Following a big win against Stanford over the weekend, the Bears will look to carry that momentum into their final two home games of the season. With a matchup against SMU on Wednesday, Cal men’s basketball has an opportunity to build on its rivalry victory and strengthen its position heading into the postseason.
Heading into the contest, the Bears sit at 19-8 overall and an even 7-7 in conference play. A win over SMU would not only mark their 20th victory of the season for the first time in a decade, but also pull them level with the Mustangs in the conference standings, tightening an already competitive race.
“For us it’s just to keep winning games — I think if we win out we’ll be just fine,” said senior forward Chris Bell on Cal’s focus heading into March. “A lot of people get so focused on, ‘You have to win this game or that.’ If we just go into each game doing our game plan, focusing and coming out with the win, we’ll be just fine in time for March.”
In the days to come, the key for the blue and gold while they prepare will be to hold on tight to their strong defense and free throw shooting while developing their overall shooting efficiency.
The Bears have a plethora of strong shooters from Bell to sophomore guard Justin Pippen, but given the shooting percentage against Stanford — 34.9% from the field and 34.6% on 3-pointers — they should be looking to make some changes.
“When our guys take pride in one-on-one, individual defense, the whole world changes,” said Cal head coach Mark Madsen while addressing Cal’s shortfalls against Syracuse earlier in the season. “To be able to lock in and do that over the course of 40 minutes is very difficult to do. … Give Syracuse credit, they dominated us, but we slipped during that game and we were going to continue to try to address that.”
As the Bears prepare to hold their defense together, they have a strong SMU offense to consider.
The Mustangs similarly have reliable shooters, led by redshirt senior guards Boopie Miller and Jaron Pierre Jr., who average 18.7 and 17.6 points per game, respectively. With such an offensively driven roster, SMU can score quickly and in bunches. Cal’s defense will need to stay disciplined and locked in, while also being prepared to convert stops into transition offense.
“Now we have a one-game series against a very talented SMU team,” Madsen said. “SMU is scrappy. They’re tough, they’re physical, they play zone (and) they play man — so that’s the next cloud on the horizon that we have to be prepared for.”
Also on the horizon for the blue and gold is the ACC tournament in March and a possible bid to the NCAA tournament for the first time since 2016.
Currently, Cal sits just outside of the bracket. With two more conference wins at home and another two on the road, the Bears will strengthen their odds to clinch an early round matchup.
“It would be absolutely huge if we’re able to attain that goal,” Madsen said. “What we’re trying to do is break the goal up into small pieces, into small bites.”
That next bite comes this Wednesday against SMU at 7 p.m. at Haas Pavilion.