On Sunday at 11:00 AM PST, Cal women's basketball will take on Colorado on Pac-12 Networks Mountain. Cal comes into this game 12-14 overall and 3-12 in Pac-12 play. As for Colorado, they are just 6-20 overall and 1-14 in Pac-12 play. I will get this game hub rolling with five things to look for going into this game.
#1. How big of an impact will Jamee Swan make? When Cal and Colorado faced off in Haas Pavilion, Cal won by a dominating score of 64-35. A big reason for Cal's domination was the absence of Colorado's leading scorer Jamee Swan, a senior forward who is one of the best players in the Pac-12. Swan is averaging 13.9 points and 6.8 rebounds per game, providing the Buffs with a solid presence in the paint. Even though statistically, her numbers don't make up for a 29 point deficit, her presence should make an impact on this game and make things tougher on the Bears than in their previous meeting.
#2. Will Cal have the energy to play for 40 minutes at high elevation? If you were to ask Coach Gottlieb whether or not elevation will play a factor in this game, she wouldn't make much of a deal of it or any deal of it for that matter. Cuonzo Martin brushed it off when I asked him about it earlier this year, but in truth, elevation is a factor. There's a reason the Utah Jazz and Denver Nuggets have great home records year in and year out. It's the altitude.
With Cal having so few bodies, it will be tough for them to keep their energy level up for 40 minutes in even higher altitude than Salt Lake City. But, will that make a decisive impact on this game? Probably not. Colorado will still have to play good basketball to win this game. They can't rely on altitude alone.
#3. Kristine Anigwe needs more help: Cal can't win this game if it's just Kristine Anigwe going off. She needs Mikayla Cowling, Courtney Range, and Asha Thomas to play well in order to lead her team to victory. If Cal has their "core four" playing well in this game, they'll probably be too much for the Buffs to handle. If on the other hand, Cal only has Kristine Anigwe show up and one other player kinda show up, then this game could be close.
#4. Cal needs to make their foul shots and take care of the ball: What Cal did well at on Friday is taking care of the ball and making their foul shots. They did better than Utah in these departments and against an even weaker Colorado team, if Cal does as well at these two things as they did on Friday, odds are very good they win this game.
#5. Cal has to rebound better than they did on Friday: Utah won the battle on the glass on Friday and that in essence is why Cal lost. If Cal had controlled the glass better in addition to taking care of the ball and making their foul shots, Cal would have easily won. If Cal takes care of the ball, makes their foul shots, and controls the glass, there is really no way they lose this game. In order for this to happen, Penina Davidson has to come up big and play well for four quarters as opposed to playing well for a half. Once again, she could be an x-factor in this game. If she plays well, that could make the difference in the game.
Prediction: This is a tricky game to predict since Cal destroyed Colorado at home, but that was a long time ago and Colorado was without their best player. Cal doesn't seem poised to blow out a team on the road and yet Colorado has been terrible all season. I think Cal wins this game, but it won't be a blowout like last time. Cal will win this game 65-60. It'll be a somewhat close game, but Cal will find a way to get the win due to having more talent and weapons. Plus, Cal played Utah pretty tough on Friday, which gives me hope that this time around against a weaker opponent, they'll find a way to get it done.
#1. How big of an impact will Jamee Swan make? When Cal and Colorado faced off in Haas Pavilion, Cal won by a dominating score of 64-35. A big reason for Cal's domination was the absence of Colorado's leading scorer Jamee Swan, a senior forward who is one of the best players in the Pac-12. Swan is averaging 13.9 points and 6.8 rebounds per game, providing the Buffs with a solid presence in the paint. Even though statistically, her numbers don't make up for a 29 point deficit, her presence should make an impact on this game and make things tougher on the Bears than in their previous meeting.
#2. Will Cal have the energy to play for 40 minutes at high elevation? If you were to ask Coach Gottlieb whether or not elevation will play a factor in this game, she wouldn't make much of a deal of it or any deal of it for that matter. Cuonzo Martin brushed it off when I asked him about it earlier this year, but in truth, elevation is a factor. There's a reason the Utah Jazz and Denver Nuggets have great home records year in and year out. It's the altitude.
With Cal having so few bodies, it will be tough for them to keep their energy level up for 40 minutes in even higher altitude than Salt Lake City. But, will that make a decisive impact on this game? Probably not. Colorado will still have to play good basketball to win this game. They can't rely on altitude alone.
#3. Kristine Anigwe needs more help: Cal can't win this game if it's just Kristine Anigwe going off. She needs Mikayla Cowling, Courtney Range, and Asha Thomas to play well in order to lead her team to victory. If Cal has their "core four" playing well in this game, they'll probably be too much for the Buffs to handle. If on the other hand, Cal only has Kristine Anigwe show up and one other player kinda show up, then this game could be close.
#4. Cal needs to make their foul shots and take care of the ball: What Cal did well at on Friday is taking care of the ball and making their foul shots. They did better than Utah in these departments and against an even weaker Colorado team, if Cal does as well at these two things as they did on Friday, odds are very good they win this game.
#5. Cal has to rebound better than they did on Friday: Utah won the battle on the glass on Friday and that in essence is why Cal lost. If Cal had controlled the glass better in addition to taking care of the ball and making their foul shots, Cal would have easily won. If Cal takes care of the ball, makes their foul shots, and controls the glass, there is really no way they lose this game. In order for this to happen, Penina Davidson has to come up big and play well for four quarters as opposed to playing well for a half. Once again, she could be an x-factor in this game. If she plays well, that could make the difference in the game.
Prediction: This is a tricky game to predict since Cal destroyed Colorado at home, but that was a long time ago and Colorado was without their best player. Cal doesn't seem poised to blow out a team on the road and yet Colorado has been terrible all season. I think Cal wins this game, but it won't be a blowout like last time. Cal will win this game 65-60. It'll be a somewhat close game, but Cal will find a way to get the win due to having more talent and weapons. Plus, Cal played Utah pretty tough on Friday, which gives me hope that this time around against a weaker opponent, they'll find a way to get it done.
