Men's Basketball Insta-Recap: Stanford Beats Cal, 89-81

An all-around inefficient game for the Bears in defeat

Stanford raced out to a 14-4 lead behind a strong start from Maxine Raynaud. He had 5 early points as the Cardinal started out shooting 6-of-7 from the field. The Bears started out cold, hitting only 1 of their first 7 shots.

Both teams held steady over the next stretch of the game. Cal continued to attack the rim despite Stanford’s size advantage. While not always finishing, the Bears were drawing fouls at a good rate, and were already in the bonus at the 8-minute mark(while Cal only had 3 fouls). Stanford held a 27-19 advantage at the 8-minute timeout.

Cal went on a 10-2 Cal run over the next couple minutes to tie the game at 29-29. Andrej Stojakovic had 10 early points as he continued to be the focal point of the attacking Cal offense. Stanford responded with their own 9-0 run on three straight 3-pointers to regain a solid 38-29 lead with three minutes left in the half.

Cal’s scoring drought continued. Stanford ended the half on a 18-2 run to hold a 47-31 lead going into halftime. For the half, the Golden Bears were 0-for-6 on 3-point shots. Cal’s strategy to drive and attack the basket resulted in mixed results. While Cal was able to draw fouls, Cal only took 8 free throws (making 7). They shot a reasonable 12-of-26 on 2 point shots, but the drives also led to 7 blocked shots for the Cardinal. Cal had zero assists for the half. Andrej Stojakovic paced the Bears with 10 points on 5-of-14 shooting. Jaylen Blakes led Stanford with 14 points, while Maxime Raynaud added 11 points and 2 blocks.

Jovan Blacksher Jr. hit two 3-pointers to close the gap, but Stanford responded with their own 7-0 run. Cal continued to be aggressive in the lane, while mixing in a reasonable inside-out game for more 3-point attempts. At the 12-minute mark, Stanford led 60-47. Cal had already drawn 6 fouls, so were in the bonus the rest of the game.

Cal could not close the gap. Stanford maintained a low double-digit lead for the next stretch. The team was having an off shooting night, connecting on only 34% of all shots, and 20% from deep. Jeremiah Wilkinson particularly was having an off night, connecting on only one shot on eight attempts. At the eight minute mark, Stanford held a 66-53 lead. Cal was shooting 2 fouls shots the rest of the way, so there was still an opportunity to make a comeback.

Maxime Raynaud connected on consecutive 3-pointers to push the Stanford lead to 20 points, 77-57 with just under 6 minutes left. Cal continued to fight, and closed to single digits after 3-pointers from Rytis Petraitis and Joshua Ola-Joseph. Stanford led 83-74 with just under 2 minutes left.

Cal got to within six after 83-77 after a Stojakovic 3-pointer with just under a minute left, 83-77. That’s the closest Cal would get, as the teams traded baskets the rest of the way en route to an 89-81 Stanford win.

Overall, it was an inefficient game for the Bears. While the strategy to attack the basket was sound, Cal could not consistently finish or find the outlet pass. Stanford’s big men got into foul concern versus foul trouble, and Cal could not capitalize. Cal committed a season low 7 turnovers, but also had a season low 5 assists. Cal’s late flurry resulted in them shooting a respectable 42% for the game, including 38% from long range. Andrej Stojakovic led the Bears with 25 points on 11-of-25 shooting. Jovan Blacksher added 14 points. Jeremiah Wilkinson cooled off from his recent hot stretch, finishing with 4 points on 2-of-9 shooting. Stanford had five players finish with double digits, led by 20 points each from Maxime Raynaud and Jaylen Blakes.

In the postgame comments, Coach Kyle Smith said it was Stanford’s “best game of the year by far”, and credited Maxime Raynaud’s 4-of-6 3-pointers as making a huge difference.

Coach Madsen talked about “problematic stretches” of the game, and that Cal needs to be more consistent for the entire game.

The home team has been undefeated in the last six Cal/Stanford matchups. In his postgame comments, Raynaud mentioned had been winless in his previous 3 games in Haas Pavilion, and indicated he motivated his team today by pointing out that he wants a win before he graduates. Let’s hope Cal returns the favor when they play in Maples Pavilion in February.