POMONA¾ The Cal Poly Pomona men’s
basketball team made history earlier in the year in Bakersfield and the Broncos
did so again Saturday night in front of an enthusiastic crowd in Kellogg Gym.
The Broncos upended #22 Cal State Bakersfield, 70-65, Saturday
night, completing the first sweep of the Roadrunners since 1981 and recording a
pair of wins over Cal State Bakersfield for only the third time in the
program’s history. Cal Poly Pomona had beaten the Roadrunners, 67-47 on Dec. 8
in Bakersfield, handing them their most lopsided home defeat to an NCAA
Division II team.
Raymond Hubbard, who had a big game the first time the two
schools met, had another huge performance for the Broncos on Saturday. Hubbard
scored a game-high 19 points and was a big force in the middle for Cal Poly
Pomona.
The victory was the second in a row for the Broncos, who
climbed to within one game of second-place Cal State Bakersfield in the CCAA.
The Broncos (13-6, 10-4) were ranked ninth in the latest regional poll and
considered a victory over the Roadrunners (16-3, 11-3), who were coming off an
upset win over #1 Cal State San Bernardino, as vital to reaching the NCAA
playoffs for the first time since 1976.
Cal Poly Pomona, playing in front of a large crowd of alumni
who were part of “The Night of Champions” celebration that honored the Broncos’
12 national championship teams, held the lead for most of the contest. The
Broncos opened up an 11-point lead, 33-22, with 3:29 to go in the first half on
a basket by Rafael Zielonka and had a 34-28 advantage at halftime.
The Broncos led the entire second half, but the Roadrunners
were able to cause some anxious moments. Cal State Bakersfield trailed by only
three, 53-50, with 6:22 to go, but the Broncos responded with a 9-0 run to take
a 12-point advantage. The Roadrunners were able to cut the deficit to four
points, 66-62, after a long-range 3-pointer by Ramel Curry with 41 seconds left,
but the Broncos built the lead back up to six points after free throws by David
Sybesma and Jeff Bonds. A 3-pointer by Curry made it 68-65 with nine seconds to
go, but Bonds hit two more free throws to ice the victory.
Bonds finished with 10 points and four rebounds, while Lucas
LeCour had nine points, five assists and two steals. Maurice Potter led Cal
State Bakersfield with 17 points, while Curry had 13 and Todd Jones had 10.