Bears’ turnaround like night and day against Huskies

This time, the Cal women’s basketball team spent less time fouling and more time flourishing

Reshanda Gray’s shooting touch was nearly perfect in a 27point performance, and the Bears rolled to an 82-58 victory over Washington on Saturday in a game that was one-sided from the opening minutes.

The Bears avenged an ugly loss in Seattle on Jan. 11 in which they spent much of the game in foul trouble and watched the Huskies parade to the free-throw line — 20 fouls led to 30 freebies.

Saturday, it was a different story and far different ending. Cal committed 14 fouls and spent the afternoon outhustling and outmuscling their way to their seventh win in nine Pac-12 games. They’re 15-5 overall, while the Huskies fell to 5-4 and 16-5.

Cal head coach Lindsay Gottlieb implemented a 1-3-1 zone at Wednesday’s practice, and the Huskies couldn’t respond. Gray made 10 of 12 from the floor and grabbed 14 rebounds, and sidekick Mercedes Jefflo had 19 points and six assists. Courtney Range, who missed the game in Seattle with an injury, added 10 points, and Brittany Boyd had nine points and seven rebounds.

“That game up there, I felt I was coaching a team not totally confident or locked in,” Gottlieb said. “Our mentality’s different. Night and day in many, many ways.”

Gottlieb said her assistant coaches suggested the 1-3-1. “I said, ‘OK, I’ll trust you with it,’ ” she said. “That was a huge factor in the game. Washington didn’t expect it.”

Jefflo opened the game with a pair of threepointers, and the Bears jumped to leads of 8-0 and 25-8. A Washington run late in the first half — cutting the deficit to 10 by intermission — didn’t seem a bother for 2,962 fans at Haas Pavilion. After a slow start in the second half, the Bears quickly put the game away, and Range’s inside shot with 13½ minutes to go made it a 20-point game at 50-30.

Soon, the lead became 30 on a Jefflo jumper. It got as high as 34, and Gray and Jefflo and other starters had the luxury of watching the final minutes from the bench.

Asked about her 27 points and 14 boards, Gray noted she’s “using footwork instead of bulldozing through people.” In the previous game against the Huskies, she fouled out in the final seconds.

Cal shot 51 percent from the floor (31-for-61) and outrebounded Washington 42-30.