BERKELEY – The Cal women's basketball team survived a tight fourth quarter thanks to some stellar shooting at the free throw line. The Bears went 12-for-16 from the charity stripe in the fourth quarter and held on to win 83-73 over visiting Furman in the opening contest of the Raising the B.A.R. Invitational powered by Cal.
Cal (5-0) kept its winning streak alive despite allowing a 25-point second half lead shrink to four with 2:05 to play. Freshman guard Jayda Curry helped seal the deal scoring five of her game-high 26 points over the final two minutes.
Curry was sensational for the Bears in the second half. After missing most of the first half due to foul trouble, she scored 20 of her 26 points after the intermission. She finished the evening going 9-for-16 from the field and 4-for-10 from long range.
Cal finished the night making a season-high nine 3-point field goals. They were 9-for-25 from beyond the arc. Overall, the Bears shot 49.1 percent from the field going 27-for-55.
Joining Curry in double figures was guard Cailyn Crocker and forward Evelien Lutje Schipholt. Crocker was the steady hand for the Bears all evening. She finished the day with 17 points along with a game-high six assists. Lutje Schipholt dominated on the glass, grabbing a game-high 14 rebounds – eight coming on the offensive side. She also added 18 points for her third-consecutive double-double of the year and fourth of the season.
Dalayah Daniels had eight points and a season-high 10 rebounds in her first start of the season. Cal dominated the glass, outrebounding the Paladins 41-30. Cal's 14 offensive rebounds led to 21 second chance points.
Furman (4-2) was led by Tierra Hodges who had 25 points, going 8-for-17 from the field and 4-for-7 from beyond the arc. Joining Hodges in double figures was Sydney James with 16 and Tate Walters with 15. As a team, the Paladins shot just 35.6 percent going 21-for-59, however, from beyond the arc they shot better than 46 percent, going 12-for-26.
HOW IT HAPPENED
With 2:47 left in the third quarter a traditional three-point play by Lutje Schipholt gave the Bears a 25-point advantage. Their largest of the evening. However, a series of runs by the Paladins - the largest a 9-0 run with 8:27 in the fourth - brought the game back to single digits.
With 1:33 to play, Curry made an acrobatic layup in traffic to end the Bears scoring drought and increase the lead to six. A defensive stop by the Bears led to two more free throws for Curry and Cal was able to put the game away.
UP NEXT
With the win the Bears have advanced to the Raising the B.A.R. Invitational powered by Cal Championship game. Cal awaits the winner of Ole Miss/SDSU and will tip-off at 3:00 p.m. Furman will play the loser of Thursday's nightcap in the consolation game and will tip-off tomorrow at 1:00 p.m. Both contests will be streamed live on the Cal Live Stream.
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