By Gavin Claiborne, Feb. 25, 2025
Cal Poly Pomona men’s basketball team started a hot streak, coming out on top against the Sonoma State Seawolves in a 78-73 overtime win Feb. 13 and a dominant 80-50 victory against the Cal State San Marcos Cougars Feb. 15.
The Broncos began their contest against the Seawolves by building a solid lead that was ignited by starting guard Miles Lewis’ 3-pointer to get things going for CPP.
Guard Shyheim Parm got on a roll offensively with two layups, a jumper and a deep shot to help give the Broncos a 16-7 lead after eight minutes in the first half.
The Seawolves, however, continued to fight back, taking a 1-point lead after nailing a 3-pointer with roughly five minutes to go in the half. But the Broncos soon bounced back when guard Zach Broadous drilled a deep one to retake the lead at 27-25.
The Seawolves took a minor lead once more, and it was immediately decimated by another 3-pointer coming from Winfield. A 3-pointer from Broadous and a right-hand jam from Winfield closed out the half for the Broncos at 35-32.
The Broncos picked up right back where they left off in the second half when Lewis-Cooper, Winfield, Lewis and Parm increased the Broncos’ lead to double digits at 49-38 after seven minutes. But the Seawolves remained unfazed as both teams briefly traded leads.
As the Broncos were up 66-64 with less than 40 seconds left in regulation, the team had possession of the ball with an opportunity to close out the game.
Lewis-Cooper attempted to pass the ball to Broadous, who hovered from the right corner to the wing. But the Seawolves’ Nick Medieros got a hand in the passing lane, ultimately forcing a turnover that fell into the hands of another Seawolves player who missed a layup in transition.
Medieros attempted a putback layup but got hacked by Lewis-Cooper, sending him to the charity stripe before making two free throws that forced the game into overtime.
Recovering from a late-game turnover, the Broncos had an aggressive offensive sequence in overtime.
Jordan Carpenter laid the ball in to give the Broncos a 2-point lead, and another layup by Lewis, followed by a couple of free throws from both Lewis and Parm, gave the Broncos a 5-point 74-69 differential.
The Broncos continued to maintain a lead and kept it to secure a 78-73 win.
Broncos head coach Greg Kamansky said although his team didn’t make the necessary plays needed to get the win in regulation, they weren’t discouraged in overtime, and they instead showed relentlessness and mental toughness in overtime to pick up the win.
The Broncos’ shooting efficiency was superb. The team went 46% from the field, 35% from deep and 94% from the charity stripe.
“That’s how you win games,” Kamansky said. “And we have to play like that offensively and shoot like that if we’re gonna try to move forward in what we want to do this year.”
Winfield had an outstanding double-double performance, dropping a game-leading 22 points on 50% shooting and grabbing a game-leading 12 rebounds. Parm also had a productive evening, putting up 21 points on 50% shooting while recording three assists.
“When Jaden plays, man, we’re a different team,” Kamansky said. “When he’s engaged and getting after it, he has a ton of ability. When he plays, we’re good.”
The Broncos had their most dominant game of the season against the Cougars, but things didn’t appear that way from the jump. The first half was a complete tug-of-war match as the Broncos and Cougars saw a total of 10 lead changes.
Lewis gave his team its first points of the game yet again with a right-handed scoop layup after a top-of-the-key hand off from center Kevin Simeth, but the Cougars got rolling and gained a 5-point lead. The Broncos tied the score up shortly after, and the teams continued exchanging leads.
The Broncos began to create separation about 13 minutes into the half as the team picked up a double-digit lead to enter halftime at 38-27.
Once Lewis opened the second half with a two-handed jam from the left baseline, the Cougars’ chances of a comeback seemed too out of reach. In the end, the Broncos cruised through the remainder of the game to earn an 80-50 blowout win, the team’s largest margin of victory this season.
The Broncos’ players feasted on the offensive end, with four players — Miles, Parm, Broadous and guard Sam Hunter — eclipsing double-digits in points in the game. Broadous and Lewis each surpassed 1,000 career points during the game, according to the Broncos’ men’s basketball Instagram page.
“We really know what we’re capable of doing, and with a team like that, we just gotta execute everything and play defense, and the rest is history,” Lewis-Cooper said after the win.
With just four games remaining in the regular season, and as the Broncos look to clinch a spot in the California Collegiate Athletic Association Men’s Basketball Tournament, Kamansky said he encouraged his team to remain focused.
“The thing is one game at a time,” Kamansky said. “Just give it everything you’ve got on Thursday night, and don’t worry about the next night. We just gotta do what we can do, fight as hard as we can fight, and if we’re good enough, we’ll get what we deserve, one way or the other.”
Feature image courtesy of Ece Aliyazicioglu
