Tag: Pac-12

Home Not Hospitable: Cal’s struggles at Haas continue in 87-65 loss to Arizona

Published on by moepeaLeave a comment

By Morris Phillips

BERKELEY, Calif. — Hard to believe, but the Arizona Wildcats went more than eight minutes without scoring a field goal on Saturday night at Haas Pavilion.

Didn’t matter much, the Cats led 14-10 when the drought started, and they still led 22-17 when it ended.

The statistical oddity said a lot more about the lackluster hosts than it said about Arizona.

Cal saw its shooting grow colder than the visitors in their 87-65 loss to Arizona that kept the Bears (5-11, 0-4) winless in the Pac-12. The 11th consecutive loss in conference play for the Bears left few positives. In fact, after Cal shot a miserable 34.5 percent for the game, coach Wyking Jones had little to say about his team’s offense.

That’s because Jones was so preoccupied with his team’s dismal defense that allowed 87 points despite Arizona’s drought, the Bears’ offense got a pass.

“We have to improve our sense of urgency on the defensive end,” said Jones. “It’s a major, major problem for us right now. We’re an athletic team. We’re a quick team. We’re undersized, so we shouldn’t be getting taken off the bounce the way we’re getting taken off the bounce or opening up the floor for guys to kick out to wide-open shooters.”

The 12th double-digit home loss in Wyking Jones’ 48 games as head coach was a definite low point right down to the smaller Arizona contingent of fans making more noise than Cal’s supporters. But fortunately for Cal, the schedule eases with a game at similarly challenged Washington State up next, a chance to break the losing skid.

But the Bears need significant improvement if they envision hanging with the Cougars in Pullman.

Justice Sueing paced Cal with 27 points, but he was the only Bear to score in double figures. Cal’s other four starters combined to miss 29 of their 38 shots. Connor Vanover started at center and missed all six of his shot attempts inside the arc. Vanover’s only makes? A pair of 3-pointers, and an inadvertent tip-in at the buzzer before halftime–for Arizona as the 7’3″ center attempted to secure the defensive rebound off Brandon Williams’ miss.

That basket was credited to Arizona’s Chase Jeter, who led the Cats with 23 points, nine rebounds, and was part of a huge run that took Arizona from up five at the end of their first half drought to 12 at halftime, and 26 with 5:48 remaining.

At one juncture, Arizona scored at least one point on 21 of 23 possessions. How could Cal’s defense be so porous?

“Effort is the biggest thing. We keep going back to the fact that we’re young but we’re a lot more than what we’re showing, and we all know that,” Sueing said. “It’s disappointing to see us work so hard, especially with shooting and defense being the emphasis in practice.”

Arizona (13-4, 4-0) isn’t the only Pac-12 team that’s undefeated in conference play, and Cal not the only team looking for it’s first win, but the two are first and last in the standings. Arizona has won six straight overall, and holds a half-game lead over Washington and UCLA, both at 3-0.

The Bears are 0-4, a half-game behind 0-3 Washington State. The two teams see each other on Thursday at 7 pm in Pullman, WA.

Stanford turns it around for an 85-71 win over ASU

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

Photo credit: gostanford.com

By: Joey Friedman

PALO ALTO — Coming off three straight losses to open conference play, Stanford (8-8) welcomed the Arizona State Sun Devils (11-5) to Maples on Saturday afternoon and won by a final score of 85-71. Stanford has won seven of their last eight home games against the Sun Devils.

The Sun Devils, who are currently unranked, have had a turbulent season with highs like upsets of #1 Kansas and #15 Mississippi State and lows like losses to Princeton and Utah. Nonetheless, prior to the game, ASU led the Pac-12 in scoring offense and rebounding margin.

Stanford jumped out to a quick start and was able to go on a 10-0 run capped by an Oscar Da Silva dunk to put the score at 12-4. That dunk five minutes into the game also gave Da Silva 9 points in just minutes.

Arizona State was able to crawl back, however, and on the back of freshman Luguentz Dort’s three consecutive three-pointers, ASU took a 16-14 lead with about 12 minutes left in the first half.

The two teams remained neck-and-neck for the rest of the half before Stanford took a two-point lead to the break with the score 40-38.

Stanford offense flowed well in the first half as they only turned the ball over three times, definitely an improvement from past performances. On defense, Stanford rolled and forced a number of shot clock violations which prevented ASU for gathering momentum. For the Cardinal, Oscar Da Silva finished the half with 14 points and seven rebounds while KZ Okpala and Daejon Davis each collected 10 points. For the Sun Devils, Luguentz Dort had with 15 points and shot 3-5 from beyond the arc.

Stanford opened the second half on a 12-0 run fueled by a Cormac Ryan three-pointer and an Oscar da Silva slam dunk. ASU scored their first points of the half on a jumper from senior Zylan Cheatham at the 14:33 mark which brought the score to 52-40 in favor of the Cardinal.

Freshman Cormac Ryan, who had 4 points, exited the game with a left ankle injury 5 minutes into the second half. He would return to the bench in the final minutes of the game, but he wouldn’t receive any further playing time. Jerod Hasse said he and his staff are highly concerned after repeated injuries to both of Ryan’s ankles in recent games.

The Stanford lead shrunk to as few as 5 points with 10 minutes left in the game but Daejon Davis quickly got the crowd back into it and shifted the momentum back in Stanford’s favor when, after he was doubled-teamed and got the back stolen away, he sprinted down the court and blocked an open ASU layup in transition.

With that momentum Stanford caught fire and pulled away once again and, with help for 8 straight points from KZ Okpala which included a pair of threes, the Cardinal stretched their lead to a deciding 19 points with just over 4 minutes left in the game and the score 76-57. Stanford would go on to win with the final score 85-71.

The Cardinal finished with a 53% field goal percentage and 39% three-point percentage while Arizona State finished by shooting 41% from the field and 45% from beyond the arc. Stanford forced 19 turnovers from the Sun Devils and turned those into 26 points— a deciding margin. The Cardinal’s 18 total assists and 3 first-half turnovers were noted by head coach Jerod Hasse as evidence of better offensive play which also received high praise from Da Silva and Okpala after the game. They credited a new mentality, which was caused by having their backs against the wall after starting conference play winless, for making the difference in tonight affair. Jerod Hasse called the ASU victory the best win for the Card of the season considering the energy and the execution of the game plan.

Oscar Da Silva finished a double-double with 21 points and 10 rebounds. KZ Okpala also had 21 points and collected 9 boards. Daejon Davis collected 13 points and 9 assists.

For the Sun Devils, Luguentz Dort, who was held to a single point in the second half, had a team-high 16 points before fouling out. He sat for much of the second half after collecting four fouls early. Sophomore guard Rob Edwards had 13 points while Zylan Cheatham finished with 8 points and 12 rebounds. Sophomore forward Kimani Lawrence collected 10 points and 6 rebounds.

What’s Next?
Stanford will take on the Washington schools on the road and will look to even their Pac-12 record on against UW on January 17 and WSU on January 19.

Arizona State will host the Oregon schools at home first with OSU on January 17 and then UO on January 19.

Forks Down, Forks Up: ASU starts slow, but finishes fast in 80-66 road win over Cal

Published on by moepeaLeave a comment

By Morris Phillips

The ASU Sun Devils came to Berkeley Wednesday night trying to forge an upward trajectory, something they could hardly claim two weeks ago when they beat Kansas, then lost to Princeton in an inexplicable eight-day span.

But 14 minutes in, the Bears’ active 2-3 zone was causing Arizona State problems, and they trailed Cal by 14. Yeah, the Bears have struggled, but double-digit leads can help a young ballclub gain wisdom in a hurry.

So how did ASU coach Bobby Hurley respond?

He turned to sophomore guard Remy Martin in hopes of giving his squad a boost. Martin fashioned his contribution in a mere, eight seconds.

The ASU sparkplug–a reserve who routinely plays starter’s minutes–sliced Cal’s lead to 11 with a 3-pointer from the top of the key. Martin would go on to score or assist on every ASU basket in the six minutes leading to the half.

That run got Arizona State within 35-33 at the break. Then the Sun Devils took over in the second half, and they handled the Bears, 80-66, the 10th consecutive loss for the hosts in Pac-12 conference play.

To the Bears’ and coach Wyking Jones’ credit, their strategic wrinkle–playing a packed-in zone to limit penetration and put the onus on ASU’s shooters–worked. ASU opened the game by missing 11 of their first 12 shots. They just couldn’t sustain it once Martin started cooking.

“What changed was Remy Martin started hitting shots,” Jones admitted. “We can’t keep the zone as tight, and now we have to go out there and guard him. We have to guard the guy at the top of the key, and it opens up the high post, and then they started hurting us.”

Martin’s career-best scoring effort had symmetry: 12 points, 4 assists in the Sun Devils’ big run leading up to halftime, and another 12 during the period that ASU extended their 47-44 lead to 77-65 with 2:16 remaining.

As a freshman last season on an ASU team that was senior-dominated, Martin showed out at Haas Pavilion with 13 points, three assists in 18 minutes off the bench in the Sun Devils 81-73 win. This season, Martin still comes off the bench despite being more experienced than his teammates who start. But the speedy playmaker hasn’t complained. Instead he’s embraced the role and perfected it.

With ASU in the midst their first half run, Martin whipped a pass to a cutting Zylan Cheatham for a dunk, a pass thrown with so much force, the point guard came out of his shoe. The video replay shows the unaffected Martin putting his shoe back on at the moment Cheatham finishes the play at the rim.

“I’m here to help the team win whether I’m starting or coming off the bench,” Martin said. “I’m the same guy and I’ll do whatever is best for the team.”

What was best, was also fast and decisive, as the Bears found out Wednesday.  In a rare, statistical seismic shift, the shooting percentages for both teams changed dramatically after halftime. Cal shot 43.3 percent in the first half, 31.8 percent in the second, while ASU skewed more dramatically.  The Sun Devils were 39.4 percent before the break, and 57.7 percent after, and get this.. they went the final eight minutes of the game without being discredited with a missed shot. All that pace and execution to end it, after all the missed shots in the initial minutes of the game.

Matt Bradley was inserted into the starting lineup for second straight game, and scored in double figures for the third straight game. The freshman guard led Cal with 19 points, Darius McNeill added 16. Bradley also summed up the tale of two halves.

“The second half, they started knocking down shots. Once they spread us out, they got the bigs going down low. They played a lot harder and a lot more aggressively,” Bradley said.

The Bears host the Arizona Wildcats Saturday at 7:30 pm.

Stanford falls to Arizona in hard-fought contest 75-70

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

Photo credit: @StanfordMBB

By: Eric Epstein

PALO ALTO, Calif. — The Pac-12-leading Arizona Wildcats visited The Farm on Wednesday night, where they bested the Stanford Cardinal with a score of 75-70. Stanford’s conference record drops to 0-3 after this loss, with their previous defeats coming in their recent Southern California road trip to UCLA and USC.

The game was back-and-forth throughout both halves, with the largest margin of victory coming at the beginning of the game when Arizona jumped out to a 7-0 lead. The first lead change of the game occurred over 13 minutes into the first half, when Stanford briefly claimed a 2-point lead with two Daejon Davis free throws. After a short Arizona run led by sophomore forward Ira Lee and senior guard Justin Coleman, Stanford narrowed the Wildcat lead to 2 points when Davis sunk a running layup to beat the halftime buzzer.

Although there were only 3 lead changes in the second half, the lead for either team never rose above 6 points. Sophomore KZ Okpala showcased his offensive firepower as he scored 16 second half points on 6-9 shooting and going 4-5 from the free throw line. Although Arizona did not shoot efficiently in the second half with a 36.7% field goal percentage, their consistent free throw shooting and ball security gave them just enough to pull away with a five-point win.

Senior Josh Sharma started the game at center for the Cardinal, but when he committed two fouls in the first two minutes of play, Head Coach Jerod Haase gave freshman Lukas Kisunas a chance at the five off the bench. Although Kisunas contributed nicely in the first half with 5 rebounds, he did not see much time on the court in the second half, where Sharma played a larger role for Haase.

The Arizona frontcourt dealt with foul trouble of their own, with Lee as well as senior forward Ryan Luther picking up 3 first-half fouls. Junior center and the team’s second-leading scorer Chase Jeter fouled out with 2-and-a-half minutes left in the contest.

Although Stanford attempted 8 more free throws than Arizona, the Wildcats shot 89% from the charity stripe, a much more efficient clip than Stanford’s 58%. Arizona also had more team assists, bench points, offensive rebounds, and points off turnovers. The Cardinal only made 1 three-point shot out of the 8 that they attempted, whereas the Wildcats made 7 of 12 of their threes.

KZ Okpala led the game in scoring with 29 points on 11-16 shooting and 7-12 from the foul line, although he did not make either of his three-point attempts. Daejon Davis pitched in 15 points of his own, but he had a subpar assist-to-turnover ratio with 3 assists and 6 turnovers. The Cardinal as a team were not too careful with the ball, as they coughed the ball up 19 times over the course of the game.

Stanford will have a few days of rest and practice before hosting the Arizona State Sun Devils in a Pac-12 matchup on January 12 at 3:00 pm.

Cal Bears basketball podcast with Morris Phillips: Did UCLA’s coaching change throw monkey wrench into Cal’s game plan?; Cal tries to regroup as ASU arrives Wednesday

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

Photo credit: @CalMBBall

On the Cal Bears podcast with Morris:

#1 UCLA have been a force since new head coach Murray Bartow has taken over. What are some of the differences?

#2 How frustrating was it for cal head coach Wyking Jones to re-plan things against UCLA after the Bruins made the coaching change?

#3 UCLA dominated last Saturday in a 98-83 win at Pauley Pavilion with 53% shooting from the floor and posting a season-high in points.

#4 What was the reason coach Jones decided to bench the starters during Saturday’s game?

#5 Cal hosts ASU Wednesday night at Haas Pavilion. Can the Bears overcome UCLA and have a chance to defeat the Sun Devils?

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

Cal Bears basketball podcast with Michael and Morris: Cal needs to figure out UCLA and USC

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

photo by bruinnation.com: The UCLA Bruins Moses Brown throws down as Cal Bears defender Justice Sueing could just watch during Saturday night’s game at Pauley Pavilion

On the Cal Bears basketball podcast with Morris and Michael:

We thought we’d have some good news to talk about regarding the down Pac-12 conference with two of the more down teams in that conference USC and UCLA. One of them, the UCLA Bruins, started to turn it around before Cal got to town. UCLA fired head coach Steve Alford, and all of sudden, the Bruins have become unstoppable.

UCLA turned it around immediately. They came off those four losses. UCLA lost to Liberty in a 30 point blowout loss. There was Ohio State they played Stanford and they all beat up on Cal. The Bears got 92 points against Stanford and the Bruins. No matter what they did in this last game, they just couldn’t get past UCLA.

Morris and Michael do the Cal Bears podcasts every week podcast at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

 

Trojans hand Cardinal second Pac-12 setback 77-66

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

Photo credit: @StanfordMBB

By Daniel Dullum
Sports Radio Service
Sunday, January 6, 2019

Southern California earned its fourth consecutive men’s basketball win Sunday, knocking off Stanford 77-66 at Galen Center in Los Angeles.

Nick Rakocevic led the Trojans (9-6 overall, 2-0 Pac-12) with 23 points, with Bennie Boatwright adding 22. USC won its first two conference games of the season for the first time since 2010.

Rakocevic also grabbed 10 rebounds, giving him his seventh double-double of the season. Rakocevic and Boatwright combined for 45 points, 17 rebounds, three assists, three blocks, two steals and only two turnovers.

The Cardinal (7-7, 0-2), meanwhile, have lost three of their last four contests.

Cormac Ryan led Stanford with 18 points — all on 3-pointers he hit in the second half. Daejon Davis and KZ Okpala contributed 14 and 12 points, respectively, for the Cardinal.

The Trojans jumped to a 13-point run to open the game and led until Okpala drained a 3-pointer with 12:45 remaining, giving Stanford a 49-46 lead. Southern Cal later pulled away with an 11-0 run, taking a 68-55 lead with 2:22 to play.

The Cardinal return home Wednesday to host Arizona. Tipoff set for 8:00 pm.

Bruins reward new coach with 92-70 win over Stanford

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

Photo credit: @UCLAMBB

By Daniel Dullum
Sports Radio Service
Thursday, January 3, 2019

UCLA used a big second half to blow out Stanford 92-70 Thursday in Pac-12 men’s basketball at Pauley Pavilion, giving interim coach Murry Bartow his first win after replacing Steve Alford, who was fired earlier in the week.

It was the first time in UCLA men’s basketball history that a coach was dismissed during the season. Bartow’s father, Gene, coached the Bruins for two seasons in the mid-1970s.

Moses Brown hit 8-of-9 from the field and led the Bruins (8-6 overall, 1-0 Pac-12) with 17 points and nine rebounds. Jaylen Hands was next for UCLA with 15 points and six assists, and Kris Wilkes and Prince Ali each score 14 points.

The Bruins held a 56-30 edge on points in the paint, and their defense collected seven steals.

KZ Okpala’s 22 points topped the scoring column for Stanford (7-6, 0-1). It was the Cardinal’s 13th straight loss at UCLA, as Stanford opened its conference schedule on the road for the first time since 2013.

Okpala also pulled down 10 rebounds for the Cardinal, who were outrebounded 46-34. Okpala and Oscar Da Silva each had three assists.

With 13 minutes left in the second half, Okpala scored four straight points, pulling the Cardinal to within 48-42. UCLA asserted itself from there, building an 18-point lead with dunks by Brown, Wilkes and Ali.

The Bruins extended their lead with a 10-0 run with under four minutes remaining, taking an 88-61 advantage.

Stanford continues its L.A. road trip when it visits USC on Sunday at 5:00 pm PT.

Herbert’s touchdown pass leads the Ducks to 7-6 victory over the Spartans

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

Photo credit: @oregonfootball

By Jeremy Kahn

SANTA CLARA — Justin Herbert changed the Redbox Bowl with just one toss to Dillion Mitchell and the Oregon Ducks.

Herbert threw a 28-yard touchdown pass to Mitchell early in the fourth quarter, as the Ducks defeated the Michigan State Spartans 7-6 at Levi’s Stadium.

The Spartans dropped a chance to possibly win the game, as Brian Lewerke was unable to hold onto the ball on a potential game-winning field goal late in the fourth quarter.

Herbert, who announced last week that he was returning to Eugene for another year, threw for 166 yards and stretched his streak to 28 games for touchdown passes.

“We felt like it was going to be that kind of game just watching them on defense,” said Ducks head Mario Cristobal. “We kept battling and battling. You take a victory whether it be one point, two points or 50 points. These guys found a way to get it done.”

The Ducks crossed midfield only three times and were not able to get on the scoreboard until Herbert found Mitchell for the only touchdown of the game.

Late in the game, the Spartans were getting ready for a potential game-winning 50-yard field goal; however, Lewerke, who is also the holder, was unable to hold to the ball, then tried to run, but then threw an incomplete pass near the Ducks sideline.

“It’s one that I have to come up with,” Lewerke said. “The ball kind of hit my hand on top of the ball. I tried to make something happen. That’s what happens.”

Following a three-and-out by the Ducks, the Spartans got the ball back, as they got the ball back at their own 42; however, Lewerke’s pass on 4th-and-12 was knocked down by Ducks cornerback Thomas Graham to secure the victory for the Ducks.

On the afternoon, Lewerke went 22-for-40 for 172 yards with an interception, as the Spartans were unable to get into the end zone for the third time in their past four games.

LJ Scott carried the ball 24 times for 84 yards, as he ended his Spartans career with a one-point defeat. Scott, who played in just five games decided against redshirting and is leaving East Lansing, as he declared for the NFL draft earlier this month.

Matt Coghlin kicked two 34-yard field goals to give the Spartans a 6-0 lead until Herbert found Mitchell for the game-winning touchdown. Coghlin missed a 50-yard field goal.

“We never got that bust-out play,” Michigan State coach Mark Dantonio said. “You’re not going to win many games scoring six points.”

Mitchell ended the day with six catches for 70 yards, as he set the single season school record with 1,184 yards, breaking the record set by Josh Huff in 2013, as he gained 1,140 yards.

NOTES: Defensive end Kenny Willekes left the game in the third quarter on a cart, as he broke his left fibula. On the season, Willekes led the Spartans in sacks with 8.5.

UP NEXT: The Spartans will open the season at Spartan Stadium on August 31 against the Tulsa Golden Hurricane.

Cardinal use fumble recovery TD to edge Pitt 14-13 in Sun Bowl

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

Photo credit: elpasotimes.com

By Daniel Dullum
Sports Radio Service
Monday, December 31, 2018

Stanford did its part to defend the honor of the Pac-12 Conference Monday, squeaking out a 14-13 victory over Pittsburgh in the Sun Bowl at El Paso, Texas.

The Cardinal finished its season 9-4, and played the game without star running back Bryce Love, who sat out the game to prepare for the NFL Draft. Pitt wound up 7-7.

Stanford won, despite being held to 208 yards of total offense, and converting only 1 of 10 third downs.

The Cardinal were trailing 13-7 when, with 11:28 remaining in the fourth quarter, quarterback K.J. Costello tried to score from the Pitt 1-yard line, but fumbled. The ball was recovered in the end zone by Cameron Scarlett, who filled in for Love.

Jet Toner’s PAT kick provided the margin of victory. Bobby Okereke racked up five tackles with a sack and a pass break up. Sean Barton added a team-high eight tackles.

The Panthers opened the scoring early in the second quarter on a 29-yard field goal by Alex Kessman. Stanford took its first lead at 7:39 on Scarlett’s 1-yard plunge, putting the Cardinal up 7-3.

A 6-yard touchdown run by Darrin Hall put Pitt ahead 10-7 with 2:32 remaining in the half.

Pitt extended its lead to 13-7 on Kessman’s 28-yard field goal with 8:13 left in the third quarter.

Costello completed 6 of 17 passes for 105 yards and no interceptions. Scarlett gained 94 rushing yards on 22 carries while scoring both Cardinal touchdowns. Dorian Maddox averaged 5.8 yards on four attempts.

JJ Arcega-Whiteside caught 3 passes for 94 yards.

Hall gained a game-high 123 rushing yards for the Panthers on 16 attempts. Pitt quarterback Kenny Pickett threw for 136 yards on 11 of 29 passing. Taysir Mack caught four passes for 68 yards, and Maurice Ffrench snared 5 passes for 49 yards.