On Thursday, November 3rd, Cal defeated Cal Baptist 81-73 in their exhibition game at Haas Pavilion. Grant Mullins finished with 16 points, 7 rebounds, and 2 assists to lead the Golden Bears while Kameron Rooks finished with 16 points and 8 rebounds.
“It was great because you finally go through all of the summer work-outs and all of the preseasons so it’s good to finally get into a real game and see what all of that hard work goes into,” said Mullins after the game. “I still think we have a lot of stuff to fine tune, but it was just really fun to get out there with all of the guys and see what you’ve been working on for so long.”
Grant Mullins really played a sound and clean basketball game. He shot 6-11 from the field, 3-6 from 3-point range, and he had 0 turnovers. He played the kind of game that Cal wants to see from him every night. He appears to be more or less spot on with his comments. It was a good tune up against a quality Division II opponent and a chance for them to get a feel for each other. Especially with Ivan Rabb out.
“Obviously he’s such a threat on offense, but at the same time everybody on the team is unselfish and moves the ball, so he’s just another great option we have on offense,” said Kameron Rooks about Ivan Rabb’s absence. “Like when we went to Bird a lot, I’m sure we would have done that with him a little more as well.”
Ivan Rabb sat out Thursday’s contest due to a foot injury that he sustained in a scrimmage. Cuonzo Martin said post-game that he is day-to-day with the hope that he’ll be ready to roll next Friday in the regular season opener against the South Dakota State.
As far as other key notes from this game, Stephen Domingo got off to a hot start, going on his own personal 8-0 run in the first half and making 4 consecutive shots to start the game. He finished with 12 points and 6 rebounds on 5-8 shooting from the field and 2-5 shooting from 3-point range. Cuonzo Martin and other members of the team have been talking up Stephen Domingo’s shooting prowess during the past few weeks. Domingo certainly delivered on that front.
As for Charlie Moore, he had a quality first game, scoring 9 points on 6-7 shooting from the foul line and just 1-5 shooting from the field. It should be noted that his lone field goal was a clutch 3-point shot to close out the half, so it was nice to see him already feel comfortable taking big shots.
Lastly, Kameron Rooks was huge as his stat line indicates. He had 16 points, 8 rebounds, and controlled the paint, blocking 2 shots and making his presence felt in the middle.
Overall, tonight was a good night for Cal even though the scoreboard may not reflect that. They learned how to play without one of their two star players and two players who they need quality production from stepped up and led the charge.
