Cal grinds past Wazzu
BERKELEY, Calif. (AP) - California head coach Mike Montgomery isn't going to make any apologies for the way his team has to grind out games these days.
With little scoring punch beyond the tandem of Allen Crabbe and Justin Cobbs, it's the way the Golden Bears are going to have to do things.
Tyrone Wallace scored a season-high 16 points, Cobbs made six free throws in the final two minutes and California played solid defense in the second half to overcame a sloppy offensive performance and beat Washington State 67-54 on Saturday.
The Bears (10-6, 2-2 Pac-12) won despite committing 19 turnovers, giving up 21 offensive rebounds and being held without a basket over the final 4:59.
"Get used to it fellas, it ain't changing," Montgomery said of his team's style. "We have to do what we have to do. We're not going to go out there and all of a sudden turn into the '76 Knicks. It's just not happening."
Cal shot well when it could hold onto the ball but had trouble getting the ball inside and couldn't run its offense consistently enough.
That allowed Washington State (9-7, 0-3) to stick close deep into the second half until the Bears went 11 of 12 at the free-throw line down the stretch to seal the win.
Cobbs finished with 10 points, five assists and five rebounds for the Bears, who won for just the fourth time in 10 games after opening the season 6-0.
It definitely wasn't pretty, though Wallace managed to stand out after being pulled from the starting lineup for missing the morning shootaround.
Wallace, a freshman who had been shut out in his previous two games at Haas Pavilion, had seven points in the first half but did his most effective work down the stretch.
"We're aware of how good a player he is," Washington State head coach Ken Bone said of Wallace. "They're more than just Cobbs and Crabbe. They showed that tonight with Wallace."
The Cougars host Utah on Wednesday.
WASHINGTON ST. (9-7)
Motum 5-14 4-6 16, Shelton 0-4 1-4 1, Ladd 5-15 2-4 12, Lacy 0-0 1-4 1, Woolridge 5-14 1-1 12, Leavitt 0-0 0-0 0, DiIorio 0-2 1-2 1, Longrus 2-6 0-0 4, Kernich-Drew 3-5 0-0 7. Totals 20-60 10-21 54.
CALIFORNIA (10-6)
Thurman 1-2 2-2 4, Kravish 2-4 2-2 6, Cobbs 2-2 6-6 10, Powers 2-3 0-0 5, Crabbe 3-7 7-9 14, Wallace 4-8 7-11 16, Bak 1-4 3-4 5, Solomon 3-7 1-2 7. Totals 18-37 28-36 67.
Halftime_California 29-27. 3-Point Goals_Washington St. 4-18 (Motum 2-7, Kernich-Drew 1-2, Woolridge 1-4, Shelton 0-2, Ladd 0-3), California 3-11 (Powers 1-2, Wallace 1-4, Crabbe 1-4, Bak 0-1). Fouled Out_Kernich-Drew, Kravish. Rebounds_Washington St. 34 (Ladd 12), California 35 (Solomon 8). Assists_Washington St. 5 (Ladd 2), California 10 (Cobbs 5). Total Fouls_Washington St. 25, California 18. A_7,347.