In the Paint with Mike Lucas: Cal
December 20, 2014 | Mike Lucas
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Dec. 20, 2014
BY MIKE LUCAS
UWBadgers.com
MADISON, Wis. -- Wisconsin assistant coach Gary Close has some distant memories from Berkeley, Calif., and ancient Haas Pavilion, the home court of the Cal Bears. During the mid-80's when Close was a member of Dr. Tom Davis' staff at Stanford, he got an up-close feel for the Bay Area rivalry between the Bears and Cardinal, an intense rivalry that extends well beyond football and the "Big Game."
In particular, Close remembered how challenging it was for a road team to win at Haas Pavilion, an 11,877-seat venue which will turn 82 in January. On Monday, the Badgers will find out for themselves when they play at Cal for the first time in 49 years. The Bears have won 17 straight home games against non-conference opponents. And dating back to last season, they've won 10 in a row overall in Berkley.
"It will be a tough place to play and the officiating probably won't be great, I can almost guarantee that," said Close, who was at Stanford for three seasons before accompanying Davis to the University of Iowa. "The Stanford-Cal basketball game was just like the football game. It was a big deal, just like Marquette-Wisconsin, and any typical geographical rivalry, it was a big rivalry."
Back then, when Close was on the Cardinal bench, Cal was led by a creative point guard named Kevin Johnson who was the first player to have his jersey number (11) retired by the Bears. Johnson went on to a stellar 12-year career in the NBA before moving into politics. He's currently the mayor of Sacramento, Calif. Decades later; there has not been a drop-off at point guard with Tyrone Wallace.
"Wallace is a pro; he's a player; he might be the best guard we play all year," Close said. "He can score every way imaginable but he's unselfish. He finds guys; he's the real deal. They run a lot of sets and they will run him off ball screens; they'll let him go one-on-one; they'll run him at the post a little bit; they'll drive him off screens. He's a very impressive player and he really makes them go."
Wallace leads the Bears in scoring with a 19.5 average; he has scored 20 or more points six times, including 21 in Friday night's 78-67 win over Eastern Washington. With 11 rebounds, it also marked his fourth double-double of the season. He had a career-high 15 boards against Montana on Dec. 3. Wallace, who has started 36 straight games, also leads the team in assists (48) and steals (14).
"He's definitely a matchup nightmare," said UW guard Josh Gasser, who noted that the 6-foot-5, 200-pound Wallace is much taller and longer and physical than most conventional point guards. "He does everything for them; he has the ball in his hands a lot and he's creating; he'll challenge us."
Two years ago, Wallace came off the bench for Cal when the Bears faced the Badgers at the Kohl Center. He played 27 minutes and failed to make a shot from the field (0-6). But he did have five rebounds, three assists and two steals. That Cal team was led by Allen Crabbe who had 25 points against Wisconsin in a losing cause. Crabbe is now with the Portland Trail Blazers in the NBA.
"They're a different team now," Close said, "in terms of what they do and how they play."
In 2012, Wisconsin shot 52 percent from the field, put four players in double-figures (Ben Brust, 22; Jared Berggren, 18; Ryan Evans, 13; Sam Dekker, 10) and overwhelmed the Bears, 81-56, in Madison. Cal was guilty of 23 turnovers which the Badgers converted into 25 points. "That was a different (Cal) team and we got them pretty good," Gasser said. "They'll be ready for us this time."
The biggest difference is in the coaching: Cuonzo Martin has taken over the Cal program from Mike Montgomery. And it's hard to imagine anyone getting off to a faster start. In fact, the Bears are 10-1 matching their best start in 55 years or since the late Pete Newell was the coach. (Newell won a national championship in 1959 and the Bears finished as the runner-up to Ohio State in 1960.)
Martin has spent the past three seasons at Tennessee where he guided the Vols into the Sweet 16 of the NCAA tournament. Badger fans will remember Martin from his playing days under Gene Keady at Purdue. He was a first-team All-Big Ten selection in 1995 when he averaged 18 points. Martin, a proficient 3-point scorer, had a brief NBA career which included a stint with the Milwaukee Bucks.
Assisting Martin is none other than Tracy Webster, one of the all-time fan favorites in Madtown. Webster, a stylish point guard, finished his UW career with 501 assists and a 14.4 scoring average. "Tracy has some good guards to work with now," Close said. "One guy (Wallace, a junior from Bakersfield, Calif.) is legit and the other two guys are young but could be."
Complementing Wallace in the Cal backcourt have been Jordan Matthews (6-3, 205), a sophomore from San Francisco; and Jabari Bird (6-6, 190), a sophomore from Richmond, Calif. Matthews is the second-leading scorer with a 13-point average. Bird has missed the last five games with a foot injury. His replacement, Sam Singer (6-4, 204), had a career-high 15 points against Eastern Washington.
"You start with their guards," Close said of his scouting report on the Bears. "They can score; they can attack; they can shoot the 3. They will use a little bit of ball pressure but not as much as you might expect from him (Martin) having played at Purdue. It could change."
Cal is much different in one aspect from the Oregon team that the Badgers beat in last season's Final Four run. "These guys are much more committed to playing defense," Close said. "Their defense is good; the numbers they've put up so far are very strong. Their interior players aren't as athletic as Oregon's but their guards are. Cal has got a chance to be playing in March for sure."
Opponents are averaging just 59.4 points against Cal, the lowest mark in more than 50 years. The Bears have size in their guards and a matchup in the paint for Frank Kaminsky in 6-10, 240-pound center David Kravish, who has 102 career starts and 197 career blocks, just 10 shy of the school record.
"To play a true road game in a hostile environment is definitely going to test where we are and I'm excited for it," Gasser said. "Instead of having 18,000 people on your side, you have zero. It's 16 guys and coaches against everyone else in the building. We've got to take care of it (business) ourselves."
