Team Infidel
Forum Spin Doctor
By Jonathan Okanes
MediaNews
TUCSON - Whether DeVon Hardin would have made a difference Thursday in Cal's Pacific-10 Conference opener at Arizona is up for debate. What's undebatable is that the Bears defense is hurting.
Cal allowed No. 7 Arizona to shoot 60 percent, including an eye-popping 72 percent in the first half, and lost 94-85, which could be the most misleading score this season in college basketball.
The Wildcats (10-1, 1-0) led 51-33 at halftime and extended the advantage to 76-47 midway through the second half before the Bears (8-5, 0-1) closed the gap during the final minutes with both benches emptied.
In two games without Hardin, who might be out for the season because of a stress fracture in his left foot, Cal has allowed opponents to shoot 57 percent. DePaul and Arizona combined to make 64 percent of their shots during the past three halves.
Even before Hardin got hurt, the Bears weren't playing defense like they usually do. But without him, it has taken a turn for the worse.
``Do we miss DeVon? Of course,'' Cal Coach Ben Braun said. ``There's not a team out there that wouldn't miss his presence. It's a problem, and we have to solve it. The way you do that is work together as a team.''
For the second consecutive game, the Bears struggled to stop their opponent from penetrating and then passing to an open shooter. The Wildcats went 7 for 11 from three-point range in the first half. They made six threes during a 31-9 run during the final 9:02 before intermission.
``Our backs are up against the wall,'' Braun said. ``I think (opponents) know we're down a little bit and they're taking advantage of it. We have to get back to playing tough team defense.''
Even with Hardin and 7-footer Jordan Wilkes, who is out for the season because of a knee injury, the Bears might have been hard pressed to beat Arizona. The Wildcats have one of their most balanced teams in years and look like a Final Four contender. All five starters are averaging in double figures in scoring, and every one of them hurt Cal.
Point guard Mustafa Shakur, a four-year starter, had the Bears in the palms of his hands while racking up nine assists. Marcus Williams led the Wildcats with 21 points on 8 for 8 shooting.
``They're a great team,'' Cal point guard Ayinde Ubaka said. ``They're smart, athletic, and they can shoot. And they make the extra pass. They're unselfish.''
Just as they did during their 90-62 loss at DePaul on Saturday, the Bears came out strong. They were aggressive on offense, and when Theo Robertson's three-pointer gave them an 18-13 lead with just under 12 minutes to go in the first half, the capacity crowd at McKale Center grew restless.
The Bears still led 24-20 when Robertson threw down a thunderous dunk after breaking the press, but they didn't score again for four minutes.
``They stepped it up on defense after that and made some adjustments,'' said freshman Ryan Anderson, who led Cal with 16 points. ``They did a better job reading what we were trying to do.''
After scorching the Bears from the outside in the first half, the Wildcats ran their offense expertly in the second half to get several easy looks from close range. Arizona had nine layups and three dunks after halftime.
``It could be a lack of personnel, because we are playing seven guys a lot and that's hard on everybody,'' Anderson said. ``But there's still no reason for us not to play the kind of defense we know we can.''