American River College sophomore Chad Haysbert signed a letter of intent to attend Cal Poly Pomona for the 2013-14 academic year last week. The 6'9, 230-lb forward is finishing up his final academic semester at ARC before heading south to play for a Broncos team that finished the 2012-2013 season 28-3 overall and 20-2 in the NCAA Division II California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) Conference. He will join the team in the wake of their first-ever outright conference regular season crown, and first CCAA Championships tournament title.

By signing with Cal Poly Pomona, Chad will have the opportunity to play for a highly decorated head coach in Greg Kamansky. In his 13 seasons at the helm of the Broncos program, Kamansky has won an NCAA Division II national title, had seven 20-win seasons, seven NCAA tournament berths, and owns the highest winning percentage in program history. Coach Kamansky shares in the positive outlook on Haysbert's future as a Bronco. "We're excited to have Chad as a part of our program. He's a long, athletic and versatile player; that we look forward to working with. He will give us an opportunity to stay at an elite level nationally. On top of all of that he's a good student and a high character person," Kamansky said.

The 2011 Center High School graduate was relished as a standout junior college big man for ARC, and helped the Beavers to a 12-14 overall record and playoff berth in 2012-2013. He played in all but one game for ARC this past season, averaging 13.3 points, 8.5 rebounds, 1.4 blocks, and 1.2 steals. He also had an astounding 62.4% field goal percentage, which ranked seventh in the state amongst players who took over 100 total shots. During the 2011-2012 season, Haysbert played in all 25 games and averaged 9.1 points on 57.4% field goal shooting, 5.8 rebounds, 1.8 blocks, and 1.2 steals. The Beavers finished 11-17 that season.

One reason for the Cal Poly Pomona choice was the ability to play competitive basketball while staying close to home. "I chose Cal Poly Pomona because it was the best fit for me, and best option. They have a good basketball program, and a good business marketing program," Haysbert said. "I always told myself if I didn't go D-I, I was going to get a D-II ring, so that's what I plan on doing." Not only will Chad get to stay close to home in Pomona, CA – which is 30 minutes east of Los Angeles – he will also get a chance to play in Northern California several times. Six of the twelve teams in the CCAA Conference are less than a three hour drive from Sacramento.