On Thursday, Cal men’s basketball lost their first game of Pac-12 play at USC by a final score of 82-73, the exact same score as their previous game against Seattle. Cal sophomore Justice Sueing had his first career double-double with 16 points and 11 rebounds while USC junior Nick Rakocevic had a career-high 27 points to go along with 8 rebounds. USC improves to 8-6 overall and 1-0 in the Pac-12 while Cal falls to 5-8 overall and 0-1 in the Pac-12.
Cal got off to a solid start in this game, leading 12-11 with 11:11 to go in the first half on 6-12 shooting from the field. In his return, Connor Vanover made an impact right away, getting a pretty jump hook to fall within his first couple of minutes on the floor.
However, Cal’s early lead didn’t last long. The Trojans would soon go on a 14-5 run to go up 23-17 with 7:50 to go in the half. Bennie Boatwright started to really heat up for the Trojans, making his first three shots for a total of 7 points. The Trojans would turn that 14-5 run into a 19-5 run, leading 28-17 with 5:35 to go in the half. Cal’s perimeter shooting really struggled up to this point, making just one of their first 10 three-point attempts. On top of that, Cal’s interior defense was nowhere to be found, allowing USC to get easy baskets inside.
To Cal’s credit, they found a way to get themselves back in the game, starting with a couple of 3-pointers from Darius McNeill and Matt Bradley. Cal would close out the half on a 16-9 run to go down 37-33 at halftime. Bennie Boatwright was the top scorer for USC with 10 points at the half while Justice Sueing was the top scorer for Cal with 7 points.
USC came out of halftime on a nice 10-5 run thanks to Nick Rakocevic, who scored 20 of his 27 points in the second half. The Trojans would expand on their 47-38 lead to go up 58-46 with 11:59 to go. USC was shooting 24-44 (54.5%) from the field at this point, getting tons of easy baskets inside thanks to Cal’s poor defensive communication. USC expanded their lead even further, going up 65-50 with 9:19 to go as Nick Rakocevic had 23 points and 4 rebounds on 10-12 shooting from the field.
Down by 15, Cal had to step things up on defense and to their credit, they did improve on the defensive end a bit. Andre Kelly and Justice Sueing both blocked some shots and Cal started to do a better job communicating. Justice Sueing also got a 3-pointer to fall as did Darius McNeill, who made a crucial 3-pointer right before the shot clock expired to trim USC’s lead to eight points (69-61) with 5:18 to go. Cal would continue to fight and get within four points (71-67) with 2:45 to go thanks to a clutch 3-pointer from Connor Vanover and three fouls shots made by Justice Sueing, who was fouled behind the 3-point line. Unfortunately for Cal, that was the closest they would get. Shaqquan Aaron made USC’s first 3-pointer of the second half to go up 74-67 and a basket inside from Nick Rakocevic would be the exclamation point on a Trojans victory.
When looking at this game, it’s clear that Cal’s defense has a lot of issues. Their interior defense at times is non-existent and they too often leave wide open shooters to make uncontested shots. While their offense at times gets stagnant, they’ve shown they have the ability to get buckets. Tonight was a prime example as Justice Sueing (16 points), Matt Bradley (14 points), Paris Austin (13 points), and Connor Vanover (10 points) each scored in double figures. If Cal can figure out how to improve on defense, they’ll have plenty of opportunities to win games in the Pac-12.
One other important note for Cal is the return of Connor Vanover who had 3 rebounds and 3 blocks to go along with his 10 points. Earlier in the week, Cal head coach Wyking Jones told the media his team really needs Vanover back and tonight showed us why. Vanover gave Cal a much needed big body inside and also another offensive weapon who could stretch the floor.
Up next for Cal is a road game at UCLA on Saturday at 1:00 PM PST. That game will also air on Pac-12 Networks.
