed great leadership and outstanding hustle as the conversion of two garbage buckets ballooned the Poly lead to 16 points with 4:23 left. Four of Eversley’s five rebounds in the first half were on the offensive glass.

The 1st half closed with the Mustangs winding the clock down after yet another offensive rebound, and Morgan hit a clutch 20-footer with 4.3 seconds left.

Then, you guessed it — more clock issues.  The longest 4.3 seconds in the history of mankind allowed Hawai’i to hit a long 3-pointer at the buzzer, closing the Cal Poly lead to 38-26 at the break.

The Mustangs completely owned the offensive glass in the first half, as half of their 16 rebounds were of the offensive variety.

The second half opened with Morgan back doing what he does, as he buried two more 3-pointers.  Eversley then joined the party as he hit one of his own, and the Mustangs extended the lead to 47-28.  At this point Hawai’i was forced to take a timeout before the under 16:00 stoppage in an attempt to cool off Poly’s raging inferno from beyond the arc.

The route was on.

Joel Awich and Kyle Odister then finally got the Poly bench in the mix and pushed the Mustang lead to 55-33 with 13:30 left in regulation.

An acrobatic attempt by U’u as he was fouled gave the crowd one of their last audible gasps of the game.  U’u converted both attempts from the charity stripe, bringing him to a perfect 6-6 from the line at that point, as the scoreboard read 59-36 at the under 12:00 timeout.

An Odister 3-pointer and a Bennet inside bucket gave the Mustangs a 28-point lead with 9:30 remaining.  Poly then extended their lead to 31 after another make from long distance, this time from Eversley, as they opened up a 69-38 margin.

With the score reading 77-46 and 4:20 left, Coach Callero took Eversley and Bennett out of the game to a well-deserved standing ovation from those who remained at a thinning Mott Gym.

As the final seconds ticked down,  Joel Awich joined the 3-point party in what could be considered beyond garbage time.  It was landfill time at this point.

“This was by far in my opinion the best 40 minutes we have played all year, both sides of the ball,” remarked Mustang Coach Joe Callero after the game.

“They (Hawai’i) may have been fatigued from a long road trip, but we squeezed the life out of them.  We need to strive for perfection and that killer instinct,” continued Callero.

Cal Poly (8-9 overall, 4-3 Big West) will host Northridge Saturday at 7:00pm.  Hawai’i (10-9 overall, 4-4 Big West) will now hop on a charter bus and head to Santa Barbara for a Saturday night meeting at 7:00pm.

After opening Big West play with three consecutive wins, and then dropping three consecutive games, will this Mustang drubbing of Hawai’i propel them to another impressive performance on Saturday night?  Or will the up and down, roller coaster trend of late continue?

There are lots of potential reasons to speculate in either direction make a lot of sense, but I do know one thing for certain:  if the Mustangs play with the level of overall intensity and execution that they displayed on this night, the sky is the limit.

Freshman Reese Morgan could be a key cog in a Cal Poly matchup against Southern in March. By Owen Main

This is all getting a little weird, and oh so real. Right when I was beginning to think just an upset over UCLA in November was enough for me, Callero and the gritty Mustangs continue to outdo themselves.

Tonight, in ESPN’s second installment of Bracketology (view bracket here), college basketball guru Joe Lunardi listed the Cal Poly men as one of the play-in teams pitted against the Michigan Wolverines.

According to Lunardi, if the madness began today, Callero’s crew would play Southern University, a 10-6 team in the Southern Athletic Conference led by combo guard/forward, Malcolm Miller, who seems a lot like Cal Poly’s Chris Eversley — a slashing, above the rim player.

How much does young coach Roman Banks echo Joe Callero’s consistent praise of his team’s, passion, demeanor, character and poise?

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=-810GKUpG_c

The two seem similar in that regard philosophically, both exalting tough matchups early-on against larger, more formidable schools, as a chance to ready themselves for conference play.

While Lunardi simply slots-in the top team in the standings for single-bid conferences like the Big West, Cal Poly and Southern have a lot in common. Currently Southern is 4-0 in the SAC. Their biggest win came against Texas A&M on December 22nd and they, like the Mustangs, also suffered a hard fought loss early in the season to Texas Christian.

The winner would face the Big Ten’s Michigan Wolverines in the next round as immediate underdog. But, before such an affair, I’m certain from San Luis Obispo to Cambria, all the way to Oceano, the Central Coast would party like its 1999.

The last time they were 3-0 to start conference play (1996-97), they reeled off six straight conference losses en-route to a losing conference season. Cal Poly has never started 4-0 in the Big West. In order to do so, Callero’s bunch must prepare for a road weekend at UC Davis (4-9, 0-2) on Thursday and in Stockton versus a tough Pacific (7-7, 1-1) team on Saturday.

I seem to remember, if ever so faintly, a moment when the Cal Poly men’s basketball team knocked off then, #11 UCLA, 70-68 on the road. But then again, I’m getting old. And we know the older a man gets, the less he remembers.

So remind me please: Did the Mustangs or did they not, beat a Bruins team with the #1 ranked recruiting class of 2012-2013? Did not Chris Eversley look comparable to Shabazz Muhammad? And did not Dylan Royer and Kyle Odister channel a three-point purity as pungent as J.J Redick?

Since dismantling Ben Howland’s bunch, the Mustangs are 2-2, one of those a narrow 3- point win over 5-5, Division 2 middle of the road, Eastern New Mexico. The other over an NAIA Division two Menlo College. At times, the Mustangs are unable to create their own shot, and have been lacking the ability to manufacture second and third chances off the offensive glass.

Here are some startling facts since the UCLA win.

*  Kyle Odister and Dylan Royer are a combined 22-61 from the field (36.1%). Though they shoot mostly 3-pointers, that’s still not a fantastic percentage. Combined in those games they have 6 assists and 9 turnovers.

*  Senior Drake U’u has struggled to find his way. The guard came into his senior season with an increased role as a ball-handler. So far, he’s shooting 31.7% from the floor, his minutes are down, and he’s making only 46.4% of his free throws.

* Chris Eversley is a dynamic first option offensively. That being said, Eversley is shooting just 40.4% from the floor. His jump shot isn’t particularly consistent, taking away from what he does best: slash and hit the glass.

* The Mustangs rank 289th in the country in rebounding. Behind Eversley, their second-ranked rebounder is 6’9″ freshman Brian Bennett. Since the UCLA win Bennett’s rebounding average is 3.75 per game.

And so, for me, it’s hard not to see the UCLA win as some sort of fluke. The team has been generally manhandled by St. Mary’s and Nevada, and despite a freebie over Menlo, struggled to beat Eastern New Mexico. Callero has a problem of firepower on his hands. Clearly, Eversley is the only player athletic enough to create his own shot on the offensive end.

The rest of the team is built in facets with clear and concise directives and roles. When the three point shot isn’t falling, the Mustangs struggle to hit the glass and get to the free throw line. My hope is that Kyle Odister and Brian Bennet mature and round into more efficient offensive form in the 2nd half of the season.

Cal Poly fans should hope that Odister, with his limited size, improves his ball handling and continue to find his mid-range game, while Bennett, the strongest of the Mustangs, learns to better predict misses in order to be the glass eater he should be. Without the progression of these players and individual improvement throughout the roster, the Mustangs may be just the team they were predicted to be in the Big West preseason coaches poll — a middle to lower middle of the pack Big West team.

After the team’s grind-it-out 60-57 win on Friday, coach Callero reiterated the team’s need to find their defensive identity.

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=d0Pots8Akjg

An identity me, and every Mustang maniac is praying comes together, in order that this year’s squad might assemble some sort of UCLA surprise in the Big West and the Conference tournament.  It has been 17-years in the making fans have had to wait for the green and gold to be crownded champion. A near victory in 2003 ended in a 3-point defeat to Utah st, as did another in 2007 to the hands of Long Beach.

This team is without question lacking the scorers those teams held, but with Callero’s gritty toughness, anything seems somewhat possible.

Joe Callero’s Cal Poly Mustangs are going to have to play a lot better than this to be competitive in the Big West Conference. On Friday night, Cal Poly wrapped up their 2012 home schedule, beating visiting Eastern New Mexico 60-57 in front of just over 1,000 winter-break fans at Mott Gym. Both teams led by 5 at some point in the game, but neither team led by more than that margin during the game.

Dylan Royer scored 9 points on 3-10 from 3-point range on Friday night. By Owen Main

While any win is a good win, the Mustangs are still trying to find their identity. Quick 3-pointers in transition and the inability to impose their collective will on their Division II opponent allowed Eastern New Mexico to lead for most of the first half. The Greyhounds’ biggest lead was by 5 points with 4:28 remaining in the first half. Eastern New Mexico led 29-28 going into halftime

It looked as though Cal Poly might begin to pull away in the second half. Cal Poly remained behind through much of the second half. Kyle Odister’s 3-pointer with 12:51 left in the game put Cal Poly ahead for good. While the Greyhounds stayed close, Cal Poly held on in the end when Rodney Blackmon’s desperation 3-pointer at the buzzer didn’t fall.

Blackmon, a small, quick point guard, lit up the Cal Poly defense for 22 points, including 3-7 from 3-point range.

Chris Eversley led the Mustangs with 14 points and 12 rebounds, his third double-double of the season. Despite a decided advantage in size, Cal Poly only outscored the Greyhounds 28-26 in the paint. The Mustangs had zero fast-break points in the game.

Callero’s post-game comments are interesting (below). With only two games to go, it seems like he’s still trying to find a rotation that will allow Cal Poly to find its identity defensively and play the kind of tempo he wants to play.

One thing remains clear: to beat, or even compete with Santa Clara (7-2) and Washington (5-4, 2011-12 Pac-12 Champions), Cal Poly has some work ahead of them.

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//www.youtube.com/watch?v=aSRJL5CM08c

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=MfxsrHdtrDE

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=d0Pots8Akjg

This morning, the Cal Poly football team learned their postseason fate. And it will take them ::clap clap clap clap:: deep in the heart of Texas.

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=A9YNy_v3_sQ

Cal Poly defensive lineman Sullivan Grosz had 6 tackles including 1.5 sacks on Saturday in Flagstaff. He and the Mustangs should be fresh for their matchup with Sam Houston State in two weeks. By Owen Main

The Good:

In their first season in the Big Sky Conference, a share of the conference title got Cal Poly through into the second round of play, giving them two weeks to prepare and get healthy. This should especially benefit the offensive line.

The Bad:

No home game. Cal Poly’s second-round game will be played in Huntsville, TX vs. the Sam Houston State Bearkats. While the Mustangs are back in the playoffs for the first time since 2008, Alex G. Spanos Stadium is due to stay quiet for the rest of the season, barring a monumental upset. Huntsville, TX is about 75 minutes North of Houston.

Good thing Cal Poly won:

Cal Poly wrapped up its regular season schedule yesterday with a solid victory at Northern Arizona. There was talk of the Lumberjacks getting an at-large bid as well, but it looks like that didn’t happen, despite the Big Sky’s lobbying.

Who are they playing?

Sam Houston State has three losses on the year – 2 of them to Big-12 and SEC schools. The Bearkats actually started the season 1-2. They were downed by Baylor early in the season and then lost at Central Arkansas the following week. After reeling off seven consecutive wins, they lost to 9th ranked Texas A&M and Heisman hopeful Johnny Manziel this past week by a respectable score of 47-28. In the Sagarin Rankings, Sam Houston State is slotted at number 6, with Cal Poly right behind them in 7th.

A Cal Poly receiver goes horizontal to catch an Andre Broadous pass on Saturday night. Photo by David Livingston

Quarterback Andre Broadous combined for 263 total yards, 68 on the ground and 195 through the air. Broadous efficiently racked up his 195 yards passing with 9 completions on only 12 attempts. Broadous threw for 2 touchdowns, one for 45 yards to Willie Tucker and another for 30 yards to Brandon Michalkiewicz.

Cal Poly’s offense was an amazingly clutch 11 for 13 on third down.

Junior defensive captain Sullivan Grosz led the Mustangs’ defense, sacking Bears quarterback Seth Lobato three times.

The Mustangs scored with incredible balance, posting 14 points in each in all four quarters. Northern Colorado matched the Mustangs in the first quarter with 14 points of their own, but Cal Poly’s defense stiffened in the 2nd quarter and didn’t relent until the 4th quarter, when the second team defense starting getting mixed into the game. The Bears then scored their other two touchdowns in garbage-time.

Early in the contest Cal Poly was impressively crisp on offense, as Broadous played mistake-free and Williams was getting downhill and falling forward with ease. The Northern Colorado defense honestly looked over-matched from the get-go.

Halfway through the first quarter with Poly up 7-0 after a 8-yard Kristaan Ivory touchdown run, Broadous’ only major mistake of the game occurred. While keeping over the right side, Andre fumbled and Northern Colorado recovered inside the Cal Poly 20. Bears running back Tremaine Dennis then found his way towards the goal line over his next three carries, finding the end zone to tie the game at 7.

The Mustangs then got back on track with their bread and butter, as Williams fought for first downs on option pitches and inside trap plays. Once Poly crossed midfield into Bear territory, Broadous hit Willie Tucker streaking deep across the field on a 45-yard touchdown. Broadous commented in a post-game radio interview with Tom Barket on ESPN Radio 1280 that a couple of years ago he would have never been able to make that throw or even would have thought of trying it. He admitted he would have just tucked it away and got what he could have with his legs. The growth and maturity of a player is a great thing to see unfold.

As the first quarter came to a close, Northern Colorado answered Poly’s big play with another score of their own, as Lobato found tight end Darin McDonald in the end zone from 22 yards away to tie the score at 14. At this point it looked as if the game was shaping up to be a track meet.

Poly answered back early in the 2nd quarter with a Kristaan Ivory 37-yard scamper on the pitch to make the score 21-14. Then, the Mustang defense stiffened.

Cal Poly cornerback Nico Molino battles for the ball with Norther Colorado receiver Dominic Gunn. Photo by David Livingston

Defensive ends Andrew Alcaraz and Jake Irwin started getting better up-field penetration, putting a post in the defense against Northern Colorado’s off-tackle play. This change forced Bears running back Tromaine Dennis back inside to the teeth of Poly’s defense, instead of allowing him to have the choice to bounce to the outside and extend cutback opportunities in the open field.

The Mustangs added another score after a Northern Colorado punt, as Deonte Williams took a trap play back inside away from option action, a staple of the Poly offense, for a 5-yard plunge, bringing the score to 28-14, where it stayed until halftime.

Cal Poly did not come out with any sense of complacency to start the second half. After a stellar special teams tackle on the kickoff, the Mustangs recovered a fumble by Northern Colorado inside the Bears 25.

Deonte Williams then cashed in that turnover for Poly, taking in his 2nd score of the game, this one from 11 yards out. The Mustangs held a commanding 21-point lead, 35-14, with only 2:24 elapsed in the 3rd quarter. Credit Poly’s coaching staff for keeping their team fired up, and the players for having the killer instinct to put someone away when you have them down. This is the sign of not just a good team, but potentially a great one.

On their next posession, the Mustangs strung together back to back big plays. Broadous hit Cole Stanford down the left seam for 38 yards, and then took it himself on an option keeper for another 25. Deonte Williams smelled the paint along the right side he juked, spun and then lunged his way into the end zone for his 3rd and final score of the night, this one a 15-yard work of art, bringing the score to 42-14 Cal Poly.

Broadus capped off the final first-team drive of the game with a 30-yard touchdown pass to Brandon Michalkiewicz, in which the receiver navigated two defenders both during and after the catch, crossing the goal line as the defenders ran into each other. It was a play indicative of the overall Mustang dominance on this night. Poly lead 49-14 with 12 minutes left to play.

After a Northern Colorado touchdown, the Mustangs second-team offense, led by Vince Moraga, countered with a touchdown drive of their own, capped off by a short Ryan Soloman plunge with 3:47 remaining, making the score 56-21. It was Soloman’s first career touchdown.

Cal Poly improves to 6-0 overall and 4-0 in the Big Sky. Northern Colorado falls to 1-5 overall and 0-3 in the Big Sky.

The game was televised on KSBY and was broadcast by recent Fansmanship Podcast guest Bill Halter along with Andrew Masuda. KSBY will again televise next week’s game as head coach Tim Walsh and his Mustangs will take on his former team, the Portland State Vikings (2-4, 1-3 Big Sky) at Spanos Stadium. The Vikings are coming off a bye week, and the week before the bye they demolished Idaho State 77-10. The Mustangs are an even 9-9 all-time against Portland State.

If you haven’t had a chance to see this Mustang offensive machine yet this season, I highly recommend you check them out. You won’t be disappointed. Game time is 6:05pm Saturday night. Get there.

Photos by David Livingston

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//www.youtube.com/watch?v=HtRYIoMYN1A

This was nothing new.

The reigning Big West Player of the Year averaged 19.8 points per game as a senior, finished as the Gauchos’ all-time leading scorer, sixth all-time in three point field goals and as the only player in school history to score 500 points three straight years. 

He entered his senior season on the James Naismith Award Watch List after showing well on last Summer’s U.S. National team during the World University Games. By mid-season he was on the watch list for the John R. Wooden award and projected as high as a mid to late first round draft pick. All three accomplishments drove his name through the ranks of NBA officials and placed a stamp of approval on the 23 year-old’s future as an NBA player.

Johnson’s 6’5″ frame is bound with tremendous hops and an NBA-ready pull up game. He can get himself open with his speed and for a player of his size, rebounds well off the miss.    

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=XWB9PLHdduo

The guard’s NBA dreams came to fruition last week drafted 36th to the Kings. After he was traded to the Indiana Pacers five minutes later, Johnson wasn’t phased.

According to this article by Adena Andrews of ESPN.com, Johnson said of the Pacers, “I got a chance to meet with their representatives. I really liked their style. I just want to get into the rotation.”

And I’m certain he will.

Considering the guards ahead of him: former Bearcat Lance Stephenson, Duke star Dahntay Jones and veteran Leandro Barbosa, that’s more than a realistic expectation. I expect the gifted scorer to make wavelengths in the Pacers’ sometimes offensively parched system. 

Johnson’s comparison to former Big West star, Lucious Harris, is encouraging. Harris spent eleven years in the NBA with four different teams. He was a catalyst off the bench as a rugged role player with an ability to hit a 15 to 20-foot jump shot. The Long Beach product’s best season came in 2002-2003 with the Jason Kidd-led New Jersey Nets, when he started 25 games and averaged 10.3 points per game. 

OJ just hopes to excel; suffering loss more than most people by the age of 13, losing his mother as an infant and then four family members the following year to a house fire. The next year after that he lost his grandmother. Basketball has been a safe haven for the Seaside, California guard, who according to UCSB coach Bob Williams, is “the hardest worker,” “coachable,” and “all about winning.”

At the euphonious center of everything are his four brothers, who according to the guard “took care of everything for me and the only job for me to do was to get my high school and college diploma.” That commitment to family is what makes Johnson’s progression into the NBA ranks so special. 

“When he’s selected,” said Johnson’s oldest brother Damon Sr,”I will look up and thank my mother and grandmother for ordering his steps, protecting and guiding him this far and letting them know that we finally made it.”