Cal’s Anigwe at top of the chart
Colleen Galloway embraces Kristine Anigwe (31), who surpassed Galloway as Cal’s career scoring leader in the Bears’ loss to Oregon at Haas Pavilion.
Kristine Anigwe has spent most of her record-book-rewriting career downplaying her individual stats, so it’s somewhat fitting how her 2,321st point was scored.
Already trailing No. 3 Oregon 12-0 and headed toward a 105-82 loss on Friday night, Anigwe made a free throw in a nearly silent Haas Pavilion to move past Colleen Galloway and into first place on the school’s all-time scoring list.
It wasn’t until Cal head coach Lindsay Gottlieb called a timeout moments later that a highlight video ran on the large screen hanging above midcourt when many of the fans realized they had just witnessed history.
“I was kind of upset, because we were down,” said Anigwe, who has averaged 20.0 points during 117 games. “But as the game kept going, we kept learning and getting better. I haven’t really sat and really thought about breaking the school record, but I’m really grateful for my family, teammates and coaches. I wouldn’t be in this position without them.”
Anigwe passed the point total Galloway established while averaging 18.4 points per game from 1978-81, and is closing in on the school records for rebounds and blocked shots. Anigwe is three boards away from passing Gennifer Brandon (1,219) and 10 blocked shots away from passing Charlotte Lusschen.
But what Anigwe really wants is a deep NCAA Tournament run, something that appeared like a possibility at times Friday night against the Ducks (22-1, 11-0 Pac-12). The Bears rallied from down 16-3 midway through the first quarter to take a 32-30 lead on a Kianna Smith 3-pointer with 5:12 remaining in the second quarter.
The rest of the game belonged to Oregon, which led for 39 minutes and by as many as 26 points. The Ducks used a 14-2 run in the second quarter’s closing minutes to quell any lingering upset thoughts by Cal (14-8, 5-6).
Coming off a two-game set against Stanford, during which she averaged 22.5 points and 22 rebounds to become the first player to accomplish back-toback 20-point, 20-rebound games this season, Anigwe was named the Pac-12 Player of the Week.
She almost did it again, piling up 23 points on 9-of-18 shooting and 18 rebounds before checking out with 2½ minutes left. Recee Caldwell added 22 points, and Smith had 20, but the rest of the Bears totaled just 17 points on 7-of-22 shooting.
Oregon was paced by Satou Sabally, who had 31 points and nine rebounds. Sabrina Ionescu added 27 points, four rebounds, three assists and two steals.
“It was terrific to have such a great crowd and such wonderful support for Kristine at home to break a record that has stood for 38 years,” Gottlieb said. “I think we’re watching something pretty incredible unfold. It’s neat that she’s most concerned about this team and what we’re trying to accomplish.”