Cal Men's Basketball Pounded by Vanderbilt
A rough go in Nashville
Cal Men’s Basketball embarked on their first road trip of the season and it certainly did not get off on the right foot, falling by a final score of 85-69 . The Bears were overwhelmed by the Vanderbilt defense all night, giving away the ball 12 times in the first half and had 20 for the game. Vandy would head into the locker room with a 49-31 lead that was well earned with their ball pressure, physical defense, and dictating of the pace.
Head Coach Mark Madsen was not present for today’s game after the birth of his fifth child, and Adam Mazarei took over at the helm. The Bears couldn’t get into any offensive sets regardless of who was at the point, with the Commodores effecting DJ Campbell, Jovan Blackshear Jr, and Christian Tucker similarly.
For Cal to take more leaps this season, it’s going to take a concentrated effort to the details. Vanderbilt shot 19/23 (82.6%!!!) from two point range in the first half, scored 36 points in the paint heading into the locker room, and selectively got into transition at a smooth pace. Andrej Stojakovic and BJ Omot were the only bright spots for Cal, scoring 10 and 11 points respectively in the first half on a combined 8/14 from the field.
In the second half, there was more fight from the Bears but it wasn’t enough. What was a 21 point lead was dwindled down to nine points, but turnovers reared their ugly head once again and Cal could not recover. Jason Edwards and Tyler Tanner did not let anyone get down hill, stunting any offensive set. The Bears suffered from a lack of movement with a purpose and ultimately stood around off the ball for glaring amount of the contest. All in all, it was a game to forget for Cal.
While there can be some grace given its the Bears first road game and they didn’t have their head coach, there were some nagging habits and characteristics within the game that you’d want to eradicate going forward if you’re Mark Madsen.
The Bears will head to Los Angeles to take on USC next on Sunday night at 6:30 P.M. It will be broadcasted on the B1G Ten Network.
quickest recap in the west 🫡
On one hand, an early season ugly loss isn't surprising - we saw similar games last year and feared that there would be bumps early after another roster overhaul.
On the other hand, Vanderbilt had a similarly massive roster overhaul, so them being the team to deliver this kind of defeat is discouraging.