Cal Poly notched its first Big West Conference win against Cal State Fullerton (73-67) as Chris Eversley set career highs in points (18) and rebounds (9) on Saturday.
With senior center Will Taylor in foul trouble all night, Eversley — normally a forward — was called upon to play center. Filling in for the injured senior Will Donahue, he led the Mustangs to victory against the Titans.
Eversley, a redshirt sophomore, gave all of the credit to his teammates, particularly Taylor.
“He’s been an excellent role model for me; most of the stuff I’ve learned at the five (position), I’ve learned from him,” Eversley said. “I’m just learning from my older brother.”
Junior guard Dylan Royer was also one of four Mustangs in double figures with 12 points, including a perfect 3-3 from beyond the arc. Royer has hit at at least one three-pointer in 17 straight games dating back to last season.
Senior forward David Hanson, playing in his 100th career game as a Mustang, got in on the action as well by adding 10 points and five rebounds.
Although Fullerton put up a fight, Titans head coach Bob Burton said the Mustangs outplayed them from start to finish.
“Their guys were so much tougher than our guys, it was incredible” he said. “I’ve never been in a game like that, where the score is so unindicative of the game.”
After Taylor picked up his second foul just four minutes into the game, Titan forward Orane Chin sank one of two free throws to put the Titans up 9-7. It would be their final lead of the night, and only basket for nearly six minutes of play.
The Mustangs continued to dominate both sides of the ball as they put together an 18-0 run with 16:12 remaining in the first half. The stretch included five forced turnovers and seven points from sophomore guard Maliik Love, who finished with nine points off the bench.
Fullerton’s drought ended when guard D.J. Seeley hit a corner three with 10:18 remaining in the first half. The Mustangs led by 13 points and stayed ahead by double digits until the final 14 seconds.
Senior guard Amaurys Fermin struggled to find his rhythm, shooting 3-14 from the field and 5-12 from the free throw line. However, his aggressiveness in driving to the hoop set the tempo for his teammates, according to head coach Joe Callero.
Callero, who often uses the term “spurtability” when addressing the media, chose a different word to describe his team’s impressive first half stretch.
“True spurtability is probably anything around 10-0,” he said. “An 18-0 run is more like an explosion.”
The Mustangs took the court in this explosive fashion that translated into their first conference win of 2012 after suffering back-to-back losses to Big West heavyweights UC Santa Barbara and Long Beach State.
Callero cited emotional energy and maturity for his team’s resilience, which he said will be essential to Cal Poly’s success throughout the rest of the season.
“It was a great way to end the week after all the emotional swings,” he said. “We showed tonight that we’re not busting; we’ve got a firm back and a team that competes.”
The Titans used a full-court press and five missed free throws by Cal Poly in the last 30 seconds to cut the deficit to six, but the final outcome was hardly in jeopardy. Junior guard Kwame Vaughn nailed a three-pointer at the final buzzer to lead Fullerton with 18 points on 5-8 shooting, and Seeley added 14 points.
Fullerton dropped its second straight game after UC Santa Barbara snapped their seven-game win streak on Thursday.
“We’ve been winning, and that’s been a great deodorant because winning always hides the problems,” Burton said. “It became very obvious where the problems were tonight.”
The Mustangs received a well-deserved day off before returning to practice on Monday. They will head south to play UC Irvine on Thursday, and UC Riverside on Saturday.