POMONA, Calif. - The 25th-ranked Cal Poly Pomona men's basketball team produced its second comfortable victory over a local rival this weekend, dispatching Cal State Dominguez Hills, 74-55, in California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) action inside Kellogg Arena on Saturday night.
A fourth-consecutive win has pushed CPP to 12-3 overall and 8-2 in the CCAA. Cal State Dominguez Hills lost its third-straight game and fifth in its last six, falling to an even 8-8 overall and 4-6 in league play.
With UC San Diego and Cal State San Bernardino both also winners on Saturday, the Broncos are now up in a three-way tie for second behind the Tritons (15-1, 9-1 CCAA), with the Coyotes and idle Chico State.
Having achieved overall career win No. 400 on Dec. 5, 20th-year Cal Poly Pomona head coach
Greg Kamansky reached another milestone with his 300th CCAA triumph.
Fourth-year senior
Riley Schaefer finished with his first collegiate double-double of 21 points and 10 rebounds, adding three assists, one steal and a block. Seventeen of those points came in the first half. He shot 7-of-13 from the field, 3-of-5 from three-point range and 4-of-4 from the line on the night. The Temecula product shared the game high with junior teammate
Phoenix Shackelford, while equaling his career best. Schaefer's 10th board was credited with just a single second remaining on the clock, for his best rebounding effort as a Bronco.
Schaefer and the Toros' Wonder Smith traded three-point baskets for a third tie score in the early going at 7-7 heading into the first media timeout at the 14:52 mark. Consecutive three-pointers by Toros Colten Kresl and Smith around a triple by Bronco
BJ Standley within 52 seconds of each other, left the score at 13-12 in favor of CSUDH.
Schaefer hit his second long-range attempt, followed by a steal and fast-break layup by Standley, who was fouled and knocked down the free throw around the under-12 timeout, for an 18-13 lead by the hosts.
Cal Poly Pomona came out of the under-eight break and extended to a double-figure advantage for the first time at 25-15 on Standley's right-handed driving layup high off the glass, and then again moments later as senior
Nikhil Peters got his first triple to go down for 28-18.
Schaefer hit the turnaround jumper and looked to have slapped the ball away on the other end, where Standley was given the steal before feeding longtime teammate
Tavian Henderson for a dunk with a look-away pass, necessitating a first called timeout by the Toros, 32-18.
That run grew to 9-0 coming out of the stoppage as Schaefer picked up a steal and drove the length of the court for an easy layup and 34-18 bulge.
Shackelford dribbled into the lane from the left side and completed a three-point play to snap a 4-0 mini-run for the visitors. Following another 5-0 stretch to bring CSUDH back within 10, Schaefer's fadeaway jumper at the horn gave CPP a 39-27 halftime advantage.
Cal State Dominguez Hills continued to chip away at its deficit, coming out of the locker room with back-to-back Kaden Bradley buckets to get it to single digits. A Smith triple made it 39-34 as CPP called for time.
Shackelford put an end to all that by picking up an awry Toro pass and going the other way for the lay-in. Later, the Broncos regained a 12-point cushion at 52-40 courtesy of a 7-0 run, getting three tough, driving layups in a row by senior
William Christmas with an and-one free throw, Christmas again, and redshirt junior
Mason Dickerson.
Nick Kornieck answered a Shackelford three-pointer to make it a 55-45 game at the under-12 timeout. That exchange preceded back-to-back two-point buckets by Shackelford for 59-47.
CSUDH made one final run at it with six straight points to get to 62-53, but Shackelford responded with a three-point play on another driving layup. CPP ultimately ended the game by scoring the last nine points.
Shackelford fell one point shy of his career high with his 21, making 8-of-12 field goals and all four free throws. Standley added 13 points, five rebounds, three assists, two steals and a block. Christmas, who was under the weather and did not start, came alive after the interval to the tune of seven big points to thwart rally attempts, along with six boards.
Kornieck and Smith had 15 points apiece for the Toros, with Bradley contributing 13 and eight boards. Smith led all players with six assists.
Cal Poly Pomona is on the road in the week ahead with a pair of short trips south into San Diego County. The Broncos are up against No. 6 UC San Diego Thursday night in a huge showdown between nationally-ranked league heavyweights. Tipoff is slated for 8:02 p.m. from RIMAC Arena in La Jolla, with free coverage on
ESPN3. The contest kicks off a third and final three-game road stretch for CPP this season. The Tritons took a 66-56 decision in the first meeting in Pomona back on Dec. 22.
Bronco Bits: Cal Poly Pomona started a fourth different lineup this season of seniors
Nikhil Peters and
Riley Schaefer, and juniors
Tavian Henderson,
Phoenix Shackelford and
BJ Standley ... It marked a fourth start in succession for Standley, and a first start as a Bronco for longtime teammate Henderson ...
Justin Young missed his second-straight game due to injury after 88-consecutive appearances, and just the third contest of his career, while fellow fourth-year senior
William Christmas entered off the bench ... Schaefer has four 20-point games this year, including two in a row, and five in his career ... The Broncos are 4-2 at home ... These teams split two meetings a year ago, each winning by five points at home ... CPP has taken six of its last seven against the Toros, and 11-straight matchups in Pomona ironically since a 58-49 loss (Jan. 15) during the 2009-10 national championship season, including a first-round affair of the 2018 CCAA Tournament ... The Broncos will face Cal State Dominguez Hills again on Thursday, Feb. 20, in Carson ... CPP has won 10 of its last 11 contests ...
Greg Kamansky is 406-162 (.715) over his career and 300-116 (.721) in CCAA games.