Marcellus Garrick – Junior – 6’4”, 190 lbs

By the Numbers:

Marcellus Garrick has potential to be an impact player on the 2018-19 iteration of the Cal Poly men’s basketball team. By Owen Main

27 Games

16.7 Minutes per game

6.5 Points per game

1.6 Rebounds per game

.4 Assists per game

41.2.% Field Goals

38.4% 3 Pointers

75.8 % Free Throws

A native of South Carolina, Garrick transferred to Cal Poly from local Alan Hancock College in Santa Maria prior to the 2017-18 season. The junior immediately showed some maturity and made an impact. Garrick scored in double-digits in four of Cal Poly’s first five games and had a season/career high 20 points in 30 minutes during a win over Pepperdine in the Mustangs’ 9th game of the season. When he’s rolling, Garrick’s energy on the floor can be electric. 

As conference approached, Cal Poly’s effectiveness started to wane and Garrick’s stats and playing time faded. Starting January 31st, Garrick did not play in three of five games. Over the last 10 games of the season, Garrick played in 7 contests, averaging just 10 minutes per game. 

Garrick’s versatility is something that should get fans and coaches excited. There are lots of creative ways he can be utilized on both ends of the floor. Garrick’s three-point shooting proved translatable to the next level, but he’s probably contributing best when that is only a part of his offensive repertoire. Garrick’s ability to be a secondary or tertiary decision-maker on offense will go a long way to how effective he is next season. One thing that can improve some is his handle. Joe Callero likes his seniors and guards to be primary  Better understanding how opponents are reacting to his attacking with the ball could help him find open teammates and be a playmaker for the Cal Poly offense. Getting him on the move offensively should probably be a priority.

On the defensive end, Garrick’s strength and length can be a real asset for the Mustangs.

As a recruit from a local junior college, Garrick’s appearance on the Cal Poly roster signaled the first time in the Joe Callero era that the Mustangs have tapped a local junior college (Cuesta or Hancock) recruit. For a low/mid-major program that doesn’t have great grad transfer options and has a hard time getting players into school, it seems like local JUCO interaction is something the Mustangs should be looking at on a more regular basis. Perhaps Garrick will signal more student athletes feeding from local JUCOs. 

Looking forward

For a team that doesn’t have many outspoken leaders, Garrick’s ability to lead as a senior next season could go a long way toward stabilizing the team’s confidence, attitude, and work ethic. Aside from Donovan Fields, Garrick I think has the most potential to be a force of nature on the court for Cal Poly next year. If he can improve his handles a little and make great decisions under duress, it would go a long way toward freeing-up Fields, Cal Poly’s post players, and taking some pressure off incoming players like Junior Ballard and Daxton Carr.

*Ed note: Over the next few weeks, we’ll be recapping the season of every Cal Poly player who played in 2017-18.

It was just an exhibition and it started like a first game might. In the end, a few new faces made their Mott Gym debuts and Cal Poly men’s basketball beat Cal State East Bay 72-66 on Thursday night. 

Pioneers keep it close

Cal State East Bay kept the game close throughout. A 22-12 first-half lead for Cal Poly was the game’s only double-digit deficit. CSU East Bay closed the gap to one at halftime and had a 43-40 lead with 13:37 to play in the game, before Cal Poly quickly reclaimed the advantage for good.

Josh Martin picked-up where he left off last season, tallying a double-double with 16 points and 10 rebounds. Marcellus Garrick scored 18 points off the bench and Donovan Fields scored 16 points and dished three assists.

Hancock College transfer Marcellus Garrick provided a spark off the bench in Cal Poly’s exhibition game on Thursday night. By Owen Main

Garrick makes an early impact

Marcellus Garrick seemed to make an immediate impact when he came onto the floor with 12:01 to play in the first half and the game tied at 10.

After missing a jumper, Garrick got two open court layups and a free throw to drop. In the second half, Garrick made a pair of late shot-clock three pointers and gave Cal Poly fans a number of breathers in a game that went down to the wire. 

Competition gets tougher

After beating Division II Cal State East Bay by six points in the Thursday exhibition, Cal Poly will face stiffer competition next week. The Mustangs will play at Pac 12 schools Stanford (Friday, 4pm) and Cal for games that count. The Mustangs have made a point to play multiple teams from power conferences in the preseason every year in recent memory, and this season is no different. 

While Stanford and Cal are probably the toughest two games on the schedule, Cal Poly will also play at SMU, University of Texas – Arlington, and in Florida against Bethune-Cookman (Daytona Beach).

This preseason also sees the Mustangs hosting more quality Division I opponents than they have in previous years. Cal Poly will see Pepperdine, Fresno State, and Princeton all visit Mott Athletics Center in December. 

Who’s The Voice?

Joe Callero described his team as one that gets along and has very good chemistry. He also acknowledged that players were maybe still trying to make sense of the difference between good, efficient offense and what overpassing or being too worried about getting teammates involved. I’m sure I butchered that paraphrase, so watch this postgame clip and read for yourself. 

Multiple options

At the end of last season, Cal Poly was down to a pair of consistent scoring options in Victor Joseph and Donovan Fields. As teams keyed on one slippery little guard, the Mustangs were able to simply go to the other. With the addition of Josh Martin (back from injury) and Garrick, Joseph and Fields struggled at times to find their rhythm. While Fields picked a few spots and was able to overcome some early missed layups and score 16 points, Joseph struggled all game and was held scoreless. A team that has lots of guys scoring probably gets along well, and can be weird to guard at times.

But teams like that are also sometimes inconsistent. Cal Poly has lots of players who could lead the team in scoring any given night. But a player with the consistency that’s needed to be able to produce, even when the other team’s goal is to stop that one player, is something they haven’t really had since Chris Eversley and David Nwaba. 

New Faces

Cal Poly started all players who were on the roster a year ago, including  redshirt freshman Mark Crowe who saw his first game action. Fans didn’t see any other new faces on the floor until Karlis Garoza checked in midway through the first half. In fact, Garoza and Marcellus Garrick were the only two “new” Mustangs to see time in the game. Eric Toles and Paulo Cruz — both of whom might compete this season with Garrick, Crowe, and Kuba Niziol for playing time — didn’t see the court.

Guard #2, and the 3

Cal State East Bay’s Druce Asah put on a little show.  looked right at home on a Division I floor. Cal State East Bay scored 18 of their first 28 points on three-pointers (6-8) while Cal Poly began the game 3-8 from downtown. Asah finished with a game-high 29 points, including 7-9 from three point range. 

Callero talked about an emphasis being put on defending the three-point line this year, but the Pioneers shot 12-22 for the game. Cal Poly will have to shore-up their defense on all levels if they want to stay close with the northern California Pac 12 schools they face this weekend. 

The first two official games of the season come on the road. They start Friday at 4:00pm vs. Stanford in Palo Alto and Sunday at 1:00pm vs. Cal in Berkeley. 

Photos by Owen Main.To view 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:

• 

  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. 

• 

  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. 

• 

  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. 

• 

  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. 

• 

  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. 

Joe Callero’s team could look REALLY different next season. By Owen Main

It’s the Spring, but it’s looking like Cal Poly basketball could look a whole lot different in the Fall. As many as five or six new faces could be on the roster in 2017-18. Cal Poly announced two weeks ago incoming freshmen Karlis Gāroza (6’9″ forward from Latvia) and Iziah James (6’0″ guard from Chesapeake, VA). Over the past few weeks, the Mustangs have received verbal commitments from three junior college players, including Eric Toles Jr. (6’4″ guard from Sierra College vis Consumnes Oaks High School in Elk Grove), Marcellus Garrick (6’4″ guard from Hancock College via Columbia, South Carolina), and DeAndre Stallings (6’7″ forward from Columbia College via Liberty Ranch High School in Galt). 

Stallings is a player who I profiled below who Cal Poly has not announced, though a newspaper article and twitter chatter indicated he had been offered and committed to the Mustangs for next season. All signs point to Stallings walking-on in the Fall. More information below on Stallings. 

There are now four scholarship players that are confirmed gone from the program. Zach Gordon and Ridge Shipley were seniors, Jaylen Shead left the team during last season, and Lucas Clark tweeted this week that Taylor Sutlive wouldn’t be back next season. 

Spoke with Cal Poly MBB coach Joe Callero tonight, who confirmed fourth-year junior guard Taylor Sutlive won't be back for a fifth season.

— Lucas Clark (@LucasClark_SLO) April 26, 2017

Cal Poly now sits at their limit of 13 scholarships.

Here’s a quick break down (and video if I could find it) of each of the new faces confirmed by Cal Poly.

Karlis Gāroza

He’ll be a 6’9″ center as a freshman and, if things go well, could compete for significant playing time. It’s hard to find any video on Gāroza — at least recent video. If you want to watch him play like two years ago, here’s just about the only thing I could find. The game is from the Latvian U-18 team playing against Sweden. 

Being a young student in a new country might seem tough, but Associate Head Coach Pawel Mrozik and teammate Kuba Nizioł would be reasons that the transition isn’t as difficult. 

Iziah James 

James is a 6-foot guard who, while taller than both Donovan Fields and Victor Joseph, seems to be in the mold of a small guard who can create and be a playmaker. 

Nicknamed “Man Man,” James’ highlight tape shows that he likes to run the middle of the fast break, played tough defense in high school, and can hit shots off the dribble. 

Because of his size and overlapping position, it’s unclear where James fits in in 2017-18. He could be a guy who redshirts and gets stronger while laying in wait. Or he could be a big-time playmaker who plays a complimentary role with Fields, Joseph, and the two incoming JuCo shooting guards. It’s hard to tell a lot from one tape, except that there are some translatable ball-handling and court awareness skills that James will bring to SLO. 

Eric Toles Jr. 

Eric Toles comes to Cal Poly after averaging 17 points and four rebounds per game at Sierra College last year. He can shoot off the dribble and scored 27 or more points in a game five times last year. His size as a guard gives Joe Callero s0me flexibility to use a number of different ways. I couldn’t find much recent video aside from the all star game at the bottom of the post, but here are a few high school highlight films from Toles. 

COMMITTED✅ pic.twitter.com/fZTBqBitVX

— Eric Toles⛹ (@Etoles_32) April 23, 2017

Marcellus Garrick

Garrick seems like he might be the most exciting of the three Junior College players. With two local JuCo’s in the area, I always thought it was interesting that Cal Poly hadn’t inked players from either Hancock or Cuesta in recent memory. 

Garrick fits the bill in terms of size, shooting ability, and athleticism. He made an official visit to Cal Poly this week and didn’t waste any time verbally committing on Twitter today. 

pic.twitter.com/ODl4F2YiDb

— M.Garrick (@CellusFlocka) April 27, 2017

His excitement to be at Cal Poly is something that locals will appreciate. “The 805 is like a second home to me,” the Columbia, South Carolina native said in his announcement. 

Garrick’s highlights aren’t as easily found on YouTube, but if you go to his Hudl page here, you can find some video. 

DeAndre Stallings

DeAndre Stallings has been something of a mystery, but things were cleared-up some when I was told that he’d likely be a walk-on next season. The Mustangs on Thursday announced the signing of the other two junior college players, but there has been no word on Stallings, which would be the case if he had agreed to walk-on. We’ll keep an eye on things moving forward. The link to the newspaper article below has a pretty sure tone to it in favor of Stallings going to Cal Poly.

Stallings is one of the more enticing players on paper. He scored 18 points and grabbed almost nine rebounds per game as a sophomore at Columbia College. He’s 6’7″ and seems to have an offensive skill set away from the basket. He shot almost eight threes per game last season, making 37.5 percent of them. How well those numbers translate to Division I basketball remains to be see, but with a big body and a somewhat polished junior college offensive game, it will be interesting. This video is of him in high school, but there are some more recent highlights in the longer video of the all star game above.

Here’s a good recent article about Stallings. It seems he impressed at a recent open gym and the Mustangs were quick to make an offer. 

The All NORCAL Games

First of all, sorry for subjecting you all to my deep dives, but found this gem from earlier this month.

At about 13:30 of this video, the game goes from being unwatchable to two Cal Poly guys going back to back from downtown as Toles and Garrick drain three-pointers. Stallings gets into the mix and the three all have their moments. If you have 80 minutes to kill (and don’t want to watch the grass grow) you can watch this game. Once you’ve scrubbed the timeline on it, the right arrow will help you get through it faster. Look for number six on both teams and Stallings is one of the tall guys in gold. 

Garrick actually hits a pair of threes in a row. If you keep watching and can stand the pace and style of play. I guess if nothing else you can get an idea about how they move, how big these guys are, and how they look on a basketball court against other players who are probably being recruited to play at the next level.

Odds and Ends

I was sad to see that Taylor Sutlive won’t be back next season. Taylor has always been kind, gracious, and nothing but positive in my interactions with him. He seems to carry himself with a little more grace and maturity than most athletes his age. He’s a player whose body didn’t hold its end of the bargain. Multiple injuries contributed to him not being on the court as much as anyone originally planned last season. I have no doubt that he’ll be successful in whatever he sets his mind to. 

Here’s a Sutlive highlight video:

Sutlive’s departure along with Gordon, Shipley, and Shead, seems to leave the Mustangs one scholarship short. 

Perhaps the release we’re expecting Thursday will have more details.

As I said last night, expecting a full release Thursday from Cal Poly with official news on the most recent additions.

— Lucas Clark (@LucasClark_SLO) April 26, 2017

Six or SEVEN(?!) Different guys?

With the addition of five new players, Cal Poly could have seven players contributing in 2017-18 who didn’t see any time in the Big West last year. Mark Crowe is an athletic swing man who redshirted last season and Josh Martin was injured shortly after starting last season with a 22 rebound performance at Pepperdine. 

While we don’t know exactly what next year’s roster will look like, we have a general idea now. Cal Poly is infusing a lot of new players. The question of how good they really are and how well they gel together is one for the Fall.

Another development I saw this week was the commitment of a player from the Central Valley. Jared Rice is a 5’11” guard with decent handles who will apparently walk-on for Joe Callero’s squad. This is as much as I know about him. 

Committed pic.twitter.com/Sy0UFgLXMD

— JayRice (@jayyyrice) April 18, 2017

With the knowledge that one or two things could easily change, here’s the roster as we know it now:

Aleks Abrams

Trevor John

Donovan Fields

Mark Crowe

Josh Martin

Victor Joseph

Luke Meikle

Josh Mishler

Hank Hollingsworth

Kuba Nizioł

Karlis Gāroza

Iziah James

Eric Toles

Marcellus Garrick

DeAndre Stallings 

Jared Rice