|
 Mathews scored a season-high 31 points, including 21 in the
second half, to lead Cal to an 81-75 victory over No. 21 Washington
on Friday night in the Pac-12 opener for both teams.
"Jordan is one of those players who's consumed with his shot,"
Martin said. "Not that he's selfish, but when he misses some, you
can see it in his body language. He just has to stay engaged and not
put his head down.
"Tonight he shot the ball and shot it with confidence."
After going 2-for-6 for nine points in the 55-52 loss to
Bakersfield, which had a 2-10 record at the time, Mathews was
8-for-14, including 5-for-8 on three-pointers, against Washington.
"You never want to lose," Mathews said of the Bakersfield game,
"(but) looking at that tape really helped us."
Cal (11-3) ended a two-game losing streak while handing Washington
(11-2) its second straight loss despite a subpar offensive games by
standout point guard Tyrone Wallace.
 Wallace, who entered the game as the Pac-12's No. 2 scorer at 19.2
points a game, scored 15 of his 19 points in the second half, when
the Bears made their move. However, he missed his first eight shots
and was just 4 of 20 from the field for the game. He scored 10 of
his points from the free-throw line in the final three minutes when
the Huskies were fouling to extend the game.
Forward David Kravish had a double-double for Cal with a career-high
21 points and 10 rebounds.
The Bears committed just four turnovers for the game and shot 60.9
percent in the second half after shooting just 31.6 percent in the
first.
"In the second half, we broke down. We broke down a lot," Washington
coach Lorenzo Romar said. "You allow a team to shoot 60 percent in
the second half on the road, you'll have a tough time."
The Huskies controlled the first half and held a seven-point lead
early in the second.
Romar dismissed the notion that his team's surprising loss to Stony
Brook in Seattle on Sunday had an effect on his team's performance
Friday.
"No, no there was no carry-over," he said. "If there had been a
carry-over we would have been down 15-16 at half."
Washington guard Nigel Williams-Goss had 19 points, eight rebounds
and nine assists, and center Robert Upshaw had 16 points, eight
rebounds and five blocks.
Upshaw had four of his blocks in the first half, when Washington
dominated play.
[to top of second column] |
The Huskies held a seven-point lead when guard Andrew Andrews hit
jumper 16 seconds into the second half. But Washington failed to
make a field goal for nearly six minutes, and Cal took the lead when
Mathews made a pair of free throws with 15:30 left to give the Bears
a 37-36 advantage.
Cal increased its lead to eight points when freshman center Kingsley
Okoroh scored from close range with 12 minutes left. Mathews led the
surge by scoring nine points in a span of 3:16.
"Mathews hit some tough shots," Romar said, "and they scored a third
of their points on offensive rebounds and off our turnovers."
Washington closed the gap to two points when Williams-Goss hit a
pair of free throws with 4:40 remaining, but that was as close as
the Huskies would get. A 3-pointer by Mathews quickly restored the
Bears' five-point lead and they held off Washington from there.
NOTES: The 31 points scored by G Jordan Mathews was the first time a
Cal player scored 30 points or more in a game since Mathews scored a
career-high 32 points against Oregon in January 2014. ...Cal G
Jabari Bird missed his eighth straight game with a stress fracture
in his foot. He is expected to be sidelined for two more weeks. ...
Washington sophomore Jahmel Taylor was granted his release so he can
transfer. He played in just two games this season, totaling seven
minutes of playing time. ... Huskies C Robert Upshaw leads the
nation in blocked shots, averaging 4.6 blocks per game coming into
Friday's contest. ... Cal has beaten Washington three straight
times, including both meetings last season. ...Cal hosts Washington
State on Sunday, and Washington plays at Stanford the same day.
[© 2014 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.]
Copyright 2014 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
 |
