Cal Coach Mark Madsen on Dai Dai Ames: `His Game Has Taken Off'

Cal coach Mark Madsen was asked if he had concerns about junior guard Dai Dai Ames potentially being greeted by hostile fans on Wednesday night in his return to face No. 23 Virginia, where he played last season.

“Dai Dai is such a strong person, he’s played in so many big environments,” Madsen said. “I have not discussed that with him.”

No, but Madsen watched on Nov. 13 when Ames scored a season-high 25 points, shooting 5 for 6 from the 3-point arc, and tossing in career highs of seven assists and five steals during Cal’s 99-96 loss at Kansas State.

Ames played at K-State two years ago as a freshman.

Cal guard Dai Dai Ames drives to the basket against Notre Dame. | D. Ross Cameron-Imagn Images

And Madsen was courtside at Haas Pavilion on Friday when Ames capped a 23-point performance by scoring seven points in a span of six seconds — including a four-point play with 5 seconds left — to lift the Bears to a 72-71 victory over Notre Dame.

Cal (13-2, 1-1 ACC) and Virginia (12-2, 1-1) will tip off at 6 p.m. PT on Wednesday at John Paul Jones Arena in Charlottesville. The Cavaliers are 8-0 at home, playing in front of an average crowd of 11,949. The Bears lost their only road game to date.

The teams met in Berkeley last season, with Cal claiming a 75-61 victory and Ames going scoreless for Virginia in four minutes of action.

It was a month later when Ames began to find his rhythm.

“We knew that Dai Dai was a really good player,” Madsen said. “You saw flashes of that at the end of ACC play last year.”

Ames averaged 14.1 points for Virginia over the final 10 games of last season, converting 42 percent of his 3-point tries.

This season he’s averaging 17.6 points — ninth best in the ACC — and shooting 44.9 percent (31 for 69) on 3’s, with seven games of at least 20 points.

Ames “is having an awesome year,” said first-year Virginia coach Ryan Odom.

Madsen believes Ames is just beginning to show what he can do. “His game has taken off,’ Madsen said. “He has the green light to shoot more 3’s. I think he’s just becoming more and more comfortable.

“Dai Dai wants constructive criticism all the time. I think that’s what makes him such a good player — he always wants to make himself better.”

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