By Jacob Rodriguez, March 11, 2025
Cal Poly Pomona women’s basketball dominated on the road over Stanislaus State Feb. 27 and Cal State Monterey Bay March. 3, capping off the regular season with a 19-3 record in the conference.
The win over the Stanislaus State Warriors marked senior guard Kalaya Buggs’s 1,000th career point milestone, as she becomes the third Bronco this season to reach this accomplishment.
“It’s a great achievement,” Buggs said. “It was fun being able to do that and seeing my support system there for me, to see that all my hard work finally paid off. It was something truly amazing and special, and I’m glad that I got to celebrate that with my teammates.”
The Broncos got off to a fast start against the Warriors, going on a 5-2 run in the first two minutes of play with sophomore forward Mydrea Moore making a jumper and three free throws.
Despite a jumper from Warriors’ guard Jadyn Patterson, the Broncos kept the ball rolling with Buggs sinking a 3-pointer to increase the 8-4 lead.
The Warriors would tie it up with two jumpers, as both teams traded points through the next four minutes of play, with the Broncos narrowly leading 14-13.
The Warriors edged out the Broncos 21-16 in the first quarter, imposing their physicality on offense and forcing the Broncos into foul trouble.
Senior guard Breanne Ha sank a 3-pointer followed by a jumper from senior guard Cookie Marques to cut the 23-21 deficit at the start of the second quarter.
Both teams traded points with the Broncos, not letting the Warriors pull away with the lead.
Sophomore forward Sydney Nelson sank a layup and jumper to cut the Warriors lead 28-25.
The Broncos continued to chip away slowly at the Warriors’ lead with three jumpers from Nelson, sophomore center Khamiyah Anderson, and sophomore guard Brielle Minor.
CPP shot 9-15 from the field, compared to the Warriors’ 5-14 from the field.
Anderson kept the ball rolling, stealing from Patterson and allowing Nelson to drive down the paint to sink a layup, giving the Broncos a 33-32 lead.
Junior guard Alexis Woodson widened the lead with two free throws and a 3-pointer to give the Broncos a 38-34 lead come halftime.
“Anytime you play on the road, you always have to be physically and mentally prepared,” said Bishop. “We started off a little rocky but ultimately ended up picking it up. Again, we faced a little adversity throughout the game but were able to push through. I was pleased with their effort, and we stuck together and came out with the win.”
The Broncos wasted no time in the third quarter, as Nelson hit a jumper to spark a 14-2 run through the first five minutes of play.
The defense pressured the Warriors’ offense to take more contested shots and double-teamed, forcing the Warriors to shoot 2-11 from the field.
Nelson and Buggs led the offensive charge, scoring a combined 35 points throughout the game, with Nelson scoring 18 points and Buggs scoring 17.
The Broncos outscored the Warriors 17-13, with CPP taking a 55-47 lead as they headed into the fourth quarter.
The Broncos continued their aggressive offense with Buggs banking in a 3-pointer followed by a layup by Nelson to extend the lead to 60-47. The Broncos defense continued the dominant possession of the ball, collecting 42 rebounds compared to the Warriors’ 31 rebounds.
Despite the Warriors’ late rally, the Broncos won 72-61 and clinched a first-round bye in the California Collegiate Athletic Association.
Following the win, the Broncos traveled on the road to face Cal State Monterey Bay.
CPP and Monterey Bay got off to a fast start, trading points through the first five minutes of play, with the Broncos trailing 13-12. Buggs scored nine of the Broncos’ 12 points.
The Otters outscored the Broncos 17-16 at the end of the first quarter, with CSUMB shooting 6-12 compared to the Broncos 6-15.
Buggs wasted no time setting the tone in the second quarter, hitting a jumper, followed by Nelson driving down the paint to hit a layup to bring the Broncos a 21-16 lead.
Through the next two minutes of play, both teams traded points, with the Broncos shooting 10-17 compared to the Otters 7-18, with CPP building a 28-25 lead.
Buggs continued her dominant performance, scoring a career-high 34 points, helping the Broncos widen the lead once more with a 3-pointer riding a 7-0 run going up 35-28.
“It took me a lot to get into the groove of playing my game again this year, especially coming off surgery,” said Buggs. “I think that these past couple weeks, I’ve been able to do a better job of feeling comfortable and confident within myself. I’ve taken those opportunities and did whatever I could with them, but other than that, I’m just doing whatever I can to help us be successful on both ends of the court.”
Buggs kept the ball rolling for the Broncos with a 3-pointer to continue the aggressive attack on offense, helping the Broncos outscore Monterey Bay 27-18 in the second quarter. Punctuated by Buggs’s buzzer beater layup that gave the Broncos a 44-34 lead.
Momentum stalled early in the third quarter with the Otters grabbing the first two points off free throws with the Broncos not scoring until 7:50 mark, where Buggs hit a free throw followed by two more free throws and a layup from Marques to widen the Broncos lead 49-36.
The Broncos maintained possession of the ball, with their defense holding Monterey Bay to 9 points, forcing the Otters into 13 turnovers and taking more contested shots.
Assistant coach Lorenzo Griffin emphasized that the defense’s success in the second half was one of the key factors in the victory.
The Broncos raced to a 16-9 run shooting 8-13 from the free throw line while forcing the Otter into foul trouble bringing the Broncos lead 60-43.
Entering the fourth quarter, momentum stalled once again for the Broncos for the first two minutes of play until Woodson’s free throw brought back the rhythm for the Broncos. Nelson and redshirt-freshman forward Hunter Hudson sank two to widen the 65-48 lead.
The Broncos continue to capitalize on the Otter’s foul troubles, shooting 9-15 from the free throw line compared to the Otters 1-4. Despite a late push from the Otters in the fourth quarter that saw them outscore CPP 16-15, the Broncos’ lead was well out of reach, allowing them to hold on to their 75-59.
With the regular season wrapped up, the Broncos now turn their focus to the CCAA Tournament, where they will look to continue their six-game win streak and compete for the conference championship.
Feature image courtesy of CPP Athletics
