Category: NCAA

Golden Bears upend Boston College 82-71 in final home game

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Cal Bears center Mady Sissoko (12) who led with 21 points and 15 rebounds against the Boston College Eagles at Haas Pavilion in Berkeley on Sat Mar 1, 2025 (Cal Bears X photo)

By Daniel Dullum

Saturday, March 1, 2025

California pulled away in the second half at Haas Pavilion Saturday, as the Golden Bears earned an 82-71 Atlantic Coast Conference victory over visiting Boston College.

Mady Sissoko registered career highs with 21 points and 15 rebounds to lead Cal (13-16 overall, 6-12 ACC). Sissoko was 9-of-10 from the field and sank 3-of-4 free throws. Jovan Blacksher Jr. was next with 18 points, Andrej Stojakovic had 15 points and Jeremiah Wilkinson added 14 points.

Boston College (12-17 overall, 4-14 ACC) had three players score in double figures, led by Donald Hand Jr. with 18 points, followed by Luka Toews with 14 and Dion Brown with 12 points and 10 rebounds.

Cal outrebounded the Eagles 40-36. The Golden Bears shot 49.2 percent (30 of 61) from the field, including 7 of 18 on 3-pointers. BC hit 39 percent on 25 of 63 shooting – 4 of 14 behind the arc. Cal dominated in the paint 38-28 and points off turnovers were even at 14-14.

California opened the game with a 13-2 run. The Eagles took their first lead at 46-45 with 14:31 to play, as Hand had seven points during a 13-1 run.

Stojakovic and Wilkinson each sank a 3-pointer to spark an 11-0 Cal run, allowing the Golden Bears build a 72-60 lead with 3:59 remaining. Sissoko scored the last five points of that run.

BC committed 11 turnovers, and Cal had more turnovers (13) than assists (11).

The Golden Bears visit Louisville on Wednesday. Tipoff is at 6 p.m.

Stanford Cardinal podcast with Michael Roberson Sat Mar 1, 2025: Cardinal open up road trip with 2 games left; Tip off against Notre Dame Wednesday night

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All SMU Mustangs guard Chuck Harris (3) and forward Matt Cross (33) can do is just look as the Stanford Cardinal forward Donavin Young (3) goes for the throw down at Maples Pavilion in Palo Alto on Sat Mar 1, 2025 (Stanford Cardinal X photo)

Stanford Cardinal podcast with Michael Roberson

#1 Big win for the Stanford Cardinal (19-10) they pick up their fourth win in their last six games defeating the SMU Mustangs (21-8) this win coming at Maple Pavilion in Palo Alto earlier today.

#2 Stanford’s Maxime Raynaud played hero again with a game winning slam dunk with 8.7 second left in the ball game as the Cardinal just got by the Mustangs in a tag team game 73-68.

#3 The Mustang ran off a 13-0 score after they were down ten points and took the lead 60-57 in the middle of the second half. Chuck Harris with 3:35 left in the game hit a jump shot and it was the last of the Mustang’s 68-67 for the rest of the contest.

#4 With the Mustangs missing their last four shots and turning over the ball over in a critical situation the Cardinal turned the game around. Ryan Agarwal shot a desperation shot that hit the rim and Raynaud came in without being defended from behind the 3 point line got the ball and slammed it in for the game winner.

#5 Two more regular season games left on the Stanford Cardinal (20-9) schedule both are on the road. The Cardinal take on the Notre Dame Fighting Irish (12-17) Wed Mar 5th for a 6:00pm tip. The Irish have lost their last two games and are 9-5 at home. The Cardinal are seventh and have now won three straight games.

Michael Roberson podcasts Stanford Cardinal basketball Thursdays at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Stanford Cardinal game wrap: Cardinal Corralled the Mustangs 73-68, on Senior Day inside Maples Pavilion

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Stanford Cardinal forward Maxime Raynaud (42) takes a jump shot against the SMU Mustangs at Maple Pavilion on Sat Mar 1, 2025 (Stanford Cardinal X photo)

By Michael Roberson

STANFORD, Calif. — Senior forward Maxime Raynaud’s points and four blocks helped his Stanford Cardinal (19-10, 11-7 ACC) close out their home schedule with a bang, by taming the Southern Methodist Mustangs (21-8, 12-6 ACC) 73-68, on the Farm. The Cardinal come away with a nail biter 73-68 on Saturday night at Maples Pavilion.

The Stanford Senior Trio (Maxime Raynaud, Jaylin Blakes & Cole Kastner) were determined to end their playing careers on the Tara VanDerveer Court at Maples with a bang. Raynaud tallied his obligatory double-figure (11) scoring during the initial 20 minutes of game action. Blakes on the other hand, had a tough first half with 3 fouls midway through the half, including a technical foul. Kastner did not play a minute in half number one.

SMU scored the first points of the game with a three pointer. That margin was the ,ost they led by in the first half They also had runs of 6-0 and 8-0. Stanford had a lead as high as 13, with runs of 7-0 and 9-0.

Even with Stanford’s big lead at one point, it was a very competitive first half. There were 7 lead changes and 6 ties. After all the smoke settled, the home team had a six point lead at recess, 45-39.

Raynaud’s 11 points led the Cardinal, while Matt Cross’ 10 points and Chuck Harris’ 11 paced the Mustangs.

The second half was just as competitive, as the Mustangs overcame the 6-point halftime deficit and turned it into another three points lead midway through the second half. Minutes later they extended their advantage to five.

Stanford was not going to be denied, and they forged their own comeback. There were an additional 4 more lead changes and two more ties to the conference tussle. A total of 11 lead changes and 8 ties was the tally after 40 minutes of action. The Cardinal parlayed that into a five point win, 73-68.

The Cardinal held the Mustangs to a miniscule 39% shooting in the second half, which helped them avoid the stampede from the Dallas horses. Stanford’s 20:7 assist ratio versus SMU was a huge reason they were the victors.

Raynaud finished off his last game at Maples with campus shaking thunderous tip-dunk that sealed the contest. He finished the game with 26 points, and an underwhelming 4 rebounds. However, showed a great defensive front, with 4 blocked shots. Benny Gealer contributed with 17 points and some clutch 3-pointers. Oziyah Sellers chipped in 10 points, and Jaylin Blakes had a disappointing finale with 2 points, but a quality win.

The Mustangs had four players in double-figures. Chuck Harris led the way with 17 points, while Kario Oquendo put up 15, and Matt Cross offered 13, in addition to Yohan Traore offering 10

Stanford will next be in action in South Bend, IN, Wednesday March 5, as they take on the Notre Dame Fighting Irish at 9 PM ET/6 PM PT, on ESPNU. SMU heads back to Dallas to host the Syracuse Orange, on Tuesday, March 4 at 8:00 PM CT, also on ESPNU

Playing Your Best Basketball Now? Cal Women Say Yes in 79-65 Win Over Georgia Tech

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By Morris Phillips

BERKELEY, CA–Michelle Onyiah didn’t need the obvious reinforced, but that’s what she got after Cal’s impressive 79-65 win over Georgia Tech on Thursday night.

Michelle, we need you. As much and as often as we can get.

Onyiah’s 12 minutes followed by her disqualification for fouls against Virginia Tech in a painful three-point loss wasn’t enough. Onyiah’s 33 minutes against the visiting Yellow Jackets was more like it, and she held up like Northern California wine with 24 points, 10 rebounds and superior 11-16 shooting from the floor.

“Michelle Onyiah didn’t foul until sometime in the third quarter,” coach Charmin Smith said in almost a formal declaration. “It’s the key to us winning games.”

With one regular season game remaining, the Bears (23-7, 11-6) are locked into the seventh seed in the upcoming ACC Tournament. They clinched that spot by distancing themselves from Georgia Tech with the win. After their regular season-concluding matchup with Miami on Sunday, the seeding and placement machines will churn and hopefully land Cal in a favorable location with preferrable matchups. While observers can see that a quarterfinal win against Notre Dame or North Carolina State could propel Cal into a situation that could yield an upset in the NCAA Tournament, Smith can’t. She’s wearing blinders and simply demanding that her team show up for Miami and take care of business.

“All that matters is we beat Miami. We can’t control all of that,” Smith stated.

Cal played big throughout with 42 points in the paint, and a 42-28 edge on the glass. A first quarter 12-0 run created the separation they needed, and Tech’s trio of scorers weren’t all present and accounted for. Dani Carnegie, Tech’s sensational freshman super sub played just 13 minutes, and was 1 for 7 from the floor.

Lulu Twidale scored 17 points for Cal, Ioanna Krimili added 15 in putting inside-outside pressure on Tech’s defense. Krimili continued her ascent on the all-time NCAA scoring list, with 2,550 points total, including 428 made threes. Cal’s season-long search for bench support seems to have landed on Jayda Noble, who played 18 minutes and contributed a key three-point play in the first quarter.

Stanford Cardinal podcast with Michael Roberson: Raynaud leads Cardinal with 23 in win over Boston College

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Stanford Cardinal forward Maxime Raynaud (42) takes a jump shot against the Boston College Eagles Elijah Strong (31) at Maples Pavilion in Palo Alto on Wed Feb 26, 2025 (Stanford Cardinal X photo)

Stanford Cardinal podcast with Michael Roberson:

#1 Michael, Stanford (18-10) in the first half left little doubt dominating with a 37-19 lead over Boston College (12-16) in an impressive start. Stanford is 8-1 at home with their 78-60 win.

#2 Michael, once again Maxime Raynaud led the way for Stanford with 23, he took the ball and was one of the big contributors for Stanford in this win.

#3 Oziyah Sellers finished second in scoring with 18 points and two rebounds. Sellers also another player in the line up who helps delivers for the Stanford offense.

#4 Also after 13 years as Stanford Athletics Director Bernard Muir is stepping down. The Cardinal have won 33 championships, 2021 NCAA women’s basketball title, 13 national titles, and 146 conference championships during Muir’s time as AD.

#5 The Cardinal tip off against the SMU Mustangs at Maples Pavilion on Sat Mar 1 a 2:00pm tip. The Mustangs are having a good season fourth in the ACC and did some damage to the Cal Bears in their game tonight in Berkeley with a 81-77 win. How do you see this match up between the Mustangs-Cardinal on Saturday afternoon?

Join Michael Roberson for the Stanford Cardinal podcasts Thursdays at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Mustang Mash: Cal In Danger of Missing The ACC Tournament After An 81-77 Loss to SMU

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By Morris Phillips

BERKELEY, CA–The Cal Bears season has added a measure of intrigue that isn’t exactly ideal.

The Bears loss to SMU on Wednesday puts them in the undesirable position of possibly missing the ACC Tournament, if they fall behind Boston College in the league standings and finish among the bottom three teams.

What didn’t seem likely was marred by what is now a five-game losing streak after SMU had their way in a wire-to-wire 81-77 win at Haas Pavilion. Cal now has three regular season games meeting with their one shot at Boston College coming up first on Saturday.

Chuck Harris led the Mustangs with 21 points and B.J. Edwards added 18 in the visitors win in which they led with the exception of a moment with 5:33 remaining where the score was tied at 66. Samet Yigitoglu’s free throw gave SMU the lead again, then his dunk 30 seconds after that extended the lead to 69-66.

The Bears’ poor shooting doomed their evening with just 39 percent shooting from the floor. In addition, they missed 10 free throws. All the misfiring hurt a positive defensive effort that saw them force 18 turnovers.

Jeremiah Wilkinson led Cal with 20 points, but he missed 11 of his 18 shots from the floor. Mady Sissoko added 16 points and eight rebounds.

The Mustangs won for the sixth consecutive time on the road to give their NCAA Tournament hopes a major boost. Currently, they appear to be outside the field of 68 but have only one or two teams to jump to get into the field. For them, that’s quite a turn as they began January with a pair of decisive losses to Duke and North Carolina.

Cardinal Grounded the Eagles 78-60 inside Maples; Raynaud School’s Double-Double King

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Stanford Cardinal forward Chisom Okpara (10) takes a jump shot against the Boston College Eagles at Maples Pavilion in Palo Alto on Wed Feb 26, 2025 (Stanford X photo)

By Michael Roberson

STANFORD. Calif. — Maxime Raynaud’s record breaking 21st Double-Double helped his Stanford Cardinal (18-10, 10-7 ACC) preserve Palo Alto as a NO-FLY Zone for the visiting Boston College Eagles (12-16, 4-13 ACC) 78-60, while maintaining their home-court conference dominance (8-1) on the Farm..

Raynaud was on a mission right away from the scoring side of his game.  He not only converted the first bucket of the game, but the initial seven points for the Cardinal.  He was on fire from beyond the Arc, and making hook shots from either hand.

Stanford’s defense was also steller and sturdy as their mascot (Tree).  They held their Massachusetts opponent to a putrid 27% from the field, and 18% from threeland, in the first 20 minutes of gameplay.  The Cardinal, on the other hand, shot 54% & 46% respectively for the home squad.

When the recess horn went off, the Cardinal held their largest lead of 18 points, 37-19.  This was assisted with an 8-0 run and controlling the clock, by leading for more than 18 minutes (90%) of the first stanza,

Raynaud led all players with 16 points, and was the lone player in double figures.  However, he had a low count of rebounds (3), possibly interrupting his chance to eclipse school history.  Junior guard Dion Brown led the Eagles in scoring with a mild five points.

In the second half, Stanford scratched first again with a Jaylin Blakes bucket.  That immediately put the Cardinal up by 20 points.  By the end of the conference battle, Stanford increased their advantage to as high as 27 points, but settled for an 18-point victory (78-60), after 40 minutes of regulation action.  This was also the same margin at halftime.

Boston College shot an impressive 50% from the field in the second half, while hitting a sizzling 56% from behind the 3-point line.  They equaled the Cardinal in points production (41) in the last half; however, being down by 18 midway through the contest, that effort will keep you in the same hole, down by 18 after 20 minutes.

Several players joined Raynaud in the double-figures stratosphere, including three of his teammates.  Maxime totaled 23 points, and grabbed 10 rebounds (7 in 2nd Half), placing him on top of the Cardinal’s list of double-doubles in a single season. Twenty-One D-D’s surpasses Stanford legend Adam Keefe, with several games still left in the season’

Oziyah Sellers (18), Chisom Okpara (15) and Jaylin Blakes all joined their Senior record-breaker in double-digit scoring.  As for Boston College, two players reached that plateau.  Senior Chad Venning led the Eagles with 13 points, while his fellow senior teammate Roger McFarlane chipped in 11 points of his own efforts.

The Cardinal will next be in action, Saturday, March 1, as they host the Southern Methodist Mustangs at 2:00 P M PT on the ACC Network.  Boston College heads across the Bay on the same date to take on Cal at 7:00 PM PT on ESPN2/U.

Cal Bears podcast with Morris Phillips: Cal tips off against Georgia Tech Thursday nite in the battle for seventh place

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Cal Bears guard Lulu Twidale (10) takes the ball up the floor against the Virginia Tech Hokies at Cassell Coliseum at Blacksburg Virginia on Sun Feb 23, 2025 (Cal Bears X photo)

On the Cal Bears podcast with Morris Phillips:

#1 Tough loss for Cal last Sunday at Virginia Tech a close game 87-84.

#2 The Hokies just wouldn’t bend in that crucial fourth quarter edging out the Golden Bears 23-21 was just a matter of Cal having an off night or the Hokies hit the books on Cal and studied film and were prepared?

#3 How surprising was it that the Bears who had the better record at 22-8 were turned back by a Hokies team that was 18-10. Sometimes those records just don’t matter on any given night in the NCAA.

#4 Morris hard as they tried lets take a look at some of Cal’s top scorers from Sunday’s game Marta Suarez 20 points, Ioanna Krimili 19, and Kayla Williams with 17 points talk about their efforts to try and keep up with the Hokies on Sunday.

#5 Next up for the Cal Bears the Georgia Yellow Jackets who aren’t no slouch at 21-8. The Jackets are eighth and are just one game behind Cal in the ACC for seventh place. Do you see the Bears regrouping and coming after the Jackets at Haas Pavilion on Thursday night which could be a real battle?

Join Morris Phillips for the Cal podcasts Thursdays at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Spartans fall to Rebels 77-71, Uduje 23 pts

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San Jose State Spartans vs UNLV Rebels on Tuesday February 25th at Provident Credit Union Event Center (via sanjosestatembb/instagram)

By Madison Montez

SAN JOSE–Coming into today’s game, the last time the Spartans faced the UNLV Rebels was in Nevada on January 4th where they fell 79 to 73. UNLV is riding a 3 game win streak while San Jose is riding a one game win streak, coming off of an 82-73 win over Wyoming. Both teams will be looking to extend their streaks.

Going into the half down 53-31, there were many aspects that the Spartans could improve on to have a better and a more successful second half. Free throws was a factor in the score difference, UNLV going 5-7 and San Jose State going 0-2. The Rebels excelled in points in the paint, outscoring the Spartans 20-18. Both teams had a problem with ball control, each team with 8 turnovers. SJSU took advantage scoring 12 points in comparison of UNLV’s 4 points.

During the first half, NgaNga led the team in points (7) coming from one three and two FG’s. For the Rebels, Jaden Henley led the way with 12 points coming from one three and four FG’s. Henley also led the team in assists being 3.

The injury bug struck again with Donovan Yap.Jr leaving the first half at 4:37 and not returning.

The second half was a battle. Being down by two, the Spartans had to come out with energy and they did. They went 5-15 from the three point line and had a 35% FG percentage. The Rebels figured out their system going 3-7 from the three point line having a 48% FG percentage.

Josh Uduje led the team in points with 23 points in the second half alone. NgaNga led with assists (3), and also tied with Uduje for rebounds (4). For the Rebels, Jeremiah Cherry led UNLV in the second half with 10 points. Jaden Haley led the team in assists (2) and Jalen Hill led in rebounds (5).

With the win, UNLV has now extended their win streak to 4. “We have a buy weekend and the first thing I told them is to rehab. Get your bodies right.” Said HC Tim Miles

The Spartans will be back in action on March 4th traveling to Colorado State to take on the Rams. Previous to this, these two teams faced off on New Years Eve, falling 72-50 at home.

Tech Tough: Cal Women Come Up Short at Virginia Tech, Lose 87-84

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By Morris Phillips

The Cal women’s dilemma regarding turnovers took on a new dimension on Sunday afternoon: while they found a way to hold on the ball, they couldn’t dislodge it from host Virginia Tech, gets stops or force enough missed shots.

A defense without teeth… on the road, on Tech’s Senior Day was not the recipe for a significant win. The Bears fell in their final road game of the season, 87-84 in a game where any defensive stop–even one of a possession or two–could have changed the outcome.

“I just think we didn’t defend well enough,” coach Charmin Smith said. “They shot the ball well. We had trouble guarding ball screen action and it’s just one of those games where we did a lot of things right offensively but couldn’t prevent them from scoring. It’s frustrating and disappointing. We had opportunities and we couldn’t capitalize.”

The Hokies shot 55 percent from the floor, and committed just five turnovers in 40 minutes, a new school-record low. Still Cal never wavered or went away, and Ioanna Krimili’s made basket would have tied the game with 13 seconds remaining would have tied the game had her foot not been on the 3-point line.

With the game tied at 69 with 5:39 remaining, Carleigh Wenzel’s short jump shot gave Tech a lead they wouldn’t relinquish down the stretch. Cal shot 53 percent from the floor in the fourth quarter, along with 7 for 7 shooting from the foul line but could never get even or gain a lead after Wenzel’s make.

Wenzel and Mathilda Ekh led the Hokies with 19 points each, and Carys Baker added 14. The Bears put four starters in double figures, led by Marta Suarez with 20 and Krimili with 19. Michelle Onyiah fouled out in the final seconds of the third quarter and played just 13 minutes and scored 8 points.

More than 6,000 attended the game, Tech’s final home game of the season after their disappointing overtime loss to Stanford on Thursday. The Hokies were no doubt motivated by that loss and a soft NCAA bubble that seemingly has them as the only team in America that is neither in or out of March Madness. One thing seems certain: Virginia Tech (17-10, 8-8) is the only unresolved Power 4 team, and that alone had them poised for a big performance, and they delivered.