California
Cal Poly Visits Cal Thursday ahead of Sunday Home Opener
11/6/2024 3:41:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Cal Poly Men's Basketball
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SAN LUIS OBISPO – Less than 48 hours after a narrow season-opening setback at San Francisco, the Cal Poly men’s basketball program concludes a two-game road trip when visiting California on Thursday, Nov. 7. Tip time on ACCNX and ESPN+ from Haas Pavilion is 7 p.m. for Cal Poly, which then begins its 14-game home schedule by welcoming NAIA Menlo College to Mott Athletics Center on Sunday, Nov. 10 at 2 p.m. During Tuesday’s season opener at USF, Cal Poly – playing its initial game under first-year head coach Mike DeGeorge – featured four players in double-digit scoring figures while twice overturning double-digit deficits and trailing by just four points in the final minute before sustaining an 86-78 loss. The Mustangs return six letterwinners from last season and welcomed 11 newcomers in the offseason (including seven transfers). California (1-0) will have had one extra day of rest when facing Cal Poly after the Golden Bears handed fellow Big West foe Cal State Bakersfield an 86-73 Monday defeat. Sunday’s matchup with Menlo, meanwhile, marks Cal Poly’s lone game this season against a non-Division I opponent while serving as an exhibition for the Oaks.
CAL POLY VERSUS CALIFORNIA: Cal Poly has defeated California just once in seven all-time matchups with the Mustangs prevailing for the first and only time inside Haas Pavilion on Nov. 12, 2003 (63-62). The Mustangs sustained narrow setbacks in their last two visits to California, falling on Nov. 12, 2017 (85-82) and Dec. 15, 2018 (67-66). Dating to the first matchup on Dec. 29, 1996, California leads the all-time series, 6-1.
CAL POLY VERSUS MENLO COLLEGE AND NON-DIVISION I OPPOSITION: The Mustangs hold a 7-0 all-time mark with Menlo College dating to the first matchup on Jan. 11, 1995. Cal Poly last defeated the Oaks on Nov. 7, 2018 (82-75). Since transitioning to the Division I level prior to the 1994-95 season, Cal Poly is 48-1 against non-Division I programs.
DEGEORGE TAKES THE MUSTANG REINS: Named Cal Poly’s sixth head coach at the Division I level on March 26, Mike DeGeorge arrived in San Luis Obispo from Division II Colorado Mesa after directing the Mavericks to 141 wins in six seasons, three Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference regular season championships and five NCAA Tournament appearances – including Sweet 16 trips in 2022 and 2024. Bringing more than two decades of head coaching experience to Cal Poly, DeGeorge’s squads at Colorado Mesa were known for their offensive prowess. During the 2023-24 season, Colorado Mesa led Division II in effective field goal percentage (.596), finished third in three-pointers per game (11.4) and 15th in points per game (11.4). Both of DeGeorge’s assistant coaches from Colorado Mesa – Kyle Bossier and BJ Andrews – joined Cal Poly in the offseason, as well as four transfers from Colorado Mesa.
LOOKING AHEAD: Cal Poly closes a two-game home stand when welcoming Seattle on Thursday, Nov. 14 at 7 p.m. The two sides last met on Nov. 14, 2010 with Cal Poly delivering a 76-60 victory inside Key Arena. The Redhawks last visited Cal Poly on Dec. 14, 2008 and Dec. 3, 2009, prevailing in the former (60-59) and falling in the latter (85-74).
ETC.: Cal Poly is in its 31st Division I season and 81st as a four-year program … Cal Poly’s Nov. 5 matchup at San Francisco marked the earliest opening date to a season in program history … Cal Poly’s 93.3 (14-for-15) percent free throw mark at San Francisco (Nov. 5) marked the fourth highest single game figure in program history.
Looking forward to seeing everyone for Sunday's home opener with a revised start time!#RideHigh pic.twitter.com/y21xTF4mqL
— Cal Poly Men’s Basketball (@calpolymbb) November 6, 2024
