BERKELEY — The California women's basketball team could not complete a fourth-quarter comeback attempt, falling 56-48 to the San Jose State Spartans Wednesday evening at Haas Pavilion in their first game back after an eight-month offseason. The Bears (0-1, 0-0 Pac-12) couldn't find their offensive footing in the second half as the Spartans (1-0, 0-0 Mountain West) took a come-from-behind lead and never relinquished it.
Despite the loss, new talent was on display for the Golden Bears as freshmen Dalayah Daniels, Ornela Muca and Fatou Samb earned the start in their collegiate debut. Daniels scored 10 points to go with a game-high 12 rebounds for her first double-double in the Blue and Gold.
"Rebounding was really the thing," head coach Charmin Smith said. "They killed us on the (offensive) boards and that was really challenging for us to come back from."
The Spartans out-rebounded the Bears on the offensive glass, 21-13.
The Bears got out to an early lead in the contest, outscoring the Spartans 17-8 in the first quarter. However, their offense stalled in the second, as SJSU went on an 11-0 run that ended early in the third quarter to take their first lead of the game.
The Spartans shot 40 percent (8-for-20) from the field in the third quarter, holding off the Bears' attempts at a comeback and heading into the game's final 10 minutes with a 39-35 lead.
With 3:09 to go in the contest, sophomore guard Leilani McIntosh made a layup and the subsequent free throw off of a stolen Spartan inbound to cut SJSU's lead to two, 48-46. It was a defensive battle down the stretch as the teams traded fouls, and the Bears ultimately came up short in their comeback attempt.
Sophomores Evelien Lutje Schipholt and McIntosh each added 10 points to lead the Bears in scoring along with Daniels.
The Spartans were led in scoring by senior forward Tyra Whitehead, who scored 12 points to go with 10 rebounds.
The Bears continue their non-conference slate this Sunday, Nov. 29 at 2 p.m. as they host CSU Bakersfield at Haas Pavilion. The live stream for that game can be found here.
For more information and updates throughout the year, follow the Bears on Twitter (@CalWBBall), Instagram (@CalWBBall) and Facebook (Facebook.com/CalWBBall).
Our 2 sophs played 66 minutes. The other 6 played their first significant minutes in a college game. So I'm not surprised we looked rough.UrsineMaximus said:
A season opener and 3 true freshman start!! I thought all the freshman looked good and there is plenty of potential on this team.
Good question re: Michelle. She looked really good and seems to have a lot of confidence. Perhaps the staff will increase her minutes.Ashfield63 said:
Does anyone know why Michelle Oniyah only played a few minutes? I would think she could have scored some points.........I think Leilani McIntosh was trying to steal the ball near the end, but committed two fouls, which San Jose on the line(they made their free throws), and she fouled out of the game. Was she trying to put the game on her back, or did she Charmin give her the green light to attempt to steal the ball times two.They could have won...Not trying to be critical of Leilani, who always gives 100%, just wondering......
LodeBear said:
will they still play game against Cal state bakersfield on sunday in berkeley?
