This story was originally featured in Mustang News’ April print issue.
While the sun is still down, Mott Athletic Center’s lights are on at 5 a.m. Enveloped around the basket sits “The Gun,” an automated rebounder and passer for players practicing shooting a basketball. The net around the hoop captures the ball before firing it back to the shooter.
The shooter is Cal Poly senior guard Kobe Sanders. This is routine for a player who jumped from 7.9 points per game to 19.6 points between his junior and senior seasons: get up before the sun rises over San Luis Obispo and put in his work.
Sanders was part of former head coach John Smith’s first recruiting class and will be one of the last players he coaches at Cal Poly. The Mustangs parted ways with Smith after finishing their 2023-2024 season 4-28 and 0-20 in the Big West.
After a difficult season for the Mustangs, Sanders entered the transfer portal to find a new school for his final year of eligibility. On March 31, almost two weeks after the transfer portal opened for college basketball players, Sanders announced his commitment to the University of Nevada via social media.
Due to Sanders’ successful season, many high-caliber basketball programs contacted him. These college programs included Nevada, Santa Clara, UNLV, SDSU, UCLA, USC, LMU, Arizona State, New Mexico, Illinois, Loyola Chicago, Arkansas, Miami, Georgetown, Xavier, Iona, Virginia Tech and Virginia.
When Sanders came down to making a decision, he wanted to be a part of the Wolf Pack.
“The Mountain West conference was big this year, proving to be one of the top conferences in the country,” Sanders said. “The fit in playing style and with my versatility, my skill set will be shown in many different ways in the offense, on and off the ball.”
Sanders’ journey was unique during his four years at Cal Poly. As he grew physically and mentally and took on the leadership role for the Mustangs, Sanders rose into one of the best players in the Big West conference.
The Mustang’s star player finished the season third in the Big West in scoring, with one point separating him from the conference’s top scorer, Elijah Peppers of UC Davis. Sanders was named a Big West Honorable Mention, but if it wasn’t for the Mustangs’ 0-20 Big West record, Sanders could’ve found himself on one of the two All-Big West teams.
Sanders has grown into a star player for the Cal Poly Mustangs. Not only has he elevated his scoring production this past season, but he has blossomed into a 6 foot 8, 205-pound shooting guard.
Sanders pulled out his smartphone and showed Mustang News that the automatic “work” location for him is set to Mott Athletic Center.
Sanders grew up in Spring Valley, California. He was surrounded by the game of basketball ever since his mom, Sara, used to coach his older brother, Gage, during his YMCA games.
“When Kobe was two years old, he would be in a sleeper under the bench for the whole hour of the game,” Sanders’ father, Roland, said.
His love for basketball grew as he competed in their driveway against his older brother and best friend, Gage. Early on, they grew up watching the North Carolina Tar Heels and tried to mimic the moves of players like Ty Lawson and Harrison Barnes.
“It was blood, sweat, and tears when we were out battling,” Gage said. “There were times where we were crying and wanted to fist fight over the game of basketball.”
Gage won the majority of the games growing up until the tide started to change.
“One day, he started winning the games all of a sudden, and I was like, he could be a ball player for sure,” Gage said. “Kobe was the type of guy who could go outside and play for hours by himself.”
When playing for the San Diego Rebels, Sanders got used to playing against older competition. Sanders moved into high school and competed against some of the top talent across Southern California.
At one point, Sanders’ AAU basketball team was ranked fourth in the nation. He competed with Houston Rockets shooting guard Jalen Green at tournaments in Anaheim. Green was a five-star recruit coming out of high school and was the No.2 overall pick to the Houston Rockets in the NBA draft.
“We both got our licks in,” Sanders said, smiling when he discussed this matchup with Green. “He scored a lot, and I scored a lot.”
While playing basketball in high school, Sanders felt like “he always had a chance” to continue his basketball career in college because he grew up playing against some of the top competition.
An opportunity was presented to Sanders when former Cal Poly Head Coach John Smith recruited him while he was coaching at Cal State Fullerton. Smith saw Sanders’ “knowledge of how to play the game.”
Smith then made a couple of trips down to San Diego during Sanders’ junior and senior years. Throughout the recruiting process, Smith kept his eye on Sanders.
Despite Sanders’ high feel for the game, there was still some uncertainty. Smith explained that Sanders was a “real thin and scrawny point guard” in high school.
He was considered undersized for his position, at 6 foot 6 inches and 165 pounds. But Smith saw his potential and the Mustangs jumped on him early in recruiting.
Smith emphasized that Sanders had plenty of room to grow coming into Cal Poly and was not immediately physically ready for Division 1 basketball.
With the pandemic, Sanders was given some playing time his freshman year as he was grasping playing at a Division 1 level. As a freshman coming in during the pandemic, 2020-2021 season, Sanders averaged 4.2 points per game and logged 16.2 minutes per game.
In his sophomore season, Sanders’s minutes grew and he showed more flashes of what he could become during his performance at Long Beach State where he scored 22 points and shot 7 of 13 from the field.
During his junior season, glimpses of Sanders’ growth into a star player were seen as he was shifted to point guard due to injuries. Adjusting Sanders’ role, allowed him to control the team and lead the Mustangs. During his junior season, he played 28.4 minutes per game and averaged 7.9 points. At the same time, he also grew from 6 foot 6 to 6 foot 8.
With an increased role, his game began to take off. At this point, all of the early mornings and dedication to the grind started to pay off and produce results for Sanders.
“Everyone knew I had potential – it was just about growing and grasping all of my potential.”
Kobe Sanders, Cal Poly senior guard
Gradually, Sanders has grown into himself physically but has learned to grasp the game mentally as he played in 92 total games during his collegiate career at Cal Poly. With more minutes on the court and conversations with Coach Smith, Sanders’ impact for the Mustangs became more and more apparent.
The early mornings to get shots up when no one was watching inside Mott Athletics Center is one way Sanders has separated himself from his competition. His hard work ethic and discipline are a couple traits that have been staples to his success at Cal Poly. These attributes will be pivotal for his success as he begins his next chapter at the University of Nevada.
“The reason Kobe is so successful is his work ethic. He is a big morning guy. At 5 a.m. he is getting shots up before all of us,” junior guard Aidan Prukop said.
With Sanders adding some weight and gaining more experience playing for the Mustangs, Coach Smith pointed out how he “turned himself into a pro.”
Sanders’ rise into a star player has been a gradual process. He emphasized how it took him a while to grow into himself and find confidence, but once he grasped that confidence, his role began to grow within Smith’s program. Being a leader of the offense also allowed him to have more control and take over the game.
Finding ways to get better each day allowed Sanders to believe that all of his hard work would lead to success.“I am a big believer in that the work will pay off,” Sanders said. All of this paid off as 18 colleges contacted him after he entered the transfer portal.
When Sanders’ puts on his Nevada Wolfpack jersey, the Mustangs will miss his talent and presence.
A player who has stayed loyal to Coach Smith’s program for four years, Smith has also learned a lot about Sanders off the court. Loyalty has not only been an important value of Sanders’ basketball career, but an attribute that shows even when he is back home.
“He is a very well-rounded man,” Smith said. “I am just fortunate to have coached him for four years, and I am going to miss him.”
Prukop, one of Sanders’ good friends on the team, also expressed his appreciation for Sanders. “I love him to death, and I am grateful to call him one of my best friends,” Prukop said. “Not only is he very talented on the court, but off the court, he is also a very good person.”
Sanders’ rise into the Mustangs’ superstar role has taken a lot of development and time. However, with countless hours in the gym and a lot of physical and mental growth, Sanders has turned himself into a superstar in his final season at Cal Poly.
As Sanders graduates from Cal Poly, his journey continues as he heads to the University of Nevada, where he will continue to showcase his talents under Steve Alford’s program.
