After his game-winner at Oregon, Justin Cobbs had the confidence to take another dagger shot at Corvallis, Ore on Saturday.
With 37 seconds left to go and the Cal men’s basketball team leading 60-59 over Oregon State, Cobbs held onto the ball for 20-odd seconds by the midcourt before driving inside for a contested jumper. Unlike on Thursday, the ball bounced off the rim and into the arms of a Beaver with 4.3 seconds now left on the clock.
Oregon State drew up the final play up for backup guard Ahmad Starks. Starks, who hit two 3-pointers in the game, sprinted down the court and released a desperate last-second shot.
The shot fell short, missing the backboard entirely. Cal (18-9, 10-5 in the Pac-12) came out of Gill Coliseum with its fifth straight win — its seventh in eight games.
The club dodged a bullet that could have damaged its strengthening March Madness portfolio.
The Bears on Saturday did not bring any of the offensive firepower they had against UCLA at home and at No. 12 Arizona. Most players on the team, especially guard Allen Crabbe, struggled to shoot, shooting 40.4 percent from the field and making only five 3-pointers in 17 attempts.
Crabbe, the Pac-12’s leading scorer, scored six points in 2-for-12 shooting. He made one 3-pointer, one free throw and one floater inside the paint in 38 minutes of play.
In Crabbe’s place, Cobbs stepped up as the team’s primary scoring weapon with his mid-range jumpers and floaters. The junior guard scored a team-high 18 points on 7-for-16 shooting.
To Cal’s fortune, Oregon State (13-15, 3-12) had no shooting touch whatsoever for most of the 40 minutes. The Beavers shot 20-for-58 in total, only scoring 34.5 percent of all its shot attempts.
Early in the first half, Oregon State struggled to make even a single shot. With no offensive flow, the Beavers scored no points for approximately seven minutes starting from the 13:46 mark. Oregon State saw their 8-7 lead turn into a 22-8 deficit.
The Beavers dug out of their 14-point hole slowly but steadily to the drumbeat of center Joe Burton. The rotund big man played much smoother and quicker than expected for a man of his 295-pound frame. The Beavers’ offense for the rest of the game flowed through Burton’s fingertips.
Burton proposed a defensive dilemma for the Bears. Starting forwards Richard Solomon and David Kravish was too slim to contain a post player like Burton. Robert Thurman was heavily relied in the first half to close down Burton, but his foul troubles prevented Cal coach Mike Montgomery from allowing him more playing time.
Burton flirted around with a triple-double, recording 15 points, nine rebounds and seven assists. He was pivotal in rallying his team late in the second half; in the last six minutes of the game, Burton recorded four points and two assists.
As the Beavers gnawed at Cal’s once 14-point lead and Crabbe unable to hit anything inside the basket, Cobbs was the Bears’ lone option in keeping the lead afloat. Cobbs scored Cal’s last five points, just enough points to eke the team a victory.
Seung Y. Lee covers men’s basketball. Contact him at sylee@dailycal.org Follow him on Twitter @sngyn92.
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