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Bears Struggle in Disappointing 87-79 Loss to Pacific

November 10, 2023
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HAAS PAVILION - If Monday night kicked off the Mark Madsen Era with the Bears winning their opener, tonight could be rightfully called the Jaylon Tyson Era, as the newly-activated wing elevated the Bears throughout the game with stellar overall play in every facet of the game but his stellar 20 point, 11 rebound effort was for naught in the Bears disappointing 87-79 loss to Pacific.

The Bears began the day much as they did in their opener, allowing a scorching 7-for-14 from the perimeter and 52% overall while going only 2-10 from three and 41% from the floor themselves, trailing 40-38 at the break. The Bears struggled to defend center Burke Smith, who had 10 points at the break, shooting 2-3 from 3 and wing Judson Martindale who had 11 and was also 2-for-3 at the break. For the game, the Tigers were led by Oklahoma State transfer guard Donovan Williams, who scorched the nets for 23 points on 7-for-10 shooting and 3-for-6 from deep.

“We played well enough to take a (10 point) lead in the second half then Pacific came back,” Cal head coach Mark Madsen said after the game. “They outplayed us in the second half. Pacific made their shots when they needed them and they executed well down the stretch and we did not do a good job on defense. We’ll study the film, learn from it and bounce back Monday, ready to go Monday.”

After an opener where he was ineffective till getting hot late in the game, PG Jalen Cone lit it up in the first half, leading the Bears with 12 points at the break, though he missed his share of off-balance perimeter jumpers. Center Fardaws Aimaq was also effective on offense, racking up 10 points in the first 15 minutes. Tyson also spurred the Bears on both ends of the floor, going for 8 points and 9 boards at the break. Cone led the Bears with 22 points from the field for the game but was inefficient, going just 5-for-16 overall. Aimaq finished with 18 points on 7-for-13 shooting but only pulled down 3 boards on the night as he was routinely pulled out to the perimeter on defense by his man for the second straight game.

The Bears took a 46-42 lead three minutes into the second half, spurred by a Tyson steal and layup followed by a smooth Tyson trey from the top of the key. They extended their lead to 7 when Cone followed up with another 3 from deep to cap an 11-0 run after the Tigers started the half with a bucket.

After the Bears stretched their lead to 10, Pacific came back with a 12-2 run of their own to pull to within 2 at 56-54 with 11:38 remaining in the contest, keyed by a pair of 3’s.

The Bears saw their season flash before their eyes after a Tyson driving bucket in traffic put the Bears up 62-58 with 9:18 left but the junior transfer went down hard and slowly left the court with assistance and the Tigers started a run.

“I thought he gave us a huge boost emotionally with his play,” Madsen said of Tyson. “I thought Jaylon was really good.” Madsen noted that Tyson’s physical issues were related to cramping.

“It felt good to be out there, playing along side players like (Jalen) Cone and everybody else,” Tyson said after the game. “It was honestly a blessing. Coach Madsen is the best coach I’ve ever had.”

Two minutes later, much to the relief of the Haas Pavilion crowd, Tyson was back on the court but Tyson or not, the Bears could not stem the tide as the Tigers put 15 straight points on the board with a combination of more perimeter sharpshooting and sloppy turnovers on the offensive end by the Bears. A pair of Cone free throws finally broke the run but the Tigers came right back with another 3 to stretch their lead to 76-64 with 3 minutes left in the game.

From there, the Bears were never able to get it closer than 7 as they went on to the loss. The Tigers shot 13-of-26 from the arc for the game and went 16-for-19 from the line compared to the Bears 6-for-23 from the perimeter and just 16-for-26 from the line, telling the tale of the game.

Discussion from...

Bears Struggle in Disappointing 87-79 Loss to Pacific

8,422 Views | 35 Replies | Last: 11 mo ago by stu
JimSox
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Hoping for an update on Tyson's injury.
KenBurnski
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JimSox said:

Hoping for an update on Tyson's injury.

Madsen called it a cramping issue in the postgame. Hopefully we dodged a bullet.
HoopDreams
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every mid-major will go 5 out on Cal

Cal needs to counter and go small with Grant as the only big

Tyson is a hooper
ducky23
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HoopDreams said:

every mid-major will go 5 out on Cal

Cal needs to counter and go small with Grant as the only big

Tyson is a hooper


Agreed.

Either we need to go small or Fardaws needs to punish smaller players by getting every offensive rebound.

I'd prefer the latter cause you don't want one of your best players Gobert'd and played off the court cause he can't guard on the perimeter.
MoragaBear
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Staff
JimSox said:

Hoping for an update on Tyson's injury.
From the story:

"I thought he gave us a huge boost emotionally with his play," Madsen said of Tyson. "I thought Jaylon was really good." Madsen noted that Tyson's physical issues were related to cramping.

I talked to Tyson's grandpa after the game and he said the same thing. He said he pushes his body to the absolute limit and cramping is something he deals with regularly.
calbear80
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Hopes Dashed.

Coming in we were 27-2 against UOP, not having lost to them since 1954 or something like that. There have been a lot of bad Cal teams and coaches in the last 69 years, but, none have lost to UOP.

And, then last night happened after we had had put a lot of hope for a new era because we thought now we have a good new coach. Where was our defense last night when six UOP players were hitting 13 three pointers (13 of 26 for 50% from three). And, UOP kept hitting open threes from the beginning to the end of the game. Where was our D? I believe we have better talent than UOP and we were simply out-coached. I am disappointed and sad. Of course it is only the first or second game of the season, but, this was bad.

Bring Back Respect To Cal FB, MBB And WBB!
calumnus
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MoragaBear said:

JimSox said:

Hoping for an update on Tyson's injury.
From the story:

"I thought he gave us a huge boost emotionally with his play," Madsen said of Tyson. "I thought Jaylon was really good." Madsen noted that Tyson's physical issues were related to cramping.

I talked to Tyson's grandpa after the game and he said the same thing. He said he pushes his body to the absolute limit and cramping is something he deals with regularly.


Magnesium and Potassium supplements.
HKBear97!
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calbear80 said:

Hopes Dashed.

Coming in we were 27-2 against UOP, not having lost to them since 1954 or something like that. There have been a lot of bad Cal teams and coaches in the last 69 years, but, none have lost to UOP.

And, then last night happened after we had had put a lot of hope for a new era because we thought now we have a good new coach. Where was our defense last night when six UOP players were hitting 13 three pointers (13 of 26 for 50% from three). And, UOP kept hitting open threes from the beginning to the end of the game. Where was our D? I believe we have better talent than UOP and we were simply out-coached. I am disappointed and sad. Of course it is only the first or second game of the season, but, this was bad.

Bring Back Respect To Cal FB, MBB And WBB!


Honeymoon is over. Clearly the hype about all the new transfers was just that, hype - with the exception of Tyson who does look legit. Otherwise, less than impressed with the rest of the roster based on the off season reporting here. Watching other pac-12 teams play so far, it's likely yet another ugly year.
GoCal80
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or eat bananas
bluesaxe
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Only two games in but I don't think this team can reach its potential with Askew as its primary ballhandler/initiator on offense. He pounds the ball too much, uses up too much of the shot clock doing nothing, doesn't see open guys, doesn't distribute well, and things just seem bogged down when he's in that role.

Cal started the second half getting the ball inside to Fardaws, which was getting him easy shots at the hoop and forcing double teams which left other guys open. The offense got good shots in that stretch, but they quit doing it. Madsen should have used a timeout to make that point. That was one of the two big mismatches Cal had to work with in that game and they abandoned it.

Cone hit shots in the first half but he takes too many bad shots. Need to rein that in.

Tyson is the real deal. His injury hurt a lot.

How does a bench crew score zero points in a game like that?

The defense seemed like it was tightening up during the second half Cal run and then utterly fell apart. Switching everything led to a lot of Fardaws matchups on the perimeter and he kept dropping down to help guys who didn't need it, leaving shooters open.

There's a lot to clean up. This team has talented pieces but right now they don't seem to fit all that well, especially with Tyson out. That might be a natural reflection of how many new guys they have but they need to figure it out quickly.
wifeisafurd
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Tyson health - limp and all?

What happened to Celestine after his stellar 1st game performance

ncbears
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In his post game comments, Fox blamed the loss on Kennedy's injury, the delay in integrating Tyson into the game flow, the City of Berkeley and the players not following the game plan. "I expected more from players like Askew, Newell and Celestine. Obviously, they are not fully recovered from their injuries. When we are 100% healthy, I feel like we can play with anyone."
Bearprof
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3 point defense!! Major problem in both games. Needs to be a main point of emphasis.
Bearprof
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Is this a joke?
Must be, but odd

ncbears said:

In his post game comments, Fox blamed the loss on Kennedy's injury, the delay in integrating Tyson into the game flow, the City of Berkeley and the players not following the game plan. "I expected more from players like Askew, Newell and Celestine. Obviously, they are not fully recovered from their injuries. When we are 100% healthy, I feel like we can play with anyone."
Civil Bear
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ncbears said:

In his post game comments, Fox blamed the loss on Kennedy's injury, the delay in integrating Tyson into the game flow, the City of Berkeley and the players not following the game plan. "I expected more from players like Askew, Newell and Celestine. Obviously, they are not fully recovered from their injuries. When we are 100% healthy, I feel like we can play with anyone."
Fox wins this game.
calumnus
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Civil Bear said:

ncbears said:

In his post game comments, Fox blamed the loss on Kennedy's injury, the delay in integrating Tyson into the game flow, the City of Berkeley and the players not following the game plan. "I expected more from players like Askew, Newell and Celestine. Obviously, they are not fully recovered from their injuries. When we are 100% healthy, I feel like we can play with anyone."
Fox wins this game.


Fox would be 0-2.
Oakbear
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Bearprof said:

Is this a joke?
Must be, but odd

ncbears said:

In his post game comments, Fox blamed the loss on Kennedy's injury, the delay in integrating Tyson into the game flow, the City of Berkeley and the players not following the game plan. "I expected more from players like Askew, Newell and Celestine. Obviously, they are not fully recovered from their injuries. When we are 100% healthy, I feel like we can play with anyone."

you must not have been a Mad mag reader LOL
bearsandgiants
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Civil Bear said:

ncbears said:

In his post game comments, Fox blamed the loss on Kennedy's injury, the delay in integrating Tyson into the game flow, the City of Berkeley and the players not following the game plan. "I expected more from players like Askew, Newell and Celestine. Obviously, they are not fully recovered from their injuries. When we are 100% healthy, I feel like we can play with anyone."
Fox wins this game.


Thing is, he wouldn't have had these players, so we'd have lost both, by even wider margins. Madsen can recruit. Not sure if he can coach yet. Not looking good so far.
Civil Bear
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bearsandgiants said:

Civil Bear said:

ncbears said:

In his post game comments, Fox blamed the loss on Kennedy's injury, the delay in integrating Tyson into the game flow, the City of Berkeley and the players not following the game plan. "I expected more from players like Askew, Newell and Celestine. Obviously, they are not fully recovered from their injuries. When we are 100% healthy, I feel like we can play with anyone."
Fox wins this game.


Thing is, he wouldn't have had these players, so we'd have lost both, by even wider margins. Madsen can recruit. Not sure if he can coach yet. Not looking good so far.
I've mentioned a couple of times before the season that Cal will likely struggle early like Oregon typically does when they have a lot of transfers. We probably won't know what we really have until Conference play.
mdbear
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HKBear97! said:

calbear80 said:

Hopes Dashed.

Coming in we were 27-2 against UOP, not having lost to them since 1954 or something like that. There have been a lot of bad Cal teams and coaches in the last 69 years, but, none have lost to UOP.

And, then last night happened after we had had put a lot of hope for a new era because we thought now we have a good new coach. Where was our defense last night when six UOP players were hitting 13 three pointers (13 of 26 for 50% from three). And, UOP kept hitting open threes from the beginning to the end of the game. Where was our D? I believe we have better talent than UOP and we were simply out-coached. I am disappointed and sad. Of course it is only the first or second game of the season, but, this was bad.

Bring Back Respect To Cal FB, MBB And WBB!


Honeymoon is over. Clearly the hype about all the new transfers was just that, hype - with the exception of Tyson who does look legit. Otherwise, less than impressed with the rest of the roster based on the off season reporting here. Watching other pac-12 teams play so far, it's likely yet another ugly year.
I never bought the hype that Madsen was going to be able to turn around a truly terrible team in one year. He was not my first choice hire (Pasternack was), but now that he is our coach, we have to get fully behind him and give him a reasonable chance to create a winning culture. I would be satisfied if he gets us to a winning record by his third year and continues moving in the right direction after that. Let's not forget that Fox went 3-29 last season, and we went 6 straight years without a winning record. That is a huge mountain to climb!
stu
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Civil Bear said:

I've mentioned a couple of times before the season that Cal will likely struggle early like Oregon typically does when they have a lot of transfers. We probably won't know what we really have until Conference play.
I don't like Altman but he is a good coach who always seems to have his team ready by mid season.
HKBear97!
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mdbear said:

HKBear97! said:

calbear80 said:

Hopes Dashed.

Coming in we were 27-2 against UOP, not having lost to them since 1954 or something like that. There have been a lot of bad Cal teams and coaches in the last 69 years, but, none have lost to UOP.

And, then last night happened after we had had put a lot of hope for a new era because we thought now we have a good new coach. Where was our defense last night when six UOP players were hitting 13 three pointers (13 of 26 for 50% from three). And, UOP kept hitting open threes from the beginning to the end of the game. Where was our D? I believe we have better talent than UOP and we were simply out-coached. I am disappointed and sad. Of course it is only the first or second game of the season, but, this was bad.

Bring Back Respect To Cal FB, MBB And WBB!


Honeymoon is over. Clearly the hype about all the new transfers was just that, hype - with the exception of Tyson who does look legit. Otherwise, less than impressed with the rest of the roster based on the off season reporting here. Watching other pac-12 teams play so far, it's likely yet another ugly year.
I never bought the hype that Madsen was going to be able to turn around a truly terrible team in one year. He was not my first choice hire (Pasternack was), but now that he is our coach, we have to get fully behind him and give him a reasonable chance to create a winning culture. I would be satisfied if he gets us to a winning record by his third year and continues moving in the right direction after that. Let's not forget that Fox went 3-29 last season, and we went 6 straight years without a winning record. That is a huge mountain to climb!


True, although a turnaround can happen fairly quickly in basketball and the reporting here suggested a much larger offseason talent upgrade than what's been displayed to date. You were right not to buy into the hype peddled here. We simply did not look appreciably more athletic than St. Thomas and UOP. Madsen will have time to try and build something, but talk of the "greatest turnaround in NCAA history" should be put on ice for a bit!
stu
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HKBear97! said:

True, although a turnaround can happen fairly quickly in basketball and the reporting here suggested a much larger offseason talent upgrade than what's been displayed to date. You were right not to buy into the hype peddled here. We simply did not look appreciably more athletic than St. Thomas and UOP. Madsen will have time to try and build something, but talk of the "greatest turnaround in NCAA history" should be put on ice for a bit!
Looking at this roster from the perspective of an uninformed fan:

In the few minutes I've seen Tyson he was best player at Cal in a long time. Maybe a longer Matt Bradley.

So far Aimaq, Askew, and Cone have shown obvious strengths and weaknesses. I think a coach like Montgomery could maximize their strengths and cover their weaknesses but a coach like Jones or Fox would do the opposite. I'm waiting to see what Madsen can do with them.

I haven't seen Kennedy but it sounds like he could help with what I think is our worst problem, defense.

I think Celestine when he's healthy and Newell as he matures are solid Pac-12 players. Brown could join that group but I haven't see enough to be sure.


Our other players seem more like projects who may or may not develop. Hard for me to say.

Overall I'd say we have sufficient talent for a middle-of-the-conference finish but we're not playing that way yet.
SFCityBear
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calumnus said:

MoragaBear said:

JimSox said:

Hoping for an update on Tyson's injury.
From the story:

"I thought he gave us a huge boost emotionally with his play," Madsen said of Tyson. "I thought Jaylon was really good." Madsen noted that Tyson's physical issues were related to cramping.

I talked to Tyson's grandpa after the game and he said the same thing. He said he pushes his body to the absolute limit and cramping is something he deals with regularly.


Magnesium and Potassium supplements.
Pushing your body to the limit some of the time is fine. Doing it every play is just asking for injury.
SFCityBear
calbearinamaze
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ncbears said:

In his post game comments, Fox blamed the loss on Kennedy's injury, the delay in integrating Tyson into the game flow, the City of Berkeley and the players not following the game plan. "I expected more from players like Askew, Newell and Celestine. Obviously, they are not fully recovered from their injuries. When we are 100% healthy, I feel like we can play with anyone."
Also, COVID has disproportionally affected CAL.
If you believe in forever
Then life is just a one-night stand
If there's a rock and roll heaven
Well you know they've got a hell of a band
SFCityBear
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calumnus said:

Civil Bear said:

ncbears said:

In his post game comments, Fox blamed the loss on Kennedy's injury, the delay in integrating Tyson into the game flow, the City of Berkeley and the players not following the game plan. "I expected more from players like Askew, Newell and Celestine. Obviously, they are not fully recovered from their injuries. When we are 100% healthy, I feel like we can play with anyone."
Fox wins this game.


Fox would be 0-2.
This team has two Fox recruits whom he did not have (or who played injured for only a few games) last year.
No way this team wins the St Thomas game without Celestine and Askew. No way.
SFCityBear
SFCityBear
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wifeisafurd said:

Tyson health - limp and all?

What happened to Celestine after his stellar 1st game performance


I wondered why Celestine, Cal's best player against St Thomas did not even start against Pacific. You don't bench a player who scored 21 points in the previous game, unless he was playing backup SF or SG to Tyson by the end of Fall practice, or unless he was injured, or ill or something physical.
SFCityBear
SFCityBear
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KenBurnski said:

JimSox said:

Hoping for an update on Tyson's injury.

Madsen called it a cramping issue in the postgame. Hopefully we dodged a bullet.
I think it wasn't a good decision by Madsen to put Tyson back in the game, especially when Tyson was limping when he put him back in, and then he re-cramped, and limped off badly at the end. Not good to risk this so early in the season for what? Is one game against a mediocre team in the pre-conference season worth it? Why did he treat Newell differently? He cramped up against St Thomas, got on the treadmill and hydrated, but still Madsen did not risk putting him back in the game. I'm puzzled.
SFCityBear
Civil Bear
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SFCityBear said:

KenBurnski said:

JimSox said:

Hoping for an update on Tyson's injury.

Madsen called it a cramping issue in the postgame. Hopefully we dodged a bullet.
I think it wasn't a good decision by Madsen to put Tyson back in the game, especially when Tyson was limping when he put him back in, and then he re-cramped, and limped off badly at the end. Not good to risk this so early in the season for what? Is one game against a mediocre team in the pre-conference season worth it? Why did he treat Newell differently? He cramped up against St Thomas, got on the treadmill and hydrated, but still Madsen did not risk putting him back in the game. I'm puzzled.

Probably because a cramp isn't a long term injury and Tyson told Madsen he thought he could play through it.
calumnus
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SFCityBear said:

calumnus said:

Civil Bear said:

ncbears said:

In his post game comments, Fox blamed the loss on Kennedy's injury, the delay in integrating Tyson into the game flow, the City of Berkeley and the players not following the game plan. "I expected more from players like Askew, Newell and Celestine. Obviously, they are not fully recovered from their injuries. When we are 100% healthy, I feel like we can play with anyone."
Fox wins this game.


Fox would be 0-2.
This team has two Fox recruits whom he did not have (or who played injured for only a few games) last year.
No way this team wins the St Thomas game without Celestine and Askew. No way.


They also don't win with Celestine, Askew and the rest of the team Fox was likely to return.

It is almost always the case. Fox wins zero games his first year without Wyking's recruits. 2nd and 3rd years would be rough (err, more rough) without Wyking's recruits too.

rkt88edmo
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MoragaBear said:

JimSox said:

Hoping for an update on Tyson's injury.
From the story:

"I thought he gave us a huge boost emotionally with his play," Madsen said of Tyson. "I thought Jaylon was really good." Madsen noted that Tyson's physical issues were related to cramping.

I talked to Tyson's grandpa after the game and he said the same thing. He said he pushes his body to the absolute limit and cramping is something he deals with regularly.
That should be 100% preventable, via diet/nutrition and supplements, odd that he's this far into collegiate career and hasn't bee steered right on it. Whether it's something new fangled like Nuun, or old school like pickle juice he really GUIDANCE needs to figure it out.

Either that or he has chronic rhabdo and really needs to get checked and understand what is going on with his body.
bearmanpg
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UOP lost tonite to UNR 88-41....
KoreAmBear
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bearmanpg said:

UOP lost tonite to UNR 88-41....
***

KoreAmBear
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KoreAmBear said:

bearmanpg said:

UOP lost tonite to UNR 88-41....


Dub Tee Eff

Reminds me of our football score v. UOP in 1991: 86-24.
stu
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KoreAmBear said:

KoreAmBear said:

bearmanpg said:

UOP lost tonite to UNR 88-41....


Dub Tee Eff

Reminds me of our football score v. UOP in 1991: 86-24.
I saw that game - it was remarkable when we didn't score.
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