Weber State basketball: Wildcats romp in CIT win over Cal Poly

Ogden • Weber State fans must have felt bittersweet about the Wildcats' blowout victory Wednesday night in the opening round of the CIT.

Mostly bitter, probably.

Weber State's performance, before an intimate gathering of 2,309 spectators in the Dee Events Center, should have been part of a NCAA Tournament or NIT game.

Instead, the Wildcats (27-6), resigned to the CollegeInsider.com Tournament for the second consecutive season, took out all of their frustrations from the disappointing Big Sky Conference Tournament championship loss on a hapless Cal Poly, tying the school record for most wins in a season.

The Mustangs had hoped for a better performance than the 85-43 shellacking in its first postseason game in 19 seasons.

"We don't want the season to end," said WSU guard Scott Bamforth after his game-high 23 points. "It didn't go the way we wanted. We're in this tournament, so you go with the hand you're dealt. I felt like everybody was in tune."

From the opening tip, Weber State put its foot on the Mustangs' neck. The Wildcats opened a 50-18 lead early in the second half and then got ready for its next opponent, still to be determined.

"We got off to a good start," Bamforth said. "It kind of sucked the life out of them a little bit."

Bamforth and Kyle Tresnak enjoyed their best shooting games of the year. They were dynamic at WSU's bread-and-butter inside-out offense, converting 18 of 21 shots for a combined 43 points.

Bamforth's seven 3-pointers moved him into second all alone on the WSU career make list at 242.

Meanwhile, WSU dominated. At the half, the Mustangs had managed only six rebounds.

"We got stung pretty hard the other night," WSU coach Randy Rahe said. "There's a lot of emotion and it was hard to take. ... Tonight's game showed what these kids are all about."

Weber State's energetic, smothering defense forced Cal Poly to keep one eye on the shot clock, which continually seemed to be below 10 seconds.

WSU shot 60 percent for the game, with Davion Berry and Joel Bolomboy with 12 and 10 points, respectively. Dylan Royer paced Cal Poly, which shot just 30 percent, with eight points.

martyr@sltrib.com

Twitter: @tribmarty —

Highlights

O With seven 3-point goals, WSU guard Scott Bamforth moves into second place in school history (242).

• Weber State's 27th victory ties the school record for most wins in a season. —

Weber St. 85, Cal Poly 43

CAL POLY (18-14) • Royer 3-4 0-0 8, U'u 0-4 1-4 1, Johnson 2-7 3-4 7, Eversley 3-9 0-0 6, Bennett 1-7 2-2 4, O'Brien 2-7 0-0 4, Morgan 0-4 0-0 0, Awich 0-1 0-0 0, Odister 2-6 0-0 5, Silvestri 0-1 0-0 0, Gordon 4-6 0-2 8. Totals 17-56 6-12 43.

WEBER ST. (27-6) • Bamforth 8-10 0-0 23, Richardson 1-6 0-0 2, Otis 3-6 0-0 6, Berry 3-6 5-6 12, Tresnak 10-11 0-1 20, Wheelwright 1-5 0-0 3, Bradford 0-0 0-0 0, Bolomboy 3-5 4-4 10, Fulton 2-2 0-0 5, Williams 1-3 0-0 2, Hajek 1-1 0-0 2. Totals 33-55 9-11 85. Halftime—Weber St. 45-18. 3-Point Goals—Cal Poly 3-14 (Royer 2-3, Odister 1-3, Silvestri 0-1, Awich 0-1, Gordon 0-1, O'Brien 0-1, Eversley 0-2, Morgan 0-2), Weber St. 10-22 (Bamforth 7-9, Fulton 1-1, Berry 1-3, Wheelwright 1-3, Williams 0-1, Richardson 0-5). Fouled Out—None. Rebounds—Cal Poly 29 (Eversley 5), Weber St. 38 (Bolomboy 8). Assists—Cal Poly 10 (U'u 3), Weber St. 18 (Bamforth, Richardson 4). Total Fouls—Cal Poly 11, Weber St. 15. A—2,309.