Bears Host Hawks for Second Round of NIT
The California Golden Bears will host the Saint Joseph’s Hawks on Sunday night for the second round of the NIT.
An 18 point Haas Pavilion victory on Wednesday night over University Illinois-Chicago (UIC) set the Bears up for the Sunday matchup. UIC hung close in the first half but Cal outscored the Flames 52-38 in the second half thanks in no small part to an impressive performance from Chris Bell who finished the game with 31 points in 31 minutes (10/12 FG, 7/8 3PT). Notably, Justin Pippen had a team-high four of the 10 Bear steals and TT Carr had seven of the 21 total assists.
The huge second half push bodes well for the Bears as the Hawks are coming off a close, compelling upset over the tournament’s number three seed, the Colorado State Rams. The Hawks held a narrow lead at the half, and had an 11 point lead at one point, and withstood a late Rams’ comeback to advance. Critically, Saint Joseph’s turned the ball over 14 times against the Rams.
If the Bears can similarly disrupt the driving/passing lanes, they’ll stand a good chance of winning.
The Hawks’ tend to start four mid-sized guards in conjunction with a 6’10” big man Justice Ajogbor, which again gives the Cal shooters like Bell and John Camden a distinct advantage. That said, Ajogbor averaged over two blocks a game this season and will pose a challenge in the paint for Cal.
If Dai Dai Ames and Justin Pippen can attack the rim early, it will open up more shots for the advantaged Bell and Camden thus benefiting the Cal offense. Somewhat similarly, if Cal can keep active hands in the passing lanes, it’ll behoove them on both ends of the floor.
Saint Joseph’s comes into this matchup on a hot streak, having won seven of the last eight games. Cal struggled towards the end of the season with disappointing losses against Wake Forest at the end of the regular season and Florida State in the first round of ACC tournament.
Similar to the first NIT matchup against UIC, one of the keys to a Bears’ win on Sunday is ball control. In that game, Cal actually lost the turnover battle (16 total compared to the Flames’ 14) but still pulled out the win. A similar ratio will make it difficult for the Bears to pull out a victory.
Additionally, Cal’s been successful this season when they’ve limited opponents on the offense glass which will be a central factor for Sunday’s game. The Hawks are a solid rebounding team, with four players averaging more than four boards a game, and a team season total of 384 offensive rebounds a game. When the Bears have been beat this year, offensive rebounds have played a pivotal role. The extra opportunities naturally give opponents an advantage but it also tends to deflate the Bears, as the offense tends to stagnate and devolve into one-on-one matchups.
Despite the size advantages on the wing, Cal won’t be able to win playing iso-ball and they’ll need good ball movement to capitalize on the matchup advantages.
As such, Cal’s Lee Dort has a chance to make a huge impact in this one. If he’s able to dominate the glass, as he has in several games this season, Cal will likely win the game. Saint Joseph’s attempts a lot of threes, and those long rebounds have troubled the Bears’ this season, as opponents have been able to chase down the ball and earn extra opportunities. If the Bears can’t win the rebounding battle on Sunday, and give up more than eight offensive boards, they’ll have a much harder time pulling out the victory at Haas.
One key matchup to watch will be Ames against Derek Simpson. Simpson has been a stat stuffer for the Hawks this year and has a propensity to attack the rim. Ames has been pretty quiet thus far during Cal’s postseason games, but a big scoring burst from him would relieve some of the pressure on Bell and Camden, and apply some pressure to Simpson.
A win advances Cal to the quarterfinals of the NIT, which would be the last game at Haas Pavilion. The winner of Sunday’s game takes on the winner of New Mexico vs. George Washington next Tuesday or Wednesday. Sunday’s tip-off is at 6 p.m.
