Bears don't throw away victory over Blue Demons

December 3, 11:37 PMCal Bears ExaminerRob Calonge

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Mike Montgomery is bound to be a little mixed emotionally after Cal defeated DePaul 77-67 at home Wednesday night. He's probably happy that the Bears were able to come out on top, but also a little irritated with the sloppy, and sometimes unfocused play of his players during the win.

The Bears turned the ball over 20 times leading to 20 points for the Blue Demons, and let a 16-point rout turn into a slim lead.  In the end, Cal was able to overcome their spotty play and get key scoring at critical moments.  Jerome Randle (24 pts), Patrick Christopher (23 pts), and Jamal Boykin (10 pts) all scored in double-digits.  Jordan Wilkes pulled down 10 rebounds as the Bears were able to out-do the Demons 46-25 for the game.

In a game where the Bears allowed a team to score over 60 points, you wouldn't think that defense was a key for Cal.  It was.  With the Bears down 17-12 at the 11:51 mark, Cal went on a 25-6 run to take a 37-23 lead at the 2:08 mark of the first half.  The Bears went into the locker room in full control and with a 14-point lead at 39-25.  The lead would extend to 41-25, but that's when the Blue Demons came storming back with a trapping defense that harrassed and frustrated Cal.

DePaul would keep chipping away until they were only down by two at the 10:51 point of the second half.  At the 6:29 mark, the Blue Demons would take their final lead with a layup by Dar Tucker, making the score 58-57.  Missed shots, fouls, and turnovers led to a 59-59 tie a minute and a half later, but then Randle got hot from long distance.  Randle hit three important three-point shots in the last 7:44 of the game, each when DePaul was within two points of the lead.

The Bears next face Missouri on the road on Sunday, December 7, in Columbia, MO. at 11am PST.  It will be Cal's first nationally televised game, scheduled to be covered on ESPNU.

	1	2	T
Blue Demons (4-1)	25	42	67
Bears (6-1)	39	38	77

Technicals:
None

Officials:
Mike Littlewood ,Scott Thornley ,Dick Carmell

Attendance:
9,017