Big West Tournament quarterfinal recap: No. 1 UC Davis advances
Cinderella will not be a No. 7 seed.
Cal Poly was victorious as the No. 7 seed in the 2014 Big West Conference Tournament, and came into this year's tournament in the same position. The number looked to be good luck until the final minutes of the Mustangs' quarterfinal game Thursday night at the Honda Center. But their central coast rival in UC Santa Barbara hit its free throws, eliminating the defending champs in the nightcap.
There were plenty of highlights -- namely the highlight reel dunk by UC Riverside's Taylor Johns over the 7-foot-6 Mamadou Ndiaye -- and a few lows -- the earliest tournament exit by Long Beach State since 2009. Here's what happened on the first day of play in the 2015 Big West Tournament.
No. 1 UC Davis 71, No. 8 Cal State Northridge 67
The Aggies overcame an 11-point deficit to defeat the Matadors in the first game of the day. It was a battle of two former Sacramento Kings in Aggies head coach Jim Les and Matadors head coach Reggie Theus. The one who is still in the Sacramento area was the victor.
Clearly, the rivalry is still friendly between the two coaches. "I have a lot of respect for Reggie but I remind him all the time how much older he is than me," Les said. "I remember as a kid growing up in Chicago, watching when the Bulls drafted Reggie. I've enjoyed watching him play, playing against him and he's unbelievable competitor."
And he still is on the sidelines. Theus nearly had the Matadors in the Big Dance last season. But between a thin bench and trouble containing the Aggies' offensive threats all over the floor, it was too much for the Matadors at the end. Theus is going back to the drawing board in his quest to build.
"We're the only show in the valley," he said. "With the effort that they put out this year and the support of the school, I really feel that the future is bright.
No. 5 Hawaii 79, No. 4 Long Beach State 72
Hawaii gets first Big West tournament win in midst of chaotic season
Hawaii overachieved by most standards. Without their head coach, former Big West Freshman of the Year Isaac Fotu or even the right uniforms for the first few games of the season, they were left for dead. But interim head coach Benji Taylor has them playing a pressure defense and a fast offense, and it's working. The Rainbow Warriors will play in the conference semifinals for the first time as a member of the Big West.
Long Beach State, meanwhile, will say goodbye to one of the top point guards the program has developed in Mike Caffey. Caffey will now test the waters of pro ball after concluding a career that included more than 1,500 points, 400 assists and exactly 499 rebounds.
"It went quick. It seems like he was cutting down the nets as a freshman here yesterday. It just shows you how tough these careers are," said Long Beach State head coach Dan Monson. "We had some transition, some personnel changes throughout his career and he hung in there with a lot of different guys. I just appreciate his loyalty to this program and to me and I love him."
No. 3 UC Irvine 63, No. 6 UC Riverside 54
Out, but definitely not down, UC Riverside turned a corner in the rebuilding process with their performance in the quarterfinals. Johns may have turned himself into a poster with his dunk on Ndiaye. The Highlanders are going back to the Inland Empire with their heads held high and the respect of the rest of the conference.
"They've changed the culture there it seems in the five years that i've been here," said UC Irvine head coach Russell Turner. "I give them credit to a commitment to a style of play that has made them effective. Unfortunate losses strange decisions from kids, they could be further along than they are but their coach, Dennis Cutts is outstanding."
UC Irvine has never played in the NCAA Tournament before, but they've had a lot of experience in the postseason the last two seasons with CBI and NIT appearances in the last two seasons. They're now drawing on that experience to go deeper into the conference tournament this week.
"Not only the postseason games that we've played, but this is our fourth year in the Big West Tournament," said forward Will Davis II. "We've gotten some wins here. During that stretch tonight when we were going back and forth in the game, it helped us down the stretch because we knew we were going to come out on top."
No. 2 UC Santa Barbara 54, No. 7 Cal Poly 50
The Gauchos were once the unbeatable team in the Big West, winning back-to-back tournament titles in 2010 and 2011, but until Thursday, they hadn't won a postseason game in four years.
"Getting that first round monkey off our back is awesome," forward Alan Williams said. "It gives us an opportunity to just go out and play from here on out."
The road to the NCAA Tournament has often gone right through the central coast. In the 100th meeting between these two teams, the rivalry that come to a head.
"I don't think it was a rivalry until last year, quite frankly," Cal Poly head coach Joe Callero said. "We were the little brother to Santa Barbara. They were the ones that had the trips to the dance the winning record... Now, I think it's reality TV. Nobody can tell you what's going to happen at this point, the rivalry is unpredictable."
