Stanford throttles Cal
2:30 p.m. Thursday.
“In tournament situations, you do build momentum, and we feel like we have some momentum moving forward,” Stanford head coach Jerod Haase said.
Wins against both the Bruins and in a probable meeting with top-seeded Arizona in the semifinals might make the selection committee overlook the Cardinal’s sub-.500 nonconference season when they weren’t playing at full strength.
With Dorian Pickens back from injury and KZ Okpala becoming academically eligible, Stanford looks every bit as talented as an NCAA Tournament team, showcasing size and attention to the scouting report that combined to limit Cal to a season-low 28.2 percent shooting and a season-worst-tying three assists.
Stanford was led by Reid Travis, who had 19 points and 13 rebounds. Pickens added 16 points, Daejon Davis had a complete game with 12 points, three rebounds, three assists and two steals, and Josh Sharma added 12 points off the bench.
“He was just relentless today,” Cal head coach Wyking Jones said of Travis, who went 7-for-11 from the floor in 27 minutes. “He just never quit and continued to fight. … He never stopped attacking the rim, and that’s a testament to how good he is.”
The Bears (8-24), who finished the season with the most losses in school history and the most double-digit defeats in the history of the conference, got 19 points from Darius McNeill and 11 from fellow freshman guard Juhwan Harris-Dyson before he fouled out. Cal players not named McNeill shot 2-of-15 from three-point range.
Cal and Stanford met in the conference tournament for just the third time, with the teams splitting the first two in 2012 and 1990. The two regularseason games this season were decided by a combined seven points, but there was no such back and forth Wednesday.
Cal trailed by as many as 12 points in the first half. The Bears were still down 10 points with about five minutes remaining, but McNeill made three of his five first-half three-pointers in a two-minute span to trim the deficit to 34-28.
Stanford scored the half ’s final five points to go into the halftime break with a doubledigit lead, having shut down everyone but McNeill, who had 19 first-half points. McNeill was shut out in the second half as Stanford asserted comprehensive domination, and the Cardinal used a 15-1 run midway through the second half to take a 60-36 lead on a Travis hook shot.
The final nine minutes were little more than in-game layup lines for Stanford, which got two alley-oops from Sharma, including one he finished behind his head, and a breakaway dunk from Davis that will run on a loop in Cardinal highlight tapes.
“We all came out the mindset to attack first and not let up for the rest of the game,” Pickens said. “To be able to get down here and get our feet wet with a big win, that’s a good feeling.”