Road Stretch Begins at CSUN Thursday, Long Beach State Saturday

Thursday, February 8

Northridge, CA

7 p.m.

CSUN

Photo by: Owen Main

Road Stretch Begins at CSUN Thursday, Long Beach State Saturday

2/6/2024 12:54:00 PM | Men's Basketball

COMPLETE WEEKLY PREVIEW (pdf)

SAN LUIS OBISPO – Playing six of its final nine regular season games away from home, the Cal Poly men's basketball program heads back on the road to visit CSUN on Thursday, Feb. 8 at 7 p.m. and Long Beach State on Saturday, Feb. 10 at 4 p.m. Both matchups will be broadcast on ESPN+ for Cal Poly (4-19, 0-11), which nearly overturned an 18-point, second-half deficit against UC Davis (Feb. 3) before being edged by the Aggies at home, 59-52. Cal Poly enters the week four games adrift in the Big West standings of Hawai'i (12-11, 4-7) and Cal State Bakersfield (9-13, 4-7) – the two programs who share the eighth and final spot for the March 13-16 Big West Championship. With nine regular season games remaining, Cal Poly also needs to leapfrog 10th-place UC Riverside (8-15, 3-8) – itself one game behind Hawai'i and Cal State Bakersfield – to reach the postseason. CSUN (14-9, 5-6), tumbling into sixth place following a five-game slide that was snapped at UC Riverside (Feb. 3), produced a 83-73 Big-West-opening victory at Cal Poly (Dec. 28). Long Beach State (14-9, 6-5), sharing fourth place alongside UC Santa Barbara (13-8, 6-5), leads the Big West in both points scored per game (78.6) and conceded (76.4). Enjoying a week's break before hosting Cal Poly, Long Beach State topped the Mustangs in the Jan. 4 season series opener, 89-82.

CAL POLY VERSUS CSUN: The second most frequent opponent in Cal Poly's history after UC Santa Barbara, CSUN trails in the all-time series (58-55), but leads the Division I series (30-22). With CSUN having won eight of the previous 12 matchups, Cal Poly's last road victory against the Matadors was an 85-71 decision on Feb. 15, 2017.

CAL POLY VERSUS LONG BEACH STATE: Cal Poly looks to snap a seven-game slide inside Long Beach State's Walter Pyramid, having last prevailed inside the building on Feb. 23, 2017 (78-71). Long Beach State leads both the all-time (58-34) and Division I (39-18) series dating to the first matchup between the two programs on Dec. 19, 1950.

SANDERS KEEPS UP THE SCORING PACE: The first Mustang since guard Lorenzo Keeler during the 2009-10 season with three 30-point games in one year, senior guard Kobe Sanders followed a 30-point effort against Omaha (Dec. 21) with a career best 33-point performance versus CSUN (Dec. 28) and 32-point showing at Hawai'i (Jan. 27). After missing Cal Poly's final six games last season through injury, Sanders has scored in double digits in all 21 appearances this year – including a 23-point game against UC Irvine (Feb. 1), 22-point nights against San Jose State (Nov. 29) and UC Santa Barbara (Jan. 6) and 20-point showings at Portland State (Nov. 18) and Idaho (Dec. 2) – and ranks fourth among Big West players with a team leading 18.7 points per game. Having led Cal Poly in scoring 15 times this season, Sanders – now with 37 career double-digit scoring games – is averaging 9.1 points per 92 collegiate outings. On the boards, Sanders grabbed a career high 10 rebounds at Hawai'i (Jan. 27) to complete a first career double-double. Equally proficient from the free throw line as the floor, Sanders – entering Thursday's matchup at CSUN having converted 58 of his last 67 attempts – ranks 57th among NCAA Division I players with an 87.1 (122-for-140) percent free throw mark.

Q-BALL: A 16-point performance at CSU Bakersfield (Jan. 20) marked the seventh double-digit scoring performance for freshman guard Quentin Jones this season. Third in Cal Poly's lineup with 9.0 points per games, Jones owns a career best 22-point night versus Long Beach State (Jan. 4), a 21-point effort at Oregon State (Dec. 4) and a 17-point performance versus St. Thomas (Nov. 17). A starter in 22 of 23 matchups, Jones ranks 10th among Big West players with 1.4 steals per game and 12th at 31.5 minutes per outing.

BACK IN THE GREEN: A 50.1 (225-for-448) percent career shooter and ranked ninth in program history with 63 career blocks, graduate forward Tuukka Jaakkola – after performing for Cal Poly from 2018-22, earning his bachelors degree and departing the university – has returned to utilize his renewable 2020-21 season. As one of a handful, if not the only Division I player in this situation, Jaakkola played in all 28 of Cal Poly's games during his 2021-22 senior season. Having appeared in 21 of 23 matchups this year with 13 starts, Jaakkola scored 11 points against Eastern Washington (Dec. 18) to chalk up his first double-digit scoring performance since a 10-point outing against Cal State Fullerton on March 9, 2021. Most recently, Jaakkola scored a season best 15 points at UC Riverside (Jan. 11) and 11 versus Cal State Fullerton (Jan. 25) and ranks fourth in the lineup with 6.1 points per game. He also grabbed a season best nine rebounds against both Eastern Washington (Dec. 18) and Omaha (Dec. 21). Just the seventh player in program history with 120-plus appearances (and currently on 127), Jaakkola needs just two more appearances to surpass guard Jamal Johnson's program record of 128 (2010-14).

FROM LONDON WITH BLOCKS: Recording a second five-block game this season against CSUN (Dec. 28), junior center Joel Armotrading ranks fifth among Big West players in total blocks (31) and blocks per game (1.3). His most recent standout performances were four-block efforts at UC Riverside (Jan. 11) and versus UC Davis (Feb. 3) after opening the season with five against La Verne (Nov. 6). An offseason transfer from two-year College of Southern Idaho, Armotrading produced his first Division I double-double with 10 points and a career best 13 rebounds against UC Davis. Cal Poly's leader at 4.9 rebounds per game, Armotrading also averages 4.8 points per matchup.

THE GRADUATE: Playing for the first time in two years after missing last season through injury, graduate guard Jarred Hyder – having scored in double digits nine times this year – ranks second in the lineup with 10.3 points per game. Second in the Big West averaging a team leading 33.3 minutes per game, Hyder's most recent standout performance was a 13-point effort at UC Davis (Dec. 30) after finishing with 15 against CSUN (Dec. 28) and 14 versus Omaha (Dec. 21). His Cal Poly best 25-point effort at Wyoming (Nov. 9) was a performance one shy of his career best 26 while a freshman at Fresno State on Nov. 10, 2019. An offseason transfer from California, Hyder – a starter in 16 of 23 games – also scored 15 points at Denver.

MORE PERFECT: With his 17-for-17 performance from the free throw line against CSUN (Dec. 28), guard Kobe Sanders eclipsed the Cal Poly single game record of 16 conversions, equaled twice by guard Lorenzo Keeler during the 2009-10 season and established by forward Gabe Stephenson in the 2005-06 campaign. Sanders also enjoyed the top free throw shooting game by any Division I player this season (four previous players finished 14-for-14 earlier this year). His 17 conversions are the second highest total in the nation this season.

LOOKING AHEAD (FEB. 15): Playing just once in an ensuing 11-day window, Cal Poly returns home to host Hawai'i on Thursday, Feb. 15 at 7 p.m. on ESPN+. The Rainbow Warriors captured this year's series opener on O'ahu, 83-73 (Jan. 27).

ETC.: Cal Poly is its 30th Division I season this year and 80th as a four-year program … Cal Poly improved to 48-1 all-time against non-Division I opposition with an 80-62 home victory against Division III La Verne (Nov. 6) … against La Verne, Cal Poly also prevailed in a season opener for the fourth straight year … Cal Poly's Nov. 9 matchup at Denver marked the programs first all-time matchup with the Pioneers with the Mustangs having now faced all nine current Summit League members … Cal Poly played the program's first all-time game in the state of Wyoming and the first game ever against Wyoming while having now faced all 11 current Mountain West Conference programs during a Nov. 11 visit to Laramie … Cal Poly has now faced all nine current Summit League members in its program history following a 61-60 victory against first-time opponent St. Thomas (Nov. 17) … senior guard Kobe Sanders was named to California Baptist's Lancer Joust all-tournament team (Nov. 17-19) after averaging 16.3 points and 4.3 rebounds per game and shooting 51.3 percent in three matchups … Cal Poly's double-overtime matchup at Oregon State (Dec. 4) marked the program's lengthiest game since a two-overtime setback versus CSUN (Feb. 10, 2022) … Cal Poly's 50-point second half at Hawai'i (Jan. 27) marked the highest total the Rainbow Warriors have allowed this season … the 43 free throw attempts by Hawai'i were the fourth highest opponent total in program history.