SB Nation - Patrick Christopher

CBKWitness - Cal turns a corner, sings

CBKWit — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 11:00:15 -0000

Nice work CaliforniaCMB. Email Cal BBall photoshops to: goldenblogs@gmail.com

Saturday found a scene familiar to long suffering Blues - Cal basketball providing a glimmer of hope as Cal football fizzles out. I went to both the men's and women's basketball games on Saturday, two blowout victories surrounding our predictably unpredictable no show at UW. RemorsefulBruinBabe called it a "losing sandwich on winning bread."

The women's freshmen and the men's backups performing so well would be the lead story here, but RemorsefulBruinBabe just found this, via BearBallCarrier. You may not like basketball, or a capella, but the combination is scintillating. That furd Tiger Woods makes you question humanity, and then Max Zhang and Maestro Randle save the day. Max swaying in the background puts it over the top.

The women were up first on Saturday. They won, big. BearBallCarrier, Calnet, and I sat in the chair-backs three rows behind the Cal bench. I even caught a shirt, from a real, live cheerleader. You could, too! There were plenty of great seats available, for only 12 bucks.

The freshman came in with a lot of hype, and so far it is deserved. They're the difference makers on the team, not our three senior guards. Eliza Pierre dominated the game with her speed and defense. The box score says she only had three steals, but she created plenty more of Cal's twelve steals and Colorado State's 17 turnovers.

Pierre isn't a smooth offensive player yet, but she's improved even since the Baylor game 2 weeks ago. She hit a nifty pull up jumper from 15 feet and looked much more in control handling the ball.

Eliza reminds me of Jorge, in the way she uses her tenacious defense to control the game. Like Monty said of Jorge, it's an absolute pleasure to watch Eliza play defense. But as much as I love Jorge, Pierre may be better, relative to her sport. She's faster and more athletic, and I think she'll turn into a natural point guard with more ease than Jorge. It's really worth the price of admission to watch her, and as a freshman with only 7 career games under her belt, she's going to get much, much better.

Yes, this tiny picture is all I could find.

via grfx.cstv.com

The freshman posts have also impressed so far. I haven't seen Brenna Heater yet, as she's been out with a boot on her foot. I heard she's due to return fairly soon, which should be a huge boost to the team. Right now, Cal has 3 healthy forwards, all of them freshman. Senior Rama N'Diaye, our one experienced post, hasn't played this year and seems likely to redshirt. It's been pretty impressive to watch 3 freshman combine for 80 minutes a game at the two forward spots. Stallworth is ridiculously smooth for a freshman with a very consistent shot. Caldwell has what we call a "rebounder's body" (read: big posterior) and moves well for her size. Brandon is probably the fastest and most athletic of the bunch. They are all more effective and more polished than I anticipated, but the biggest (and most necessary) surprise has been their conditioning. Cal was pushing the pace against Colorado State and our big were keeping up, despite only having one sub.

The big void on this team is shooting. Alexis Gray-Lawson has a nice looking stroke but only hits 25-33% of her outside shots on a given night. Layshia Clarendon is more of a scorer than an outside shooter; this will serve Cal well in the long run, as she looks to take over AGL's points next year, but for this season does not fill a glaring need. Senior Lauren Greif is still struggling from outside, going 0-2 on good looks in the CSU game. Stallworth is probably the best three point shooter on the team right now, as she knocked down two threes from the top of the key. The entire team needs work on free throws - they shot less than 50% in both games this weekend, and it particularly hurt them in the loss to Texas A&M. Stallworth hit the three pointers against CSU but missed both her free throws; Caldwell has an awkward over the head motion on her free throw shooting, barely grazing the rim on her first shot and then air-balling the second. Shooting looks like it will be the achillies heel of this team all year.

Layshia Clarendon

via caltriplethreat.files.wordpress.com

I watched 2/3 of the men's game against New Mexico at the Pit last Wednesday. Cal was pretty close to winning, which is pretty impressive considering Harper Kamp and Theo Robertson missed the game due to injury, Markhuri Sanders-Frison, Omondi Amoke, Jorge Gutierrez, and Patrick Christopher had the flu, and the game was played a mile above sea level. If we have Theo, we win. If Amoke, who has been a terror on the glass lately, doesn't foul out with zero points in nine minutes due to the flu, we win. Hopefully New Mexico keeps winning (they're 8-0) and hopefully the selection committee gives us a pass for all the injuries/vomiting and dehydration.

That said, Cal probably wins this game despite all that if New Mexico doesn't go to a 1-2-2 3/4 court press and some combo zone in the half court. What is a 1-2-2 3/4 court press? Just watch the first 13 seconds of this video:

Cal was up 6, I believe, when New Mexico started employing this trapping press to slow the bears down. It worked. Cal lost its rhythm and turned it over at least once that I can remember, a Boykin travel.

Once Cal got into the half court, New Mexico continued to employ some sort of perimeter oriented zone, though I can't remember if it was a 1-2-2 or an extended 2-3. Earlier in the half, Randle buried three pointers on three consecutive possessions as he ran around screens off the ball, plays we generally ran for Christopher against man defense last year. Once New Mexico went to the zone to stop chasing Randle around the court and giving up open looks, the Bears struggled. It's somewhat strange that New Mexico didn't go to a zone earlier, given how badly we struggled with it against Syracuse and Ohio State.

On the first possession against the zone, Randle penetrated and kicked to an open Jorge, who missed it from the top of the key. Theo, come back soon. Cal's offense never settled down, New Mexico hit some tough shots, the Lobo crowd got into it, ball game.

With Wednesday's loss to New Mexico, Saturday's game against Iowa State gained a lot of importance. Wins over Jacksonville, Murray State, Princeton, etc. are nice, but losing every game to a name opponent (which is what they had done so far) is not going to get Cal a lot of cred. And after the football debacle in Seattle (I guess Cal can't score on usc OR former usc assistants), Cal fans needed an upper. We got one.

The first half gave us three of the biggest highlights of the season thus far. Max put his hand in front of Craig Brackins' (future NBA first rounder) face, prompting Brackins to slap it away, irritated. Max was under his skin, and shortly thereafter Brackins whined to the refs about it.

Number two: Max blocked Brackins' shot. Brackins finished the game with 21 points, but most came before Max showed him who was boss. Brackins wasn't a big factor after that.

via cdn1.sbnation.com

Number three: Jorge dunked. He threw it down with one hand on a fast break, giving Cal a nine point lead. I didn't know he could dunk! I don't think any Cal fans did. Did he grow an inch or two since last year? Did he improve his vertical leap? All I know is that I love Jorge more than I did before, and I didn't know that was possible.

The background of this picture, the forefront of my heart

via cdn1.sbnation.com

Patrick Christopher had 4 points at half. In the first minute of the second half, Randle hit him for an alley-oop. He scored another 14, including a couple threes, in the half to finish the game with 20. It was yet another example of Christopher needing a confidence booster of some sort to insert himself in the game. Hopefully he will be more consistent once our calm, steady senior Theo returns and takes some of the pressure off PChris.

Randle had a terrible shooting night, 7-21 overall and 0-7 from three, but still finished with 18 points. Aside from his awful shooting (especially bad considering he is a really, really good shooter), he was great. He controlled the game from the point, dishing out 9 assists against only 2 turnovers. He held his man, ISU's three point specialist (insert Euro name here) scoreless. Randle has really picked up his defense and he doesn't even need his number one asset, his incredible outside shooting, in order to be a very good player in a game.

Cal may be turning a corner. It would have been great to win one or two of the big games we've lost, and with Theo and without the flu, we probably would have. But the flip side to the injuries and illness has been experience to our backups. Max and Omondi Amoke have been coming on very strong lately, and without the increased playing time they've received due to our temporarily depleted roster, they wouldn't have shown this much improvement. Max played the best game of his career on Saturday, against a first round NBA pick no less. He still has plenty to improve on (rebounding, some semblance of a post move), but he's serviceable and that's a lot more than you could say 6 weeks ago, much less last year.

Max, with newfound ferocity

via cdn3.sbnation.com

Amoke is a menace on the boards, especially at the offensive end. He's also grown more patient and relaxed offensively, leading to greatly increased offensive production. He's been forced to play a lot of minutes at the 4 because of Harper's injury, and with Harper likely out for the year, that will continue. But even though he's undersized playing at power forward (6'7 and pretty skinny), he's been able to collect double digit rebounds in limited minutes. He compensates for his lack of size with superior athleticism and persistence.

The really sweet part is that Theo is returning! He's supposedly playing tonight against the Pacific Tigers. He'll help this team in so many ways: breaking zones with his shooting, improving the perimeter defense, allowing Jorge to come off the bench and get back to his ultra-aggressive defense, allow Amoke to play the three on occassion...the list goes on. And he's returning to a team that has improved since he last played, nearly a month ago. Cal basketball is about to get really exciting, and just in time for the Poinsettia bowl. Praise be Bak Bak.

On a completely unrelated note, this is what I sat behind at The Nutcracker last night:

If you're going to a movie/ballet/concert, maybe the best hairdo isn't all of your hair piled on top of your head. There may actually be someone sitting behind you! And if this is your dad, unlike last week, I am not at all sorry.

Cal Basketball Attacks And Hustles Their Way To 82-63 Victory Over Iowa State

Avinash — Sun, 06 Dec 2009 10:10:02 -0000

More photos » by Dino Vournas - AP

Excuse me Mr. Brackins, but you have entered the Chamber of Max.

Browse more photos »

We'll start with the actual team that played with desire yesterday. (As for football, an official bowl announcement will come around 1:30 PM PST, according to Okanes)

The Bears played like a team in must-win mode, and they dominated a solid Iowa State team and their star Craig Brackins. With little error after three road losses against their best opponents, and Pac-10 hoops in general taking a beating, this win was a good step in the right direction for this team and this conference. Cal did not shoot well from downtown (Randle was an uncharacteristic 0 for 7), but didn't need it thanks to timely rebounding, an attack mentality and strong defense, shutting the Cyclones down when they pulled away in the second half.

Player spotlight: This turned out to be the perfect game for (I can't believe it either) Max Zhang. What Zhang lacks on offense he made up for on defense. Although we are far away from anointing him Yao Ming Jr., when he had to face off on the future NBA prospect, Brackins had to work hard to get his 21 points, needing 19 shots to reach that mark. Zhang played close up on him, crowded his range, and forced him into difficult shots when he was on him. Big ups to Max--if he can play like that against Cole Aldrich in a few weeks we have a slight chance of making the noise.

Stars of the night: Omondi Amoke and Patrick Christopher. 25 of Cal's 51 rebounds (and 9 of their 19 offensive boards) came from Amoke and Christopher. Both guys crashed the glass and got 10 points on putbacks. Without any bigs, you love your smaller guys getting in there and putting their effort into it. Amoke was all hustle tonight, cutting baseline and hustling down boards; his performance opened up what could've been a much tighter game.

Great rebound game for Christopher after the disappearing act in Albuquerque. Christopher seemed more ready to attack the basket, and he managed to earn a few trips to the stripe (he missed some of them, but hey, it's better than nothing). For the most part he took open jumpers and 3s, and if he couldn't get them passed to the open man or put it on the floor. With another tough road test at Pacific looming, the Bears might need another big performance from him, especially if Theo's injury continues to hold him out.

(Postgame reaction from Clone Chronicles)

rollonubears went to his first Cal game and shared his thoughts.

Thoughts on Haas:
I need to bring hiking boots next time. Dear lord it is steep.
The atmosphere was very disappointing. The stadium was probably less than half full. Cal fans can show up and be loud (like at football games), so why not do it for basketball? In my opinion a good basketball crowd is more important than a good football crowd. Frustrating.

Thoughts on the game:

PChris sighting! PChris sighting! After being on the lam from playing well for months, good old PChris is back.

Jerome Randle is really, really good at basketball.

I can’t remember Jorge having a better offensive game. He was confident with the ball, made some 3s, used headfakes effectively, and had only 1 turnover. Hopefully he keeps that up.

Dear Max, You are 7 fucking 3. 3 rebounds is unacceptable in 20+ minutes. A guy 9 inches shorter than you grabbed 8 more rebounds. And it isn’t that he isn’t getting bounces. Its that he isn’t trying for the ball. Max frequently just watches the play and doesn’t move to the ball. Quit being so cumbersome and do something! He needs to go to the Omondi Amoke school of sticking your nose in everything. Speaking of him…

I am officially in love with Amoke. He really is Mr. Everything. He is a great natural rebounder (if he was a few inches taller he would be unstoppable), very athletic, a heady player, and always seems to be in the right place at the right time. Amoke’s play thus far has been by far the most positive development of the year.

Poll

Player of the game...

Golden Profiles: Patrick Christopher

Avinash — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 20:00:15 -0000

Let me go out and say this off the bat: Christopher is not playing like the guy I see in the reel above right now.

I'm not trying to go out of my way to bash the guy. He's congenial with that great big smile, he has a fantastic wardrobe, hell, I even dig his crazy shoe collection. But it frustrates me to watch him not play to his potential. (I wonder if this is how Bruins fans felt about Jrue Holiday last year)

Yeah, I know Theo's out, and it makes it easier for defenses to key in on PC, but I saw this all of last season too. There were games where Christopher looked like a great player, like Von Wafer without the insanity. Then the next game, he'd come out and throw up a no-show that would leave you baffled. This pattern went back and forth, sometimes right within games. You'd sit down at your computer, check up the box scores and be perplexed to see 35 minutes next to Patrick's game when it felt like 20 minutes less.

What I'm seeing right now is a player who shies away from contact, who takes tough shots instead of the right shots, who plays below his talents when we really need him to step up. For a guy who is playing for a shot at the pros, it's really disappointing to see.

What are your thoughts on Christopher? Is he playing up to his potential? Will he play better? Or is this who he is and should we come to live with it?

On offense, the biggest issue is PC settles for his jumpers, especially the three ball, instead of driving to the rim and making content. Last year 33% of his shots were 3 point shots, which is about at the mean for a shooter. But so far this season 43% of his shots have been from behind the arc. And he isn't exactly lighting it up--34% from 3 is alright, but that's real inefficiency for a guy taking nearly half his shots back there, especially when he's knocking down a much steadier 45% from 2.

The passive play shows at the line. For a guy that's supposed to score a lot, Christopher doesn't attempt many free throws. He attempted around 2.8 per game last year, and it's down to 1 per game this year. For God's sake, Jorge's attempted twice as many free throws and gone to the basket as much if not more than Patrick, and Jorge isn't exactly the Mexican version of Carmelo Anthony out there. I guess it's great Christopher can generate that many points without heading to the charity stripe, but when his shot is off where will he find his points?

Worse of all, Christopher's game looks totally dependent on whether he's lacing it up at Haas. Since playing in Pauley last spring, Christopher is shooting 43 of 138 on the road for a dismal 31% shooting clip (including the Coaches/Cancer, the Pac-10 tourney game against USC, the NCAA tourney game). Even worse, he's also shooting 12 for 62 from downtown at 19%.

His defense is also hit and miss. Yes, his steals are up--he had four against New Mexico, the lone bright spot of another tough performance. But the little things are missing, things you only see after you watch thousands of basketball games. He isn't closing out on shooters well--there were some wide open 3s in that New Mexico game, and even not-so-obvious open 3s (Christopher would put the hand up, but it'd be pretty late for it to bother the other guy). His help defense seems to be out of whack; when opposing point guards blow by Randle, he rarely comes over to make the penetrator give the ball up, allowing him to attack lumbering bigs like Zhang and MSF. Oftentimes he wades in between both areas, trying to leave options for both sideThe results are lamentable.

Finally, unlike his alley-oop feeder Randle--who plays better on defense, drives to the basket fearlessly, takes high-percentage shots (for him, not for everyone else), who's improved in almost every facet from last season except some turnover hiccups--it doesn't seem like Christopher has improved that much from last season, if at all. Right now he's shooting worse, his defense is worse, his free throw attempts are worse, his 3 point shooting has slightly regressed. And on the road, we can barely count on him at all.

The most damning thing is trust. I feel you can go to war with Randle, with Boykin, with Jorge, and feel like those guys have your back...but I don't know how I feel about Christopher. He has a little too much Upham in him--when you need him the most he's nowhere to be found.

The talent is there, but the will is lacking right now. If Christopher's going to be our barometer, the pressure better start rising now.

Commenting thoughts on Christopher:

CBKWit: Patrick Christopher had has best game of the year, going for 23 points. He didn't have much in the first half and struggled as he has for much of the year, missing two three pointers and scoring only a few points (though he did have a spectacular two-handed put-back jam, getting up way above the rim). Then, early in the second half, he came up with a steal and breakaway for an easy bucket. He was lights out after that, hitting four threes on four attempts from the left arc. The performance was yet another indicator that Christopher's play is, for better or for worse, influenced by his mental state. He wasn't much of a factor in the first half; once he came up with the steal and breakaway, perhaps boosting his confidence, he was the most dominant player on the floor.

concordtom: 2) PC’s disappearing act. Yes, surprising to witness, and very frustrating. He is not the highly rated NBA draftee-in-waiting some have suggested, but we will all be singing his praises once again when he gets his groove going sometime later this season. His long 3 is being targeted and taken away by defenses and he needs to develop some slashing dribble moves to the basket and finding other ways of getting open by moving without the ball. Surely he is working on these things and it’s only a matter of time. Have faith.

BeastMode: I think people are missing a big part of PC’s game . . . defense. He is a good on the ball defender and actually hustles on that end, more than I can say for a number of Bears. Of course he is an incomplete offensive player, but I think the defensive element makes him a decent college player and at least gives him a shot at the Association.

Missing Barry: He’s got a lot of work to do to get there. Christopher isn’t as athletic as he seems, either – he’s a good jumper, but he’s not that long, and not that quick, laterally or in terms of being explosive with the ball. He’s going to have a hard time making it in the pros. I think concordtom’s assessment is pretty spot on, he’s a good player, he plays D and can shoot, but he struggles to create his own shot at the college level…that’s a pretty good indication that his pro prospects aren’t great. That said, Europe pays well too, so you don’t have to feel sorry for him or anything.

...

It’s not as much the skill of creating a shot itself that’s the problem – it’s that it’s an indication of a lot of skills in general. It reflects poorly on the players athleticism, on their ball handling, on their shooting (good shooters force the defense to play tighter making it easier to drive past the defender to create something)…I wouldn’t ever expect Christopher to be expected to create his own shot consistently in the NBA, it just raises red flags about his abilities beyond that for me.

Poll

Patrick Christopher...

New Mexico 86, Cal 78: Are the Bears On the Bubble Already?

Avinash — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 21:08:00 -0000

And seven games into the season, Cal is now staring at the bubble.

You might be laughing at this ("it's only December!"), but 4-3, with a tough game with Iowa State this Saturday and a sure loss at Kansas upcoming, combined with the Pac-10's overall perception as a weak conference has the Bears in the tough spot of having to win their conference to have any shot at a tournament bid. It's not a reality I'm happy with, but that's what it's looking like right now. More notes on yesterday's game against UNM after the jump.

Quick notes.

Jamal Boykin is a man beast, and his midrange jumper is a thing of beauty. Another 20-10 night.
Patrick Christopher started the game 3-4. He finished the game 2-10. This disappearing act is getting a little tiring.
Jorge off the bench>>>Jorge as a starter. No diss to Jorge, who is awesome, but defenses don't respect his shot the way they respect Theo.
For a moment, it looked like Jerome Randle was going to carry us to victory a la Arizona. Then New Mexico started trapping and playing up on him, and no one else could really step up.
Max played aggressive on offense, but New Mexico ran pick and roll straight at him late. Instead of blocking the shot, he ran with them and let them scoop in the big layups!!! AGGGH.
MSF picked up 2 fouls in 2 minutes and really didn't have much of an impact again.
Niiiiiikola nailed a few 3s. He was probably the third best player on the floor tonight. That is a sentence I never want to utter again this season.
Amoke was just never into the game, fouling out and playing like a guy with the flu. If he plays well we probably pull this out.
Our 3 point defense left something to be desired. Lots of clangs by New Mexico kept it close, but we really didn't really challenge their shots enough. And sometimes players were wide wide open.
The officiating was horrible (what do you expect in the Pit?). Didn't really cost us the game though; it just totally disrupted the ebb and flow so that neither team could really pull away. Frustrating, but a footnote for me--you don't go on the road in a loud, obnoxious environment and expect to get many calls.
We can't beat a zone right now. Syracuse with it's vaunted 2-3, now New Mexico with the 1-2-2.
If Cal was a healthy team, we probably win. But sometimes the real world isn't kind enough to hand us the ideal. Hopefully we get Theo back sooner than later and we can see what Cal can do at full strength. Right now we're at 70-75%. Just like our tourney chances.

Are the Bears on the bubble?

Poll

Is Cal already on the bubble?

Cal Men's Basketball v. University of New Mexico Open Thread

TwistNHook — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 01:15:15 -0000

More photos » by Jeff Chiu - AP

11 days ago: California's Max Zhang (14) dunks over Princeton's Pawel Buczak (55) in the first half during an NCAA college basketball game in Berkeley, Calif., Sunday, Nov. 29, 2009. California won, 81-60. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)

Browse more photos »

Tonight, we have the game against the Lobos. Could be a tough one. Here is the broadcast info:

California Golden Bears (4-2) at New Mexico Lobos (6-0)
Wednesday, Dec. 2, 6:00 p.m. (PT), The Pit, Albuquerque, N.M.
Radio: KFRC 1550 AM TV: CBS College
Line: New Mexico favored by 5.5 (HT 33SwisherSweet)

Injury report: Theo Robertson (out), Harper Kamp (possibly redshirting and out for season), Patrick Christopher (supposedly playing with the flu, not confirmed), Omondi Amoke (playing with the flu), Jorge Gutierrez (playing with the flu), Markhuri Sanders-Frison (playing, but has lost 10 pounds)

Pomeroy ratings: Cal 25th, New Mexico 16th. Yes, SIXTEENTH. Ugh.

Use this thread to discuss all the action between Cal and UNM. If you want stream updates, I'll try and find something for you guys before tipoff--the link will be in the comments. GO BEARS!

After the jump, New Mexico fritters about this big matchup, while Monty constantly is forced to tinker with new lineups.

Due to the injuries and general sickness and malaise surrounding our team, Coach Montgomery has been forced to mix and match according to Jeff Goodman of the Daily Cal. Those of us who watched the Princeton game saw some interesting lineups, and we might see more of that tonight.

Because of injuries and illnesses to several of his players, Montgomery has made several adjustments in an attempt to alleviate the Cal men's basketball team's current lack of depth.

He's altered the Bears' starting five several times, more by necessity than by choice.

He's also called upon players like D.J. Seeley and Nikola Knezevic to replace forward Theo Robertson and guard Jorge Gutierrez in the regular rotation.

Reserves and starters alike -- Max Zhang, Jamal Boykin, even Jerome Randle -- are taking on new roles.

"Max played more minutes (on Sunday) than he normally would," Montgomery said. "Jamal played over to the five ... That would not be the norm."

Montgomery is even considering moving Randle off the ball and allowing freshman Brandon Smith to bring the ball up the floor and run the offense.

"Brandon is a good facilitator," Montgomery said. "He's a natural point guard. It would give us a different look."

Once Robertson returns from his foot injury -- the senior has been running on a treadmill with 90-percent weight and will continue rehabbing during the Bears' short trip to Albuquerque, N.M., for tonight's non-conference game against New Mexico (6-0) -- Montgomery might try him in a lineup with Smith, Randle, swingman Patrick Christopher and one post player. It would keep three perimeter shooters on the court and, potentially, take some pressure off of Randle.

Many Cal fans are nervous about venturing into the Pit to take on this 6-0 team. But surprisingly, Lobos fans are nervous, too, about this game:

The Lobos haven't exactly been challenged in The Pit, but have staged two gutsy wins on the road - at NMSU and at Hawaii. The Lobos have posted their unblemished 6-0 record with a smooth combination of focused offense and rock-hard defense.

The defense surely will come in handy against Randle, Christopher and Jamal Boykin, a hot-shooting 6-foot-8 senior forward. So far, the young Lobos = one senior on the roster, period - have been all ears (and moving feet) when it comes to Alford's message about how much he likes to see his Lobos play defense.

"Our defense has been killer," said [star guard Jamal] Fenton. "Coach Alford is such a competitor and the athlete in him comes out and we feed off that. When I came here, I knew the Lobos would have scorers, so I felt I needed to bring something else and I decided it would be defense. I have no problem playing defense."

Fenton, fast becoming a Pit crowd pleaser, helps provide exactly what the Lobos need in their upset bid against Cal: a spark to spark The Pit. "I hope I can do that," Fenton said of rallying The Pit. "When they are behind us and loud, it makes a big difference."

Alford obviously has seen a few areas in which his young Lobos need to improve. Mostly, they need game time and on-the-court challenges. UNM has one senior, Roman Martinez, and one junior, Dairese Gary, who saw action as a Lobo in 2008-09.

But these pups haven' been puppy-like so far. They won by 10 points at NMSU. They won by 12 at Hawaii. Their closest call in The Pit was 16 points over Cal Riverside.

Alford said his Lobos were a little unfocused in the first half at Hawaii, but shouldn't have that problem against a ranked team out of the prestigious Pac-10. Martinez agrees.

"This is a huge challenge," said the El Paso product. "We're not going to just show up and beat a Top 25 team. They are athletic and big and we'll have to show up with our A-game.

"Cal's a great team and they can score in bunches. It's important for us to take their best shot when it comes, and keep on fighting."

The Lobos haven't played a ranked team in The Pit since No. 15 Air Force on Jan. 9, 2007. That was an 8-point loss. UNM's last win over a ranked team was Feb. 21, 2005 over No. 13 Utah, 65-54.

Poll

If I were a gambler, I'd take...

Cal +5.5

19 votes

New Mexico -5.5

5 votes

24 votes | Poll has closed

Big Night in Mountain West Hoops: Open Thread and Previews

Jeremy Mauss — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 00:48:41 -0000

Tonight is the first really big night in hoops with San Diego State playing at University of San Diego, #25 Cal playing at the Pit against New Mexico, Arizona is hosting UNLV, and BYU is at Utah State. These are the biggies for tonight. The first preview will be the Cal game at New Mexico.

Next Game

#25 California Golden Bears (4-2)
@ New Mexico Lobos (6-0)

Wednesday, Dec 2, 2009, 6:00 PM PST
The Pit

TV: CBS College Sports

Complete Coverage >

Out all the Pac-10 woes from UCLA losing big man Drew Gordon to Gonzaga because he said "the team has no heart." Then there is that the league being pretty pathetic with league loses to Montana, Cal State-Fullerton, San Diego, Oral Roberts, and Loyala Marymount. Then there is Cal who is number 25 in the polls sitting with a 4-2 record. New Mexico is no joke sitting at 6-0 and is getting a little pub from the polls, but this will be their first big test this year.

The Lobos have a chance to contend in the Mountain West with their tough schedule that will test them and that starts tonight against Cal and then continues with games against Texas A&M, Creighton, San Diego, Texas Tech, and Dayton. Their RPI will be up there but wins will be necessary as well for the Lobos.

The Lobos thought they would be struggling to replace their top three scorers, but coach Steve Alford has been surprised with Darington Hobson (18.2 ppg, 7.3 rpg) and forward Roman Martinez (14.7, 5.7), but the bigger surprise might be that Phillip McDonald who at any time can blow up; as example from his 27 point performance against rival New Mexico State.

On the Cal side, the team is still not at full strength until it gets Theo Robertson and Harper Kamp back in the lineup on a consistent basis, gives the Lobos a barometer to see how good they will be this season. The Bears' guards Jerome Randle and Patrick Christopher will be the best back court they see all year.

Next Game

BYU Cougars (5-0)
@ Utah State Aggies (3-2)

Wednesday, Dec 2, 2009, 6:05 PM PST
Dee Glen Smith Spectrum

TV: CW 30 (locally in Utah)

ESPN 360 and ESPN Full Court

Complete Coverage >

This game is always a big matchup as both schools have been good the past five years. On the year BYU has been blowing out teams by 27 per game and scoring 88 per game. Those numbers will not be the same tonight, because Utah State has won 20 wins per season for who knows how long. Also, the Aggies do not lose at the Spectrum which is one of the loudest arenas in the country.

Do not let the 3-2 record fool for Utah State they are always a good team the non-conference season can be difficult for the Aggies at times, but when the season ends they will be at the top of the WAC with 20 wins. The only decent team that Utah State has played is Utah who is only 3-3 and lost by a single point; while the rest of their games have been against some pretty weak competition.

The leaders for Utah State are Tai Wesley (13 PPG and 5.8 REB), Jared Quayle (11.8 PPG, 8 REB, and 4.4 AST), and Nate Bendall (10.6 PPG and 7.4 REB). In addition to those three there are three more players who average seven to eight points per game. The Aggies have a balanced team which could help against BYU, but they will need to either play uptempo with BYU or try to stop the offensive power of Jonathan Tavernari, Jimmer Fredette, and Jacksn Emery. All three of those players combine for 46 points which is nearly half of the teams production, so if Utah State can slow down any of those three the Aggies will have a good chance.

Next Game

TCU Horned Frogs (2-2)
@ SMU Mustangs (4-3)

Wednesday, Dec 2, 2009, 5:30 PM PST
Moody Coliseum

TV: none

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Neither of these schools are great hoops teams, but this is a rival game and that should make this an interesting game. Both schools can put up some points as TCU averages 75.7 where SMU 69.3, and are capabale of scoring above that average.

TCU's top players PPG REB AST

Ronnie Moss	G	19.1	3.4	7.1
Edvinas Ruzgas	G	14.1	2.6	0.6
Zvonko Buljan	F	13.1	10.7	2.3

SMU top players PPG REB AST

Mouhammad Faye	F	14.8	5.3	0.5
Paul McCoy	G	14.3	5.3	2.8
Derek Williams	G	13.3	2.5	2.8

The top players from each school matchup pretty well and the first school to stop one of the top three should be able to win this game.

CBKWitness - at least we're not ucla

CBKWit — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 11:00:16 -0000

First thing's first: BIG, big props to CaliforniaCMB for his great work above. If you want to submit a (mens or womens) Cal bball photoshop/MS Paint to be featured in this space, email us at goldenblogs@gmail.com. A couple of football notes before we get to bball:

TwistNHook had the line of the night about the Neuheisel/Carroll D-bag competition: "dude, I bet Neuheezy is happy, because you know that dude bet the fucking over." Well put, Twist

I turned on the Stanford/Notre Dame game just in time to see Condi Rice administer the coin flip as this week's Stanfurd honorary captain. I'm hoping they drag out Donny Rumsfeld for the Emerald Bowl

And to basketball: About 40 minutes into one of our podcasts (so nobody heard it), Ragnarok predicted that Jamal Boykin would have a 20 point game sometime this season. I was skeptical, because I didn't think there'd be enough points to go around with Randle, Christopher, and Robertson. On Sunday, Roberston was not in the lineup due to his mysterious foot injury and Christopher continued his uneven play, chipping in only 5 points. It was the perfect opportunity for Boykin to contribute, and he matched his career high with 22 points. Ragnarok 1, CBKWit 0.

I saw only one Cal game last week, owing to Thanksgiving in the great state of Washington. The women's game against Ohio State was broadcast on Big10 TV, but sadly CBKParents didn't spring for channel 412 in their cable package.

So Cal versus Jacksonville at Haas last Tuesday was it, and there isn't too much to say about this one. Cal jumped out to a big lead early and dominated the game, winning it by 32. It was the biggest crowd by far this year but not noticeably louder than prior games; the crowd was relaxed with a four day weekend on the horizon and a blowout on the floor.

Patrick Christopher had has best game of the year, going for 23 points. He didn't have much in the first half and struggled as he has for much of the year, missing two three pointers and scoring only a few points (though he did have a spectacular two-handed put-back jam, getting up way above the rim). Then, early in the second half, he came up with a steal and breakaway for an easy bucket. He was lights out after that, hitting four threes on four attempts from the left arc. The performance was yet another indicator that Christopher's play is, for better or for worse, influenced by his mental state. He wasn't much of a factor in the first half; once he came up with the steal and breakaway, perhaps boosting his confidence, he was the most dominant player on the floor.

via cdn2.sbnation.com

Omondi Amoke continued his strong play with 15 points and 8 boards. He's a good leaper and persistent on the offensive glass, though he isn't a great finisher around the rim. He is going to play a huge role for the Bears this year, with the not too surprising news that Harper Kamp will likely redshirt and with Theo still out with his foot injury. I wouldn't be surprised if Amoke plays 20 minutes a game at the 3 and 4.

Bak Bak had two block blocks.

Yes, that's all I remember from this game.

via cdn3.sbnation.com

WSU won the Great Alaska Shootout over the weekend, which, amazingly, is not a harbinger of greatness. Cal won it three years ago with the DeVon Hardin/Ryan Anderson/Ayinde Ubaka team, propelling the bears to an 8th place, 6-12 finish in the Pac-10. WSU looks to finish, at least, in the middle of the conference this year. Klay Thompson, a 6-6 sophomore guard, is my pick for conference player of the year. He's an incredible shooter and is going to score a ton of points this year (he set the Great Alaska Shootout single game scoring record with 43 in the final; Glenn Big Dog Robinson had the previous record, 41).

To end on a happy note, ucla lost all three of its games in the 76 Classic, held in ANAHEIM. Yes, the bruins went 0-3 in a tournament held an hour from their campus. Butler is #10 in the country and the bruins almost pulled it out in the end, but losing to Long Beach State by 10 in the 7th place game? Portland has also beaten Minnesota and Oregon, but they didn't win those games by 27, as they did against ucla. To make matters worse for the small ________ bears, their starting forward Drew Gordon has left the team and is transferring out. Ben Braun went after him hard (Gordon is from San Jose), but I believe there's a two year penalty for transferring within the conference so I doubt we'll see him end up at Cal. Not that we need him with Max Zhang patrolling the paint. So yes, we are almost definitely without Harper for the year, Theo's already missed four games, and we lost big, twice, on national TV. But it could have been three times, in Oakland, to lesser teams, with Boykin leaving the team, and with the entire Stanfurd football team mocking us as they run up the score in the last minute. If I've said it once, I've said it a thousand times: at least we're not ucla.

Cal 81, Princeton 60: Bears Tune Up Before New Mexico and Iowa St.

Avinash — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 00:46:31 -0000

More photos » by Jeff Chiu - AP

"What kind of party is it?" "Block party." "Who's invited?" "Oh, Omondi Amoke's on the A-list."

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~Player of the game: Jamal Boykin. He was hitting everything from outside. He grabbed down big rebounds. He hit Max for his slick posterizing of Ivy League Boy. We can't expect this from Boykin all the way, but he's filled in nicely to fill in the scoring gap from Theo.

~Your standard Randle performance. A few alley oops thrown here and there, penetration into the lane, running the fast break, and the ICBM 3 pointers. Ho-hum.

~Max Zhang outscored Patrick Christopher. Something I'm pretty sure I'd never say. It's interesting that Christopher's performance has been a barometer for success, because other than some solid defense he wasn't really a factor in this one.

~Omondi Amoke has been stepping up big hitting the class, with 8 rebounds and a sick looking block. Although, like Thoroughbred points out, he has to start hitting his free throws.

This is for postgame discussion, a chance to look forward to the upcoming games, and an open thread for whatever's going on tonight. How do you think the Bears will do against stiffer competition in New Mexico (and we'll be travelling down there) and home versus Iowa State?

~Really impressed with Cal's defensive effort, lots of steals and fast break opportunities in this one. If they could replicate that against a team that they didn't thoroughly outclass, I'd be even more impressed (first chance: Iowa State this Saturday).

~Nikola still gives me headaches every time he yanks up a horrid looking shot. He's 4 for 15 this year. Easy there boy, pass the damn ball.

~Nice to see Bak Bak get some action. Still miles away from doing anything big, although that block was monstrous.

~Bears experimented with a three guard lineup with Smith, Knezevic and Randle...interesting wrinkle, I'm not sure if it's something we'll see more of in the future.

~I like Smith has the secondary ball handler--he made more smart decisions with the ball, and Cal seemed to play more unselfishly when he was the one running point. Although that might mean Knezevic might shoot more when he gets the ball. It'll be interesting to see how Monty handles this.

~Seeley, STOP SHOOTING 3s. You've made one all season. ATTACK THE BASKET. You're killing me man.

~If Cal can play this way without Theo and MSF...well, I don't know. I still feel they can win both of their games this week, but it'll be tough. Theo coming back would help us out big-time.

Poll

Cal will go __________ against New Mexico and Iowa State

CBKWitness - Bears vs Bears, Bears in the Big Apple

CBKWit — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 11:00:19 -0000

Maybe debuting this picture last week was a mistake. Maybe P-Chris saw it and it went to his head. Maybe he just felt its presence in the atmosphere. In any case, he had a pretty terrible showing in New York: 11-34 shooting, 2-12 on threes, only 7 boards, 6 assists/5 turnovers in two games. Yeah, he struggled. But you know what? I stand by this graphic, mostly because it took me 2 hours to make. I also think Christopher is going to be a lot better than 12 points, 3 boards, and 33% shooting per game this year. So let's stick with this picture for now in the hope that P-Chris lights up Jacksonville and Princeton this week. And if you don't like it...email me a different one: goldenblogs@gmail.com.

Christopher also struggled last year in the NCAA tournament loss to Maryland, shooting 4-14 and 0-7 on threes. Does he get rattled by the big stage? Maybe. If so, I'm glad that we scheduled this early season tournament, and the game at Kansas. Hopefully Christopher will got the jitters out early and redeem himself in March.

It's also possible that he struggles against long, athletic defenders. We all know that Christoper is not great at creating his own shot, which may be exacerbated when he goes up against a very athletic team like Syracuse. I can't remember if Maryland's stud Grevis Vasquez guarded him in last year's tournament game, but I wouldn't be surprised.

It's probably a little unfair to single out Christopher, as virtually the entire team struggled in New York. If you were lucky enough to miss these games, Cal lost by 22 to Syracuse and was down 24 to Ohio State before losing by 6. The Syracuse game was a complete beat down, made slightly better by the Cuse dominating defending champ North Carolina in the second half the following night. Cal was actually in worse shape the next night versus Ohio State when Monty got T'd up for yapping about Jorge. Cal responded with a 17-2 run and it was moderately close (6-10 points) the rest of the way, but not nearly close enough that you actually felt the Bears had a chance.

The big bright spot? Jerome Randle. He went for 51 points in the two games on the strength of ridiculous (only not for him) three point shooting: 11-21. It was even more impressive given that he was really Cal's only offense, and the other teams knew it. He's got such a quick release that he needs very little room to launch a three, which he does with spectacular accuracy off the dribble. When defenders come up on him, he'll beat them off the dribble and has developed a great array of mid range floaters to compensate for his serious lack of height. He struggled with turnovers against Syracuse, but that was basically his only blemish from the weekend.

He can't do it all

via cdn0.sbnation.com

Getting blown out for 65 of 80 minutes wasn't ideal, but it's not like Cal was playing Sac St. or CSU Fullerton. Syracuse looks like a really, really good team, and OSU (and especially Evan Turner) isn't bad either. These are tournament teams, probably better than anyone in the Pac-10.

Cal wasn't playing with a full roster, either. After Harper Kamp didn't suit up against Murray St and Detroit, it was basically a given that he wasn't playing in New York. That didn't make our circus sideshow center-combo any more effective, and when Max is playing extended first half minutes against a Syracuse team with a bevy of experienced, athletic big men, it's probably going to be a long night. Jamal Boykin picked up his second foul only two minutes into the Syracuse game and Cal was in a world of trouble. With Amoke playing 20 minutes at the 4 and Max playing 12 at the 5, Cal was simply outmatched.

Theo Roberston's absence was the surprise. He apparently had swelling in his foot starting Tuesday, practiced in limited fashion on Wednesday, and was in a boot by Thursday. At the women's game on Sunday, I asked Markhuri Sanders-Frison if Theo would play tonight against Jacksonville: "Nope." This is not good news. I am hoping that they're just holding him out as a precaution, but lingering injuries are sadly familiar to Theo. He missed all of the 2007-2008 season recovering from hip surgery; every week, when asked if Theo was going to return, the coaching staff said "maybe next week".

Theo out of the lineup left a major hole. Syracuse plays a 2-3 zone, and what do you need to break down said zone? Shooters! Randle certainly shot the ball well, but with no Theo and Christopher struggling, Cal's offense faltered. Syracuse's defense was literally tilted away from what would have been Theo's side of the floor, as the Orange gave plenty of room and no respect to Jorge and Amoke on the wing. Christopher in particular had nowhere to go. Syracuse made sure they had plenty of bodies guarding him, and were content to let other Cal wings shoot and drive.

Their strategy worked so spectacularly well that OSU copied it the following afternoon. Monty said that he never expected to see 80 minutes of zone, and it was clear that without Theo, Cal was not going to be able to crack it. Cal did make a run against the Buckeyes in the second half, but the deficit was too great.

Theo's absence created a trickle down effect (a real one!). It moved Jorge into a starting role, and he was obviously not going to provide Theo's size and shooting. Jorge is much better coming off the bench, when he can inject some energy into the game and can play his aggressive defense. As a starter, he needed to stay out of foul trouble and play more minutes than usual, greatly limiting his effectiveness. Cal's comeback against OSU died when Jorge fouled out, and you have to think he would have had fewer minutes and fouls had Theo been in the lineup. With Jorge starting, DJ Seeley and Nicola were forced into Jorge's 6th man role and were no substitute for the man himself. My guess is that with Theo, Cal stays within 12-15 points against Syracuse (like UNC did) and beats Ohio State.

No Theo means more George-Michael

via cdn3.sbnation.com

This is a completely different team without Theo Roberston and Harper Kamp. If those two return and can play at a relatively high level, Cal should be able to make a nice run this year. If not, the Bears will struggle to make the NCAA tournament.

If two blowouts were not enough, you might have considered attending the women's game versus Baylor, Sunday afternoon at Haas. Really, we were all still too high on Big Game euphoria to get worked up about a 20 point loss. The game went on, we were getting killed but you still had to smile thinking about rushing the field and booing that front runner Tiger Woods. Mike Tepper trying to be discrete in a hipster hat, while he and BearBallCarrier texted away? Check and double check!

He doesn't stand out at all

Baylor has a freshmen center who is 6'8. No, really. To put that in perspective, she's taller than our starting center. Our men's starting center, 6'7 Markhuri Sanders-Frison. She's a foot taller than Jerome Randle.

Here she is, lining up next to our freshman, Gennifer Brandon. Brandon is 6'2, and doesn't have the wingspan of a mature California Condor. Thus, she looks tiny next to gigantic Brittney Griner. PaleoDan mentioned something about a thyroid condition. I think he was jealous. I think we all were.

Cal didn't have much of an answer for Griner, offensively or defensively. Cal actually started strong offensively, giving Brandon the ball at the three point line to draw Griner away from the basket and having the much faster Brandon drive to the hoop. After about 10 minutes, Baylor adjusted (how, I couldn't really tell you, because I was too busy recounting my hug with the prophet Mohamed) and Cal's offense was basically abysmal for the rest of the game. Defensively, Cal tried to pack the paint against Griner, to little success. With the Cal defense collapsed against Griner, Baylor had all kinds of space and their wings were able to get good looks. Sometimes Griner passed over the double team. Sometimes she just shot it over our posts' heads (she finished with 15 points and one very near dunk). Let me reiterate: she is really, really big.

Still exceptionally big

Fortunately for us, it will be a long time before the Cal women play against a 6'8 lady again, unless we're playing Baylor next year. Our freshmen bigs, though not as freakishly tall, looked good. Gennifer Brandon is really fast for her size and was smooth rebounding and scoring for a freshmen. DeNesha Stallworth, our other starting freshmen post, is a very gifted scorer with great range (out to and beyond the three point arc) and great touch around the hoop. Talia Caldwell has a rebounder's body and I'm sure will be effective against regular sized posts. The last freshman big, Brenna Heater, was in street clothes on the bench.

The freshmen guards: Eliza Pierre reminds me of a thoroughbred. She's very sleek, thin, and exceptionally fast. Think of her as the female version of Jorge. Layshia Clarendon didn't show too much, but she was going against a talented, experienced Baylor back court. Sorry women's bball fans, but that's all I have for now. Not that bad for a 20 point blowout, basking in Big Game afterglow, right?

The Cal men showed up to support the ladies. Patrick Christopher, ever the fashion icon, rocks the classic sandals with socks:

Bak Bak goes with the George Costanza inspired "drape myself in velvet":

I tried taking a picture of Jorge, but either he's too fast or divine because all of the photos came out blurry. Which one is it? I'm going with both.

Men's game tonight vs Jacksonville, Haas Pavilion, 7:30 PM. Show up, people! Go Bears!

Ohio State 76, Cal 70: Bears Fight Back, Muzzled At the End

Avinash — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 00:34:51 -0000

More photos » by Julie Jacobson - AP

20 days ago: Ohio State's Jeremie Simmons (2) fouls California's Jerome Randle who was driving to the basket during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game, Friday, Nov. 20, 2009, at Madison Square Garden in New York. (AP Photo/Julie Jacobson)

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Can't really put a good spin on this. 0-2 isn't good, especially the way we played at the end. But the last 13 minutes were at least promising. Kind of like Cal's last trip East...35 minutes of horror with a moral victory at the end, if you believe in those things.

Quick thoughts.

Zone defense, help defense. The Bears should practice attacking the former and utilizing the latter. They started to get a feel for it at the end (attack the middle with a slasher, kick it to the cutter, put a man at the high post).
Randle had another fine game (played way better with only 3 turnovers), but is playing way way too much for my liking. Considering Nikola's performance (more on that later), we need Brandon Smith to develop big in the next few months or he's going to burn out in March.
I'm starting to think if Theo was present, we go 1-1, with a 30-40% chance at 2-0. We definitely wouldn't have fallen behind this badly, and he could've switched off to Turner when Jorge struggled with the fouls.
Sanders-Frison still lost on the inside.
Amoke struggled early, but really picked it up late. Lots of nice cuts on the baseline, feeding off of Randle's passes or picking up boards. 11 points, 14 rebounds, promising sign as the season goes on.
Boykin put up another alright performance. We're never going to get great games from him (he'll give something and take something), but if we're cancelling out on the inside, then we'll be okay.
Outside of Theo, our slashers don't really have finishing moves. Jorge threw up some ugly shots, Amoke only could go baseline, and Seeley...meh. How else do Syracuse and Ohio State in zones pile up the blocks? Pass up on bad shots and pass out of the double teams.
Really disappointing from Christopher. It was better than yesterday, but I expected a little better than 5-14.
Like yesterday, pretty bad officiating. This time we had a general gripe, at the end it cost Cal a chance to punctuate the comeback. Still, being down 20 something, it's hard to complain about refs costing us this game (maybe a chance to win, but the win itself?)
Jorge picking up his 4th and 5th fouls on ticky-tacks forced Golden Bears to see Michael Cera into an ignominous starring role as a white dude who can't play defense on anyone. The entire Evan Turner highlight reel is just him owning Nikola. Pretty much doooooooom.

Anyway, Cal will get to rest up the next few games before getting prepared for their trip to Lawrence. Hopefully we'll be at full strength for that one.