By Gavin Claiborne, March 18, 2025
Cal Poly Pomona men’s basketball team was defeated by the Cal Poly Humboldt Lumberjacks 52-70 in the California Collegiate Athletic Association Tournament quarterfinals March 6, ending its season in a short-lived postseason run.
The contest served as a sequel to the ongoing Cal Poly Clash between both programs, but the end result was in the Lumberjacks’ favor.
The Broncos, though trailing most of the time, made their strongest efforts in the first half. The team kept the game close for the first 10 minutes, and they eventually took a 2-point lead that was almost immediately withdrawn by the Lumberjacks.
The rival Cal Polys would briefly exchange leads until the Lumberjacks’ momentum returned to finish the half 38-26.
The Broncos’ use of the 2-3 zone defense created opportunities to pick off many passes, but it also allowed for many open jumpers beyond the arc for the Lumberjacks, as they knocked down five 3-pointers compared to the Broncos hitting a single trey in the first half.
Going into the second half, the Broncos faced a 12-point deficit, but in a last-chance effort, the team was able to cut the deficit to 2 points after four minutes of play.
But the Lumberjacks rallied back quickly before the teams reached a stalemate, and their lead soared into double digits with 12 minutes remaining.
The lead only grew for the Lumberjacks, and the team prevailed with the 52-70 win to advance to the CCAA Tournament semifinals.
Starting guard Miles Lewis was at the forefront of the Broncos’ offense, leading the team in scoring with 16 points, including a perfect 6-6 from the free throw line, while also showing up on the defensive end by adding two steals and two blocks to his stat line.
Lewis, the only Bronco who could amass double digits in points, said his performance was done as a lasting effort to keep his team’s chances of advancing in the tournament, and possibly earning a spot in the NCAA Division II West Regional, alive.
“I understood what we had going on,” Lewis said. “It could have potentially been our last game, so I really just went out there and just tried to get something going for me and my guys and just go from there.”
Broncos head coach Greg Kamansky, who said he was in no way, shape or form upset with his team’s effort, claimed the team’s biggest issue during the game was shot making.
Guards Shyheim Parm and Demarreya Lewis-Cooper each put up 8 points in 31 minutes of play, but their efficiency — Parm shot 28% from the field and Lewis-Cooper 23% — was underwhelming. The team shot a collective 32% from the field.
“It’s a pretty simple game in a lot of ways,” Kamansky said. “When you make shots, you’re good. When you don’t, you’re not. … It comes down to that sometimes.”
The Broncos’ rebounding was superlative as the team grabbed 39 rebounds, including a Dennis Rodman-esque 18 offensive boards, compared to the Lumberjacks’ 36 rebounds.
“I was proud of our guys, man,” Kamansky said while reflecting on the Broncos’ season. “They fought, and they had a good year, a much better year than previous years.”
Despite losing some key pieces, Kamansky said he’ll have a “solid crew” for the upcoming season, but during recruitment time, he and his assistants will be looking for one upgrade in particular: size.
He said he also hopes to have a mostly injury-free season.
When it was all said and done, Kamansky had a final message for his graduating players after the game.
“I just told them, ‘You know what, guys, it wasn’t meant to be, but you guys played hard,’” Kamansky said. “They showed a lot of character and fight-back after going through some down times. Those guys are great. They’re good people, and they represented our program really well, both on and off the court.”
Starting center Kevin Simeth became the eighth CPP student-athlete to receive the CCAA’s Elite 13 Award.
Formerly known as the CCAA Championship Scholar Award, the Elite 13 Award, according to the CCAA, “recognizes the academic and athletic achievement of the student-athlete by honoring the individual who has reached the conference championship level in his or her sport, while also achieving the highest academic standard among his or her peers.”
Simeth is also the first men’s basketball player in Bronco history to receive the honor.
Feature image courtesy of CPP Athletics
