Category: Cal Bears

Cameron Indoor Statement: No. 16 Duke Snatches Cal’s Women, 72-38

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By Morris Phillips

DURHAM, NC–Coach Charmin Smith admitted facing highly regarded Duke wasn’t a great matchup for her Bears. But it was the biggest game of the season thus far, and she rightly expected her group’s competitive juices would surface.

The Bears competed, but they did so with multiple Blue Devils clawing and scratching for every available basketball. At first, Duke was annoying. In the second quarter, annoying became acute, causing Smith to call a timeout trailing 25-11. That timeout preceded another shot miss and two turnovers in less than a minute. The rout was cemented, and Duke ran off, winning 72-38.

“We weren’t able to handle the pressure well enough today to get any type of good looks for our scorers,” Smith said. “It was a rough night.”

Cal’s turnovers were game killers. A season-high 31 included 13 from Marta Suarez and Ioanna Krimili combined alone. That had both preoccupied and caused Smith to try other options briefly. Lulu Twidale saw so many Duke defenders leaping at her in closeouts, it’s not clear that she saw the basket when she finally made one late in the third quarter. Kayla Williams may have gotten the worse just by counting each time she had to pick herself off the floor after a Blue Devil leveled her to prevent a quality shot.

I thought it was a complete defensive performance by our group,” coach Kara Lawson said.

Zahra King, Cal’s freshman point guard, entrusted to maintain control of the basketball when Cal’s primary options failed may have suffered the telling moment of the evening when Duke defensive specialist Taina Mair ripped the basketball from King with such force that she found herself falling out of bounds. But Mair simply threw the basketball off King to maintain possession, which left King both speechless and action-less.

“I thought she was maybe the most impactful player in the game for us,” Lawson said of starting guard Mair, who was scoreless. “Her intensity, her competitiveness, her edge, how she disrupted, point of attack defense, five assists, one turnover, four steals. She just demanded her space out there. I told her that after the game. There’s so many more ways to impact winning other than scoring.”

Cal managed to get up 22 shots before halftime, a number rivaled by their 17 turnovers. The second half saw the Blue Devils grab 13 offensive rebounds, which severely limited Cal’s comeback hopes. The Cameron Indoor Stadium scoreboard captured it all, which wasn’t much. The Bears scored nine points in the second quarter and seven points in the third.

“They played phenomenal defense, and we really struggled with it,” Smith said.

Toby Fournier had 23 points, 11 rebounds to pace the hosts. Ashlon Jackson added 16, and Reigan Richardson had 14. Williams led Cal with 8 points.

Cal seeks a split in North Carolina on Sunday at Wake Forest, a team that couldn’t avoid an 0-6 start in ACC play on Thursday when their late comeback against Stanford fell short. The Demon Deacons are the only ACC without a conference win.

Cal Bears podcast with Morris Phillips: Cal gets turned around in landslide loss to Duke 72-38; Bears third loss of the season

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The Cal Bears Gisella Maul (12) drives on the Duke Blue Devils at Cameron Indoor Stadium in Durham on Thu Jan 16, 2025 (Cal Women’s basketball photo)

Cal Bears podcast with Morris Phillips:

#1 Morris the Duke Blue Devils (14-4) made easy work of the Cal Bears (16-3) with a 72-38 win. The contest was not even close and the Bears didn’t get much offense was it a matter of the Bears shot was off or was it that the Blue Devils defense just was in command all night?

#2 Duke’s Toby Fournier was a scoring machine leading with 23 points and she did it all coming off the bench.

#3 Cal tried hard as they may to try and shut down Duke’s Ashlon Jackson who finished second in scoring with 16 and Reigan Richardson with third with 14.

#4 Cal’s scoring was not their previous games nobody finished in double figures. The top three scorers were Kayla Williams with eight, Ugonne Onyiah and Natalia Ackerman both with six. It just seem on one could get past that intimidating Duke defense.

#5 Cal will try it all over again against the Wake Forest Demon Deacons (7-10) on Sunday with an 11:00AM PST tip. Wake Forest are coming off a tough loss to the Stanford Cardinal 74-71 tonight. Wake Forest are last in the ACC and have lost five in a row. Cal is coming in none too happy after the loss to Duke so Wake Forest will no doubt have their work cut out for them.

Cal Bears podcasts with Morris Phillips are heard Thursdays at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Cal Women Thump Florida State 82-70, Improve To An NCAA Tournament-Worthy 16-2

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By Morris Phillips

BERKELEY, CA–Now 18 games into a magical season, the Cal Bears are settling in, refining their methods, and embracing the responsibility of publicly voicing their goals.

Beating talented Florida State 82-70–after leading by as much as 34 points–made for a big statement, as did the bigger challenge of limiting Ta’Niya Latson, the nation’s leading scorer. Cal accomplished both by winning their third straight conference game and holding Latson to 13, more than 14 points below her average.

“Our goal is to make the NCAA Tournament, and that means we have to beat some ranked opponents, got to protect the home court, and were doing that,” coach Charmin Smith declared. “The growth for us is making sure that we don’t have any letdowns. We understand there is a target on our back now.”

Right now, Golden Bears’ opponents are struggling to locate a moving target, a metaphor embodied by Cal’s five starters and their balanced offensive attack that is highlighted by superior 3-point shooting. Cal buried seven threes in Sunday’s first half, and those makes were a major reason Cal built an insurmountable 50-25 halftime lead.

“They’re a really good basketball team,” coach Brooke Wyckoff said. “They play well at home, and we let them get out to a hot start, which is what you can’t do against this team. They’re really confident right now.”

Wyckoff explained that Latson’s struggles came from Cal committing several players to keep tabs on her and not letting the Seminoles get their running game unleashed. That last part is simply a battle of wills. If Florida State wanted to run, Cal’s objective was to make shots in part to slow the Seminoles in transition. Mission accomplished as FSU missed 23 of their first 31 shots from the floor, a product of Cal’s early success.

In all 18 games thus far, the Bears have shot the ball terrifically. Their shortcomings have centered around turnovers and defensive lapses. But increasingly, the team has limited its issues in those areas and seen its stock grow. In their next five games, Cal will see its two most prominent opponents in Duke and No. 3 Notre Dame, both on the road. Picked 14th in the ACC pre-season poll, the Bears didn’t figure to impact either team. Now, they might be ready for both, despite both contests being on the road.

“This year, the biggest difference that I see is we’re finishing games. We had some leads against really good teams last year, and we let them slip away. And this year, we’re able to get the wins.”

Cal’s second-half comeback falls short in 71-68 loss to Hokies

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Cal Bears guard Andrej Stojakovic guard (2) goes for the throw down against the Virginia Tech Hokies at Haas Pavilion on Sat Jan 11, 2025 (Cal Bears photo)

By Daniel Dullum

Saturday, January 11, 2025

Despite a valiant Comeback, California came up short in its men’s basketball game against Virginia Tech, as the Hokies earned a 71-68 Atlantic Coast Conference victory at Haas Pavilion.

It was Cal’s sixth loss in its last eight games.

The Golden Bears (8-8 overall, 1-4 ACC) were down 22 points in the second half. Cal’s Andrej Stojakovic scored 22 of his game-high 24 points to spark the Golden Bears late rally. Stojakovic’s 3-point attempt rimmed out as time expired.

Jeremiah Wilkinson scored 14 points for Cal, including 11 in the second half. Stojakovic and Wilkinson combined to score 30 of the Golden Bears’ last 31 points of the game.

Jayden Young was the top scorer for Virginia Tech with 14 points, while Tyler Johnson turned in a double-double (11 points and 12 rebounds) for the Hokies (7-9 overall, 2-3 ACC).

The Golden Bears missed their first 13 shots of the game, trailing 15-4 early, eventually trailing 42-33 at halftime. Cal was trailing by 21 seven minutes into the second half when it used a 26-7 run, and tied the game at 58-58 with 6:03 remaining. Virginia Tech reeled off a 9-0 run to maintain the lead for good.

Next weekend, the Golden Bears travel to Tobacco Road for ACC games against North Carolina on Wednesday (4 p.m.) and North Carolina State on Saturday (3 p.m.).

Cal Women To Be Pushed By Florida State, Nation’s Leading Scorer, Ta’Niya Latson

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By Morris Phillips

BERKELEY, CA–Brooke Wyckoff’s Seminoles have never been to Berkeley. This season, they’ve yet to face a ranked opponent and No. 24 Cal is up next. And they’re coming off a frustrating loss at Stanford in which they scored 84 points, and lost in regulation.

When you’re 13-3 with big goals, you crawl back to the hotel, recharge, and spend little time waxing poetically about your beautiful January weekend in Northern California.

“What it takes is a standard of excellence on both ends of the floor,” Wyckoff said immediately, in reflecting on the trip so far, including a loss at Stanford that was simply not what she wants from her experienced, talented team.

The host Cardinal came in a mess, and left blessed. Losers of five of their last six, Stanford pushed the pace, and made shots. They also dominated the glass, and never trailed after 9-8 early in the first period. Wyckoff demanded her team assess themselves, individually and collectively, and take responsibility for their performance in the 89-84 loss.

“We need better defense, no uncontested threes,” she said. “We scored 84 points, which is less than what we normally score, but enough to win a basketball game.”

Ta’Niya Latson, the nation’s leading scorer at 27.7 ppg, put up 24 but wasn’t on her game. Two games ago, she scored 40, and she’s exceeded 24 on ten other occasions. But against Stanford, she needed 22 shots to reach that 24, and defensively, she got caught on a couple of instances outside of reach of Stanford shooters.

Latson’s response to a subpar game could be Cal’s biggest concern. The junior guard is rarely out of pocket and produces big numbers effortlessly and seemingly from muscle memory. Cal will dial up several different defenses, but Latson’s unlikely to be phased.

“It’s the natural growth as a player, from day one she’s seen every type of coverage thrown at her,” Wyckoff said of Latson. “She’s more comfortable now than ever.”

Latson’s body maturity after a couple of seasons in a university-style gym is noticeable. At 5’8″, she’s exceptionally smooth, and now, with the increased muscle, far less likely to be impeded in the paint, even by defenders that are five or six inches taller.

Cal will counter with their uncanny shooting prowess that ranks them 12th nationally in made threes per game at 10.1. They shoot 46 percent from the floor, which ranks 37th. At Haas Pavilion, the Golden Bears are 10-0 and their crowds are building as their 15-2 won-loss record gains notice.

Wyckoff, a year removed from a cancer diagnosis, and an intense regime with chemotherapy, is again enjoying the process, and the intense competition within the ACC that coaches crave.

“You’re preparing for opponents, you’re playing games,” Wyckoff said, in comparing her coaching career to a form of therapy.

“(Having that distraction) was a huge blessing. And an amazing staff supported me through it,” she said about last season before declaring that her chemo treatments have ended for now.

Cal Women Shoot Up No. 21 N.C. State In 78-71 Win

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By Morris Phillips

BERKELEY, CA–By the time Kayla Williams went washing machine, and put N.C. State defender Zoe Brooks into a spin cycle at the elbow before finishing over fast closing  post Tilda Trygger, the Golden Bears shot making display was already in full effect.

Coach Wes Moore hinted to Thursday’s game as being a continuation of his opponent film study that clearly demonstrated Cal’s basketball team as exceptional shooters. The game validated Cal, and the show started early and continued late.

Ioanna Krimili struck first with a floater in the game’s first 13 seconds. Then Lulu Twidale buried a three as soon as Kayla Williams’ pass arrived on a rope. Marta Suarez casually dropped a three. The Haas Pavilion crowd, minus a few friends, perked up fast and got loud.

The No. 24 Golden Bears would limp through the remainder of the opening quarter, then suddenly seize control early in the second. Suarez’s three 3-pointers in less than a minute neatly erased the visitors’ lead, put Cal in the driver’s seat, and frustrated Moore, who abruptly called a timeout.

“They’re a very explosive offensive team,” Moore said. “We knew that coming in. Four starters shoot over 40 percent from three. I thought (Michelle Onyiah) really did a nice job for them tonight as well. So they had a great balanced attack.”

In the first, authentic big game at Haas since 2018, Cal showed out. Coach Charmin Smith knew it and expressed joyous relief.

“I’m just really proud of this team. I think this was a great program win,” Smith said. “Those (N.C. State) guards have been to a Final Four.”

“That’s what we do. That’s what we say. We make threes in tough moments. I was just feeling it,” Suarez said.

“Having shooters all around the floor, it creates a lot of space for everybody, so that was what coach kind of mentioned.”

On a night where the referees effectively kept both teams away from the free throw line (only 16 free throws were attempted in the game), shooting was the key to victory. Both teams displayed Top 25 shot making, but Cal had the ball in Williams’ hands, and she was either efficient or spectacular all night.

For the entire 40 minutes without a substitution, Williams probed, attacked, and dechipered. Each time down the floor, and with the ball in her hands, she broke the Wolfpack defense and found her teammates. When the defense relaxed, she got to the basket with a series of jaw-dropping finishes.

“I thought Williams killed us off the bounce,” Moore admitted.

Suarez led Cal with 17 points. Krimili, Onyiah, and Williams each added 15. Twidale contributed 11, and Gabrielle Obigor and Jayda Noble provided critical play off the bench.

N.C. State’s unflappable duo of Saniya Rivers and Aziaha James combined for 33 points, but they missed 19 shots, and couldn’t string together a flurry of buckets that would have surely given the hosts pause.

Cal (15-2, 3-1) hosts Florida State on Sunday at 2 p.m. The game provides Cal an opportunity to remain connected to league-leader Notre Dame, the only conference team that’s undefeated in league play. The Bears visit the Irish on February 9.

Golden Bears down Virginia 75-61 for first ACC win

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Cal Bears forward Joshua Ola-Joseph (1) throws down on the Virginia Cavaliers at Haas Pavilion in Berkeley on Wed Jan 8, 2025 (Cal Bears X photo)

By Daniel Dullum

Wednesday, January 8, 2025

California came up with its first Atlantic Coast Conference men’s basketball victory of the season Wednesday at Haas Pavilion, as the Golden Bears defeated Virginia 75-61.

After the Bears’ win, Cal (8-7 overall, 1-3 ACC) and Virginia (*-7 overall, 1-3 ACC) are tied for 13th place in the conference race.

Andrej Stojakovic topped the scoring column for the Golden Bears, popping in a game-high 23 points on 6 of 11 field goals and 11 of 13 at the fee throw line. It was the eighth 20-point game for Stojakovic, who transferred to Cal from Stanford.

DJ Campbell was next for Cal with 11 points, followed by Joshua Ola-Joseph and Jeremiah Wilkinson with 10 points each off the bench.

Mady Sissoko scored nine points while leading Cal with 11 rebounds, as the Golden Bears had a 40-33 edge on the boards.

Andrew Rohde led the Cavaliers with14 points and six assists, followed by Jacob Cofie with 12 points and Elijah Saunders with 11 points and 10 rebounds for his first career double-double.

The Golden Bears shot 43.1 from the field (22 of 51, 4 of 13 3-pointers) and 27 of 33 at the free throw line. Virginia was held to 32.8 percent shooting 19of 58 field goals, 7 of 23 3-point) and 16 of 18 free throws.

The announced crowd of 3,696 watched the Golden Bears snap a three-game losing streak.

On Saturday, the Golden Bears host Virginia Tech. Tipoff is scheduled for 3 p.m.

Cal Bears WBB podcast with Morris Phillips: Cal and NC State clash Thursday night at Haas Pavilion

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Cal Bears head coach Charmin Smith goes over instructions with the players during a time out (photo by Cal Bears Athletics program)

On the Cal Bears WBB podcast with Morris Phillips:

#1 The Cal Bears (14-2, 2-1 ACC) will tip off against No.21 NC State (12-3) on Thursday night at 7pm here at Haas Pavilion. It is the first top 25 match up played here in Berkeley since the 2017-18. This is the first ever meeting between Cal and NC State.

#2 If Cal were to win on Thursday that would give them two top 25 wins at home for the first time since 2018-19 when they beat No.8 Stanford and No.17 Arizona State.

#3 Morris, what could have been the Bears could have been 10-0 but lost a couple game between win number nine and the two loses but just the same they’ve been a tough customer.

#4 Marta Suarez is having a season she has a leading 19 points hitting eight of 12 shots with six rebounds and was three for three from downtown. What do you look from Marta going into Thursday’s game?

#5 Morris, one important note the NC State Wolfpack are no pushovers they bring a seven game win streak into Haas Pavilion on Thursday night and defeated the Boston College Eagles (10-8) in their last game by a clear decision 91-52 at NC State last Sun Jan 5th.

Morris Phillips does the Cal Bears podcasts at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Mustang Must: Cal Women rebound with 81-66 win at SMU

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Cal Bears forward Marta Suarez led with 19 points against the SMU Mustangs in Dallas on Sun Jan 5, 2025 (Cal Bears photo)

By Morris Phillips

There’s nothing like weekend travel in the ACC. The Golden Bears know that after experiencing 48 hours of idled frustration following an unanticipated loss at Clemson. In this case, a rough Friday and Saturday prior to a triumphant Sunday afternoon at SMU in Dallas.

It wasn’t easy excursion, but it was productive.

The Bears relied on great shooting, including 10 made threes to get past Clemson. Five of those threes fell in the third quarter when Cal extended a four-point halftime lead to 64-51 after three quarters. Marta Suarez was the most aggressive shooter with 19 points on 9 of 12 from the floor.

“That’s a really good team,” SMU coach Toyelle Wilson said of Cal. “They’re Top 20 for a reason. They can shoot the ball, they can get downhill. They’re physical. Charmin has done a great job with that program. 

“But it wasn’t our day, and the girls know: we’re going to have to take some bumps and bruises to get through this ACC conference. Today was a good day for us to learn a lot.”

Cal returned to physical play with 40 rebounds and a healthy edge on the glass, along with 36 points in the paint. The referees weren’t all plussed, and they assessed fouls to Michelle Onyiah and Suarez that limited both players’ minutes.

Kayla Williams impressed legendary North Carolina All-American point guard Ivory Latta, who said, “she’s so poised. She really controls that offense.”

Williams killed with efficiency. She had 17 points, seven assists, and five assists. The visitors followed Williams’ lead: after squandering a pair of second quarter leads, the Bears led the entire second half, briefly by as many as 19 points.

Nya Robertson led the Mustangs with 22 points, but she needed 20 shots to get there. Chantae Embry had 12 points, and Ella Brow added 10.

The Bears (14-2, 3-1) return to Berkeley on Thursday to meet ranked opponent North Carolina State at Haas Pavilion.

Clemson’s Late Spurt Sends Cal Women To 69-58 Defeat In ACC Road Opener

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By Morris Phillips

Won-loss records and national rankings don’t win games, seizing an opening and capturing the moment does, just like the Clemson Tigers did on Thursday night.

A 12-0 run that followed 15 lead changes broke open a close game in the fourth quarter and carried Clemson past the Cal Women 69-58 at Littlejohn Coliseum. The loss thwarted Cal’s attempt to achieve a program-first 14-1 start to a season.

“We’re slowly building this, and we’re trying to do it the right way, in a way that feels like we’re part of Clemson,” coach Shawn Poppie said of his initial win over a Top 25 opponent as Tigers head coach.

“I think they were just really aggressive, and you could tell they had a sense of urgency, and they really wanted to win this game. And, I didn’t think we matched their intensity level. It was a poor shooting night for us, for sure. But this is road basketball in the ACC, and we’ve got to be better,” coach Charmin Smith said.

Loyal McQueen led Clemson with 18 points, 14 of those before halftime, when she gave the hosts narrow leads to end the first quarter and again at the halftime break. Mia Moore, Tessa Johnson, and reserve Raven Thompson also scored in double figures for Clemson, who found success driving to the rim for scores or by getting to the free throw line.

Cal got 18 points, including three 3-pointers, from Ioanna Krimili. But her teammates were 1 of 13 from distance, which doused any opportunities for a fourth quarter comeback. The Bears four made threes, and 20 percent shooting from distance were well below the visitors’ season averages.


“I thought we fouled a lot it looks like. I don’t know the foul discrepancy was, but it was very significant. They got a lot of trips to the line in that quarter, and we
weren’t able to keep people in front of us. We let them get downhill, get to the rim. We know that we have to be better defensively, and our defense usually
sparks our offense. So if we’re not getting stops, we’re not scoring as many points either.”

Cal gets a chance to salvage their road swing at SMU on Sunday afternoon. The Mustangs won’t be an easier target after they pulled past Stanford 67-63 on Thursday.