As the Mustangs continued to turn the ball over and over again against UC Riverside on Thursday, Jan. 11, at Mott Athletic Center, head coach Shanele Stires stood on the sideline, arms crossed, without saying much.
“Next play!” Stires said as the Highlanders scored 14 fastbreak points.
After the handshake line, Stires beelined for the locker room. The team took a longer-than-usual postgame discussion before coming to interviews.
“One of the things we’ve struggled with all year is that we don’t have a true point guard,” Stires said after the game. “We’re doing it by committee. Everybody has to make great decisions and we’ve got to get better at handling pressure.”
The Mustang made a late rally and held the Highlanders without a field goal for 14 minutes, but ultimately couldn’t pick up their fourth win of the Big West in a 64-53 loss.
Riverside’s Defensive Intensity Leads to Mustang Turnovers
Turnovers and handling ball pressure have been an issue all season for the Mustangs. In the first quarter, the Highlanders forced five turnovers and turned takeaways into six points.
After the first quarter, UC Riverside started pressing the Mustangs, which led to more turnovers. Cal Poly would lose the ball in the backcourt and not get a chance to even get into the halfcourt.
When the Mustangs did bring the ball up the floor, the Highlanders pressed ball handlers and played tight to players without the ball. The Mustangs had trouble entering the ball to run their sets. The team never found an offensive rhythm.
Coming into the third, the Mustangs had only shot one three-pointer. Freshman forward started to pull from three-point range and Mary Carter hit three threes.
The Mustangs started the half, returning the favor to Riverside by picking up full court and forcing some Highlander turnovers. Junior guard Sidney Richards drew two charges to give the Mustangs some momentum going into the fourth.
The Highlanders wouldn’t make a field goal in the last four minutes of the third quarter, as their lead remained at 13 going into the fourth.
The Highlanders stretched the lead to, at one point, 20 points, but the Mustangs’ defense stifled them.
For the final 14 minutes of the game, the Mustangs held the Highlanders to zero, made field goals, and forced 11 Highlander turnovers, but it wasn’t enough.
Carter finished the game with 18 points in just 21 minutes. No other Mustang was in double figures. Every Mustang who played more than five minutes had at least one turnover.
The Mustangs will go on the road to take on UC San Diego on Saturday, Jan. 13.