BERKELEY — There’s a distinction in the way in which the Cal girls’s basketball group sees itself this season — and possibly how the Bears’ opponents view them. Coach Charmin Smith mentioned her gamers are embracing these elevated expectations.
“For us, our goal is to make the NCAA Tournament, and that means we have to beat some ranked opponents and protect the home court. We’re doing that,” Smith mentioned after the Twenty fourth-ranked Bears beat Florida State 82-70 on Sunday afternoon in a sport the place they led by 34 factors halfway by means of the third quarter. “We understand there is a target on our back now and sometimes we can be the ones that people are hunting.
“We’re used to hunting and now we can be the hunted.”
At 16-2 total and tied for third place within the Atlantic Coast Convention at 4-1, Cal is off to Its finest begin in 12 seasons. The Golden Bears went after an excellent Florida State squad (13-4, 3-2) with the ferocity of a group nonetheless performing prefer it has one thing to show.
They proved it, holding the nation’s second-highest scoring group 24 factors beneath its season common. Additionally they defanged junior guard Ta’Niya Latson, who arrived at Haas Pavilion because the nation’s prime scorer at 27.7 factors per sport.
Latson had simply three free throws at halftime by which period the Bears had cast a 50-25 lead. She didn’t make her first discipline aim till simply 6:32 was left within the fourth quarter and her 13-point complete had no impression on the sport’s final result. Solely 10 days earlier, Latson scored 40 factors in opposition to Virginia Tech, one in every of her 19 profession video games of a minimum of 30 factors.
Requested to judge a defensive efficiency spearheaded by Lulu Twidale and Jayda Noble, Smith acknowledged, “I’d say I was very impressed.”
Twidale, a sophomore guard from Australia who scored all 19 of her factors within the first half, mentioned the Bears are enjoying with a sturdy confidence nowadays.
“We just came into the game really comfortable,” she mentioned. “We knew what we had to do defensively. We know if we take care of the defensive end, the offensive end will come.”
Senior guard Ioanna Krimili, who scored 18 factors, was a first-year switch from San Francisco a yr in the past when the Bears gained 18 video games however had been 0-9 in opposition to AP Prime 25 opponents.
“This year is a different standard,” Krimili mentioned. “We knew we were going to be good. We’ve been working since the summer, so it’s not something that’s happened overnight.”
Ending the job within the shut video games is the most important distinction Smith sees. The Bears didn’t all the time get that finished a yr in the past, however this season, they personal shut ranked wins over Alabama (4 factors) and North Carolina State (seven factors) earlier this week.
“This year we’re able to get the wins,” mentioned Smith, whose squad improved to 11-0 at residence. “We have some returners and such, but it’s just a completely different team, a completely different feel, a completely different vibe.”
The Bears, chasing their first NCAA Event bid since 2019, return to motion Thursday at No. 14 Duke (13-4, 4-1).
“Our coaches will give us a good scout, so we know what we’ve got to do when we go there,” Twidale mentioned. “Our confidence level will stay how it is.”
Initially Revealed: January 12, 2025 at 5:31 PM PST
