Cal Basketball: Effort Improves But Bears Come Up Short vs. UTEP at SoCal Challenge

Cal overcame an 11-point deficit, 28 fouls, 21 turnovers and 16 offensive rebounds surrendered to UTEP, tying the score on a 3-pointer by Jalen Cone with 6 seconds left on Monday night at the SoCal Challenge in San Juan Capistrano.

But UTEP's Tae Hardy hit a game-winning 3-pointer at the buzzer — at 12:35 a.m. — and the Bears absorbed a 75-72 loss, the third straight defeat after opening the Mark Madsen coaching era with a pair of victories.

The Bears played hard enough to win but not well enough against an aggressive UTEP team that improved to 5-0 and advanced to the championship game of the event’s Surf Division against Bradley on Wednesday night.

Cal will face Tulane in the third-place game after the UTEP-Bradley championship matchup, quite likely past 10 p.m. Monday’s game tipped off at 10:11 p.m. -- 41 minutes late.

Afterward, Madsen found things he liked but also reasons the Bears lost.

“We can’t have 21 turnovers and expect to win,” he said. “However, we gave ourselves a chance to win by how hard we played, by the defense and just by the spirit and heart that we had.

“So I’m proud of our guys in that sense and if we trim the turnovers just by two or three, we win the game."

Down 33-22 in the first half after allowing a 19-2 UTEP run, the Bears battled all the back and tied the score at 72-all when Cone, the Northern Arizona transfer guard, made a shot from straight on and beyond the arc.

Just as quickly, UTEP senior Trae Hardy — the team’s leading scorer and a 46-percent 3-point shooter entering the game — knocked in a 3 from the left wing as the horn sounded.

“I think after Jalen Cone nailed that 3 . . . I’ll have to look at the film, but I’m guessing we had a momentary lapse,” Madsen said. “Right when that happens, we’ve got to get back in a sprint and point and talk and get matched up. It was a wide-open shot.”

The Bears began the game shorthanded again, with Devin Askew, Jalen Celestine and Keonte Kennedy all shelved by injuries. Madsen had no update on when they might return.

“When we get those guys back and we can click, this team is just going to be phenomenal,” he said.

The manpower situation became worse because of fouling. The game featured 54 fouls and Cal was whistled for 28 of them, eventually losing starting big men Fardaws Aimaq and Grant Newell and reserve forward ND Okafor to disqualification after picking up five each.

That allowed UTEP to shoot 37 free throws, and the Miners made 30 of them. Cal was 20 for 26 at the foul line.

The turnovers led to 22 UTEP points, although the Bears scored 20 of their own off giveaways by the Miners. Cal had six turnovers to open the game before scoring its first points.

The Bears also had their worst night of the season under the defensive backboards, allowing the Miners to score 20 points following 16 offensive rebounds.

Aimaq finished with 18 points and 11 rebounds for his 47th career double-double, including previous stops at Utah Valley and Texas Tech.

Jaylon Tyson, who also came from Texas Tech, scored 15 points but shot 4 for 13 and had five turnovers. Cone scored 15 points, 11 of them in the first half.

Reserve forward Gus Larson, a redshirt sophomore transfer from Penn, had his best game with the Bears, contributing nine points, four rebounds, two blocks and an assist in a 22-minute stint off the bench. He posted Cal’s best plus-minus score at plus-7.

“We couldn’t keep Gus off the floor — that’s how good he was,” Madsen said.

Madsen, who made a career at Stanford and in the NBA by playing harder than the next guy, saw encouraging signs on that front, even in defeat.

He said the Bears didn’t bring enough intensity in their 63-60 loss to Montana State last Thursday. "Tonight we played hard,” he said. “That’s what it needs to look like every night.”

Cover photo courtesy of the SoCal Challenge