That’s 6 In A Row, For Those Of You Still Counting
Six losses in a row now for Ben Braun’s squad. Sure, 5 of them were to nationally-ranked squads, and I didn’t expect the Bears to win any particuar game, but I thought maybe they could pull off one upset somewhere in there. No particular loss in there was crushing, but when 6 of them pile up in a row like that, it gets pretty heavy.
It would be one thing if Cal were getting blown out, but that’s hardly the case. The losses to Oregon, USC, and Washington were all close, and Cal was in every game at halftime. It’s become an all-too familiar script: Cal keeps it close in the first half by hitting some big shots and playing scrapy defense, but then fades in the second, as they can’t quite keep up the effort. Maybe a few sloppy turnovers lets the other team go on a run, or the 3’s stop falling as the shooters tire. This team is one of the best in the nation in free-throw shooting, but with virtually no inside game, they can’t get to the line to take advantage of it. It’s getting pretty predictable. I spent Thursday night flipping between Cal at Washington and the new episode of "The Office", and I mostly ended up sticking with "The Office", because it seemed less scripted and only slightly more cringe-worthy.
The team is understandably frustrated by the losing. Selected quotes following Saturday’s loss at Washington State:
Ryan Anderson : "We need to sit down and wonder where we want to go with the season. We need to play like we did at the beginning of the season. It’s not like we’re not trying."
Ayinde Ubaka : "I’m just mad. I’m just frustrated saying what we should have done or could have done. It is what it is."
Ben Braun : "Ayinde is frustrated … There’s nothing wrong with being upset. There’s no way I’d want a coach or player that didn’t get upset when things don’t go well. I’ve never seen a great player not get upset."
Nice spin, Ben. Clearly, the fight is still there, but you have to wonder for how long. Can Braun keep this team together through the murderer’s row that is the Pac-10 schedule? His job may depend on it. Another player exodus like that which followed the collapse at the end of the ‘04-05 campaign would certainly kill any notion that Braun still has control of the program, and probably lead to his ouster. You don’t want to say that the Bears need to make the postseason for Braun to keep his job, but that may be the case.
How about them postseason prospects? Uncertain, tending towards bleak. The NCAA tournament at this point is a dying dream, and the Bears would likely have to win the Pac-10 tournament to get in. Even the NIT is no sure thing. Just to get eligible, Cal needs to go 4-4 in their last eight games (3-3 in the Pac-10, plus winning the opening round of the tournament). OSU and ASU are certainly beatable, but to get that 4th win, the Bears need to win one of these games:
2/17 - Oregon
2/22 - @ UCLA
2/24 - @ USC
3/1 - Arizona
Cal lost to all of these teams the first time around, but the Oregon and USC games were close. I just don’t see Cal winning at Pauley, and if the Bears get to the last weekend needing to sweep the Arizona schools, something tells me their spirit will have died by then. Realistically, if the Bears are going to pick themselves up off the mat, I’d say this Thursday vs. Oregon is their best shot. Sweep the Oregon schools this week, and you can travel to LA with nothing to lose. Anything less leaves very bleak prospects from here on out.
