By Morris Phillips

BERKELEY, CA–The Cal Bears hadn’t been in a close game late in three weeks. But there they were, after overcoming an 18-point deficit, leading Colorado 54-53 with 7:04 remaining on Thursday night.

It would soon become a fleeting moment. The Bears would lead just once and see their losing streak reach eight games. The Buffaloes recovered, shutting down Cal in the final minutes, and winning 68-59.

But Coach Wyking Jones could at least point to his club’s effort as a positive in recapping the evening.

“I was obviously very happy with the fight and the toughness our guys showed in that stretch that I’ve been waiting to see for a long time,” Jones said. “I saw some guys who had to give everything they had get tired.”

The Buffs won at Berkeley for the first time as a member of the Pac-12 after five losses. They needed fewer than two minutes to extend their 11-point halftime lead to 18. But little went right after that, until Colorado grew stingy after Paris Austin pulled Cal within 60-58 with 4:09 remaining. The Bears were limited to one made free throw after that, missing their final seven shots.

“It’s much like November — it’s a lot better to learn from a win than learn from a loss, and this would have been a crushing loss,” CU coach Tad Boyle said. “I’m really proud of the way the guys reacted to the adversity.”

Guard McKinley Wright finished with eight points, four rebounds, and served as the ringleader for a CU attack that feasted on open looks. Three Colorado players scored in double figures, led by Lucas Siewert with 18, but Wright made the big plays late, despite missing the previous game against Utah due to a shoulder injury.

“He’s like Tom Brady. When he’s on the floor, everything’s much easier,” said Tyler Bey (17 points, 14 rebounds) of Wright.

The Bears haven’t won a conference game since February, and that streak will extend to more than a year if they can’t stop Utah on Saturday at Haas Pavilion.

“We don’t have that margin of error where we can lay back. Those little spurts when we’re not focused, they really come back to hurt us at the end of the game,” said Justice Sueing, who along with Austin paced Cal with 13 points.