Cal Poly men’s basketball started their 2021-22 regular season with an impressive 86-53 victory over Westcliff University on Tuesday, Nov. 9th in Motts Athletic Center.
“It’s always great to get a win,” head coach John Smith said. “Getting a win is hard to do at this level, and no matter who the opponent is, it’s always a great feeling.”
At the start of the first half, Cal Poly (1-0) got on the board first with a mid range jumper by graduate guard Jacob Davison just two minutes in.
Quickly to follow, both teams saw four concurrent lead changes and a short-lived 8-8 tie at 13:48 minutes.
“We know what we have to do on offense and on defense,” Davison said. “But when the other team starts coming to the basket, we sometimes falter on certain points, and we just have to remember to tighten up.”
Despite allowing Westcliff to produce successful rushes to the basket, Cal Poly eventually stepped it up throughout the opening half, going on a 15-2 run to grab a 19-8 lead.
The Warriors did limit Cal Poly to a single-digit lead five times, but the Mustangs still found themselves entering halftime with a comfortable lead at 32-23.
For the second half, the Mustangs carried the momentum of their competitive play over and distanced themselves from Westcliff on the scoreboard.
Cal Poly earned their biggest lead of the day of 35 points with only 10 seconds left on the clock. Westcliff was able to secure the last points of the game, but Cal Poly still came out on top 86-53.
Junior forward Alimamy Koroma led the Mustangs with 17 points and eight rebounds, while Davison closely followed with 14 points.
Freshman combo guard Daniel Esparza, freshman point guard Hayden Jory, and freshman center Matur Dhal recorded their first collegiate points.
The Mustangs will face North Dakota State as they go for back-to-back wins to open up their season on Friday, Nov. 12 at 2 p.m. inside Mott Athletics Center.