Back after ban, Coleman could lift offense
Don Coleman has been reinstated to the Cal men’s basketball team following a two-game suspension for an undisclosed violation of team rules, a move that should provide a jolt to the Pac-12’s worst offense.
Head coach Wyking Jones said Wednesday that the junior guard, who is averaging a team-leading 16.9 points per game, will play against Oregon on Thursday. He hasn’t decided whether Coleman will be in the starting lineup.
“He’s been engaged, and he’s working hard,” Jones said of Coleman’s demeanor in his return to practice. “Hopefully, that will carry over into the game.”
Cal (7-15, 1-8 Pac-12) has lost eight consecutive games by an average of 19.4 points — the Bears’ longest losing streak since Feb. 9-March 8, 1992. The worst skid in the program’s 109-season history was a nine-game losing streak from Dec. 7, 1979-Jan. 14, 1980.
Cal’s offense is the biggest culprit. The Bears rank last in the conference in points per game (71.2), field-goal shooting (42.8 percent), three-point shooting (31.3 percent), assists (10.6) and turnovers (15.3).
Without Coleman on last week’s trip to Los Angeles, the Bears were even worse than usual. They scored 57 and 59 points in the two games on 37 percent shooting from the floor and 24.2 percent shooting from three-point range (8-of-33), and they had 35 turnovers.
“We’ve got to take care of the ball,” Jones said. “… That’s the most important thing for us: to not give away possessions.”
Coleman, who plays a teamleading 34 minutes per game and is second on the team with 44 assists, started the first 20 games of the season, but came off the bench for the Arizona State game just prior to his suspension.
In his past six games, he’s averaging only 9.2 points on 25.4 percent shooting, including missing his past nine three-point attempts. But he could be just what Cal needs as the Oregon schools head to the Bay Area.
Oregon (14-7, 4-4), which showcases a 1-2-2, three-quarter-court pressure defense, and Oregon State (11-9, 3-5), which plays Cal on Saturday, are the conference’s top two teams in field-goal defense. Opponents shoot just 41.3 percent against the Ducks and 41.9 percent against the Beavers.
If the Bears can’t upset one of the Oregon schools, they could easily be looking at a 13-game losing streak before Washington State, the conference’s other one-win team, comes to Berkeley on Feb. 22.
“Just staying positive, seeing the big picture and knowing that things are going to get better,” Jones said. “The future is bright. We’re just focusing in on that and not placing so much onus on the wins and losses. Are we getting better? Are we learning? Are we figuring things out? We’ve lost eight games in a row, and it doesn’t feel like that. …
“I’m not walking around, acting as if we’ve lost eight games. I’m staying positive. The minute I go negative or throw in the towel, my team is going to follow suit.”