Luke Meikle – Senior – 6’9”, 209 lbs

By the Numbers:

Luke Meikle celebrates after Cal Poly’s win over UCSB in January. By Owen Main

31 Games

25.5 Minutes per game

8.7 Points per game

4.3 Rebounds per game

1.2 Assists per game

37.2.% Field Goals

33.3% 3 Pointers

85.7 % Free Throws

Luke Meikle was one of the first transfers Cal Poly was able to get to commit to school after they won the NCAA tournament. The fact that he was 6’9″ with a diversified skill set and coming from a power school like Gonzaga seemed to bode really well for Joe Callero and Cal Poly. 

Early in his Cal Poly career, Meikle fought through some lingering injuries. In his senior season, he was one of just five Mustangs to play all 31 games, starting 29. Meikle’s polished offensive moves in the post and confidence from mid-range and three-point range were assets to the Mustangs’ attack during his senior campaign. 

Three freebies FTW

The highlight of Cal Poly’s season, and probably Meikle’s, came when the senior drew a shooting foul with .3 seconds left in Cal Poly’s season opener against UCSB. Meikle made three free throws to secure the first of Cal Poly’s four conference victories.

The craziest part was, when asked about it after the game, Meikle said it wasn’t the first time he’d made free throws with basically no time left to win. He said it was on YouTube. He was telling the truth. 

Meikle scored in double digits in 12 of Cal Poly’s games. He seemed at his best when he drew fouls and got himself to the free throw line, where he was very good. 

Watching Luke for three seasons, it always seemed he was between positions at this level and with this program. Meikle worked extremely hard and was savvy in getting himself decent looks without extreme athleticism. Defensively, he fought and generally gave what he could give. 

During the middle of conference play, Meikle probably found his biggest stride individually, scoring in double-digits in five of seven games, averaging 12 points per game during that stretch. 

I think in a perfect world, Joe Callero might have had the opportunity to play the versatile Meikle at different positions more often or against some of the other team’s reserves. Instead, on a team that didn’t have much in terms of real, back to the basket, offensively polished bigs, Meikle often bared the lion’s share of whatever load was put on Cal Poly’s forwards. 

Going Pro

Meikle’s polished skillset got him a look at the World Wide Invitational, which will give him a chance to show what he’s got and try to play hoops professionally. In reality, Meikle’s offensive game — range out to the three point line and nifty pivot moves around the hoop — could be a better fit for a professional league that is more based on individual matchups than stifling, lane-filling team defense like the Big West turns into late in the year. 

In another universe, Meikle’s sophomore or junior seasons might have been really successful for Cal Poly as a team and for Luke individually. I’m sure if you asked him, basketball didn’t go exactly as planned over the past three years. 

In the longest game in their history in Division I, Cal Poly hung close with Big West rival UC Davis, but the Aggies scored 17 points in the third overtime period to pull away and win 92-84 on Thursday night at Mott Athletics Center.

The loss drops Cal Poly’s record in Conference play to 3-9, tied for 7th place, but just one game ahead of the 9th spot in the conference. With games against CSUN (next Thursday) and at UC Riverside (a week after that) on the horizon, Cal Poly nearly clawed out of the hole and vaulted themselves into sole posession of 7th place. Instead, the Mustangs were left wondering what happened. 

Cal Poly shouldn’t have been in the game at all. After failing to make a field goal for nearly eight minutes in the game, the Mustangs, miraculously, were only behind by nine points at halftime — a reasonable deficit for a team that only scored 18 points in the period. 

In the second half, Cal Poly seemed to have snatched the momentum. With 3:10 left in the game, Aleks Abrams made a layup to put Cal Poly up by five points. — their largest lead. Just 19 seconds later, UC Davis got Michael Onyebalu an open look from deep that he knocked down. After a missed shot, the Aggies’ Rogers Printup made another three. In two possessions, Cal Poly’s five point lead had turned into a one point deficit.

The triple overtime game was the first since the early 80’s for a program that moved to Division I in the 90’s. 

Clutch moments

There are bound to be tons of clutch moments in a triple overtime game. Down by two points with 11 seconds left, Siler Schneider made two free throws for UC Davis. The first two overtimes featured the two teams going a combined 10-10 from the free throw line. After another Onyebalu three pointer put Davis up by three points in the final minute of the second extra frame, Luke Meikle answered with an open triple with 36 seconds to go to effectively earn the third overtime. 

Third time’s a charm

After scoring just 11 points total in the first two overtimes, UC Davis exploded for 17 in the final period. Siler Schneider scored the first four points of the third OT. Schneider had 8 of his 16 points during the third OT. Onyebalu finished with a game-high 24 points on 5-7 from three point range for UC Davis.

No Chima, no problem

Still without the preseason player of the year favorite Chima Moneke, UC Davis was outrebounded 53-41 (17-9 on the offensive glass), but still managed to hold onto the win. One reason was the turnover disparity. Cal Poly committed 21 — three games’ worth just a few years ago — while UC Davis turned it over just 13 times. The Aggies also held a 27-12 advantage in points off turnovers. 

Mustang leaders

Luke Meikle led the Mustangs with 21 points. Victor Joseph shot just 2-7 from three point range, but managed 19 points and three assists. Donovan Fields, who was hobbled with foul trouble all night, shot just 1-8 from the field for 4 points to go along with 8 rebounds and 6 assists. Kuba Niziol came to play, shooting all 12 of his shots from distance and making five of them for 15 points and seven rebounds. 

Two unlikely sources of production and crunch time minutes were Aleks Abrams and Trevor John. Abrams came off the bench to notch his first career double-double (11 points, 11 rebounds). The junior from Oaks Christian High School also notched three blocks in the game. John made a two-pointer, 2-3 from deep, and a pair of free throws for 10 points. 

Davis D

UC Davis’ defense was pretty well-executed in this game. The Aggies worked hard for 55 minutes to deny Cal Poly passes. There were possessions late in the game after Fields fouled-out where the Mustangs had a difficult time moving the ball beyond their three point line. 

The proof is in the numbers too. Cal Poly shot just 34.7 percent from the field for the game and just 32.5 percent from two point range. 

No rest for the weary

Cal Poly will host UC Irvine (8-4, 13-15, second place) on Saturday night. The Anteaters will be stinging still from a low-scoring loss at Hawai’i. Cal Poly fans will hope that UCI is road-weary — there are no direct flights to SLO from Hawai’i. 

Cal Poly out-rebounded UC Davis on Thursday night, but UC Irvine is one of the best rebounding teams in the nation. Look for Cal Poly’s big-man play on Saturday. It could be the fulcrum of Cal Poly’s ability to leverage their way into another home conference win. 

Photos by Owen Main.

For more photos click here. If you just want to contribute to the cause, Venmo @Owen-Main or paypal owen@fansmanship.com. 

A lot can happen in one second. 

On Thursday night in a crowded-for-the-students-not-being-there Mott Athletics Center, Cal Poly overcame a 21-point first half deficit and a two-point deficit with one second to play to beat rival UCSB 80-79 in their Big West Conference opener. 

With fifteen seconds to play, Cal Poly’s Donovan Fields scored on a knifing left-handed layup to tie the game at 77. On the ensuing posession, UCSB’s Max Heidegger canned a long jumper to put the Gauchos up by two points with just a second left. 

The Gauchos celebrated. UCSB’s Jalen Canty gave a “shhh” signal to the Cal Poly fans. It was Orlando Johnson and James Nunnally all over again. Or so it seemed. 

Luke Meikle made three big free throws with the game on the line. By Owen Main

After a Cal Poly timeout, Fields used a Marcellus Garrick screen on the man guarding the in-bounds pass, and threw a length-of-the-court pass to Luke Meikle, who hesitated before shooting. It was less than a second, but enough to get the desired result. Meikle’s hesitation got Canty in the air. Canty bumped Meikle as he shot the ball and time expired. After a lengthy review, the officials determined that Meikle was fouled before time expired and awarded the fifth-year senior three free throws. Meikle made all three, sealing Cal Poly’s unlikely Blue-Green Rivalry victory. 

The win over the potential conference favorites moves Cal Poly to 1-0 in Big West play and dropped the Gauchos to 0-1. 

Blue start

I’m like 300-plus words in and I haven’t talked about the start. It was ugly for the home team. UCSB started the game up 23-2 and 27-6 with 11:09 left in the first half. Gabe Vincent couldn’t miss. Gaucho big men were getting to the line. Cal Poly was turning the ball over and getting really bad looks at the basket.

Joe Callero tried everything for about five minutes. He put Mark Crowe in the game and tried a 1-3-1 defense. Heidegger drained a three-pointer. He put Karlis Garoza in. Players rotated in and out like crazy, and it was hard to get traction. Trevor John came in and made a three-pointer. Things started to look up. Donovan Fields and Victor Joseph started to push the ball and not worry about running half-court offense. 

UCSB missed a few shots and the Mustangs inched closer. A single digit deficit at halftime would have been a huge win for Cal Poly. But the Mustangs did better than that, cutting the lead to four points at the break. less than a minute into the second half, Cal Poly tied the game. 

Second half rock fight

The second half went something like this. Cal Poly had no answer for Jalen Canty. The sophomore had just four points in the first half, but managed 17 in the second. UCSB had no answer for Donovan Fields. Fields played a great floor game with 22 points, 6 assists, and no turnovers.

Back and forth they went — the lead changed thirteen times in the final half, and twice in the final second of the game. 

Green Finish

Cal Poly doesn’t usually win these kinds of gams. I can remember distinctly a UC Irvine player open in the corner for a pass from Mamadou Ndiaye at the buzzer, a James Nunnally buzzer beater, and an Orlando Johnson shot that bounced off the rim, hit the moon, and barely touched the net as it went in at the buzzer. 

For once, Cal Poly found a way to win a game like this. It’s safe to say that this is a game fans will be talking about for a long time. 

Cal Poly hosts Cal State Fullerton at Mott Athletics Center on Saturday night. Tip-off is 7:00pm.

Photos by Owen Main

For more photos click here. If you just want to contribute to the cause, Venmo @Owen-Main or paypal owen@fansmanship.com. 

Joe Callero’s Cal Poly men’s basketball team had their first official practice of the season on Friday afternoon. With six brand new faces to the program and two other players who didn’t really play at all last season, this team will go as far as it can
Roster construction

In terms of total number of players who can be solid contributors, this team looks a lot like the Mustangs of two years ago to me. There are probably 12 guys who could easily be in the top seven in the rotation. That could be really good for things like depth, withstanding injuries throughout the season, and competitive practices. Still, there are only five players on the court at any one time, and players who can separate themselves will be something fans can look for early in the season. 

New guys

Other than DeAndre Stallings not coming to campus, I outlined Cal Poly’s new guys here. One thing that struck me is the real length of Marcellus Garrick and Eric Toles. They are both listed at 6′ 4″, but they are well-sized for wings in the Big West Conference. When you have to go against longer wings like Khalil Ahmad and Jackson Rowe from Fullerton, CSUN’s Michael Warren and Kobe Paras, and others, it’s nice to have some depth to match-up with those guys. Here are a few thoughts about some of the new players, based on one day of practice:

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  Iziah James is a strong looking freshman. By Owen Main

  Iziah James (Freshman, Chesapeke, VA) — He’s slightly taller than Donovan Fields and Victor Joseph, but is built a little stronger. James seems to have a confident floor presence. Being a young point guard under Joe Callero can be tough. It will be interesting to see how James responds throughout the season. James’ social media accounts refer to him as ManMan, and I actually heard some guys calling him this in practice. So, he’s instantly got the best nickname on the team. 

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  Eric Toles has a nice all-around game with length to be disruptive on both ends as a guard. By Owen Main

  Eric Toles (Junior, Sierra College) — Toles is long and thin. He handles the ball well for how long he is. The big thing I wanted to see about some of the new guys was how they shoot, and nobody’s shot looks broken. Toles has been around campus and I caught him at the Cal Poly vs. San Jose State football game, so he’s already engaging in some school spirit and what’s going on around campus. Toles has a smoothness about his game that makes me think he’s the kind of guy who could fly under the radar and end up with like 10 points, 6 rebounds, and 4 assists in a given game while filling-in gaps all over the floor. 

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  Marcellus Garrick is probably the most physically impressive of the incoming players. By Owen Main

  Marcellus Garrick (Junior, Alan Hancock College) — Garrick could be the yin to Toles’ yang. They are roughly the same size (about 6’4″) and the two players do a lot of the same things. Callero discussed using both of them at the top of a 1-3-1 defense. In contrast to Toles’ fluid movement, Garrick is a whirling dervish. The Hancock College product is the stronger of the two, but also has a good looking jumper and figures to be disruptive on defense as well. 

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  Paulo Cruz shouldn’t have a problem with poise and his jumper looks niiice. By Owen Main

  Paulo Cruz (Junior, University of Arizona) — Cruz sat on the bench in a top-25 program for the past two seasons. He’s Cal Poly quarterback Khaleel Jenkins’ former high school teammate and, like Garrick and Toles, is a legit 6’4″. Cruz’ jumper might be the most pure out of the three. You have to think that having practiced with and against some high major talent over the past few years will be impactful in terms of experience and ability to step into game situations Cal Poly experiences, especially at the beginning of the season. 

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  Kārlis Garoza has been a decorated youth athlete in Latvia. By Owen Main

  Kārlis Garoza (Freshman, Latvia) — Gāroza started as the center on a U-18 Latvian National Team at the end of 2016. His finishing under the hoop was confident, but playing time for Gāroza will likely depend on how quickly he can pick up on defensive concepts, protect the rim on that end of the floor, and finish possessions with rebounding. With Luke Meikle, Josh Martin, Hank Hollingsworth, and Aleks Abrams all upper-classmen, I wouldn’t be surprised if Garoza redshirted. But that was not a question I asked Callero on Friday and that would be pure speculation on my part. Maybe a three-man center rotation along with Hollingsworth and Abrams will be an effective and competitve thing too. 

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  Jared Rice will look to compete all season as a walk-on from Modesto. By Owen Main

  Jared Rice (Freshman, Modesto, CA) — Rice is a walk-on who Callero praised after practice on Friday. He already has the thickest shoulders of any of Cal Poly’s small guards and plays with some swagger. His shot looks confident too. Like I said about James, it’s demanding to be a young point guard at Cal Poly. Rice will likely give Cal Poly some roster flexibility if there are injuries. He’s already impressed the coaching staff. 

Back on the floor

I’m convinced Mark Crowe will be an impact player as a redshirt freshman during his second year on campus. By Owen Main

Two players who will probably have big impacts this season are back on the floor for Cal Poly. Josh Martin, who missed all but the first few games last season with an injury, is back. Martin had 21 rebounds in the season opener last season before injuring his leg. He was practicing without any kind of brace or observable ill effects on Friday. 

Mark Crowe will be kind of a wildcard for the Mustangs this season. Crowe redshirted during his first year in San Luis Obispo. He has an athletic, 6’5″ frame, allowing him to play probably either the 3 or 4 for this year’s Cal Poly team. He has a decent looking jumper and good instincts from what I saw. For anyone who saw Cal Poly’s layup line last season, you have to be excited about what Crowe might bring. 

So, that’s eight players who are “new” faces on a 15-man roster. Aside from Victor Joseph and Donovan Fields getting significant minutes alongside veterans Luke Meikle and Josh Martin early in the season, I am completely clueless about how the rest of the minutes shake out right now. There are guys competing for time at virtually every position. 

Photos by Owen Main. For more photos, click here.If you just want to contribute to the cause, Venmo @Owen-Main or paypal owen@fansmanship.com. 

Luke Meikle has an advanced offensive game for a big man. By Owen Main

Cal Poly fans had to wait over 12 months. Luke Meikle had to wait more like 18. Cal Poly’s red-headed red-shirt sophomore didn’t play in an NCAA game for about a year and half — sitting out the 2014-15 season after transferring from Gonzaga. In street clothes next to fellow transfer Josh Martin and injured Taylor Sutlive and Zach Gordon, Meikle and co. could only watch as the Mustangs struggled to a 13-16 overall record (6-10 in the Big West).

For Cal Poly fans, Meikle has been worth the wait. The 6’9″ forward from the Seattle area has been able to showcase his mature offensive game of late, scoring in double figures in each of the Mustangs’ last four games. Meikle can break defenders down off the dribble, play with his back to the basket, or spot-up out to the three-point line. After averaging just seven points per game in Cal Poly’s first five games this season, he’s averaged 15.5 points in the last four games. His scoring average now is over 10 points per game, good enough for third on the team so far this season.

Meikle has done most of his damage as a substitute. Coming off the bench can be hard for some players, but Meikle said in a post-game interview before finals week that he is happy to accept whatever role he needs to play. He has been limited to 20 minutes per game so far, but that figures to go up as his production does, whether he starts or not.

Fellow Seattle-area transfer Josh Martin (Minnesota) should become eligible soon as well. Martin will also come off the bench and give Cal Poly maybe the best pair of reserve post players in the Big West.

Meikle’s biggest scoring games this year have been against two of Cal Poly’s best opponents — UCLA and St. Mary’s. In each of those games, he scored 18 points. He’s the kind of player who doesn’t have to dominate the ball, but can get his own shot when he needs to.

Meikle and the Mustangs face another tough Pac-12 test tomorrow night at the Galen Center against 8-2 USC. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:00pm.

Luke Meikle and Taylor Sutlive were each 5-5 from the field and combined for 31 points as Cal Poly held Fresno State to 24 first-half points en route to a 77-65 victory. Meikle averaged 15.5 points off the bench in two home games this week, showing his offensive versatility making outside shots and taking the ball to the basket against bigger opponents.

Sutlive has shown patience throughout the beginning of the season, not forcing shots and taking open looks.

Sutlive was 3-3 from three point range, but head coach Joe Callero was more impressed with Sutlive and the rest of the team’s ability to defend Fresno State and not give up wide open shots like they did on Thursday night against IPFW. Callero said they gave up 20 wide-open looks against IPFW. Fresno State hardly got any.

Cal Poly built their lead over 10 points less than two minutes into the second half. Fresno State cut the lead to eight points at the 14:23 mark of the second half, but an ensuing Sutlive three-pointer pushed it back to 11 and Cal Poly lead by double-digits the rest of the night.

Statland

Cal Poly won despite taking 25 fewer shots than Fresno State — the Bulldogs took 69 shots to Cal Poly’s 44. Cal Poly’s starters were just 4-14 from three-point range, but the bench was a combined 4-8 to help the Mustangs stay over 36 percent for the game. David Nwaba filled-up the box score with 9 points, 8 rebounds, and 7 assists.

Up next

Cal Poly now has finals week off before traveling to Moraga to play at St. Mary’s next Monday. They’ll follow that up with a trip to USC before playing three road games in Texas before the first of the year and the start of Big West Conference play.

Photos by Owen Main

Missed layups. Missed free throws. Wide open looks for the opponent. These are not ways to win basketball games.

Luke Meikle dropped 16 points on Thursday night, but it wasn’t enough to get Cal Poly over the top against the IPFW Mastadons. By Owen Main

On Thursday night at Mott Athletic Center, Cal Poly men’s basketball was just not sharp enough to beat a game IPFW team that made 8-12 three-pointers in the first half. With the game tied at 73, guard Mo Evans made a clutch pull-up jumper to beat the Mustangs by two.

Cal Poly is now 4-3 this season.

Luke Meikle scored a quiet 16 points off the bench — if there is such a thing. David Nwaba dropped in a frustrated 11 points on 4-11 shooting from the floor and Reese Morgan added 10 off the bench. As a team, Cal Poly was 7-17 from behind the arc, but the starters were just 2-10 on the night. Cal Poly left at least 10-12 easy points out there, missing a number of layups, not to mention missed free throws.

Cal Poly shot 12-20 (60%) from the free throw line for the game.

But head coach Joe Callero was most disappointed after the game with his team’s lack of ability to stop dribble penetration and in his team’s help defense and overall defensive effort, which he said needs to improve.

All eyes will be on Joe Callero’s team Saturday night in their final non-conference home game of the season vs. Fresno State. The Bulldogs are 6-1 overall, but got a little scare of their own on Thursday night against NAIA squad The Masters College.

The Saturday doubleheader starts with the women’s game at 4:00pm — also against Fresno State. Cal Poly’s women’s team beat Pepperdine in Malibu earlier in the week behind a strong performance from Hannah Gilbert.

The men’s game follows at 7:00 at Mott.

Photos by Owen Main

Luke Meikle could add more front court depth to the Cal Poly roster. Photo by Torrey Vail.

Last season, Cal Poly added two junior college transfers who made an immediate impact on the court. Over the past weekend, reports surfaced that Callero is at it once again, landing Gonzaga 6’9″ forward Luke Meikle. Meikle will have to sit-out the 2014-15 season per NCAA rules and will have two or three years of eligibility remaining once he gets on the court at Mott Athletics Center.

Meikle, who played sparingly last season, only has a few videos up on YouTube from his high school days. What they show is a forward with a decent-looking jumper and a little athleticism. His VerbalCommits.com page has a few minutes of game action, again from high school. Meikle’s red hair harkens to images of other redheads to play for Callero. Anthony Silvestri, a senior-to-be on Cal Poly’s roster, has walked-on and earned a scholarship for his senior season. Brian Scalabrine, who Callero coached at USC, went on to have a nice NBA career.

As many Big West coaches do, Callero has relied heavily on transfers to fill various roles during his time at Cal Poly. Many have played integral roles in building to last season — the program’s first NCAA Tournament appearance and tournament victory. Amaurys Fermin (Hagerstown Community College), Will Taylor (Hagerstown Community College), Will Donahue (Phoenix College), Chris O’Brien (San Francisco), Drake U’u (Hartford), Chris Eversley (Rice), David Nwaba (Santa Monica College), Michael Bolden (Irvine Valley College), and Alberto Ganis (Miramar College) all came to San Luis Obispo as transfers. (Did I miss anybody?) Along with Kyle Toth (Army), Meikle can now be added to this list.

Kyle Toth Photo below courtesy of Army Athletic Communications. Alberto Ganis photo courtesy of Cal Poly Athletic Communications.