Cal Loses to Washington State in Pac-12 Tournament
Cal completed its worst season in program history with a 69-52 loss to Washington State on Wednesday afternoon in the first round of the Pac-12 tournament at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
The Bears have been plagued by injuries all season, and they played Wednesday’s game without DeJuan Clayton, who has not played since Feb. 11, and freshman Grant Newell, who was ill. Devin Askew, Cal’s leading scorer, has not played since Jan. 22.
The Bears played hard in every game, and they produced a 10-0 run in the second half against Washington State that got Cal within 11 points with six minutes left after being behind by 20.
Cal's Monty Bowser was impressive while scoring a career-high 19 points.
"Since there's been a lot of people out, my role has increased, so I'm trying to be more aggressive," Bowser said.
"He's got a lot of good days in front of him," coach Mark Fox said of the sophomore, Bowser. "He's crossed the bridge as a player, and that will be one of the silver linings to a disappointing year."
The bottom line to the disappointing year is that Cal (3-29) has lost 16 games in a row, finished with its worst winning percentage (.094) in program history, the most losses in program history, and the fewest wins since 1913-14, when the Bears played just two games (and won both). Cal had won at least six games every year since that 1913-14 season.
Cal began the day ranked last among all 352 Division I schools in scoring offense, averaging 58.5 points per game. And the Bears' 52 points on Wednesday did not help that average.
The only uncertainty remaining is whether Fox will be retained as the Bears head coach. Cal has not had a winning season in any of his four years at Cal, and his best season in Berkeley was his first, when the Bears went 14-18 overall and 7-11 in the Pac-12.
So how does Fox deal with the grumblings of Cal fans who would like to see a change?
"I don't pay any attention to it," he said, "because we try to deal within our program, within the administration in truth. We try to be very up front and honest with the challenges we have and the things that we have to overcome and endure.
"We understand that there's an expectation to be successful, and we didn't do that this year, but most people who are sitting where you're sitting now [in the media section], are never on the inside. They don't know the things that we have to deal with that adminstrators and coaches and players do.
"It's not your fault or people who have that chatter, it's not their fault that they don't know. It comes with the territory. It does. I'm not a young coach anymore. I've been through it so it doesn't bother me. I'm not saying it's unfair. Criticism comes with the territory. But I also know what we're going to have to do here to get it back to where it needs to be."
The Bears could not hang with fifth-seeeded Washington State (17-15), which has won seven in a row and faces fourth-seeded Oregon in the quarterfinals on Thursday at 2:30 p.m.
Five WSU players scored in double figures, led by TJ Bamba, who finished with 17 points.
Washington State controlled Wednesday's game from the outset, leading by as many as 16 points in the first half and holding a 20-point advantage with just under 10 minutes remaining in the second half. Many of WSU's starters were on the bench for much of the second half.
The Bears did not give up. They came up with a 10-0 run that closed the deficit to 11 points at 53-42 with 6:03 remaining. Bowser's three-pointer got Cal within 11, but the Bears could get no closer.
Washington State, which beat Cal for the third time this season, outrebounded the Bears 43-29, including 14-6 on the offensive boards. The Bears shot 35.8% from the floor and were 3-for-14 on three-pointers.
Washington State dominated the first half. The Cougars led by as many 16 points late in the first half and ended the half with a 14-point lead at 35-21.
The Bears made just six of their first 21 shots and had just 13 points with three minutes remaining in the first half. But they scored eight points in those final three minutes to stay within striking distance.
WSU controlled the backboards in the opening 20 minutes and outrebounded the Bears 10-3 on the offensive boards.
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Cover photo of Kuany Kuany by Stephen R. Sylvanie, USA TODAY Sports
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