By Morris Phillips

BERKELEY, CA–Cal didn’t win the statistical battle in the painted area on Thursday night, but they showed up, and that really was the key to their eye-catching 73-61 victory over Oregon State in their Pac-12 opener.

Clinging to a one-point halftime lead, Cal open the second half with ten of the first 11 points, all scored in the paint, to take control of a close game. They would go on to lead by as many as 16 and win by 12, with Jordan Shepherd (25 points, eight rebounds) and Andre Kelly (20 points, 12 rebounds) leading the way.

“We were really ready to play,” coach Mark Fox said. “At the end of the night we won the game.”

The Bears being picked to finish last in conference, but finding a way to win their first Pac-12 outing is no doubt a story, but the Beavers dropping a seventh straight game may be more noteworthy. Oregon State was beat decisively on the glass, and couldn’t stop Cal’s top scorers while losing by double-digits for the third time in their seven-game skid.

The Bears outrebounded Oregon State 42-24, attempted 19 free throws, making 16 and scored 28 points in the paint. The Beavers tallied 40 points in the paint, but did little else well. Leading scorer Warith Alatishe had 21 points, eight rebounds, but his three fouls committed were painful. The first two of Alatishe’s fouls came late in the shot clock, and the third put Cal in the bonus too early in the second half, dooming a potential comeback by the visitors.

“We stayed composed,” Shepherd said, when asked about OSU’s late, modest run that brought them within 60-53 with 4:10 remaining.

Andre Kelly scored in double figures for the sixth time this season, and he’s shooting 67.5 percent from the floor. Kelly has double-digit rebounds in four of the eight games. In the second half Thursday, Kelly was six for seven as Cal shot 54 percent from the floor.

Oregon State missed 14 of its first 17 shots after halftime, and Cal closed it out by making nine of their 10 free throw attempts down the stretch. The Utes were limited to ten free throw attempts, making six.

Cal improved to 4-4 on the season, and they travel Salt Lake City on Sunday to face Utah Utes, beaten 93-73 by USC in their conference opener on Wednesday. The Utes have dropped two straight after a 5-0 start to their season. The Trojans saw four of their five starters score in double figures in the rout.