Cal Poly Men’s Basketball Opens Practice for 2026-27 Season Monday
9/20/2026 3:38:00 PM | Men's Basketball
SAN LUIS OBISPO – Welcoming back four starters and 10 of its top 11 scorers from last season – including 2026 All-Big West selections Hamad Mousa and Cayden Ward – the Cal Poly men’s basketball program officially opens practice for the 2026-27 season Monday afternoon.
The Mustangs, who finished 10th nationally last season with 10.8 three-pointers per game, enjoy 42 days of preparation ahead of the program’s Monday, Nov. 2 season opener against Division II Cal State San Marcos. Cal Poly then visits 2026 Final Four participant Arizona on Thursday, Nov. 5.
In between, the Mustangs host Division II Westmont for a Friday, Oct. 23 exhibition.
With the Mustangs having lost just one player combined to the transfer portal during the previous two summers – the lowest total among 361 NCAA Division I programs – Cal Poly’s returning unit is headlined by Mousa and Ward.
An All-Big West first team selection last season, Mousa captured the conference scoring title and finished 25th among NCAA Division I players with 20.4 points per game. His 652 total points ranked as the second highest single season total in program history with Mousa scoring in double digits in all but one of his 32 appearances. He also set a new program record last year with 180 free throws.
Ward, a 2026 All-Big West honorable mention pick after finishing 11th among conference players with 14.5 points per game, scored in double digits 25 times. Cal Poly’s second active leading scorer with 609 points and 11.9 career points per game, Ward co-led Cal Poly last season and finished eighth among Big West players with 6.3 rebounds per game. He was also the only Mustang to appear in all 33 games last year.
Cal Poly’s other regular returning starters include senior Jake Davis (5.4 points per game last season; 18 starts and 32 appearances), junior Guzman Vasilic (7.6 PPG; 17 starts and 30 appearances) and sophomore Austin Goode (5.2 PPG; 16 starters and 32 appearances).
Rounding out Cal Poly’s remaining returning contributors are sophomore Jess Esso Essis (8.6 points per game in seven appearances); seniors Jackson Mosley (5.6 PPG in 17 games) and Kieran Elliott (4.9 PPG; 10 starts and 18 appearances) and sophomores Troy Plumtree (4.8 PPG – including a 31-point effort at Cal State Bakersfield) and Ali Assran (five starts and 31 appearances in debut season).
Aaron Price, Jr., Cal Poly active appearances leader with 74 games, also returns to complete his standout career while sophomore Jason Scott looks to make an impact after being limited to eight games last season. Furthermore, sophomore Braden Freeman debuts in the lineup after redshirting last fall.
During the offseason, Cal Poly added 6-5 guard Anthony Moore as a transfer who redshirted at Weber State last season with 5-11 freshman guard Canon Wyatt – the only Mustang without collegiate roster experience – in the mix after graduating from Highland Park HS (Texas) in the spring.
