SANTA BARBARA, Calif. -- A string of five 3-pointers by Anthony Silvestri and Taylor Sutlive shot Cal Poly into an early lead they never relinquished, defeating UC Santa Barbara 72-64 on Saturday.

Silvestri went 5-for-7 from behind the 3-point line and Sutlive 3-for-4 to finish with 17 points and 11, respectively, for the Mustangs (6-9, 2-0 Big West). Cal Poly drained 11 of 18 3-pointers for 61 percent long-range shooting.

David Nwaba scored 14 and Chris Eversley 13 for the Mustangs.

Alan Williams lit the scoreboard with 33 points for the Gauchos (9-5, 0-1), hitting 12-of-21 shots. Williams and Taran Brown teamed for a 10-2 run that brought the Gauchos as close as 58-55 on a Williams jumper with 4:01 to play. But Eversley answered with a jumper and a 3 on consecutive possessions, boosting the Cal Poly lead to 63-55, and the Mustangs closed the game 9 of 10 at the line.