After nearly a month on the road, the Cal Poly Mustangs men’s basketball team will return to their home court at Mott Athletics Center this Saturday, November 29. The Mustangs (3-5) are set to face Redlands, a Division III opponent currently undefeated this season with a 5-0 record. Tip-off is scheduled for 4 p.m.
Cal Poly aims to end a two-game losing streak after recent losses against Northern Arizona and Southeast Missouri. The team has made multiple three-pointers in five games this year, twice hitting 14 in a single game. This performance places them sixth nationally among NCAA Division I teams with 83 total three-point conversions so far.
Redlands comes into the matchup as last season’s SCIAC regular season co-champion and reached the quarterfinals of the NCAA Division III Tournament. Saturday’s contest will be Redlands’ only game against a Division I opponent this year.
This meeting marks the first time Cal Poly and Redlands have played since November 25, 1978, when Cal Poly won at home. Overall, Cal Poly leads the series eight wins to two since their first matchup in December 1948. Since joining Division I prior to the 1994-95 season, Cal Poly has compiled a strong record of 50-1 against non-Division I programs.
The Mustangs have shown strength from beyond the arc this season, ranking sixth in three-pointers made among all Division I programs and holding top-50 rankings for both attempts per game and makes per game. Sophomore guard Hamad Mousa stands out individually with his shooting; he is second among Big West players for three-pointers made (43) and seventh for percentage (44.2%).
Mousa has scored in double figures in each of his seven appearances and leads the Big West with an average of 18.3 points per game. He set his collegiate scoring high with 26 points at Utah earlier this month after posting 23 points against Pacific Lutheran.
Another sophomore guard, Cayden Ward, also plays a significant role for Cal Poly as one of two players starting all seven games so far this season alongside Peter Bandelj. Ward averages 15.4 points per game—second on the team—and earned Big West Player of the Week honors after scoring a career-high 28 points at Utah.
Peter Bandelj enters Saturday’s contest third on the roster with an average of 14.7 points per game following notable performances including a season-best 21 points at Montana.
Cal Poly’s current roster includes players from nine different countries—one of only two Division I programs nationally to feature such international diversity across all six inhabited continents or regions.
In addition to its international makeup, Cal Poly was one of just five Division I teams that did not lose any players through transfers during the offseason—a group that also includes Duke and Tennessee.
Reflecting on last year’s campaign under head coach Mike DeGeorge’s leadership, Cal Poly reached the Big West Championship semifinals for the first time in more than a decade and recorded its highest number of overall wins (16) and conference victories (eight) since the early 2010s.
Former Mustang Kobe Sanders made his NBA debut on October 22 with Los Angeles after being drafted by New York earlier this year—the program’s second alum to play in an NBA regular-season game following David Nwaba’s appearances between 2017 and 2022.
Other notes from this season include setting program records for early start dates and maintaining dominance over non-Division I opposition with another victory earlier this month.
