Box Score Berkeley, Calif. – Malena Washington registered her 15th double-digit game of the season Sunday at Cal, but the Arizona Wildcats fell to Cal 73-52 at Haas Pavilion.
Washington hit three 3-pointers and scored eight straight points at one point in the first half, but Cal used a huge fourth quarter performance to notch the win. Leading just 52-45 heading into the fourth, the Golden Bears erupted, thanks to a hot stretch from the field.
The Golden Bears opened up the fourth quarter on a 9-0 run to break open a close game and take control. Cal hit its first four shots of the fourth and seven of its first 11. Arizona entered the fourth quarter shooting 50 percent (20-40), but opened the frame 3 of 9.
“In the fourth quarter, we had way too many turnovers and we fouled too much,” coach Niya Butts said. “I thought we were very competitive in the first half and had some good moments, but we need that all game.”
Arizona (11-15, 2-12 Pac-12) shot 46 percent from the field in the first half, hitting 12 of 26 shots and trailed by three, 31-28. The Cats posted nine assists on their 12 made buckets and forced 10 Cal turnovers. Arizona also outscored Cal in bench points 11-2 and fast break points 6-0.
Washington led the Cats in the first with eight points, scoring them all over a one minute stretch in the second quarter. It included two 3-pointers and a driving layup. Freshman Michal Miller and junior LaBrittney Jones each had five points and Destiny Graham and Keyahndra Cannon led the team with three rebounds apiece.
Trailing 12-8 in the first quarter, Arizona got back-to-back buckets from A'Shanti Coleman and Lauren Evans to tie the game up. Cal hit a 3 at the buzzer to take a 15-12 lead after the opening quarter.
Arizona quickly responded, scoring the first five points of the second quarter to take a 17-12 lead. Miller hit a 3-pointer and Jones followed with a bucket in the paint. After Cal (12-13, 3-11) cut it to three, Washington went on her spurt to score eight straight Wildcat points. Cal had a jumper in the middle, but when Washington hit a 3-pointer with 4:47 left in the half, it gave Arizona a 25-19 lead, which was its largest of the first half.
Cal eventually tied the game at 27 with 2:02 left in the half and took its 31-28 lead into halftime.
The Golden Bears outscored the Wildcats 21-17 in the third, before their big fourth quarter.
Washington finished 5 of 10 from the floor and 3 of 6 from 3-point range. She finished with 13 points in 29 minutes.
“Malena knocked down some shots for us and played hard,” Butts said. “She's a tough player.”
Jones finished with 12 points, three rebounds and the 96th block of her career. Fellow junior Breanna Workman had eight points in 25 minutes. Freshman Michal Miller had seven points in 16 minutes to go with three assists. Destiny Graham, also a freshman, had five rebounds one game after totaling eight at Stanford.
For the game, Arizona shot 44 percent (24 of 55) and outscored Cal in fast break points (10-0) and bench points (19-10). Arizona also forced 19 turnovers from Cal.
The Wildcats will return to McKale Center for their final two home games of the season next. The Cats will open with a Friday night matchup with Washington, before finishing with Washington State on Sunday. The game against the Huskies is set for 7 p.m., and will be live streamed on Pac-12.com.
