Cal Poly Heads to Hawai’i for Feb. 5-6 Series

Friday, February 5

Honolulu, O'ahu

9 p.m.

Hawai'i

Photo by: Owen Main | Cal Poly Athletics

Cal Poly Heads to Hawai’i for Feb. 5-6 Series

2/4/2021 11:48:00 AM | Men's Basketball

CAL POLY UPDATED PLAYER GAME HIGHS

SAN LUIS OBISPO – The Cal Poly men's basketball program resumes its season series with Hawai'i, visiting the SimpliFi Arena at Stan Sheriff Center for matchups on Friday, Feb. 5 and Saturday, Feb. 6. Tip time is 9 p.m. PT (7 p.m. HT) both evenings for Cal Poly (3-11, 1-7), which previously had a scheduled bye week for the Big West Conference's Feb. 5-6 competition dates. Hawai'i (5-5, 3-5), meanwhile, was scheduled to visit UC San Diego. Late Tuesday, the Hawai'i and UC San Diego athletics departments mutually decided to cancel the series and Cal Poly – originally scheduled to face Hawai'i Dec. 27-28 before that series was abandoned due to COVID-related issues – agreed to re-visit the Rainbow Warriors. Cal Poly, which split its Jan. 29-30 home matchup against CSUN, seeks its first road victory since Jan. 31, 2019 to snap a 27-game slide. Hawai'i, playing the second of three successive home Big West series, split last week's set against conference leader UC Irvine.

FOLLOW CAL POLY THIS WEEK: Chris Sylvester provides play-by-play for Cal Poly's Feb. 5-6 series at Hawai'i for ESPN 1280 in San Luis Obispo County and on GoPoly.com HERE … live stats and streaming video of both matchups will also be available via GoPoly.com HERE.

CAL POLY VERSUS HAWAI'I: While the Mustangs have handed Hawai'i defeats on the mainland in each of the last three seasons, Cal Poly is seeking its first victory inside the Stan Sheriff Center since a 61-57 overtime victory on Jan. 7, 2015. Winless in the islands for five straight seasons, Cal Poly trails in the all-time series versus Hawai'i, 11-8.

A REVISED BIG WEST SCHEDULE FOR 2020-21: This season's Big West schedule was expanded from 16 games to 18 following the offseason additions of CSU Bakersfield (joining from the Western Athletic Conference) and UC San Diego (making its Division I debut and playing Big West programs with results not counted in the standings). Modified to reduce travel and emphasize safety, the Big West schedule has been altered so that teams play the same opponent on consecutive days at one site. Each Big West program will play its conference schedule over an 11-week period with one bye week. Games will not be rescheduled should a program need to quarantine during the season. Tie-breaking procedures shall be utilized at the end of the regular season.

THE STAN SHERIFF CONNECTION: With Cal Poly making its 11th all-time visit to Hawai'i, Cal Poly shares an historic link with the Stan Sheriff Center's namesake. An All-America selection in football at Cal Poly, Sheriff (1950-54) was a charter member of the Cal Poly Athletics Hall of Fame. An NFL standout with the Los Angeles Rams, Pittsburgh Steelers, San Francisco 49ers and Cleveland Browns, Sheriff was the head coach at Northern Iowa for 23 years before becoming Hawai'i's Director of Athletics in 1983.

KOROMA'S SUPERB SOPHOMORE EFFORT: Cal Poly's leader with eight double-digit scoring games this season after recording just three in 26 appearances last winter, sophomore forward Alimamy Koroma enters the program's Feb. 5-6 series at Hawai'i first in the lineup with 11.9 points per game. Averaging 13.0 points per Cal Poly's last five outings, Koroma most recently scored a career best 20 points to help fuel the program's 76-70 Jan. 29 home victory against CSUN. Now averaging 7.4 points per 38 collegiate games, Koroma – after grabbing a season high nine rebounds against CSUN (Jan. 29) – ranks second in the lineup with 5.4 rebounds per game.

AS THE CROWE LETS IT FLY: Owner of Cal Poly's top single game scoring effort of the year after matching a career high with six three-pointers to rack up 21 points in a Jan. 29 home victory against CSUN, senior wing Mark Crowe remains third in the lineup at 8.0 points per outing. Cal Poly's leader with 29 three-pointers – more than double the amount of the next Mustang – Crowe is a 37.0 (131-for-354) percent career three-point shooter in 104 collegiate outings.

ROGERS RESUMES IMPACT: Having matched his career scoring high with 18 points at CSU Bakersfield (Jan. 8) and finishing with a further 15 versus CSUN (Jan. 29), sophomore guard Colby Rogers enters Cal Poly's Feb. 5-6 series at Hawai'i second in the lineup with 9.0 points per matchup. After missing Cal Poly's opening five games through injury, Rogers – Cal Poly's top returning scorer from last season – made his sophomore debut with eight points at Loyola Marymount (Dec. 19). Rogers, with three double-digit scoring games this year, is averaging 8.7 points per 39 career games.

FRESHMEN IN THE FOLD: Three members of Cal Poly's seven-player freshman class are enjoying an immediate impact for the program during their first seasons on campus. Cal Poly's third leading free throw shooter at 77.8 (14-for-18) percent, point guard Camren Pierce is sixth in the lineup at 5.1 points per game. Forward Brantly Stevenson, whose 17-point effort during a Dec. 13 home victory against San Jose State marks the fourth highest scoring output by a Mustang this season, is averaging 5.0 points per outing. Cal Poly's leading rebounder is forward Dyson Koehler, who has grabbed at least six boards in eight of 11 appearances and is averaging 5.8 per night.

LOOKING AHEAD (FEB. 12-13): Four more Big West series remain for Cal Poly following the Feb. 5-6 matchups at Hawai'i, a stretch that begins against Cal State Fullerton on Friday, Feb. 12 and Saturday, Feb. 13. Both matchups tip at 4 p.m. for Cal Poly, which edged the Titans in overtime at home last season, 101-100. The two programs then played out a four-overtime matchup at Cal State Fullerton (Feb. 15) with the Titans prevailing, 105-101.