Cal Basketball

Roberson and Family Talk About Cal Commitment

By Jim McGill

October 12, 2020

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Last week, the Bears picked up a big commitment from their second Bishop O’Dowd player and fifth in 12 years from 6-5/180 2021 combo guard Marsalis Roberson‍. Roberson and Cal frosh Monty Bowser‍ on the Bears’ 2021 roster will help replace former O’Dowd point guard Paris Austin after his recent graduation.

“Cal really stood out by just recruiting me really hard, including my parents and grandparents,” said Roberson. “That really meant a lot to me. Also having my former teammate (Monty Bowser) there with me was important, knowing that I have somebody to talk to, to really get a sense for everything there. Also, the fact that it’s close to home made the decision really easy. I want to play in front of my family. I feel like I can really thrive in their playing style and with their player development aspect, too.”

So far, the reviews are exceedly strong from his former teammate.

“Monty loves it at Cal,” noted Robertson. “He’s put on 18 pounds at Cal since he’s been there. They’ve got good player development and weight training. That’s really what I need and want to focus on and make my game better.”

Roberson plays AAU ball on West Coast Elite with another big Cal target, Campolindo 2022 point guard Aidan Mahaney‍ and would love to see the talented local hoopster join him in Berkeley.

“We hang out all the time,” said Roberson. “I was just over at his house. He’s one of my best friends. If we could get him to Cal, we’d be really good with that backcourt. He’s a really good leader.”

Would Mahaney like to be future teammates, as well?

“Absolutely,” said Mahaney. “That’s one of my best friends.”

The proximity of his mother on campus was another factor for the Bay Area Player of the Year and 247 Top 100 player.

“My mom being on campus, being someone I can talk to is a plus,” said Roberson. “She can guide me through the application process and with school in general moreso than she could’ve not being on campus.”

Roberson’s mother Brenaia, who’s an academic advisor at Cal, advising undergraduate students on campus, is thrilled with her son’s decision.

“I’m just on cloud-10 right now,” said Brenaia. “I have no words. I know what a Cal degree means. My brother’s a Cal graduate, I’m a UCLA graduate. Marsalis was born right there in Berkeley at Alta Bates Medical Center and he lived in Berkeley for a long time. His elementary school and middle school were in Berkeley and he’s also lived in Oakland. He’s basically been raised in Oakland and Berkeley. So to be right here in our backyard, our family and friends being able to watch him play, along with me being able to guide him as an academic counselor and advisor, I can’t ask for anything better than that combination.”

Roberson’s family has been impressed with how the Cal staff have built and maintained the relationship with Roberson as well as his family.

“Coach Fox and his coaching staff have done an excellent job recruiting my son,” said Brenaia. “And not just recruiting my son but recruiting his immediate family. My son was asked why he chose Cal and part of his answer was because they’ll call and talk to his grandpa. So just to give you a sense of how responsive they’ve been and the time they’ve taken to build the relationships with us through zoom, phone calls, texts from the beginning have been really instrumental in Sal deciding that he would fit really well at Cal. He wants a family environment and he likes the playing style and the people at Cal.”

An excellent student, Roberson has a 4.1 gpa this semester and a strong overall academic profile.