On Sunday, Cal women’s basketball defeated Beijing Normal University 95-77 in their first of two exhibitions before the regular season officially begins. Freshman forward Evelien Lutje Schipholt (18 points and 11 rebounds) and freshman guard Leilani McIntosh (19 points and 5 steals) led Cal while Zhang Jingyi led Beijing with 27 points.
“I expected us to play hard and have a lot of energy and I thought we did that for the most part,” Cal head coach Charmin Smith said after the game. “We had a few lulls there where we weren’t as vocal, but overall it’s the energy and the effort that we’re looking for right now and I think we got that.”
One of the key things to look for going into this game for Cal was who new head coach Charmin Smith would have as her starters. She opted to roll with an interesting combination of youth and veteran leadership: Freshman guard Leilani McIntosh, redshirt senior guard Sara Anastasieska, junior forward Alaysia Styles, senior forward Jaelyn Brown, and redshirt senior center Chen Yue.
“I’m not sure, exactly,” Smith said of what her starting lineup will look like going forward. “I told them it’s not really set. We’ve got a really young team and we’ve got a team in which no one other than Jaelyn Brown has been a starter before, right? So, we’re still figuring out roles and how people are comfortable and what’s best for the team. So, we still have some work to do around that.”
Early on, Beijing Normal University gave Cal a good test, leading 9-7 with 5:00 to gin in the first half. Zhang had 6 of Beijing’s first 9 points while McIntosh had 5 points for Cal. Beijing continued to extend their lead 15-10 with 3:00 to go in the first quarter as Zhang was up to 12 points on 5-5 shooting from the field and 2-2 shooting from beyond the arc. She was on fire and Cal wasn’t doing much to stop her. At the end of the first quarter, Beijing Normal University led 21-17 as Zhang was up to 15 points on 6-6- shooting from the field and 3-3- shooting from beyond the arc. Cal’s defense was a major issue early on and it reflected in the score.
With 6:50 to go in the second quarter, Beijing Normal University was up 24-21, shooting 8-15 (53.3%) from the field while Cal was shooting 8-29 (27.6%) from the field. Beijing did a good job of converting open looks while Cal missed a ton of looks, especially around the basket. A major reason for that was the presence of Liu Yutong, who was the biggest player on the floor. Her interior defense was sensational and made things very difficult for Cal inside.
During the rest of the second quarter, Cal finally came alive, outscoring Beijing Normal University 24-13 to go up 45-37 at the half. A major reason for Cal’s second quarter surge was the performance of Lutje Schipholt, who had 14 points and 8 rebounds at the half. She really came alive and gave Cal the boost they needed. As for Zhang, she was up to 15 points on 6-6 shooting from the field and 3-3 shooting from 3-point range.
“So, Evelien was extremely active,” Smith said of Lutje Schipholt’s performance. “She’s a monster on the boards. You know, she’s been a little jittery in practice, so I was really excited to see her come out here and be that impressive. She was six for seven from the field, she took her time and finished around the basket when others were having trouble finishing, so that was really good to see. She’s definitely a bright spot for us moving forward.”
During the third quarter, Cal continued to gain more separation, going up 58-45 with 4:31 to go in the quarter. With 2:00 to go in the quarter, Lutje Schipholt was up to 16 points and 10 rebounds while Zhang was up to 21 points. Both players continued to do a good job of pacing their teams. At the end of the third quarter, Cal was up 66-54, looking like they had finally settled in. They were moving the ball much better, taking better shots, and in general were in a much better flow.
With 4:51 to go in the fourth quarter, Cal led 80-69 as Beijing was not done quite yet. They knocked down an open shot to cut Cal’s lead to 11 points, resulting in Charmin Smith calling a timeout, upset that her team was not playing better defense. Smith’s timeout payed off as Cal finished the game on a 15-8 run, closing it out with a little bit of momentum.
While this game was a chance for Smith and her team to get their feet wet before beginning a new season, this was also a chance for Chen Yue to reconnect with her Chinese culture and heritage. The game meant a lot to her and she was very grateful for the opportunity.
“Yeah, she just thanked her teammates in the locker room, said it was a great experience for her,” Smith said of Chen. “I think it was a really special day and I’m happy that we were able to do this for her.”
As for what we can take away from this game, there’s a lot that Cal needs to work on. The perimeter defense was pretty weak as they allowed Zhang Jingyi to take way too many open threes. On top of that, the offense was stagnant early and that resulted in a game that was closer than it should have been. On the positive side, the freshmen, particularly Lutje Schipholt and McIntosh, looked good. There’s a ton of talented youth on this team and after having an amazing week on the recruiting trail, the future does look bright for this Cal program. What also helps is they’ll get one more exhibition game before the regular season starts, giving them another chance to work out some of the kinks.
“When I first heard I didn’t have a closed scrimmage on the schedule, I was a little frustrated because I wanted to have that behind the scenes experience before I stepped on the sideline for the first time, but in hindsight I’m glad it happened this way,” Smith said. “And so having the two exhibition games will be good for us. It’s in front of fans with the refs calling it just like the way a game will be called, and so I think it will be very beneficial being that we’re all young.”
One quick note is that redshirt junior guard Mi’Cole Cayton did not play as she continues to recover from her knee injury. Smith gave us an update on Cayton after the game:
“So she’s still recovering with her knee and she’s not ready to go yet. So, we just gotta listen to the doctors on that and wait for her body to be ready to get out there and play again. There’s no timeline at this point for her return.”
Up next for Cal is another exhibition against Vanguard University. That game will tipoff on Sunday, November 3rd at 2:00 PM PST at Haas Pavilion. On Saturday, November 2nd at Noon, Cal will also host their annual live practice tipoff event. The event was postponed due to the PG&E power shutoffs.
