By Christian Magdaleno, Jan. 28, 2025
Cal Poly Pomona women’s basketball team made a bold statement with back-to-back wins over Cal State Monterey Bay and Stanislaus State at Kellogg Arena, while Broncos guard Breanne Ha tied the all-time 3-point record for the program.
Ha scored 24 points from the paint, tying the single-game 3-point record of 8, which allowed the nationally ranked No. 19 Broncos to earn a blowout 78-41 win over the Stanislaus State Warriors Jan. 18. Ha reached a career high with 215 3-pointers, making her one of the most consistent shooters in program history.
“I felt pretty good playing today,” said Ha. “My whole team was behind me, so I was like, ‘I got to keep going. I got to keep trying.’ And I could not have done this without them.”
While the Broncos recorded one of their highest scoring wins of the season, it was the teamwork and defense Head Coach Danelle Bishop wanted to highlight.
“We’ve got two girls that transferred from Stanislaus here, so the team wanted to make a statement like we did,” said Bishop. “We let (the Warriors) score a little bit more in that fourth quarter, but to hold any team in our conference to 41 points, I think is outstanding.”
The Broncos’ net remained untouched through the first quarter until the Warriors sank a 3-pointer to break its offensive drought 21-3.
Broncos guard Kalaya Buggs set the tone when she closed out the first quarter with a layup to bring the score to 23-7.
The Broncos and Warriors battled for possession into the first minute of the second quarter with neither team finding the net until forward Sydney Nelson hit a crossover, fake and spin to escape double coverage with a jumper.
The Broncos continued to dominate the board when guard Cookie Marques baited the Warriors with an aggressive rush toward the net, then passed the ball to Buggs while forward Mydrea Moore set a screen that allowed Buggs to sink another 3-pointer, bringing the Broncos up 28-7.
The Warriors struggled to maintain possession into the half, allowing the Broncos to continue their command of the game 46-17.
Ha tallied her fifth successful shot from deep with 2:23 left in the third, extending the Broncos’ lead to 36.
“I was actually not trying to play (Ha) too much, but when she hit 5, I was like, ‘Wait a minute. She might break (the single-game 3-point record,)’” said Bishop.
Ha shot a career-high of 22 attempts from deep, with eight going in, giving her a .364 shooting percentage.
Buggs opened the scoring for the Broncos in the fourth quarter, burying both of her free throw attempts and earning an assist when Nelson scooped in a layup to earn her eighth point.
Nelson scored double-digit points in the past 14 consecutive games, lasted since the Nov. 14, 2024, matchup against Biola.
While the Warriors managed to score 16 in the fourth quarter, the visiting team ultimately came up short by 37 points.
This fifth consecutive win brought the Broncos to a 14-2 overall record and 9-2 in conference.
The Broncos currently sit at No. 2 in the conference behind the undefeated Cal State Dominguez Hills.
The Broncos’ momentum carried from its 35-point victory over the Cal State Monterey Bay Otters Jan. 16. The Broncos held the Otters down by a sizeable margin, closing out the first quarter 22-10.
Marques recorded a season-high 24 points, four scored from the paint, and went 8-for-15 from the field.
Nelson followed with 14 points, Ha with 11, and guard Aaliyah Wright came off the bench to put up a 9-point game.
The Broncos led each quarter, with three of them being above 22 points and the lowest being the second quarter with 11 points added.
Wright attributed the Broncos’ comradery and team chemistry for its recent success.
“Our chemistry has grown so much since the first couple games,” said Wright. “We are getting to know each other, how we play, and I just think it’s really exciting to see us all come together and have that confidence in one another. You will always see our bench get loud, no matter who is there.”
The Broncos dominated the court, scoring 54-16 inside the paint, giving them a final score of 90-55 over the Otters.
Feature image courtesy of Christian Magdaleno
