March 7, 2013
BERKELEY, Calif. (AP) - Chasson Randle scored 20 points, Josh Huestis added 18 and Stanford beat California 83-70 on Wednesday, completing a season sweep and ending the Golden Bears' seven-game winning streak.
Aaron Bright chipped in 16 points for the Cardinal (18-13, 9-9 Pac-12), which also received a terrific all-around effort from Dwight Powell (11 points , six rebounds, four assists) despite playing through foul trouble.
The game was stopped for nearly 10 minutes late in the second half after players from both teams began pushing and shoving one another during a break in play. Six players received technical fouls during the melee, two others were ejected for leaving the bench and a combined three assistant coaches from the two schools were also ejected.
Allen Crabbe and Justin Cobbs, both of whom were involved in the fracas, had 24 points apiece for California. The Golden Bears (20-10, 12-6) lost for the first time since Feb. 7.
Stanford shot 49.0 percent overall, excelling primarily from three-point territory (9-17) and the free throw line (26-30). California shot 50.0 percent, but was just 3-12 from long distance and 15-18 from the charity stripe.
The Cardinal led 34-31 at halftime, with the first half featuring three ties and seven lead changes.
Stanford then exploded to start the second half, embarking on a 24-8 scoring run that resulted in its largest lead of 58-39 following a jumper from Bright.
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NOTES: Stanford won in Berkeley for the first time since 2008 ... The Cardinal is now 15-8 in March games under head coach Johnny Dawkins. That includes seven in a row, dating back to last year's NIT title run ... Chasson Randle notched his sixth 20-point game of the year ... Stanford placed four players in double-figure scoring for the 10th time this season ... Dwight Powell has reached double figures in 18 consecutive games ... Head coach Johnny Dawkins employed the same starting lineup (Aaron Bright, Chasson Randle, Andy Brown, Josh Huestis, Dwight Powell) for the 14th consecutive games. That combination has posted an 8-6 record ... Josh Huestis tallied four blocks, giving him 112 for his career and placing him sixth all-time in school history ... Over the last two games, Stanford has totaled 34 assists while committing only 15 turnovers ... Four of Stanford's five starters played at least 33 minutes ... Stanford will play its next game one week from today when the Pac-12 Tournament gets underway in Las Vegas, Nev.
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Stanford Head Coach Johnny Dawkins
"Well you know, offensively I think we've been playing pretty well at times and tonight was no different. Our guys came out and executed the offense well. We spaced the floor like we typically do. We have some versatile players and try to play to our strengths. They're a very good defensive team. I think with us, when Dwight's playing the way he's playing and Chasson as well, we're able to disrupt a lot of defenses."
"I don't really know what happened. It was a scrum and Aaron got the ball on the ground and was trying to call a timeout and of course, things kind of escalated from there. I think both teams were just playing very hard and emotions were running high. It's a rivalry game and I think a lot on the line for both teams. It's one of those things that happens, but I don't think anybody did anything flagrant or below the belt. I think it was just guys playing hard and it's unfortunate. Everyone rushed out on the floor, from a coaches standpoint, just trying to make sure nothing happened, and the rules say only the head coach can go out on the court."
California Head Coach Mike Montgomery
"Stanford played very well. You've got to give credit where credit is due.... They played with a lot of confidence. When they shoot the ball well, they're good. From our perspective, we made a lot of defensive mistakes that allowed them open shots. We tried to focus on defending the three point line and obviously we didn't do that with them making nine threes. We tended to leave people when I'm not sure we needed to leave people. Stanford causes a lot of problems with the matchups that they have. There do not have pure low post guys, so they spread the floor and they drive. We kind of fell prey to that, where we turned our heads, lost our man, and then they shot it in. Each time we made a mistake, we paid a price for it and they made shots."
"We turned it over 14 times which is too much. They turned it over six, but two of them were late. We had some poor decisions that we made. We were frustrated and not getting certain shots so we tried to do things that were not good for us. They had 19 points on turnovers. That's not a statistic we can live with. We shoot 50 percent for the game. It wasn't like when we took the time to get a shot that we weren't making them. We panicked a little bit and we tried to force action that wasn't there.
"We've got our work cut out. We're never out of the woods. If you look at this conference, Stanford coming into this thing was a ninth place team. Well, they're pretty good. You're looking at teams in lower spots that are capable of beating anybody on any given night. Stanford is no exception to that. There's nothing guaranteed with our team and there never has been. We've had some gritty wins and made some plays at the end and we didn't do that today."
Junior Guard Justin Cobbs
"It is just my fault, I couldn't hold onto the ball. Eight turnovers... I just have to take care of the ball. I take all of the blame. That is something that I've got to get better with."
Junior Guard Allen Crabbe
"They were making their shots. It seemed as if everything was going in for them. The just made the plays they needed. We've just got to move on from it. We can't do anything about it now, it is over with. We have to look forward and get prepared for the next game. We need to turn things around and get back on track."