Cal Basketball: Bears Take 2023 National Finalist San Diego State to OT Before Falling

Golden Bears return home after three in SoCal, will host Santa Clara next Saturday.

Cal took a 2023 national championship game participant to overtime on Saturday and even after a 76-67 defeat, that represented significant progress for a program that won three games all last season.

The Bears battled back from a 12-point deficit midway through the second half against San Diego State at the SoCal Showcase in San Juan Capistrano and had a chance to take the lead with in the final 30 seconds of regulation.

But guard Jalen Cone missed a 3-point shot with 26 seconds left and the Aztecs (5-1) never trailed in overtime.

San Diego State coach Brian Dutcher, whose team lost to UConn in last year’s national title game, came away impressed by the Bears.

“Cal is very talented. They’re learning lessons, too,” said Dutcher, whose Aztecs beat Saint Mary’s by 25 points a week ago. “They’re a very good team but unfortunately they’re losing one-possession games at the end and that’s hard.

“They come out and fight every day . . . and when they get fully healthy they’re going to be a really dangerous team. They were dangerous tonight and we were fortunate to win.”

Jaylon Tyson scored 23 points for the Bears (2-5), who have dropped four in a row, the previous three by three points apiece.

Fardaws Aimaq had 14 points and 18 rebounds.

“Aimaq is a monster in there rebounding the ball. He gets a hand on it and it’s his,” Dutcher said.

“Fardaws is as tough as they come,” first-year Cal coach Mark Madsen said.

Madsen saw progress in the Bears, who return home to face Santa Clara next Saturday.

Cal outrebounded the Aztecs 52-38, turned the ball over just 14 times in an overtime contest and held Aztecs star Jaedon LeDee to 19 points — eight under his NCAA-leading average of 26.8.

“I was proud of our guys in terms of how hard we played, in that we cut down the turnovers, we guarded them. We had a chance to win,” Madsen said.

“We had an open shot to win it late game and it didn’t go in. But we’ll take that shot all day, every day. We got better tonight as we rebuild this program.”

Grant Newell added 11 points and eight rebounds and Cone had eight points (but shot 2 for 14), six rebounds and five assists. Freshman guard Rodney Brown Jr. shot 3-for-3 on 3’s, including two in a row in the final 5 minutes of regulation as the Bears assembled a 9-0 run.

Aimaq capped that stretch by making the second of two free throws to tie the score at 63-all with 1:41 left. Neither team scored again in regulation.

Cal actually held the Aztecs without a field goal for the final 10:30 of the second half the first 2:05 of the extra period — a total stretch of 12:35. But SDSU stayed in it at the free throw line and by game’s end was 32 for 37 at the foul line.

Cover photo of Cal's Jaylon Tyson by CK Hicks, KLC fotos

Follow Jeff Faraudo of Cal Sports Report on Twitter: @jefffaraudo