Michael Cooper and Nojus Indrusaitis scored 21 points apiece and Cal overcame an 11-point deficit in the final nine minutes to defeat Utah Tech 79-73 as Haas Pavilion on Saturday.
The Bears (3-2), coming off back-to-back losses to ranked opponents in now-No. 8 Houston and No. 21 USC, trailed by nine at halftime and were unable to make headway until a 3-pointer by Indrusaitis with 8:58 left began a game-closing 23-6 run.
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The Bears took the lead for good when Cooper hit a 3-pointer with 1:14 left, and a basket by Indrusaitis and three late free throws provided breathing room.
“Utah Tech came out and punched us in the mouth in the first half, had us on our heels,” Cal coach Mark Madsen said. “They did an outstanding job. They forced us into mistakes with pace of play, their physicality. I was proud of our guys to respond in the second half and for finding a way to win against a very scrappy, good team.”
Christian Gibson led Utah Tech (1-3) with 22 points.
Portland State 84, USF 68: Gustav Knudsen scored 25 points and Yoav Vitlem added 24, but the host Dons (3-1) shot a season-worst 30% and couldn’t overcome a 19-point halftime deficit as they fell to the Vikings (2-2).
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Portland State jumped to a 16-2 lead in the first six minutes as USF missed seven of eight shots and commited four turnovers. The Dons got to within nine in the first half before the Vikings pushed the lead back into double digits, then USF trimmed its second-half deficit from 27 to nine with 2:49 to play only to see Portland State close with a 9-2 run.
Yaroslav Nikonov scored 27 points to lead the Vikings.
Women
Cal 79, UC Santa Barbara 47: Lulu Twidale scored 19 points, Gisella Maul added 15 points and the Bears held the Gauchos to 2-for-21 shooting from 3-point range in a victory in Santa Barbara.
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Cal (5-0) held an eight-point lead after the first quarter, pushed the cushion to 36-16 at halftime and controlled play the rest of the way against a team that entered the game shooting 52.2% from beyond the arc.
Madison Naro scored 16 points to lead UCSB (3-1).
“I loved our defensive intensity, and I loved the way we looked on offense,” Cal coach Charmin Smith said. “It was just a much better flow today. We forced them into tough shots. We knew they were a really good shooting team. The message for this game was discipline, and I think we were disciplined defensively.”
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This article originally published at College basketball roundup: Cal men rally to win, USF men upended; Cal women roll past UCSB.
Disclaimer : This story is auto aggregated by a computer programme and has not been created or edited by DOWNTHENEWS. Publisher: Sports.yahoo.com
