Cal Bears forward Joshua Ola Joseph takes a jump shot against the Cornell Big Red in non conference action at Haas Pavilion in Berkeley on Tue Dec 10, 2024 (@calmbball twitter photo)
Tuesday, Dec. 10, 2024
Haas Pavilion, Berkeley, California
Cornell Big Red 88 (7-3)
California Golden Bears 80 (6-4)
By Stephen Ruderman
The Bears came back from down 23 points to take a late lead, but the Cornell Big Red pulled off an 88-80 win in the late minutes to hand Cal their third-straight loss.
Following their 89-81 loss to Stanford in their first all-ACC game on Saturday, the Bears ventured back out of the ACC, as they welcomed the Big Red into Haas Pavilion. Cornell came on winners of two-straight, following dominant and decisive wins over Colgate and Army.
Tuesday night’s game began as a tight one, as the Bears had an 8-7 lead just under three minutes into the game. It was then 11-11 with 12:18 remaining in the first half before Cornell opened up a 47-29 lead into the half.
It was looking to be a blowout, but the Bears showed a lot of fight in them come the second half. Cornell would open their lead to 52-29 just a minute and 46 seconds into the half. Jeremiah Wilkinson then hit a pair of threes, and the Bears would slowly start clawing themselves back into the game.
The Bears went on a 21-7 run to cut Cornell’s lead to 59-50 with 12:34 to go. Cal had fallen short after turning a 20-point deficit into just a six-point deficit against Stanford on Saturday, and they wanted to more than make up for that Tuesday night.
Mady Sissoko made a layup, and Spencer Mahoney hit a three to cut it to 61-55. Cornell kept pace with a layup by Jake Fiegen and Guy Ragland Jr., but after the Bears kept coming, and closed the deficit to 65-61 with 8:57 to go.
Cooper Noard was fouled and hit two from the line, and Ak Okereke made a layup to extend Cornell’s lead back to 69-61.The Bears pulled back within four, but Okereke was fouled and hit two from the line to keep the Big Red’s lead at 71-65 with 6:57 remaining.
Sissoko slammed one down, and Wilkinson made a layup to close it to 71-69. Andrej Stojakovic then hit a three, and the Bears had come all the way back from down 23 points to take a 72-71 lead with 5:15 remaining.
Guy Ragland Jr. hit a three to put Cornell back ahead with exactly five minutes to go, and after a minute with no scoring, Joshua Ola-Joseph hit a layup to tie it at 74-74 with 3:51 left to go. Noard made a layup to put Cornell back ahead 76-74 with nearly 3:20 left, and the score would remain stagnant for nearly another two minutes.
With 1:34 left, Jake Fiegen hit a layup to extend Cornell’s lead to 78-74, but he was fouled and made his shot from the line to make it 79-74. That seemed to kill any late hopes for the Bears to pull this one off, and Cornell won by a final of 88-80.
Ola-Joseph was the leading scorer for the Bears with 21 points, as he was 7-for-11 in field goals. Stojakovic was just 4-for-11 in field goals, but he scored 13, as did Sissoko, who was a perfect 6-for-6. Wilkinson scored 12, and Jovar Blacksher Jr. scored 11.
The Bears fall to 6-4, and they will look to bounce back against the Northwestern State Demons of the little-known Southland Conference on Saturday. Just an FYI, Northwestern State is a different university then Northwestern, though the two teams shared a very-similar shade of purple. Tipoff will be at noon on Saturday.
This is the week to tell Tara VanDerveer stories. The unquestioned titan of college basketball coaching retired after 38 seasons at Stanford with an all-time record 1,216 wins overall. VanDerveer arrived on the Farm in 1985 and turned a fledgling program into a national powerhouse in her first five seasons, then never took her foot off the gas. Great players, national title contending teams, and big crowds became the norm, and I watched it all unfold in person.
I have Tara VanDerveer stories on demand for my most qualified audiences. This is easily the best one.
On March 30, 2009, VanDerveer and her Cardinal team were riding a 19-game win streak, just another sign that VanDerveer had recaptured the magic that disappeared when her teams went an unprecedented decade without a Final Four appearance, a dry spell that ended a year earlier in March 2008. Led by 6’4” Jayne Appel, the Cardinal were better known for their supporting cast than Appel, who dominated other Pac-12 post players without putting up eye-popping numbers or drawing attention she deserved as the best player on the West Coast’s best team.
Ironically, the best example of Appel’s flying under the radar came earlier that season in Hawaii when Stanford routed Iowa State–their March 30th opponent–by 38 points with Appel scoring just six. For Iowa State coach Bill Fennelly that rough loss was the impetus for his strategy in the rematch: leave Appel one-on-one in the paint and implore his Cyclones to clamp down on the numerous Stanford 3-point threats.
“Tara told me she was pretty sure they weren’t going to double me, so we knew immediately that we were going to go inside,” Appel said of the approach heading into the Elite Eight rematch. “That was our game plan from the very beginning.”
On March 30, 2009 my daughter, Sydney Beau, was a precocious 18-month-old child who had already grown accustomed to her dad’s many day adventures, both inside and outside of the daily realm of a working parent. With mommy Sysha busy after her senior year of college at the Academy of Art, Sydney and I bonded through my ability to bring her with me during the work day, as I filed—and served–legal papers for a number of San Francisco attorneys.
All weekend leading to Monday the 30th I knew the 6pm tip time to see Iowa State-Stanford in Berkeley (of all places!) would be challenging after a 9am-5pm work day. And I knew that Sydney Beau would be along for the ride, and the adventure. Our key, third component—Syd’s do-it-all stroller—would miss the trip to Berkeley due to crowded, rush hour BART trains that would undoubtedly test Sydney and daddy’s patience.
I attended my first women’s basketball game in 1980. Within a month I saw Machine Gun Molly Bolin of the WBL, Nancy Lieberman and USF’s All-American Mary Hile play in person. To see both games, I traveled fewer than 15 blocks from my house. It was as if the women’s game had come by my house looking for me. At San Francisco’s Civic Auditorium, Bolin wowed me with her pull-up jumpers in transition that seem to settle in the rim as if she had the basketball on a tether. In that 1980 season, Bolin would establish records for points in a game (55) and average points per game (32.8). Just 23 years old, Bolin had polish on her game that few of her competitors could match.
Lieberman, a college player at Old Dominion, was better known than Bolin. She developed quite a reputation in Queens for playing with the boys and schooling them as a teenager on the New York hard courts. It wasn’t until she was a high school sophomore that she settled into competing against other high school girls and teams she would dominate. Lieberman’s story appeared in the Chronicle in the days leading to her appearance at USF to face Hile and the Lady Dons. I read it and knew I had to get parental clearance to ride the bus alone at night—maybe for the first time–and see the game.
Hile is simply the greatest women’s basketball player ever with a San Francisco background. As a prep, she developed as a Jill of all trades, playing four sports at her Sunnyvale, CA high school. But once she landed at the University of San Francisco, Hile settled into rewriting the record book by scoring 2,324 points and grabbing 1,602 rebounds in her four years on the Hilltop. Her records still stand, and her point total is greater than Bill Russell, K.C. Jones and Bill Cartwright, the better-known men basketballers that played at USF.
Unfortunately, January 9, 1980 didn’t live up to the billing. With Lieberman and future Olympian Anne Donovan forming an incredible duo, USF was left by the side of the road on its biggest night of women’s hoops ever. The Monarchs ran away and hid, winning 70-46. But I was forever changed, wanting to see what great women’s players I could run into next.
Five years after Old Dominion tore up San Francisco, coach Wendy Larry and the Monarchs were still at it. Led by Medina Dixon and Tracy Claxton, Old Dominion captured the 1985 NCAA Tournament, winning 70-65 over Georgia in the championship game. Along the way to the title, ODU got past Ohio State in the East Regional final, winning 72-68. That would be the last game Tara VanDerveer would coach at Ohio State. In a stroke of genius, athletic director Andy Geiger convinced the 31-year old VanDerveer to leave OSU for Stanford, which at the time was coming off a 9-19 season and playing in front of 300 fans a night.
“My dad told me I was crazy to take this job. He said, ‘You’ll be unemployed and coming home to live with us in three months’,” VanDerveer recalled.
VanDerveer captured her first national title at Stanford, winning it all in 1990. Then again in 1992, Stanford was crowned champion. VanDerveer was well on her way to turning a three-month, crash-and-burn job into the most superior 38 years of college coaching the sport had ever seen.
Stanford’s 2007-08 team didn’t come out of nowhere. I know. Now 22 seasons into my love affair with VanDerveer’s basketball dynasty, I’d already seen more great players than I could ever imagine. Starting with Jennifer Azzi, VanDerveer rolled out All-Americans seemingly two and three at a time. I saw Val Whiting, Kate Starbird, Rachel Hemmer, Olympia Scott, Kristin Folkl, Lindsey Yamasaki, Nicole Powell and Candice Wiggins all play in person at Maples Pavilion, right in the middle of Stanford’s sprawling campus. I caught the train, drove, and rode my bike to Palo Alto. By any means I had to see Stanford play and VanDerveer coach. To this day, I’m not sure if I’ve ever seen Stanford lose in person. Maybe once? I’m not sure, but for the purposes of this story, I’ve been to 65 Stanford games in person, and seen them win every time. Amazing.
That 2008 team featuring Wiggins, VanDerveer’s self-proclaimed favorite player to ever receive her coaching, broke the dry spell as Stanford qualified for the Final Four. But local high school McDonald’s All-American Appel, Kayla Pedersen, Ros Gold-Onwude, Jillian Harmon and Jeanette Pohlen were also on that team as non-seniors. Subsequently, Stanford started the 2008-09 under the hardly mysterious, absolutely attention-grabbing moniker of “loaded.”
Sydney and I were destined to be a sports consuming father-daughter duo from the start. My father, Morris Jr. and I bonded over our frequent attendance at Stanford and Cal football games, Giants games, and the A’s. In fact, my father took me to four World Series games between 1972 and 1974 at the Coliseum and in Los Angeles for the first A’s-Dodgers World Series.
Sydney had been to games previously, but on both occasions with Sysha with us as well. Too young to actually watch a game, Syd was content to sit on one of our laps, watch, and listen to all that was going on around her. While oblivious, my child was already on the fast track, having “watched” Stanford play at home in the NCAA Tournament (March 24, 2008 vs. UTEP) and experienced Sacred Heart Cathedral’s No. 1 nationally-ranked high school girls team (January 2008) in their home gym.
I can’t say that Sydney ever became a fan of the game. Now 16 years old, she’s a surfer, a swimmer, and a student. My deceased father would scratch his head knowing that his grandchild’s high school football team won a California state championship, played 15 games, and she didn’t attend any of them. But ultimately, none of that matters. She’s our child, we love her and support any healthy activities she wants to pursue.
Not only did Tara VanDerveer predict that Iowa State would leave Jayne Appel one-on-one in the paint on March 30, 2009, she also felt the result would be a 50-point night for her star player with the game being played just 19 miles from Appel’s high school in Concord, CA. Drake’s Lori Baumann holds the record for individual scoring in the NCAA Tournament with a 50-point game in 1982, and Sheryl Swoopes is second with a 47-point game in 1993. The normally tight-lipped VanDerveer kept tight-lipped, mentioning her forecast only to Appel minutes before the game tipped off. I walked into the arena that night, unaware of what the Stanford sideline had in store. An NCAA-record scoring performance in an Elite Eight game was a lot, even in 2009, some 15 years prior to the Caitlin Clark supernova striking planet Earth.
But almost immediately, that’s exactly what transpired. Appel scored 27 points in the first half, made 13 shots, missed just six, and outscored Iowa State single handedly. In her junior year season, Big Jayne was injury free, in top condition, and way too nimble with her feet, arms, and hands to be contained. An All-American on her best night, she blew past her previous high that season of 29 points by scoring the first six points of the second half, and the rout was on. With 46 points, 16 rebounds in 35 minutes on the floor, Appel settled into third place on the Tournament game scoring list, a spot she still holds today.
“I wasn’t concerned about how many points [Appel] scored,” Iowa State coach Bill Fennelly said. “Our plan was to make 10 or 11 3’s, and take away the 3 from them.”
“I came into the gym with the mind-set that I wasn’t going to leave without the net,” Appel said of the 74-53 victory. “We weren’t going to leave here without cutting down those nets. It just wasn’t an option.”
Sydney didn’t know Jayne Appel was having a big night. Sydney was having a big night. First of all, she looked great in a billowing, red dress with tights underneath. As soon as we arrived at the game (fashionably 20 minutes late), the compliments started, as my daughter loved being around 9,000 other people, many realizing what a dashing 18-month old child could be. In exchange for the compliments, she put on a show, prancing in several directions at once, unconstrained by me or her stroller. I knew my daughter, I could keep an eye on her and the game. So I thought…
Once we settled into an area of the bleachers behind one of the baskets that allowed us appropriate space for a daddy-daughter combo, I was immediately on alert. Sydney, I later found out, had napped much of the day while I was at work. That following a big breakfast, and preceding her entrance at the game. My beautiful daughter started climbing in and through the bleachers at a furious pace, not caring about messing up her clothes.
Quickly, I positioned myself to grab her at any moment. People were watching me, and both of us, as I played a dangerous game of sports fan and parent trying to prevent my child from falling through the bleachers into the metal supports and hardwood below. I’m sure some watching thought I was foolish enough to let Sydney harm herself.
I wasn’t that foolish.
While Appel racked up the points, I just stopped watching. Thanks to Tara VanDerveer, I’d never been at a Stanford game and worried about them possibly losing. So the crowd, heavily populated with Stanford fans, let me know that things were going well, and I just focused on Sydney.
So on the night Big Jayne Appel scored a Stanford-record 46 points, I probably saw her score 18. I’m okay with that, I got a lifetime memory instead.
The San Jose State Spartans guard Latrell Davis (6) and forward Tibet Gorener (5) battle Utah State Aggies forward Great Osobor (1) at Provident Credit Union Event Center in San Jose on Wed Mar 6, 2024 (AP News photo)
Wednesday, March 6th, 2024
By Troy Ewers
San Jose, CA – In the final home game of the season, the San Jose State Spartans host Utah State. Last game Alvaro Cardenas scored 17 points to lead San José State (9-21, 2-15 Mountain West) in a 68-50 loss at UNLV (18-10, 11-5 Mountain West) on Saturday night. • Cardenas shot an efficient 6-for-9 from the field and 3-for-4 from 3-point range. On Wednesday night San Jose State lost their last game of the season by 20 points to end the season 90-70 to Utah State.
The first half for the Spartans was a fast paced half, but not with the results SJSU was hoping for. Missed shots and turnovers created a gap between Utah State and SJSU where the Spartans were further and further away from the lead.
A lack of offensive boards didn’t help the fact that the Spartans were missing shots. Only 4 offensive boards in the half. MJ Amey Jr. was taking over on offense for SJSU with 15 points in the first, but the lead was still significant for Utah State. Mason Falslev of Utah State hit a 3 pointer to end the half with a statement as they led the Spartans 53-37 at halftime.
Hot start for Utah State and they didn’t let up the whole half. Darius Brown II had 21 points and 9 assists and Falslev had 20 points (8-11 FG, 2-3 3pt) which led Utah State in a big lead.
Falslev, despite a great game went down with two minutes left in the game with what appeared to be an ankle injury. For SJSU Amey Jr. led the Spartans with 20 points, but it was nowhere enough as they clocked in a 90-70 loss in their final regular season game.
Stanford Cardinal were defeated by ten points by the Colorado Buffaloes in Colorado on Sun Mar 3, 2024 (Stanford Cardinal photo)
Stanford Cardinal podcast with Michael Roberson:
#1 Stanford’s final Pac-12 men’s basketball road game ended in Boulder, Colo., with an 81-71 defeat at the hands of Colorado Sunday at the CU Events Center.
#2 Colorado (20-9 overall, 11-7 Pac-12) was led by Tristan da Silva with a game-high 27 points on 11 of 18 shooting, including five 3-pointers.
#3 KJ Simpson also drained five 3s and finished with 22 points. J’Vonne Hadley scored 15 points for the Buffs, followed by Eddie Lampkin with 10.
#4 The Cardinal will be hosting the Cal Bears at Maple Pavilion. After winning three straight games the Bears dropped the next two games. How do you see this final Pac 12 regular season this Thursday night at 8:00pm PT.
#5 Cameron Brink picked the women’s Player of the Year Award and the Defensive Player of the Year award an amazing season for Cameron Brink.
#6 Stanford women get ready for the Pac 12 Tournament on Thu Mar 7th most likely getting a lower seeded team. Do you see the Cardinal going deep in the month of March?
Colorado Buffaloes guard KJ Simpson (left) blows past Stanford Cardinal guard Kanaan Carlyle (3) at CU Events Center in Boulder Col on Sun Mar 3, 2024 (AP News photo)
By Daniel Dullum
Sunday, March 3, 2024
Stanford’s final Pac-12 men’s basketball road game ended in Boulder, Colo., with an 81-71 defeat at the hands of Colorado Sunday at the CU Events Center.
Colorado (20-9 overall, 11-7 Pac-12) was led by Tristan da Silva with a game-high 27 points on 11 of 18 shooting, including five 3-pointers. KJ Simpson also drained five 3s and finished with 22 points. J’Vonne Hadley scored 15 points for the Buffs, followed by Eddie Lampkin with 10.
DaSilva also grabbed 11 of Colorado’s 38 rebounds, and Simpson collected seven assists.
The Cardinal (12-17 overall, 7-12 Pac-12) received a 26-point effort from Maxime Raynard, who made 10 of 13 field goal attempts including two 3-pointers. The Paris, France, native registered his 11th double-double by pulling down 12 rebounds and equaling his season-best three blocks.
Michael Jones was next for Stanford with 13 points, followed by Kanaan Carlyle with 12 points and Brandon Angel had 10 points.
There were seven lead changes in the first half, with Stanford leading by as many as five points. Raynaud, Angel and Jones led a 12-3 run that put the Cardinal up 24-19. The Buffaloes responded with a 17-3 run, and though Stanford scored seven of the last nine points in the first half, CU led 44-37 at the break.
Raynaud scored 13 of his points in the second half, and Stanford whittled away at the Colorado lead. The Cardinal used a 13-3 run to close the second half, but the Buffaloes held on for the win,
Stanford returns to Maples Pavilion Thursday for its final regular season home game against California. Tipoff is scheduled for 8 p.m.
The San Jose Spartans forward Tibet Gorener (12) studies the basket during a free throw against the UNLV Runnin Rebels at the Thomas and Mack Center in Las Vegas on Sat Mar 2, 2024 (San Jose Spartans photo)
Saturday, March 2nd, 2024
By Troy Ewers
The Runnin Rebels of UNLV host the San Jose State Spartans in the final away game of this regular season for the Spartans. Last game San Jose State lost to No. 20 San Diego State. – Myron (MJ) Amey Jr. produced a double-double of 17 points and 10 rebounds to lead San José State(9-20, 2-14 Mountain West) in a 72-64 loss at the Thomas and Mack Center in Las Vegas.
A low scoring first half, neither team shooting more than 40% from the field. UNLV started the game with a 13-2 run eight minutes in and even though SJSU would bring it close at points in the half, the Spartans couldn’t string together a good enough run to take the lead. UNLV with the lead at halftime 33-18.
Second half it was clear San Jose State couldn’t get a bucket at all. Shooting better than the first half, but not so much better as they only could generate 17-53 from the field. Neither team was hitting well from three, but UNLV shot well enough from the field to hold a commanding lead.
Spartans leading scorer Alvaro Cardenas delivered 17 points to try to get the Spartans to close the gap, but Runnin Rebels Dedan Thomas Jr. led UNLV in points with 18 points and it was a big part of UNLV’s lead here. The clock ran out and it was forsure over at this point as UNLV beat the Spartans 68-50.
Next game for San Jose State is tier final game of the season in San Jose at the Provident Credit Union Event Center and it’s against Utah State, Wednesday night March 6th.
Cal Bears in huddle against the Colorado Buffaloes at CU Events Center in Boulder CO on Wed Feb 28, 2024 (photo by Cal Bears Athletic Dept)
Wednesday, Feb. 28, 2024
CU Events Center, Boulder, Colorado
California Golden Bears 78 (13-16 Overall; 9-9 Pac-12)
Colorado Buffaloes 88 (19-9 Overall; 10-7 Pac-12)
By Stephen Ruderman
The Bears put up a fight, but ultimately fell to the Colorado Buffaloes, 88-78, to start off the final road trip of the season.
The Bears kicked off the three-game road trip after another comeback win in their final home game against the Oregon Ducks on Saturday. There was a lot at stake for the Bears, as a perfect road trip would clinch them a winning season just a year after going 3-29.
Eddie Lampkin slammed one down for Colorado to start the scoring, and Jalen Celestine put the Bears on the board with a three-ball. Celestine sank another three to make it 6-2.
The Bears were off to a fast start, but Tristan da Silva laid one in after getting fouled, and hit his free throw to make 6-5. KJ Simpson hit a three to put the Buffaloes back ahead, 8-6, and Eddie Lampkin laid one in to make it 10-6.
Celestine hit another three to make it 10-9, but the Buffaloes scored six unanswered runs to open up a 16-9 lead.
Rodney Brown Jr. hit a three to make it 16-12, and that started a 7-2 run that saw the Bears close the deficit to 18-16. During that run, Grant Newell was fouled and hit one of two from the line, and Brown hit another three.
From there, the Buffaloes took complete control, and went on a 15-3 run to open a 33-19 lead. That lead held for the rest of the first half, as Colorado went into the half up 45-31.
The Bears started the second half down double digits, which to them meant it was time for another comeback. Cal indeed began to slowly chip away, and Newell hit a three with 14:13 remaining to close the deficit to seven at 56-49.
Jaylon Tyson hit a three with 12:56 remaining to make it 58-53, and the Bears were indeed set to make another comeback. The teams traded points over the several minutes, as Tylon laid one in to make it 65-59 with 9:18 to go.
Simpson was fouled and hit two from the line, and Javon Ruffin hit a three, as Colorado was back up by 11 at 70-59. The Bears kept pace, but were not able to get within less than nine points.
However, Simpson was once again fouled and hit both shots from the line, and he laid one in as well to put Colorado up 83-68 with 4:41 to go. By then, it was too late for Cal to pull off another comeback, and the Buffaloes won it, 88-78.
With this loss, the Bears are guaranteed their seventh-straight losing season, as they fall to 13-16 on the season. This is also a major blow to Cal’s March Madness hopes. However, they still can end Pac-12 play with a winning record, as they are now 9-9 in conference play.
On the positive side for the Bears, Jaylon Tyson scored 25 points in another big game.
Now with two games remaining, the Bears will head to Salt Lake City, where they will take on the Utah Utes at 6 p.m. on Saturday.
San Jose State Spartans forward Trey Anderson (15) and the Spartans took a tough loss to the San Diego Aztecs in San Diego on Tue Feb 27, 2024 (San Jose State Spartans photo)
Tuesday, February 27th, 2024
By Troy Ewers
The San Jose State Spartans are in San DIego facing the San Diego State Aztecs. Myron (MJ) Amey Jr., Latrell Davis and Alvaro Cardenas each scored more than 10 points to lead the Spartans (9-19, 2-13 Mountain West) in an 84-63 loss to Nevada (22-6, 9-5 Mountain West) on Friday night.
When the Spartans played San Diego State on Jan. 9, they were down two with a chance to tie the game with three seconds left but Trey Anderson’s layup attempt was blocked by Jay Pal. The Spartans lost the contest by only three, 81-78, against the Aztecs who were ranked 19th in the nation.
The first half was a back and forth game, but both teams shot under 40% from the field for the majority of the half. At the end of the half it was a low scoring performance where SDSU led 29-22.
A more eventful second half for the Spartans as the Aztecs held the lead the whole way, but SJSU was able to close the gap at a point in the game. MJ Amey Jr. put up a double-double with 17 points and 10 rebounds, but compared to Jaedon Ledee came through with 27 points and 11 rebounds to defeat the Spartans 72-64.
Alvaro Cardenas who leads the conference in assists only had 2 assists this game and the Spartans only shot two free throws all game (they went 50%).
The next game for the Spartans is in Las Vegas against UNLV on Saturday, March 2nd. With only 2 games in the season left, it seems like the Spartans season may be over, but they proved tonight this team won’t quit.
Cal Bears Jaylon Tyson (20) goes for a layup against the Oregon Ducks at Haas Pavilion in Berkeley on Sat Feb 24, 2024 (Cal Bears photo)
Saturday, Feb. 24, 2024
Haas Pavilion, Berkeley, California
Oregon Ducks 64 (18-9 Overall; 10-6 Pac-12)
California Golden Bears 69 (13-15 Overall; 9-8 Pac-12)
By Stephen Ruderman
BERKELEY–The Bears ended their home season with a bang, and came back to beat the Oregon Ducks, 69-64.
Following another comeback win by Cal against the Oregon State Beavers on Thursday, The Bears welcomed in the Oregon Ducks for the final home game of the season, and most likely the final Pac-12 game at Haas Pavilion.
The Ducks won the opening tip, and burst out of the gate early, jumping out to a 6-0 lead. Jaylon Tyson hit a layup to put Cal on the board. Tyson hit a jumper, and Keonte Kenendy hit a three to put the Bears within one at 8-7.
This started a recurring theme throughout the first half. The Ducks would start to pad their lead, but the Bears came right back to tighten up.
The Ducks led 12-7, and the Bears closed it to 14-12. Jackson Shelstad hit all three from the line after being fouled trying to hit a three-ball to make it 17-12, and Tyson hit a three to make it 17-15.
The Ducks then got out to a 24-17 lead after a layup by Brennan Rigsby. Jalen Cone was then fouled, and hit both from the line to start an 8-1 drive for the Bears that saw them tie the game for the first time. Tyson was also fouled, and hit both from the line, and Fardaws Aimaq laid one in and jammed one down to tie it.
Oregon responded with six unanswered points. N’Faly Dante hit a layup, and Shelstad made a layup and a jumper to put the Ducks back ahead by six, 31-25. Jalen Celestine then of course hit a three and a layup to make it 31-30.
Jardian Tracey hit a three for the Ducks with 2:45 remaining to make it 34-30, but there would be no scoring the rest of the first half.
However, the first half ended pon a sour note for the Bears. Jaylon Tyson had to leave the game due to an injury that kept him rolling on the ground for several seconds. It took until the end of the next play on the other side of the court for the referees to call timeout, which angered the crowd, who repeatedly chanted “Refs, you suck!!!”
The theme of the Ducks pulling away but the Bears closing it up continued into the early minutes of the second half. A layup by Dante made it 39-34 Oregon, but Aimaq was fouled and hit two from the line, and Tyson, who had returned into the game, laid one in to make it 39-38.
Jermaine Couisnard and Rigsby hit threes to make it 44-38, but that was no problem for the Bears, especially Tyson and Jalen Cone. Tyson made a layup, and Cone hit a pair of threes to give Cal their first lead of the day. Tyson hit a jumper, and the Bears led it 48-44.
After two more layups by Tyson, the Bears led 56-48. However, the Ducks weren’t going to make it easy for the Bears. Cal maintained a steady lead, but a three from Tracey made it 60-57, and Couisnard made two from the line after getting fouled to make it a one-point game at 60-59 with 2:38 to go.
Cone hit a three; Couisnard hit one of two from the line after drawing a foul; and Aimaq laid it in, as the Bears led 65-60 with 52 seconds remaining. Tracey was fouled and hit two from the line, as was Tyson, who also hiit two from the line.
After a missed jumper by Couisnard and a missed three by Rigsby, Rigsby was fouled and made two from the line, but it would be far too late, and the Bears won it by a final of 69-64.
For the Bears, this is their third win in a row, and they are now over .500 in conference play, as they improve to 9-8. They also improve to 13-15 overall.
Jaylon Tyson had an incredible game. He suffered a scary-looking injury towards the end of the first half, but he returned early in the second half, and scored 27 points.
Most importantly, this was another big win for the Bears who have had quite a bounceback season following their 3-29 campaign. The Bears have also noticeably matured throughout the course of the season. This is a much more mature team than the team that barely eked out a win over the St. Thomas Tommies to open the season on Nov. 6.
The Bears suffered numerous painful losses early in the season, but they never gave up or gave in. They kept going, and matured into an exciting comeback team that gave the fans in Berkeley many epic comeback wins, as well as what we can actually say has been a special season.
Now, the Bears have three games remaining, all on the road. They will now head to Boulder, Colorado, where they will take on the Colorado Buffaloes Wednesday night. Tipoff will be at 5 p.m.
Oregon State Beavers guard Dexter Akanno (4) attempts to take a shot but is guarded by the Cal Bears forward Fardaws Aimaq (00) in the second half at Haas Pavilion in Berkeley on Thu Feb 22, 2024 (AP News photo)
Thursday, Feb. 22, 2024
Haas Pavilion, Berkeley, California
Oregon State Beavers 73 (11-16 Overall; 3-13 Pac-12)
California Golden Bears 81 (12-15 Overall; 8-8 Pac-12)
By Stephen Ruderman
The Bears have done it again, as they came back from down 11 points to beat the Oregon State Beaver, 81-73.
The Bears returned home following another epic win, this time in Seattle against the Washington Huskies. Tonight, they kicked off their final home stand of the season, as they welcomed the Oregon State Beavers to Haas Pavilion.
The Beavers won the opening tip, and turned the ball over, which allowed Keonte Kennedy to put the Bears on the board with a jumper. Jordan Pope hit a three to put Oregon State ahead, and Chol Marial followed that up with a jumper to make it 5-2.
Fardaws Aimaq drew a, and hit both from the line to make it 5-4. Tyler Bilodeau hit a jumper for Oregon State; and then Aimaq was fouled, and hit one of two.
The Beavers then took control throughout the remainder of the first half. Pope hit a jumper, and then hit a free throw after being fouled on the play to open Oregon State’s lead to 21-10 with 11:47 still remaining.
The Bears didn’t fall any further behind, and closed the gap to 29-23 following a jumper by Jaylomn Tyson and a three by Kennedy. However, the Beavers retained control and were very quickly back out to a 34-23 lead.
The Bears kept up the fight, as an Aimaq three made it 38-31 with 2:53 left, and a Tyson three to make it 40-34 with 1:25 left. Dexter Akanno hit a three with 53 seconds left to make it 43-34, and that score would hold going into the half.
Marial drew a foul for the Beavers, and hit both from the line to start the second half, which put Oregon State back up by 11 at 45-34. The Bears were once again down double digits in the second half, and that only meant one thing: It was time for another comeback.
There the Bears went, as they chipped away at the Beavers’ lead with an 8-2 run. Jalen Cone hit a three; Aimaq was fouled, and hit two from the line; and Kennedy sank a three. Suddenly, it was 47-42.
Jordan Pope hit a jumper; was fouled on the play; and hit his shot from the line to make it 50-42, but the Bears didn’t let up, especially Jalen Celestine. Celestine was fouled, and hit two from the line. Then he stole the ball from Akanno on back-to-back Beavers’ possessions, and threw down dunks both times. Now, it was just a two-point game at 50-48 with 15:02 still remaining.
However, as quickly as the Bears got right back into it and made it a two-point game, the Beavers jumped back out to a nine-point lead just as quickly with seven unanswered points. That drive featured a three from Michael Rataj, a layup by KC Ibekwe and a jumper by Pope.
Cone hit a three, and Rataj responded with a jumper to make it 59-51. The Bears were down by eight with 11:51 to go, but that would be no problem at all. Grant Newell hit a three; Aimaq laid one in; and Cone hit a three, as it took the Bears just a minute and 38 seconds to come back and tie it.
The teams remained neck and neck, but a jumper by Pope, and a three by Tyler Bilodeau put the Beavers back up by five at 71-66 with 5:37 to go, but again, no problem for the Bears. Celestine hit a three; and Cone was fouled, and sent to the line, where he hit both shots to tie the game.
Celestine then hit a three to put the Bears ahead, 74-71, with 3:26 to go, and Cal took control from there. Cone hit a three to make it 77-71, and the Beavers’ offense was stymied the rest of the way. The final couple of minutes were fairly quiet, and the Bears won it, 81-73.
Just another comeback win for the Bears, who are back up to .500 in conference play at 8-8, and improve to 12-15 overall. Now, the Oregon Ducks will come into Haas Pavilion Saturday for the final home game of the season. Tipoff will be at 4 p.m.
