Category: Cal Bears

Cal comes up short in Pac-12 semis; NIT bid likely after loss to top-seeded Oregon

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By Morris Phillips

In the estimation of all the NCAA tournament prognosticators, Cal needed to win Friday night against top-seeded Oregon to gain one of the 68 coveted invitations to March Madness.

Now that the Bears have dropped three straight to the Pac-12 regular season champs, and beaten just one Top 50 opponent in eight tries, Coach Cuonzo Martin and his Bears were reduced to their belief that they still belong despite their 11th loss of the season on Friday night.

“I think we’re an NCAA tournament team. Now it’s for them to decide,” coach Cuonzo Martin said.

“For me, I really don’t care what they say. I’m not going to assume what they say. For me, it’s a whole season, so it’s a body of work.  If that’s not good enough, that’s not good enough. I didn’t go into this game thinking we had to win to get into the NCAA tournament.”

If the Bears find the committee to be kind, then Cal’s ability to compete with the highly-ranked Ducks despite losing leading scorer Jabari Bird in the game’s first minute will be cited. Bird left the court holding his head after a hard fall, and was thought to have suffered a concussion.

In Bird’s absence, senior Grant Mullins contributed 23 points, and Charlie Moore continued his strong tournament with 15 points, three assists in 35 minutes of action. The Bears so-so 43 percent shooting as a team held up as they didn’t turn the ball over or lose Ivan Rabb to fouls (Rabb played 36 minutes, and committed just two fouls).

Tyler Dorsey led four Oregon double-figure scorers with 23 points, and came up with the critical three-point play in the final minute after Cal trimmed the Ducks’ lead to two.  Dylan Ennis scored 16 points, converting all nine of his free throw attempts.

The Bears qualified for the conference semifinals for the second year in a row, but failed to make it to the finals for only the fourth time in school history.

Cal puts itself back into NCAA consideration with win over Utah in Pac-12 quarterfinals

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By Morris Phillips

Cal’s end to the regular season won’t be a disaster.

But two consecutive wins can’t accomplish what three can, meaning Cal’s NCAA quest needs one more big step Friday night against Oregon in the Pac-12 semifinals.

While the Bears’ 21st win carries a bit of weight, as does their about face performance against Utah, their 1-7 record against Top 50 competition is ghastly, the worst such record among those teams under the closest scrutiny by the NCAA selection committee.

The third meeting of the season with the Ducks in the tourney semis will be Cal’s final opportunity to get over the hump. Win, and the Bears could go dancing after all.  Lose, and it’s off to the NIT.

“We lost a tough one at home to them,” coach Cuonzo Martin said.  “We didn’t play as well at their place. Lost a tough one at our place.  It took a lot out of us as a team because we felt we had that one. For us, we know the game plan. We understand the task at hand and what we have to do.”

And how critical it will be for the Pac-12’s top defensive team to score against the second highest scoring team, Oregon, which is averaging 17 points more than what Cal typically allows.

Against fourth-seeded Utah, the Bears broke open a tie game at the half by making their first nine shots after halftime. They extended their lead to 10 on Jabari Bird’s three with 8:54 remaining. Bird would make four threes against Utah and led all scorers with 26 points.

Cal still lead by 11 with 2:17 remaining when Utah made its move, slicing the lead to one with 26 seconds left. But the Bears held on, getting five of Bird’s 26 points in those final seconds to hold on, 78-75.

Cal gives a better showing in win over OSU, need to play even better against next opponent Utah

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By Morris Phillips

If the Cal Bears’ effort on Wednesday afternoon was akin to a roaring crowd trying to exhort their favorite band to leave their comfy, dressing room for one more encore, then the Bears prevented the house lights from being turned on–signaling the end of the concert–but weren’t nearly demonstrative enough to get the band back on stage for a couple more songs either.

After slipping past twelfth-seeded Oregon St. 67-62, the Bears could claim they were loud, but going forward, probably not loud enough.

Jabari Bird led Cal with 20 points, Ivan Rabb added 12 points,  13 rebounds and the Bears never trailed after the game’s first 10 minutes, but had their collective nerves exposed as the Beavers sliced their lead to four in the final minutes. The Bears held on, but a one-game win streak isn’t the three wins in three days they need to crash the NCAA tournament party.

On Thursday,  the Bears take on fourth-seeded Utah with the winner getting a shot at top-seeded Oregon on Friday.  In order to mask five losses in the previous six games, and only one win (at USC in January) against the Top 50, Cal will need to win at least twice more to entice the NCAA selection committee.

“We knew it would be tough just finding a way to win, get the rust off us,” coach Cuonzo Martin said.  “Felt like we were playing with a 15-pound vest on our backs.  We found a way to get the win, and now we can move forward.”

The Bears shot just 33 percent in their two, road losses last weekend, so 40 percent shooting against OSU wasn’t a sizeable improvement. But in this one the Bears had an offensive focal point in Bird, who hit three threes, including a critical one with 54 seconds remaining.

Bird’s offense and Cal’s huge advantage in rebounding were huge on a night when Grant Mullins (2 of 8 shooting) and Charlie Moore (3 of 12) couldn’t find the mark.  With Mullins and Moore struggling, Stephen Domingo stepped up with a couple of big buckets.  With Domingo adding 10 points,  the Bears had four, double-digit scorers in the game.

The Bears (20-11) are attempting to qualify for the Pac-12 tournament semifinals for the second straight year.

Cal Bears podcast with Morris Phillips; Cal hoping to get past OSU in Vegas Wednesday

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Jabari Bird had 20 points in Cal’s win over Oregon State (Photo by Cal.ISIPhotos.com)

The offense has been a real issue for the Cal Bears, defensively they’ve held up real good by the end the season as the number one ranked team in the Pac 12 defensively but if you can’t score you can’t win. So that’s where Cal is at. Cal had some rough games like the loss they had at Utah and Colorado and to have such a good season and to play this poorly at this junction all the speculations starts. In the first half against OSC another low scoring game as Cal took a lead at the half.

In regards to what happened in Utah the Bears lost by 30 their worst loss to the Utes and the they had that game against the Buffaloes Saturday morning and scored only 36 points in the loss to Colorado. The Bears shot only 27 percent in both games below 30 percent. Cal has some really deep offensive issues and an inability to put the ball in the basket.

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

 

 

Bubble burst: Cal offense disappears again in regular-season finale at Colorado 54-46

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Colorado guard George King, center, is trapped with the ball by California guard Jabari Bird, left, and forward Ivan Rabb in the second half of an NCAA basketball game Saturday, March 4, 2017, in Boulder, Colo. Colorado won 54-46. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

By Morris Phillips

If the NCAA tournament committee were so inclined, they could have tuned in to the Pac-12 Network Saturday afternoon to see if the Cal Bears could pass the “eye test” for inclusion to the upcoming tournament.

If so, the committee would have been saddled with eye soreness watching a struggling team whose offense has mysteriously disappeared.

Cal’s offense was missing in action as the Bears fell short in the regular season finale at Colorado, 54-46.  Three days after the Bears shot 27 percent from the field, and lost by 30 at Utah, they were similarly saddled by anemic 27 percent shooting at Colorado.

“You just can’t keep getting stops and stops without scoring,” said Jabari Bird, who led Cal with just 11 points.

The recent spate of losing (five losses in six games) has taken the Bears from likely inclusion in March Madness to barely under consideration. Had the committee tuned in Saturday, they would have bypassed opportunities to watch bubble occupants Vanderbilt and Xavier in the same broadcast window as the Commodores upset Florida, and the once Top Ten-ranked Musketeers ended a six-game losing streak at DePaul.

While Xavier and Vanderbilt on first glance seem to be similarly challenged teams like Cal, the key differences are significant.  Cal has been anemic against top competition, going 1-7 against the nation’s Top 50, beating only USC in January.  Bubble teams–all from major conferences and many with more overall losses than Cal–have each pulled at least two Top 50 upsets, and none are the anemic offensively as Cal.

Consequently, the Bears (19-11, 10-8) are listed among the next four out in ESPN’s up-to-the-minute bracketology, at the bottom of a list of eight schools that are closest to NCAA inclusion, but are currently believed to be out.  With the regular season concluded, Cal’s only path is to win three consecutive days next week in Las Vegas, likely needing to beat Washington, UCLA and Oregon to reinvent their tournament resume.

 

Cal beat up by Utah, NCAA aspirations take a major hit

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By Morris Phillips

How will the Cal Bears get past their worst loss in two years as their NCAA tournament aspirations hang in the balance?

They’ll have to win games, there’s no other alternative.

Utah pounced on the Bears Thursday night, winning 74-44, the Utes’ biggest win ever in the series between the two schools.  On a night Cal needed to come up with a big win, they surprisingly played their worst game.  Offensively, they were present only in the game’s opening moments.  Defensively, the Bears never showed up.

“I don’t think we competed at the level we normally compete at,” Cal coach Cuonzo Martin said.  “You have to give Utah a lot of credit for making that happen.”

After the game was tied at six, the Utes scored 32 of the game’s next 42 points. Cal couldn’t defend the paint, allowing numerous drives to the bucket.  Utah’s Lorenzo Bonham and Sedrick Barefield hit key three-pointers as well.

Inexplicably, as the Bears fell down 20 at halftime, Ivan Rabb took only one shot. The Bears failed to get their preseason-All American the ball, and Rabb too easily slid into the background.

Rabb would finish with eight points, eight rebounds, but miss all three of his shot attempts.  Jabari Bird struggled too, scoring just six points while taking only seven shots.

The Bears have dropped four of five, and their desired fourth place finish in the Pac-12 regular season standings is in jeopardy.  The Bears (19-10, 10-7) will have to beat Colorado on Saturday to gain a bye in the Pac-12 tournament.

Most prognosticators have the Bears as one of the first four teams out as Cal has faltered, and a couple of other teams on the bubble, Illinois, Georgia and others have picked up key wins.  Consequently, the Bears may be NIT-bound if they can’t beat Colorado, then win their conference tournament opener, likely a rematch against Utah.

Cal Bears basketball podcast with Morris Phillips: Rabb still deciding to go pro might finish the season with Bears

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Oregon’s Tyler Dorsey, right, shoots against California’s Ivan Rabb in the second half of an NCAA college basketball game, Wednesday, Feb. 22, 2017, in Berkeley, Calif. Oregon won 68-65. (AP Photo/Ben Margot)

The Cal Bears Ivan Rabb is really a mature youngster 20 years old he made the decision to come to Cal in the first place and made the decision to come back for his sophomore year this season. Rabb’s return this season was a really big boost for the program a boost for the University and a possibility of winning back to back tournaments. Rabb has done a lot for the university unfortunately his draft stock went down a little bit this year.

Rabb was not the polished offensive player that NBA teams would feel comfortable drafting it’s expected that he would be drafted at 15-20 and obviously if he comes back for a third year it’s not a slight on him or his ability he just feels comfortable being home in the East Bay. It’s likely he’s going to turn pro but that decision will wait until after the season.

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

 

 

Senior night, undermanned Oregon State allow Cal to get back on track 76-46

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California’s Ivan Rabb, center, and Kameron Rooks, left, guard Oregon State’s Gligorije Rakocevic (23) during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game Friday, Feb. 24, 2017, in Berkeley, Calif. (AP Photo/Ben Margot)

By Morris Phillips

BERKELEY–Ivan Rabb arrived in Berkeley two years ago amid great fanfare, the latest local phenom to sign with Cal, following Jason Kidd and Leon Powe before him.

After Cal’s much-needed Senior Night victory over Oregon State, Rabb lingered on the floor, acknowledged a few more people than normal, and shook a few more hands.

Could this have been Rabb’s swan song with the NBA beckoning? As always, the very mature Rabb chose his words carefully.

“No question, I think I have the opportunity to go or stay, and I don’t know what’s going to happen.  I did take time tonight to soak in the time on the court, slap fans hands, take pictures with people and really soak in the moment. Regardless, it was our last home game.  And I wanted to enjoy it,” Rabb said.

The 6’11” sophomore could have joined Jaylen Brown as an NBA draft entrant last year. And his decision to return to school may have been bigger than his decision to come in the first place.  By returning, Rabb allowed Coach Cuonzo Martin to avoid an immediate dip after the surge afforded his program with the signings of Rabb and Brown.  The Bears have continued to win, and the prospect of consecutive NCAA tournament appearances is within reach.

Rabb has seen his draft stock drop slightly under the weight of constant double teaming, but he couldn’t have been more consistent, with the clear majority of his 27 double-doubles coming this season.  The Oakland native will undoubtedly be choosen in the first round of the NBA draft if he chooses to leave.  And his contribution to the university and the athletic department can’t be questioned.

And the most gratifying part of Senior Night by far? That the speculation surrounding Rabb did not take away from the attention afforded seniors Sam Singer, Jabari Bird, Roger Moute A Bidias, Stephen Domingo and Grant Mullins.

Nor did the presence of OSU, a team with only one win since December, and with an unsightly RPI number of 293, giving them the ability to ruin Cal’s season if they could summon one unlikey, superior performance.

That slight possibility lasted only a few minutes, when OSU’s early seven-point lead was wiped out by Cal scoring 20 of the game’s next 23 points.  The Bears surged again at the beginning of the second half, and cruised to a 76-46 win.

At no point did the Bears let the emotionally-draining loss to Oregon on Wednesday affect them.  Their dismantling of injury-riddled Oregon State was clearly a focused effort, one Martin noticed.

“We didn’t let the atmosphere comsume us,” Martin said. “This time of the season it’s never too late and it’s a good sign for us.”

Rabb led Cal with 16 points, and just missed another double-double with nine rebounds. Singer added 14 points, making all seven of his shots in his Haas Pavilion finale.  And the Bears exploited their size and depth with significant edges in rebounds and points in the paint.

The Bears (19-9, 10-6) stopped a three-game losing streak with the win, and kept themselves on the good side of the NCAA tournament bubble with the win. They close the regular season at Utah, and at Colorado with the goal of finishing fourth in the Pac-12 standings and earning a first round bye in the conference tournament.

That and at least one win in Las Vegas should get the Bears into the NCAA field given their accomplishments to date.

 

 

 

Cal shocked by Dillon’s last second, game winner for No. 6 Oregon

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Oregon’s Dillon Brooks, left, lays up a shot over California’s Kingsley Okoroh (22) in the second half of an NCAA college basketball game Wednesday, Feb. 22, 2017, in Berkeley, Calif. Oregon won 68-65. (AP Photo/Ben Margot)

By Morris Phillips

BERKELEY–To truly feel the Cal Bears’ heartache after Oregon’s Dillon Brooks capped the Ducks’ furious rally from 10 points down, 7:15 remaining with a game-winning three-pointer, you must first capture OU’s mindset coming into this pivotal Pac-12 matchup.

The Ducks–a marvelous, if not unique, combo of shot blocking and offensive efficiency–arrived in Berkeley with an almost immeasurable amount less to play for than the Haas Pavilion-emboldened Bears.  And that said it all, because this was undoubtedly the biggest game of Cal’s season to date.

For the Bears, it was win and their NCAA ticket was punched.  For the Ducks, the most talented team from Eugene in the last 15 seasons, it was win and their Pac-12 title aspirations–and beyond–were still shimmering.

And the Ducks played as if they were pre-occupied or wounded–take your pick–until the final minutes when Oregon surged, and Cal wilted.

For Cal, probably needing one stop–or one, clutch bucket–to salt it away, this was as maddening as losing gets at the Division I level.

“It was a hard-fought game,” Cal coach Cuonzo Martin said.  “It was a very emotional locker room.  It was a tough one for us.”

How tough? Oregon trailed by 14 at half, 16 early in the second half, and 10 after Cal’s Kameron Rooks missed a pair of free throws with 7:17 remaining.  But Cal again squandered an early, double-digit lead, got tentative offensively down the stretch, allowing Oregon to score 24 points in the final six-and-a-half minutes to pull it out.

“They made good plays down the stretch and we didn’t,” said Jabari Bird, who led Cal with 20 points. “Brooks hit tough shots. Those last two shots he hit were tough, contested shots and you can’t be upset with that. It was just the lead up to that, with being up by 10 with three to go, we can’t squander that.”

In all, the Ducks would score 52 points after halftime, and just 16 before, missing their first seven shots from distance and allowing the Bears to open up a 20-7 lead. But the Bears wouldn’t run away and hide, needing another hot scorer to back Bird’s efforts.  With less than three minutes remaining,  the Ducks got three, consecutive 3-pointers to slice Cal’s lead to one. With 1:48 remaining,  Oregon took their first lead of the night on a Chris Boucher layup.

Ivan Rabb would tie it with an offensive rebound and a putback for Cal with nine seconds remaining. That set the stage for Brooks’ heroics. The 6’7″ forward took the ball near midcourt, then dribbled into a contested three near the top of the circle.  With Stephen Domingo in position to contest the shot, Brooks rattled it home.

“They thought they had the game and we stole it from them,” Brooks said.

“I was disappointed at halftime,” coach Dana Altman said. “I liked how the pace of the game changed.  Points off of turnovers were definitely the difference in the game going 19 and six. I think increasing the pace helped a lot and took them out of their rhythm.”

The Bears fell to 18-9, 9-6, and they will conclude the regular season with a 1-6 record against ranked opponents, with the only win at USC in January.  Friday’s game against Oregon State won’t take the sting out of Wednesday’s loss, but the Bears must be ready because another misstep against OSU would be an unforgivable, bad loss.

“I`m not a part of that committee,” Martin said.  “I think we’re an NCAA tournament team but we still have work to do.”

Rabb finished with 10 points, 12 rebounds and Kameron Rooks contributed 10 points, five rebounds.   

Brooks led Oregon (25-4, 14-2) with 22 points, Boucher had 18.

 

 

Cal Bears basketball podcast with Michael Duca: For Cal beating the Ducks tonight long odds; Rabb will play last game as a Bear on Friday night

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California forward Ivan Rabb (1) shoots over Stanford center Josh Sharma (20) during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game Friday, Feb. 17, 2017, in Stanford, Calif. Stanford won 73-68. (AP Photo/Tony Avelar)

The Cal Bears started out their last game against the Stanford Cardinal with a lead but with time running on the clock the Bears had a four point lead in the first half and watch the Cardinal take the lead and the Cardinal never looked back. I don’t know if I would be worried about Cal’s defense as I would be worried about Cal’s inability to get Ivan Rabb to get involved in the defense.

There’s not a lot time left to figure out that problem because Rabb’s all but told everybody that this is his last weekend with the Bears his last game will be on Friday night at Haas Pavilion against the Oregon State Beavers. Rabb is ready to move onto the NBA but as NCAA analyst Bill Walton said Rabb has not improved his draft status playing under average in his last two games.