Cal Poly Pomona Men Move Into CCAA Elite, but Tough Test Ahead

It has been a long time coming for the Cal Poly Pomona men’s basketball team.

Specifically, it has been 15 seasons since the Broncos started the California Collegiate Athletic Assn. season with a 4-1 record.

For that matter, it has been 10 seasons since Pomona tied Cal Poly San Luis Obispo and Cal State Dominguez Hills for its only conference title.

So you can excuse Pomona Coach Dave Bollwinkel if he is feeling slightly euphoric about the Broncos leading the CCAA.

“In the four years that I’ve been here we’ve tried very hard to improve, and it’s nice to see that we’re finally headed in the right direction,” Bollwinkel said.

But with seven games left in the conference season, Bollwinkel does not want to get carried away.

“Obviously, we feel good about it, but there’s an awfully long way to go,” he said.

Bollwinkel realizes that the Broncos will face their biggest test in their next three games, against preseason favorites UC Riverside and Cal State Bakersfield. Pomona, 12-8 overall, plays home-and-home against Riverside on Friday and Saturday, then plays host to Bakersfield on Feb. 9.

“In order to assert ourselves in the conference race, we have to show we can beat those teams,” Bollwinkel said. “We know it will be difficult, but I think we can.”

With the addition of several transfers and the return of four starters, the Broncos entered preseason practice with more depth and optimism than usual. Among the newcomers were NCAA Division I transfers Eric Mobley from the University of Portland and Marcellus Lee from Loyola Marymount in the front line and all-state guard Andre Harrell from L.A. Valley College.

The coach said he was a little less hopeful about his team’s title chances after starting guard Chancellor McCobb broke his jaw in a preseason scrimmage and starting forward Ken Scalmanini developed mononucleosis early in the season. Both are out for the season.

“If you asked me before the season started, with McCobb and Scalmanini, I would say yes,” Bollwinkel said of Pomona’s championship hopes. “If you asked me now, without those guys, I’d say it was possible but it will take more of a mental and physical effort than before.”

He gives a lot of the credit to starting guards D.J. Norman and Harrell, both juniors. It’s a position at which the Broncos have struggled in recent seasons.

“We’re getting intelligent floor play in all aspects of the game,” Bollwinkel said. “If I had to look at three aspects--our defense, offense and floor game--I’d say the biggest thing for us has been our floor game.”

Not to take anything away from senior forward Terry Ross, who leads the CCAA with a 23.4-point average and is second in rebounds.

“Certainly Terry is a legitimate All-American candidate, and what he needed to do to reach the next plateau was to rise to the occasion and come up with the big play when we needed it the most,” Bollwinkel said. “He still scores the same number of points, but those points come in more crucial times.”

For the Broncos, the most crucial times are still ahead.

Although they are still hoping for a conference title, the Broncos would first like to reach the CCAA tournament--a feat that they have never accomplished.

“We’re capable of reaching both goals,” Bollwinkel said, “but the other thing is going to take a little more time.”

The title picture in the CCAA women’s basketball race should become clearer when nine-time defending champion Cal Poly Pomona plays host to Cal Poly San Luis Obispo on Friday and Cal State Los Angeles on Saturday.

After struggling through a 9-7 nonconference season, Pomona has been impressive in defeating UC Riverside, Chapman and Cal State Dominguez Hills in its first three CCAA games.

Like Pomona, Cal State L.A. struggled to an 8-10 mark in nonconference games but has opened CCAA play with three victories in a row. The Golden Eagles may have scored their most important victory of the season, 66-65, over San Luis Obispo last Saturday. San Luis Obispo is 2-1 in the CCAA.

In the Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference, competition for first place in the men’s and women’s divisions appears to be between Claremont-Mudd-Scripps and La Verne.

The Claremont men (15-1) suffered their only loss of the regular season to La Verne Jan. 12. The teams meet again Feb. 6 at Claremont. In women’s play, Claremont plays host to La Verne on Feb. 5.

In the National Assn. of Intercollegiate Athletics District 3, the race for first in the women’s division appears between Christ-Irvine, Point Loma Nazarene and Cal Baptist. The leaders in a congested men’s division have been Southern California College, Biola, Westmont and The Master’s.

College Division Notes

The Cal State Bakersfield men’s basketball team, which finished second in the NCAA Division II last season, climbed into the Division II top 20 for the first time since the preseason rankings, making No. 13 last week, but figures to drop after its surprising 66-63 loss at Cal State Los Angeles last Saturday. UC Riverside also is expected to drop after its 82-71 loss at Cal State Dominguez Hills. Riverside is 15-4 overall and Bakersfield 13-6.

With its 15-1 record, Claremont-Mudd has risen to No. 17 in the NCAA Division III poll. . . . In preseason polls selected by the Intercollegiate Tennis Coaches Assn., Cal Poly SLO is ranked No. 2 and No. 3, respectively, in the NCAA Division II men’s and women’s ratings. Cal Poly Pomona is ranked No. 2 in the women’s division, behind defending champion UC Davis.

The leading basketball scorer in the Southland among college division teams has been junior forward Jeff deLaveaga of Cal Lutheran at 27.1 points a game. Senior center Sonja Akkerman of Cal Baptist leads women’s teams at 24.5 points and 13.5 rebounds. . . . Senior Joanne Nielsen of Pomona-Pitzer has been named to the NCAA Division III All-American second team in women’s volleyball by Volleyball Monthly magazine.

Forward Dani Elton of Cal Lutheran set a school record by making 21 of 23 free throws in her team’s 91-75 victory over Azusa Pacific last week. Lutheran also made a school-record 36 free throws. . . . The Cal State San Bernardino men’s golf team is ranked No. 4 in the NCAA Division III heading into its opening match against UC San Diego next Monday. San Bernardino, which finished fourth in Division III last season, is led by returning All-Americans Charles DeLorey and Brad Casdorph.