California Golden Blogs

Q+A with BruinsNation about Cal-UCLA Pac-12 Men's Basketball Game

2012-02-10T23:30:26Z

Big win yesterday. But we have an even bigger game tomorrow. Cal is on its Sherman's March To The Sea now. We need to destroy everybody in our sights to ensure a Pac-12 championship. Due to the Pac-12 schedule, we only face UW once. We are currently tied with them for first in the standings with a few other teams on our heels. So, unfortunately, we are not totally in control of our own destiny. Nobody really is in the Pac-12. But if we win and win and win and win, we'll get, at least, a share of the Pac-12 championship. But who wants that when we could have more!

Tomorrow, we have another test on our road to the championship (hopefully??), the UCLA Bruins. UCLA is the MBB blue blood in the Pac, but they have fallen upon hard times. At 7-5, they are currently in the middle of the Pac. However, only a few games separate the top from the middle in this conference, so with just a few wins, UCLA could find itself back on top. They are a dangerous team and I, for one, AM VERY SCARED RIGHT NOW!

To find out more, we spoke with DC Bruins (not to be confused with DC Trojan or DCBlue) from Bruins Nation about the game. Bruins Nation has the info we need to know about UCLA sports. Many thanks to DC Bruins. Check out his answers to our questions after the jump. GO BEARS!

1. Judging by the readership at Bruins Nation, it seems like there are very few supporters of Ben Howland left. So, what happened to the guy who led UCLA to 3 Final Fours in a row, and who had gathered the conference's best talent through the mid-2000s? Is this a case of a good head coach losing his best recruiter? A failure to better scout talent? What gives? I mean the guy obviously knows how to coach basketball - seeing his success first at Pitt, then at UCLA. How does a guy fall off the edge like that?

Howland is a great teacher of basketball. Darren Collison said: "You need the vegetables from Coach Howland," Collison said. "[Then] dessert in the NBA is kind of your reward."

That is not a question but it is looking like we will miss the NCAA Tourney for the second time in three years. Why?

There is a multitude of reasons but they all lead to Howland. I will cite three of them.

i. Recruiting errors. Howland has gone for the home run and mostly struck out. For example, we have not had a pure PG recruit since Jrue Holiday. Howland stuck out on some big names like Ray McCallum and we ended up with a JC transfer Lazeric Jones. Jones tries hard but he is not an elite athlete.

ii. Mistakes in who he plays. Bruins Nation and UCLA fans will never understand why Howland played Nikola Dragovic, a no-defense, poor shooting big so many minutes over Mike Moser in 2009-10. Moser was raw but Dragovic was terrible. Moser is now a top in the nation rebounder. Howland seems to favor seniors and upperclassman over more talented freshman. Sometimes the freshman (like Moser and current BYU starting PG Matt Carilino ) get frustrated and leave. This year Howland may be doing it again playing Jerime Anderson over Norman Powell. Howland also seems reluctant to play one of the PAC 12 best defenders in Anthony Stover some say because he favors the Wears.

iii. Stubbornness. Howland wants to put a square peg in a round hole. He wants his players to do things they cannot. For example, he refuses to play zone despite his personnel crying out for it. He acts like his current players are the same players as the final four guys. At the start of the year, 6'10" David Wear was a wing. David tried really hard but could not cover a D-1 wing and this was part of the reason for our horrid start this season.

2. With this season looking like an underperforming season for UCLA - what does the near future look like? Is everything riding on Shabazz signing?

Near future we are not going to fire two revenue sport coaches in the same year. But Howland's days are numbered if we do not make the Tourney this year. Shabazz certainly helps Howland but the questions are bigger than one recruiting class.

3. How have the Wear twins adjusted now that 3/4 of the season is over? In the beginning they looked like skilled but finesse type players allergic to defense and rebounding?

The Wears are great kids who are very coachable. They are the kind of kids who would try to run through walls if you asked. But that is part of the problem, they can't run through walls.

They are kids playing close to the limits of their athletic ability. They are probably the best set offense players at the power forward spot Howland has had in the sense they follow the playbook perfectly. They are just not the best athletes.

4. Are you guys playing more zone?

One of the complaints against Howland is he is stubborn. His refusal/reluctance to play zone is exhibit 1. This team cries out (especially when Josh is playing) for zone but Howland stubbornly sticks to man to man. We have played zone once in the pass month and it keyed our ONLY road win outside LA this year over WSU. Howland only played it because Travis Wear was hurt and Josh Smith was in foul trouble.

5. Who from Bruins Nation is going to live with Josh Smith this summer and get him up at 6am every day for beach workouts and keep him away from the Jumbacos?

There are two theories on Josh.

1. Coach Howland basially says that Josh was too cocky and thought that it did not matter if he was overweight. He thought he could dominate regardless and ate accordingly in the off season. However, in the words of Marques Johnson at the start of the year whoever listed his weight at 305 was dyslectic. Josh need to get in better shape and is starting to do so. I believe this theory.

2. Josh does not really like basketball but he is 6'10" and a good athlete, thus life has made him a basketball player. He is not a basketball player by choice and therefore a bit self-destructive.

6. Predict a score.

Being at home in the PAC 12 is worth a number of points due to the, as we say at bruins nation, SPTR (bleep Pac Twelve Refs). I think that is enough and I will be a homer and says UCLA pulls out a 69-68 win.

Golden Nuggets: Cal Softball is #1 in ESPN's Preseason Rankings

2012-02-10T18:30:09Z

ESPN's Graham Hays has been counting down the top-20 teams for the 2012 softball season. The Bears came in at #1, just ahead of conference rival and reigning national champion Arizona State. Will Diane Ninemire bring home another national championship this season? The journey to Oklahoma City begins today as the Bears open the season against Tennessee.

Who returns: Everybody returns. Really, everybody. For all reasonable purposes, California returns the roster that made it to the Women's College World Series for the first time since 2005 and finished two games behind Arizona State in the Pac-10, the only team in the conference to finish within six games of the eventual national champion.

Start the list with Jolene Henderson, the ace in the circle who went 40-10 with a 0.99 ERA and 333 strikeouts in 333.1 innings as a sophomore last season. Without Valerie Arioto (that's right, Cal returns its entire roster and welcomes back a player in Arioto who posted All-American numbers as both a pitcher and hitter before injuries wiped out her 2011 season), Henderson took the ball again and again in the nation's toughest conference and never wilted. There's even reason to think Henderson, who finished third on the team with six home runs at the plate but hit just .217 overall, could be even more valuable this season as her bat develops.

While some might wonder if the Bears can replicate last year's remarkable success with the same roster, Valerie Arioto's return should play a crucial role for the Bears' depth and offensive prowess.

Could Henderson really handle such a heavy workload two seasons in a row against the kind of schedule California chooses to play out of conference and has to play in conference? Could the team score enough runs to make a go of it in Oklahoma City, where it simply didn't have the bats to match up with Alabama or Florida?

What makes both questions seem far less pressing is Arioto's return. Her ability to regain the form that helped her post a .590 on-base percentage and .819 slugging percentage in 2010, walking 81 times and hitting 19 home runs in 63 games, isn't in any doubt after watching her play for Team USA this past summer and fall. Arioto went 5-for-13 with 10 walks in eight starts in the Pan-Am Games. She didn't pitch for an American side already loaded with good arms, but she threw more innings than Henderson in 2010 for Cal, finishing 21-9 with a 1.43 ERA and 264 strikeouts in 205.2 innings.

After the jump Tosh bumbles and stumbles in his first meeting with the press while both basketball teams notch a crucial win over their LA opponents.

Football

Tosh Lupoi spoke to the media for the first time since joining the UW staff. He doesn't deny that he got a boat and, in fact, commented on a canoe he also received. He made no mention of the rumors about Sark's seal-clubbing operation.
Faraudo has direct quotes from the event. It's a tough read...literally--the man speaks exclusively in run-on sentences.

Basketball

The women's team snapped a seven-game losing streak to UCLA and built a two-game lead for second place.
Oakland Tribune recaps the home win over UCLA.
Coach Gottlieb talks about how Cal handled UCLA's uglyball defense and how far the Bears have come since getting swept by the LA schools in January.
The men's team won 75-49 thanks to a 40-20 scoring advantage in the 2nd half.
Considering the men's game was not televised anywhere, Faraudo's game thread is as close to a play-by-play as you'll get.
Harper Kamp now sits at 999 points.
CalBears.com has quotes from both coaches at the post-game press conference.
Washington suffered a 25-point loss to Oregon and now sits tied for first with Cal.

Golf

Cal alum Charlie Wi is tied for first after round one of the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am. Wi set a course record with a 61 (nine under par).

Softball

Diane Ninemire previews what could be a spectacular season for the Bears.

Baseball

David Esquer, Justin Jones, and Tony Renda spoke to the media at Bay Area media day.

Tennis

The 13th-ranked Bears defeated Sacramento State 6-1.

Volleyball

Christina Higgins, Robin Rostratter, and Lillian Schonwise will try out for the U.S. women's national A2 program and U.S. women's junior national team.

Soccer

Head coach of the women's team, Niel McGuire talks about the 2012 recruiting class.

Swimming

Liv Jensen was named Pac-12 swimmer of the month.

Crew

Elise Etem and Kristina Lofman have been named team captains for the 2012 season.

Cal Men's Basketball Sweeps the USC Trojans

2012-02-10T11:02:27Z

It sounded like an ugly start at the Galen Center. Despite having a depleted roster, the USC Trojans have one of the best defensive squads in the conference and like to slow things down to turn games into a grating and grinding affair.

With most of the starters matching the coma ward atmosphere, it was Allen Crabbe who carried the torch. He started 5/5 and kept the Bears in it despite an early 8-6 deficit, and foul trouble for Harper Kamp. Naturally, 'SC's Maurice Jones saved his hot shooting just for us. But, Crabbe continued to match him shot for shot. At the ten minute mark, Cal maintained a slight lead at 17-16.

With Smith, Behrens, and Thurman getting early run, the Trojans came alive offensively and made a run to lead 23-19. But when their do-everything oompa loompa Jones picked up his 2nd foul, Cal responded with a run of its own to retake the lead, 27-23 with three minutes to play. Although the Bears weren't shooting it well, they seized several extra possessions by pounding the offensive glass. Kravish was particularly active in using his length to tip the ball to himself or to his teammates. Bak got in late and made an impact with six quick points.

It didn't sound like Cal played particularly well, but somehow managed to extend to a 35-29 lead at half thanks to a last minute steal and breakaway by Jorge. If you had told me that Cal's seniors would be largely quiet and we'd still have a lead at half, I'd take it. As hot as Crabbe was from the field, Kravish had his best rebounding half of the year with 10 boards, many of them on the offensive end. Although the Bears struggled again to check Maurice Jones on defense, they were clearly targeting him on offense and forced him to sit with foul trouble.

The second half started about as well as one could hope as Maurice Jones picked up his third foul by hacking Cobbs on a three-point attempt. With Jones forced to sit due to an injured hand incurred on the Cobbs' foul, the Bears had a golden opportunity to seize control of the game. Leave it to the battle-tested veteran, Harper Kamp, to know when to assert himself. He scored six consecutive points to build Cal's lead to 10 with sixteen to play.

Crabbe poured it on with a corner three after a monstrous block and look ahead by Jorge. With Kravish dominating the defensive glass, Kamp continued to abuse the hapless Trojans with six more points for a 17 point lead at the thirteen minute mark.

An 18-4 run? More, please.

USC brought back Maurice Jones who tried to stop the bleeding by making a tough left-handed runner. But, the Bears were relentless. Cobbs fed Crabbe for an And-One. Then, Kamp cut without the ball and laid it in off the nice feed from Cobbs. To return the favor, on the next possession Kamp promptly found Cobbs free for a three. Just like that, it was a 21 point lead. And one can only imagine the various colors and vein-popping present in Trojan Coach Kevin O'Neill's forehead.

The two teams sparred back and forth for several minutes. But, Cal refused to give up the lead and maintained a twenty-one point advantage with seven minutes and change to play. Bak provided a spark off the bench in limited minutes, then gave way to Robert Thurman who continued to show off a deft touch in the post. Erasing the sour memory of a rough outing against 'Zona, Smith played a turnover-free game and dropped a sick dime to Kravish. Moments later, Brandon jumped the passing lane for a steal and raced ahead for the layup to build the lead all the way to 25.

When Alex Rossi checked in at the next stop, you knew that the Bears had carried the day. Minutes later, Monty sent in the new human victory cigar and checked in Raffi Chalian in front of his cheering family.

With Jorge quiet on offense, and Kamp saddled in early foul trouble, it was promising that the younger and less-heralded players stepped up. Kravish went absolutely Beast Mode by grabbing 18 boards. Bak, Thurman, Behrens, and Smith all made an impact during their minutes.

Perhaps sensing that he needed to assert himself, Crabbe carried us in the 1st half and finished with 19 points. Cobbs played under control and did a much better job facilitating the offense. When Kamp was able to tag back in for the 2nd half run, it was obvious that USC had no answer for him. He scored 18 points and came within a point of notching 1000 for his career.

Give credit to Monty for relentlessly attacking Maurice Jones on offense. Although the annoyingly good mighty mite sounded like he had it going again, he was largely nullified by foul trouble and by being a defensive liability.

It didn't sound like the ideal start, but the game followed Cal's script; a decisive victory where the starters weren't run into the ground and the bench was able to build some confidence.

There's nothing wrong with a season sweep of the Trojans. While we're at it, let's go ahead and sweep both SoCal schools. Bring on the Bruins.

Go Bears!

Poll

Who was the player of the game?

Cal Men's Basketball Runs Over USC, 75-49

2012-02-10T05:15:51Z

It always feels good to beat USC.

For the first time in years, it's a season sweep over the Trojans.

Glorious! Victorious!

Revel now and get ready to beat up on the Bruins.

Go Bears!

Cal Men's Basketball vs. USC Trojans Live Thread

2012-02-10T02:30:06Z

Our sturdy Golden Bears have started the invasion of southern California. It's time to make the Galen Center Bear Territory.

Will 'sc's mighty mite, Maurice Jones, go off again?

Will we be able to see extended minutes from Murray, Rossi, and Behrens?

Will any of us be able to actually watch the action unfold?

This is your live thread. Go Bears!

Tip-off: 7:30pm

TV: None

Radio: 910KNEW

Online Streams: Please post below.

A personal appeal from Harper Kamp & Jorge Gutierrez.

2012-02-09T22:54:07Z

A personal appeal from Harper Kamp & Jorge Gutierrez.

Cal Baseball Season Preview Part 1: Sequels Are Even Harder

2012-02-09T18:30:18Z

2011 Cal baseball was the single most incredible team I have ever followed as a Cal fan in any sport. It was a national story that captured the attention of Cal fans just months after the athletic department captured the attention of Cal fans for all the wrong reasons. The run to Omaha would have been a thrilling, underdog story without the program-on-the-brink background. The challenge for the 2012 Bears is to follow that unlikely performance while dealing with the aftermath of near-elimination

Unfortunately, that near-elimination will likely impact the Bears over the next few years. With the program slated to end, the coaching staff was probably more focused on finding homes for current players than recruiting new players for a program that wasn’t going to exist. Cal lost 10 players from last year’s roster to graduation, transfer, or the pros. That David Esquer managed to put together a class of seven freshmen, one JC transfer and one former footballer might be a small miracle, though a new five year contract and a World Series appearance hopefully helped convince a few recruits.

I have no idea what kind of pedigree Cal’s new recruits have. The official website didn’t discuss the freshmen class until an article announcing fall practice came out, presumably because the recruiting class had to be cobbled together at the last minute, much of it after letters of intent could be sent in.

I will say this: To each of the nine players who committed to become Bears, thank you. Committing to a program that went through so much turmoil and uncertainty probably wasn’t the easiest decision to make. But your role in keeping the program not just alive, but competitive in arguably the toughest conference in the country is something Cal fans won’t take for granted.

And yet, even if the freshmen recruits are unable to contribute immediately, Cal is still in pretty good shape, all things considered. Most teams that are almost cut lose many players to transfers. Most teams that get to Omaha lose lots of players to graduation or the draft. Cal ‘only’ lost six major contributors from last year’s team, a shockingly low number considering everything that happened last year. That number is bit lower than anticipated in part because Chadd Krist and Matt Flemer both decided to return for their senior seasons despite opportunities to sign pro contracts.

Considering a hastily-assembled recruiting class but some exciting returning talent, what exactly should expectations be for the 2012 season? Only the elite of the elite expect to end the season in Omaha. But Cal starts the season on the fringe of the top 25, with rankings of 22, 22 and 26 in some of the various major polls. Five Pac-12 teams (Stanford, Arizona, Arizona St., UCLA and Oregon St.) have received consensus top 25 rankings as well. That suggests that the Bears have the talent to compete atop a very tough, deep conference, though depth could be a concern. But don’t tell that to Matt Flemer:

We know the type of guys we have coming back on offense and the runs that they're going to produce for us. So we have to step up as a staff this season, and I have the utmost faith in the guys we have that we're going to do that. I feel like if we can do the simple things, a conference title is a real possibility for our team. And with that goal comes the desire to win a national title.

This team has gotten used to proving doubters wrong – why should 2012 be any different?

Coming soon: Previews of the lineup and the pitching staff.

Cal Men's Basketball vs. the USC Trojans Preview

2012-02-09T11:00:24Z

It's been a rough year for the USC Trojans.(6-18, 1-10 conference) Cue the world's smallest violin. Before the season got underway, leading scorer Jio Fontan blew out his ACL during an exhibition game. Then, second-leading scorer Aaron Fuller tore the labrum of his shoulder. And a week later, Dewayne Dedmon tore his MCL.

It's enough to drive a coach to drink.

But records and injury woes aside, I can't shake the recollection of 'sc taking us to the wire at Haas while their dimunitive PG, Maurice Jones, did his best Jerome Randle impression. The Trojans are going to crush someone's soul this year with an inexplicable upset - it just had better not be us. After the jump, more on personnel and matchups:

Projected Starters:

F Garrett Jackson(So), 6'6, 225 lbs, 6 ppg, 2.6 rpg
C James Blascyzk(Jr), 7'1, 260 lbs, 2.6 ppg, 2.8 rpg
G Greg Allen(Jr), 6'3, 180 lbs, 4.1 ppg, 1.1 rpg
G Byron Wesley(Fr), 6'5, 210 lbs, 7.8 ppg, 4.8 rpg
G Maurice Jones(So), 5'7, 155 lbs, 14ppg, 3.4 apg

Bench:

(Crickets)

College Basketball Stats

Overview:

Blascyzk is the very embodiment of "space-filler"...as in he really doesn't seem to do much but take up space. Garrett Jackson has put up modest numbers, but did have a break-out game against UW. Allen is a part-time starter pressed into fill-in duty. He does shoot a not-awful percentage from deep. (34.7%) Byron Wesley is starting to improve. He's not much of an outside threat (1/7 from three), but has good size as a slasher. Maurice Jones has been forced to carry the team. He's leading them in scoring, but has been turned into a volume shooter in order to get his points.

NCAA Basketball Stats

Keys:

1) Come out ready to play.

This is not a team to play down to. If nothing else, O'Neil's teams usually play a tough, physical game. Letting them think that they can hang around is a recipe for disaster, especially if Jones decides to go microwave on us.

2) Murray vs. Smith

It'll be interesting to see who gets the bulk of our back-up PG minutes. Last game, it was Murray who moved ahead of Smith. However, Smith is usually the better defender and this is one match-up where he actually isn't at a tremendous size disadvantage. Maurice Jones plays almost like an undersized two-guard, so Smith's defensive savvy might be indicated to stay with him on screens and movement without the ball.

3) Repeat the ASU Formula

Last game, we were able to rest our starters while giving extended minutes to several of our reserves. We absolutely need to develop our bench when we can if we're going to give ourselves the best chance for a nice stretch run.

Go Bears!

Tip-off: 7:30 pm

TV: None

Radio: 910 KNEW

Poll

California Golden Blogs

Q+A with BruinsNation about Cal-UCLA Pac-12 Men's Basketball Game

Golden Nuggets: Cal Softball is #1 in ESPN's Preseason Rankings

Cal Men's Basketball Sweeps the USC Trojans

Who was the player of the game?

Cal Men's Basketball Runs Over USC, 75-49

Cal Men's Basketball vs. USC Trojans Live Thread

A personal appeal from Harper Kamp & Jorge Gutierrez.

Cal Baseball Season Preview Part 1: Sequels Are Even Harder

Cal Men's Basketball vs. the USC Trojans Preview

How do you feel about this game?