BearTalk

While Cal was watching videotape of Ohio State . . .

AROUND THE PAC-10

Nic Wise had 15 points, seven assists, five steals and five turnovers and Arizona (2-0) beat Ben Braun’s Rice squad, 66-49 in Tucson . . . Sophomore Klay Thompson had a career-high 37 points (15-for-20 FGs) and Washington State (3-0) beat IPFW 89-71, despite the fact that no one else scored more than seven points.

THE NATIONAL SCENE

No. 1 Kansas will win most of the time when it outscores the opposition 33-3 from the 3-point line. That’s what happened in the Jayhawks’ 94-44 win over Central Arkansas . . . Kentucky’s starters scored all the club’s points in a 102-92 defeat of Sam Houston State. Freshman guard John Wall had 21 points, six assists and six turnovers.

LOCAL HERO

Former St. Mary’s HS-Berkeley star Larry Gurganious, a tranfer from Gonzaga, had 21 points and nine rebounds as UC Riverside scored an 87-71 win over La Verne, playing without Shirley.

 In my scouting report prior to Thursday’s Coaches vs. Cancer semifinal game against Syracuse, I posed four questions worth considering this week.

With Cal set to face Ohio State in Friday’s third-place game, let’s revisit those questions and grade the Bears on their performance so far at Madison Square Garden:

– What does Cal’s No. 13 national ranking mean?

Suffice the Bears will not be ranked anywhere near No. 13 after their 95-73 loss. But it means little at this point in the season. No one would agree more than coach Mike Montgomery, who has often stated preseason rankings reflect only which teams have the best cast of returning players. Cal has plenty of time to demonstrate whether it deserves national recognition, but in the eyes of the New York media, at least, the Syracuse game will take time to overcome.

– Can the Bears’ three senior perimeter players deliver in a high-octane setting?

The Bears get an incomplete on this one, of course, because Theo Robertson was sidelined by a foot injury. He won’t face the Buckeyes, either, so Cal isn’t playing right now with a full deck. Return Robertson and forward Harper Kamp (knee) to the lineup at some point, and we’ll get the chance to see what this team can do. Of course, no one knows just when that will be.

Jerome Randle played well against Syracuse with 25 points, but Patrick Christopher had just six points and was shooting 3-for-17 until making three late baskets.

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FINAL SCORE: Syracuse 95, Cal 73. Yes, we had more wireless problems here at the Garden, then I had to sprint off to do post-game interviews and write my story for the print edition. So again, sorry  if it seemed like I suddenly dropped off the face of the earth.

A few post-game notes of importance:

– Mike Montgomery said there is no definitive diagnosis of Theo Robertson’s right foot injury, and that he expected on Wednesday that Theo would play. Then the pain became worse, even after Robertson did not practice Wednesday, so they pulled the plug. He wore a protective boot and will not play in Friday’s third-place game.

– Jerome Randle scored 25 points and was 5-for-9  from 3-point range. The rest of the team was 1-for-11 from beyond the arc, including 0-for-7 by Patrick Christopher, whom Monty defended, saying the Bears didn’t allow him to find any offensive rhythm. Christopher wound up with 12 points, six of them in the final 5 minutes, long afer the outcome was settled.

– Monty acknowledged that the two things he worried about most — Syracuse’s zone defense and its size — were the biggest factors in the game. But he was unhappy that 15 turnovers leading to 19 Syracuse points also contributed to the loss, and noted that the Bears became disorganized defensively at times.

– A couple other stats: Syracuse blocked nine shots, discouraging the Bears inside and forcing them to rely on perimeter shooting. The Orange bench outscored Cal’s reserves 41-12. Syracuse won easily despite missing nine free throws in the first half.

– Randle and Jamal Boykin, who had 14 points and eight rebounds, both said the Bears are happy they have a game Friday, so they can leave this one behind.  

12:30 2nd H: Cal has scored seven straight, including a 3-pointer by Randle, but Syracuse stil leads 64-48. Even so, Jim Boeheim called a timeout to settle his team. Randle has 21 points. Sanders-Frison is on the bench with four fouls, the third straight game he’s picked up four.

15:53 2nd H: We’re having some technical difficulties here at the Garden, so my apologies. Cal got within 44-35 early in the second half when Zhang blocked a shot, leading to a fastbreak layup by Randle. But Syracuse has opened things up and leads 59-41. Randle has 18 points for the Bears; not many other bright spots.

HALFTIME: Syracuse leads 44-33, despite missing nine free throws. So, clearly, it could have been much worse. Cal had 10 turnovers and Syracuse blocked six shots. Points in the paint: 20-10 for Syracuse. Randle had 14 points at halftime and shot 4-for-8. The rest of the team had 19 points and shot 9-for-28. Zhang started the second half.

0:31 1st H: The Bears called timeout and will try to take the last shot, trailing 44-33. A 3-pointer by Randle got them within 41-33, but Scoop Jardin just hit one for the Orange, who lead 44-33. Zhang has contributed in recent minutes, tipping in a miss by Randle and feeding Boykin for a layup.

3:55 1st H: Randle has 11 points, but no one else is providing the Bears any consistent offense, and Cal cannot stop the Orange. It’s 37-26, and Sanders-Frison is on the bench with three fouls. Boykin and Gutierrez each have two. Monty has few options at this point.

7:52 1st H: This is becoming a rout. Syracuse leads 30-16. The Orange is bigger, quicker, more aggressive and has Cal on its heels. Randle and Christopher came out of the game for the first time with 8 1/2 minutes left, and the Bears have turned the ball over on both possessions since. The Bears are relying on 3-point shots, not because the Syracuse defense is allowing them, but because Cal is getting its inside shots swatted. Randle and Christopher are back. And so is Boykin, even with two fouls.

11:42 1st H: The Orange leads 21-14. Syracuse’s size is giving Cal fits, but the Orange also is shooting it well from the perimeter. Max Zhang and D.J. Seeley are in the game. Seeley hit a 3-pointer to get the Bears within 18-14, but Brandon Triche answered with one of his own for the Orange. 

15:59 1ST H: Syracuse leads 9-7 and the Bears already are in foul trouble. Jamal Boykin went to the bench after his second with 17:58 left. 

STARTING LINEUPS: As expected, Cal will go with sophomore Jorge Gutierrez as its replacement for Theo Robertson (foot) in the starting five. The rest is the regular group: Markhuri Sanders-Frison, Jamal Boykin, Patrick Christopher and Jerome Randle. Syracuse will start Arinze Onuaku, Rick Jackson, Wes Johnson, Andy Rautins and Brandon Triche.

Theo Robertson was wearing a protective boot on his right foot while his teammates warmed up for tonight’s game with Syracuse and, obviously, will not play.

We’ll update later after getting comments from Robertson and coach Mike Montgomery, but this cannot be good news for a team whose hopes of improved depth may be fading.

Just got word from a team spokesman that senior small forward Theo Robertson has a right foot injury and, according to coach Mike Montgomery, is doubtful to play tonight.

The ailment apparently has not been fully diagnosed, and was not considered even potentially an issue until Tuesday evening. Robertson practiced in a limited fashion Wednesday and skipped today’s walk-through practice.

I don’t know much more than that, except that if Robertson is held out of tonight’s game vs. Syracuse, it’s apparently more of a precautionary move to make certain the situation doesn’t worsen.  It seems unlikely he would play Friday if he doesn’t go tonight.

The best guess is that sophomore Jorge Gutierrez would start if Robertson is held out. We’ll pass on more as soon as we have it.

Got  into New York this morning and spent a few hours — in an intermittent drizzle — walking around town. Central Park with the fall colors is spectacular. But by 4 p.m., the combination of cloudy skies and a skyscraper landscape made it feel as though the sun had set.

Found my spot here at the Garden, and there’s currently about two hours before tipoff.

Here’s my story from this morning’s editions on the challenge Cal faces in trying to solve the Syracuse 2-3 zone defense.

Here’s some of what we could find out about the Golden Bears this week at Madison Square Garden:

– What does Cal’s No. 13 national ranking mean?

If the Bears truly belongs to be ranked in the top-15 neighborhood, they should be at least competitive with anyone they might face in New York. This doesn’t mean they have to sweep two games to call the trip a success. Conceivably, the Bears could lose twice and still emerge looking like a good club. The point is, they need to play well against good teams to demonstate they are for real. A split certainly wouldn’t hurt their rep one bit.

– Can the Bears’ three senior perimeter players deliver in a high-octane setting?

The threesome of Jerome Randle, Patrick Christopher and Theo Robertson has combined to average 53.5 points through Cal’s first two games. Now they get the chance to do it in the Garden, not in familiar Haas Pavilion, and against superior athletes than they’ve seen so far. The Bears need their complementary guys to deliver, too, but Mike Montgomery makes no bones about it: If the Bears are going to play at a high level, their three best players are going to have to lead the way.

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The latest issue of  Sports Illustrated arrived in my mailbox this afternoon, featuring the magazine’s college basketball predictions.

Here goes:

SI’s Top 20
1. Kansas
2. Michigan State
3. Villanova
4. Texas
5. Kentucky
6. Purdue
7. North Carolina
8. West Virginia
9. Washington
10. Connecticut
11. Cal
12. Duke
13. Tennesssee
14. Butler
15. Michigan
16. Ohio State
17. Louisville
18. Mississippi State
19. Georgetown
20. Siena

Here’s my story from this morning on Cal’s excitement level in anticipation of playing Thursday at Madison Square Garden.

One correction, though, courtesy of Cal radio man Roxie Bernstein, who reminds me that senior forward Jamal Boykin played at the Garden when he was at Duke.

– Marcus Simmons shows he’s ready to provide USC with an offensive boost.

– Arizona State has its own trip to Madison Square Garden on the calendar, and the Sun Devils are amped.

I’ve been to Allen Fieldhouse in Lawrence, Kan., the Palestra in Philadelphia and Cameron Indoor Stadium at Duke. But Thursday will be my first visit to Madison Square Garden.

Although none of the current Cal players have taken the floor at Madison Square Garden, the Golden Bears have been there before. They’re 4-2 all-time at the famed arena, including three straight victories.

Here’s a summary of the Bears’ history at the Garden:

1946 NCAAs: Ohio State 63, Cal 45 (national third-place game)
1957 Holiday Classic: Cal 60, Dayton 55
                                   Temple 69, Cal 59
                                    Cal 96, NYU 65
1999 NIT:  Cal 85, Oregon 69
                  Cal 61, Clemson 60 (championship game)

Originally opened in 1879, Madison Square Garden is in its fourth incarnation, now located at 8th Ave, between 31st and 33rd streets, above Penn Station.

The facility bills itself as the world’s most famous arena, and it’s hard to argue. Here’s an impressive sampling of events staged at the Garden:

– The first Garden seated 10,000 and held a velodrome for bicycle racing, which was popular at the time. The building also housed the nation’s first indoor ice arena for hockey.

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