Field Level Media
Jan 13, 2019
Arizona junior center Chase Jeter scored a career-high 23 points and pulled down nine rebounds as the Wildcats cruised to an 87-65 victory over California on Saturday night at Berkeley, Calif.
Jeter, a transfer from Duke in his first season of eligibility at Arizona, hit 8 of 11 shots to eclipse his previous scoring best of 21, accomplished twice this season.
Arizona (13-4, 4-0 Pac-12) led by 12 at halftime and was never threatened after the break, going up by as many as 26 points.
Freshman guard Brandon Williams scored 16 points for the Wildcats -- 10 of which came in the first 5:08 of the game. Senior guard Justin Coleman had 13 points and five assists, showing no effects from aggravating a left shoulder injury late in the game against Stanford on Wednesday.
Cal (5-11, 0-4) has lost 11 consecutive regular-season Pac-12 games.
Cal sophomore forward Justice Sueing tied his career high with 27 points on 8-of-13 shooting. Junior guard Paris Austin, who had missed two games because of a sprained ankle, was back in the starting lineup. Austin, averaging a team-high 14.1 points, finished with eight points and two assists.
Arizona, often passive early against Cal's 2-3 zone, endured a stretch of more than eight minutes without a basket in the first half, missing six shots and committing seven turnovers during that stretch. The Wildcats finished the half well, though.
Sophomore guard Brandon Randolph completed a four-point play with 3:31 left for a 10-point lead, which was extended to 40-28 at halftime when Jeter tipped in a missed shot in the final second. Arizona made 8 of 12 shots from the field before halftime.
The Golden Bears entered the game with the worst ranking among teams from the Power 5 conferences (plus the Big East), according to the NCAA's new NET ratings. Cal was 203rd nationally.
The Wildcats have won six consecutive games against the Bears and 10 of the past 11. Arizona also swept the Stanford-Cal conference road trip for the third consecutive season.
Arizona returns home to play Oregon on Thursday night. Cal next plays at Washington State on Thursday.
--Field Level Media