Aztecs Edge Bears in San Diego
SAN DIEGO (AP) -- Four days after blowing a 17-point first-half lead and losing by two points at home to Creighton, Chase Tapley and the San Diego State Aztecs came up big in outlasting No. 24 California.
Advertisement
Tapley scored 25 points, including two free throws with 8.6 seconds left, to lead the Aztecs to a 64-63 victory Sunday, their second win over the Golden Bears in as many seasons.
"It's a crazy game that we play," SDSU coach Steve Fisher said. "I remember the feeling I had after Creighton, and we played every bit as hard as we did today. But today we found a way to make one extra play, one more play, and be euphoric as we raced to the locker room. This was a really great win for us. To a man, everybody who played made plays that won for us."
San Diego State (8-2) beat California 77-57 last season in Berkeley. This was San Diego State's second win against a ranked Pac-12 team this season and its third overall against the more glamorous conference. The Aztecs beat then-No. 23 Arizona 61-57 at Tucson on Nov. 23. They also beat USC 56-54 at home on Nov. 17.
"This was terrific. But we expected to win. We thought we would win. We thought we were the better team, and I think that's significant, also," said Fisher, whose Aztecs were ranked in The Associated Press Top 25 all last season but have yet to crack this season's poll.
Tapley said the loss to Creighton "gave us the mental toughness that we have to have at the end of the game. We can't play 34 minutes, 20 minutes. We've got to play the whole 40 minutes."
Tapley had a rebound with 20 seconds left and fed Jamaal Franklin, who was fouled and made both shots for a 62-58 lead. Cal's Justin Cobbs -- who started as part of a four-guard lineup necessitated by the suspension of sophomore big man Richard Solomon -- made a layup with 9.2 seconds left before Tapley was fouled and hit both free throws to give the Aztecs a four-point lead. The Bears' sophomore wing Allen Crabbe made a 3-pointer with 2.1 seconds for the final margin.
"We just needed a rebound at the end," said Cal coach Mike Montgomery, who's team fell to 6-2. "We needed a stop, really, and couldn't rebound the ball. Critical."
The Aztecs made 9 of 10 free throws over the final 2:21. Tapley had 10 of SDSU's final 21 points.
Crabbe scored 23 points and Cobbs had 17 for the Golden Bears, who were without sophomore forward Solomon, who was suspended indefinitely on Friday because of conduct contrary to athletic department values. Solomon is averaging 6.0 points and a team-leading 7.3 rebounds.
Cal led only once in the second half, 51-50, after Crabbe's layup with 6:31 left.
On the Bears' next possession, Tapley intercepted Cobbs' alley-oop pass on a 3-on-1 break, then went down the court and made a layup for a 52-51 lead with 5:50 to go.
"Was that ever sensational?" Fisher said. "Chase has done a phenomenal job of anticipation, alertness, experience, setting people up. It's almost like he baited that play to be made. He got down low, knowing that he was going to tease him to try to throw the lob. Made a phenomenal play."
Tapley said the Aztecs needed something to happen then.
"My first instinct was try to get a foul without getting an intentional foul," Tapley said. "I said, `Hey, you know what, why don't you just get a steal.' So I backed up, saw he was about to throw it, looked into his eyes, and as soon as it left his hands I jumped and tipped the ball and I went down and tried to score."
Said Cobbs: "Coming down, that is automatic. As a point guard, you have to make the right pass and I didn't. I cost my team. As a point guard, you can't let that happen."
The Aztecs stayed in front the rest of the way.
Cobbs missed shots on consecutive possessions, including a coast-to-coast attempt when he fell to the court and remained there while Franklin got the rebound. Tapley finished that possession with a 17-foot jumper for a 55-51 lead with 4:20 left. Cobbs was hurt on the play and had to be helped to the bench as his calves visibly cramped up.
Crabbe then hit a 3-pointer for Cal.
The Aztecs went on an 8-0 run to close the first half and take a 33-25 lead. James Rahon had consecutive jumpers before Tapley had a steal and a layup. Franklin made two free throws to finish he run.
Cal erased most of that deficit in the first two minutes of the second half when senior Jorge Gutierrez made a bank shot and Cobbs hit a 3-pointer.
After Cal tied it at 40 on true freshman David Kravish's jumper, Xavier Thames hit a 3-pointer for SDSU.