BearTalk

ESPN bracketologist Joe Lunardi, the man who never sleeps, has posted his first NCAA tournament projections for 2013. No kidding.

Lunardi has Cal as a No. 12 seed again, and once more envisions the Bears heading to Dayton, Ohio for a “First Four” matchup against Colorado State.

Four Pac-12 teams are in Lunardi’s 2013 projected field, also including Arizona as a No. 5 seed, UCLA as a No. 6 and Stanford at No. 10.

His four No. 1 seeds are Indiana, Kentucky, Kansas and Louisville.

Elsewhere . . .

   – In case you missed it, Cal will play next season in the Anaheim Classic, an eight-team event that runs Nov. 22-23-25 at the Anaheim Convention Center. Pairings are yet to be announced, but the field includes Saint Mary’s and Xavier. Also confirmed is Rice, led by former Cal coach Ben Braun, so there are some enticing matchups possible.

   — Former Cal star Ryan Anderson, picking up the slack with Dwight Howard sidelined by a back injury, had 26 points and 16 rebounds as the Orlando Magic beat the Philadelphia 76ers 113-100.  It was Anderson’s 13th double-double this season.

   — Former USF forward Perris Blackwell, who averaged 12.7 points and 6.1 rebounds this past season, has transferred to Washington. The 6-foot-9, 240-pounder will sit out the 2012-13 season and play his senior year in 2013-14.

The Cal women were knocked out of the NCAA tournament by top-seeded Notre Dame, falling 73-62 after playing the host team to a halftime standoff.

Layshia Clarendon, the all-Pac-12 junior guard, had 17 points but the Bears (25-10) sabotated themselves with 19 turnovers.

Rashanda Gray had 15 points off the bench for Cal.

“I think Notre Dame feeds of the crowds and gets better. I didn’t feel like our mistakes came from panic. I think it came when the other team was able to do things that rattle you,” said Cal coach Lindsay Gottlieb, whose team had 12 second-half turnovers after fighting the Irish to a 31-all standoff at the break.

“There is no question we got a little bit rattled and made some mistakes that changed the tempo of the game at the beginning of the second half.”

Notre Dame scored 24 points off Cal turnovers.

Natalie Novosel made 18 of 20 free throws and led the Irish (32-3) with 28 points. All-America point guard Skylar Diggins scored 21 points.

TIPOFF: No. 8 seed Cal (25-9, 13-5 Pac-12) vs. No. 1 Notre Dame (31-3, 15-1 Big East) in NCAA tournament second-round game at South Bend, Ind., Tuesday, 4 p.m. TV: ESPN2.

GAME THEME: The Bears hope to advance to the Sweet 16 round of the NCAA tournament for the first time since 2009. Cal will have to hurdle top-seeded Notre Dame on its home floor, where the Irish are 16-1 this season. The Bears and Irish have met just once, with Notre Dame posting a 62-59 victory in a 2007 NCAA first-round game at Pittsburgh. 

NOTES: The Irish feature 5-foot-9 junior guard Skylar Diggins (16.7 ppg, 3.1 rpg, 5.7 apg, 2.6 steals), one of the nation’s top all-around players. Diggins has totaled more than 400 points, 100 assists and 75 steals three seasons in a row . . . Notre Dame’s only losses were to Baylor, West Virginia and UConn . . . Notre Dame beat Liberty 74-43 on its first-round game . . . Cal advanced to the second round with an 84-74 win over Iowa in which junior guard Layshia Clarendon had 16 points and freshman guard Brittany Boyd had 15 points, eight assists, six rebounds and six steals. Her eight assists were the most-ever by a Cal player in an NCAA game.

The Cal women got 16 points from junior guard Layshia Clarendon and 15 points, eight assists and six steals from freshman Brittany Boyd in an 84-74 victory over Iowa in an opening-round NCAA tournament game at South Bend., Ind.

The eighth-seeded Bears (25-9) will take on top seed Notre Dame (31-3) on its home floor in a second-round game Tuesday.

Cal outrebounded Iowa 41-29 and had 19 offensive boards.

Pfft . . . well, that was fast. Goodbye to the Pac-12 in the NCAA tournament . . .

   – Baylor 80, Colorado 63: The Pac-12 tournament champion Buffaloes (24-12) were outscored 43-28 in the second half by the third-seeded Bears (29-7). Brady Heslip hit nine 3-pointers and scored 27 points to lead Baylor. Freshman guard Askia Booker led Colorado with 15 points.

TIPOFF: No. 8 seed Cal (24-9, 13-5 Pac-12) vs. No. 9 Iowa (19-11, 11-5 Big Ten) in NCAA tournament at South Bend, Ind., Sunday, 9:10 a.m. TV: ESPN2.

Click here for the game advance on our website and in Sunday’s editions.

GAME THEME: The Bears make their eighth all-time venture into the NCAA tournament under first-year coach Lindsay Gottlieb. Cal last played in the NCAAs in 2009, when it made it to the regional semifinals . . . The winner of the Cal-Iowa game advances to a Tuesday second-round game vs. either No. 1 seeded Notre Dame (30-3) or Liberty (24-8).

NOTES: None of the players on Cal’s roster have played in an NCAA tournament game, but four were on the 2010 team that won the NIT crown . . . The Bears and Hawkeyes have met twice, with Cal winning both times, in 1982 and 2009 . . . Cal is 1-1 this season against teams from the Big Ten, beating Illinois 80-56 and losing to Ohio State 77-75 . . . Iowa has not played since March 2. The Bears have had four games since then, winning two and losing two (both to Stanford).

A Pac-12 newcomer keeps the conference alive in the NCAA tournament . . .

   – Colorado 68, UNLV 64: The Buffaloes (24-11) gave away most of a 20-point lead, but held on to knock of the sixth-seeded Runnin’ Rebels (26-9) at Albuquerque, N.M. Askia Booker scored 16 points off the bench for CU while Austin Dufault had 14 points and Andre Roberson had 12 points and 16 rebounds. UNLV shot 32 percent.

South Florida routs Cal

FINAL SCORE: South Florida 65, Cal 54. Obviously nowhere near as close as the final score. The biggest USF lead was 32 points. Kamp finished with 19 points, Gutierrez had 11 points and six assists and Crabbe had 10 points and eight rebounds. Bears finish 24-10. USF (21-11) advances to play Temple on Friday in Nashville. I come home.

3:35 2nd H: USF leads 61-38. At least the Bears have topped the 37 points they scored against WSU back in 1988.

15:14 2nd H: No miracle comeback coming in the building where BYU rallied from 25 points down against Iona the night before. South Florida leads 45-20. Kamp doing all he can. Everyone else is powerless. Obviously, what everyone has been saying about the Pac-12 is true.

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Five keys to a Cal victory over South Florida:

– Start strong. Cal has won just once in its past four games. The Bears need some early positive feedback to provide confidence and momentum.

– Follow the leaders. Seniors Jorge Gutierrez and Harper Kamp know this could be their final game. They looked at peace with things Tuesday and will be ready to play tonight. Freshman David Kravish has never been on a stage like this. He needs to keep an eye on Kamp.

– Get a good perimeter game from Allen Crabbe. The Bears won’t easily score inside or in transition against this team. They need to make some 3-pointers. If Crabbe hits three or more, the Bears have a chance.

– Do not fall behind by double digits. Because of the pace USF plays, a 10-point deficit feels like 20 or 25, according to Villanova coach Jay Wright.

– Score at least 65 points. The Bears are 21-5 when they reach 65; the Bulls 3-5 when they allow that many.

President Barack Obama did not pick between Cal and South Florida in the NCAA tournament bracket he completed for ESPN, but has the winner of tonight’s First Four game losing to Temple on Friday.

He also picked Purdue to eliminate Saint Mary’s.

Guess he figures he’s already got the Blue State votes.

Here is the President’s full bracket.