POMONA, Calif.—It was Dec. 1, but it felt like March. Then it felt like the Chico State and Cal Poly Pomona might play until March. Unfortunately for the Wildcats, it also felt like most over their matchups over the past few years against Cal Poly Pomona.
The Broncos rallied late to send the game to overtime. Chico State rallied from seven down with 1:32 to go to send the game to a second overtime. But the Broncos took control late in the second overtime for an 83–79 win Friday night in Pomona. It was Cal Poly Pomona's fifth straight win against Chico State.
The Wildcats, ranked No. 16 in the nation, fell to 4-2 overall and 2-1 in the California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA). Cal Poly Pomona improved to 5-1 overall and 2-0 in the CCAA.
Chico State led for nearly the entirety of regulation and was up by five with under three minutes to play. But three consecutive turnovers after Isaiah Ellis fouled out allowed the Broncos to creep closer, and William Christmas' layup with 10 seconds left tied the game, forcing overtime.
Corey Silverstrom's 3-pointer with 4:14 left in
regulation gave him 1,000 career points, and
the Wildcats a 54–50 lead.
The Wildcats put together a comeback of their own to force the second overtime, rallying from seven points down over the final 1:12. Jalen McFerren's four-point play sparked the comeback, and his offensive rebound and put-back with two seconds left tied it and forced the second overtime.
Chico State nearly pulled off another comeback in the second overtime before running out of gas. They trailed by six before Nate Ambrosini railed a straight-on 3-pointer with 26 seconds left. After the Wildcats forced a five-second call on the inbounds play, Calvin Geraci got a good look at a game-tying 3-pointer with 20 seconds left, but it was long and the Broncos sealed the win with a pair of late free throws.
Silverstrom finished with 23 points to lead Chico State. His 3-pointer throw with 4:14 to go in regulation gave him 1,000 career points. He's the 18
th Wildcat to reach that milestone, joining teammate Isaiah Ellis, who did it two games prior.
Freshman Malik Duffy finished with 13 points and eight rebounds. McFerren and Ambrosini scored 11 points apiece. And Ellis finished with 10 points and eight rebounds despite playing just 23 minutes before fouling out.
Christmas finished with 31 points, including 27 in the second half and overtime, to lead Cal Poly Pomona. Jordan Ogundiran had 26 points.
The Wildcats' shooting woes against Cal Poly Pomona continued. They had not shot 40 percent in any game during their four-game losing skid against the Broncos. They didn't figure that Friday night would be easy either. The Broncos entered the game ranked second in the nation in scoring defense and field-goal percentage defense, having allowed just 57.8 points per game on 35.5-percent shooting. They are also forcing 20 turnovers per game.
Chico State shot season-lows from the field (35%) and 3-point line (24%). It was free throw shooting that really cost the Wildcats, however. They missed 14 charities, hitting 27-of-41.
Despite all that, Chico State had its largest lead, 34–27, after a Silverstrom triple to start the second half.
The Wildcats' lead was 55–50 when Ellis was called for his fifth foul with 2:57 remaining. That offensive foul was the first of four consecutive turnovers for the Wildcats.
Chico State's defense was keeping the Broncos from making too much out of those mistakes, but Christmas' jumper after the fourth trimmed the lead to 55–54 with 1:12 to play.
Ambrosini finally ended Chico State's scoring drought with a pair of free throws on the other end, but Christmas' three-point play tied the game at 57 with under a minute to play.
Silverstrom briefly gave the Wildcats the lead back, driving from the top of the key and flipping it up and in with his right hand. But Christmas answered with a reverse layup with 10 seconds to play.
Jalen McFerren scored six of his 11 points in
the final 1:12 of the first overtime as the
Wildcats rallied from seven down to force the
second overtime.
The Wildcats had two chances to win it, but Silverstrom's leaner was long and Duffy's tip try bounced off the back iron.
Cal Poly Pomona opened the overtime period with back-to-back 3-pointers by Quentin Taylor—his first two baskets of the game—to take its largest lead of the game. The Broncos
had led by one on four separate occasions prior to that.
The lead was seven when Ambrosini found McFerren for a 3-pointer from the right corner. His shot was good and he was fouled on the follow through. His free throw made it a three-point game before Silverstrom cut it to one when he made two free throws after being fouled grabbing the rebound on the other end.
Ogundiran made one of two free throws on the other end with 21 seconds left. Silverstrom attempted the potential game-winning 3-pointer with five seconds left. It missed short, but McFerren grabbed the rebound in the paint and hit a short jumper with two seconds left to force the second overtime.
Duffy scored six points in the second overtime, but Taylor's third triple of the night was a back breaker, giving the Broncos a 79–75 lead with 1:19 to play.
Chico State's five freshmen all played, and three were heavily involved in crunch time. Brooks helped the Wildcats take control midway through the second half, assisting on Silverstrom's long 3-pointer, and then on the other end, picking off a pass and going coast-to-coast for a layup and 44–40 lead. He finished with two points, two steals, and an assist in nine minutes.
Geraci was in the game at the end of regulation and beginning of overtime and grabbed three rebounds. And most of Duffy's season-high 27 minutes came in the second half and overtime.
The Wildcats will be back in action Sunday afternoon when they take on Cal State San Bernardino Sunday afternoon at 2 p.m. at Coussoulis Arena.
