Sports editor Jonathan Kuperberg is back at Staples Center for the semifinals and Day 2 of Pac-12 Tournament action.
Men’s Game 2: California vs. Colorado
Final – Cal 59, Colorado 70
Bears just couldn’t come back from this deficit. Now they’ll wait a day and a half to see what comes next.
3:00 – Cal 51, Colorado 59
Crabbe’s three breaks 10-0 run. Cal steals the ball. Kravish fouled, hits two free throws.
5:46 – Cal 46, Colorado 54
Brown scores two buckets in a row. Following a Cal turnover, Crabbe commits his fourth personal foul.
7:50 – Cal 46, Colorado 49
Cobbs hits a pair of free throws. Gutierrez hits a jumper. Brown draws a foul before the timeout.
9:45 – Cal 42, Colorado 47
Booker hits a three. Shane Harris-Tunks scores, but the basket is waived off as he committed a charge.
11:39 – Cal 42, Colorado 44
Roberson takes Kamp off the dribble, spinning for a basket. Meanwhile, Brandon Smith has turned the ball over twice in a row.
13:00 – Cal 40, Colorado 38
Gutierrez calls for the ball. He posts up Tomlinson, hits the fadeaway jumper and gets fouled. Free throw is good.
13:40 – Cal 37, Colorado 38
The teams keep trading baskets — and the lead. Gutierrez sinks a three, but Dinwiddie makes a pair of free throws.
15:43 – Cal 33, Colorado 34
Two baskets in a row — by Dufault and Askia Booker — put the Buffaloes in front.
18:04 – Cal 31, Colorado 28
Crabbe gets whistled for two quick fouls. No matter — the sophomore responds with a jumper. Following a Colorado miss, Gutierrez is fouled driving to the basket, but he misses both free throws.
19:14 – Cal 29, Colorado 28
Gutierrez fastbreak, slips the ball to Kamp for a basket for the Bears’ first lead of the contest.
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Crabbe and Cobbs combined for 17 in the first half, but no other Bear has more than one basket.
Halftime – Cal 27, Colorado 28
Crabbe blocks a shot before Cobbs sinks a three with under 30 seconds to go. Colorado waits to take the last shot but fail to score.
1:37 – Cal 24, Colorado 28
Cobbs hits a jumper from the elbow.
3:45 – Cal 22, Colorado 26
Kamp hits two free throws. Following a Colorado turnover, Crabbe hits another three.
4:56 – Cal 17, Colorado 24
Crabbe hits a three, Roberson answers with a three.
5:48 – Cal 14, Colorado 21
Carlon Browns spins in the paint for two finger-rolls.
8:57 – Cal 12, Colorado 17
Roberson posterizes Kamp on an impressive dunk from the baseline. Gutierrez barrels his way to the basket and dishes to Robert Thurman for a dunk.
11:32 – Cal 10, Colorado 15
No one has scored since, but it’s a timeout… Colorado has three 3-pointers and three steals thus far. The Bears have five turnovers.
13:10 – Cal 10, Colorado 15
Kamp blocks Dufault’s shot, and Cobbs goes all the way for a transition layup. Six in a row for the Bears.
14:00 – Cal 8, Colorado 15
Colorado has not cooled off, apparently. Roberson hits a three now, Crabbe answers with a jumper. Kamp passes to Kravish on the baseline for a short jumper.
15:57 – Cal 4, Colorado 12
Back-to-back threes by Tomlinson puts the Buffaloes up 1o early. Cobbs answers with a jumper, and it appears since then, Colorado has cooled off a bit. Still, not exactly the start Cal was looking for. Again, the Bears don’t look as focused and energized as they should be for a conference tournament game. And again the opposing team comes out on fire, while Cal is cold.
17:30 – Cal 2, Colorado 9
The Buffs have made all four of their shots so far, two from Carlon Brown. Kamp hits a jumper to put Cal on the board.
Starters:
Cal: David Kravish, Jorge Gutierrez, Harper Kamp, Justin Cobbs, Allen Crabbe
Colorado: Carlon Brown, Nate Tomlinson, Andre Roberson, Austin Dufault, Spencer Dinwiddie
Pregame
The Bears finished the regular season with back-to-back losses at Colorado and Stanford.
On Thursday night, Cal avenged one of those losses, coming back in the second half to defeat Stanford. Now, the Bears have the chance to get revenge on the Buffaloes too.
Colorado is playing its third game in three days, as the squad is coming off wins over Utah and Oregon on Wednesday and Thursday, respectively. The Bears and Buffs split their season series, each winning on their own home court.
But both games were close, and this one probably will be too.
Colorado forward Andre Roberson ranks fourth in the country in rebounding with 11.2 boards a game.
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Men’s Game 1: Arizona vs. Oregon State
Final – Zona 72, OSU 61
The Beavers had a nice run, but they got beat by the better team. The Wildcats, who started the season ranked, will play Saturday at 3 p.m. for an automatic bid the NCAA Tournament. Have they done enough to warrant an at-large bid? Nobody knows except for the selection committee, which is why Arizona’s mindset must be to win Saturday.
Nelson had 19 points, while Cunningham had 14. Fogg led all scorers with 22 points. Perry had a double-double with 16 and 11.
Robinson takes Cunningham out with 20 seconds to go, gives him a few words of encouragement as the few Oregon State fans at Staples applaud his season. Classy.
2:54 – Zona 62, OSU 51
Step-back jumper by Foggs makes it a 13-point game. Two offensive rebounds by Jesse Perry in one sequence milks a lot of clock. Roberto Nelson steals the ball and makes a breakaway layup despite getting fouled.

Oregon State head coach Craig Robinson is going to have to draw up some clever plays for the Beavers to win this game. Marcus Gedai/Staff
5:15 – Zona 60, OSU 49
Fogg has 10 points this half, as the Wildcats are starting to pull away. But Solomon Hill fouls out after getting a technical foul — the Beavers make 3-of-4 free throws on the possession.
11:32 – Zona 47, OSU 39
Arizona, with its athleticism, experience and defensive-mindedness, is a team built for tournaments. The Wildcats reach the final of last year’s conference tournament and famously made a run to the Elite Eight in the Big Dance. Now, after winning its quarterfinal matchup Thursday, Arizona looks like it could be headed to the Pac-12 Tournament final. But, as Cunningham scores to cut the deficit to eight, this game is far from over.
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Oregon State alum Gary Payton, wearing an “I’m On It” Nike t-shirt, is sitting courtside once again. “The Glove” is probably hoping that the Beavers’ run in the Pac-12 Tournament at Staples Center will make him forget his time with the Lakers.
15:20 – Zona 41, OSU 36
Well, that’s the way you want to come out of halftime. Arizona is on a 14-2 run, punctuated by Kyle Fogg’s 3-pointer.
Halftime – Zona 27, OSU 34
Cal’s Jorge Gutierrez was Pac-12 Player of the Year and Washington has a pair of really talented guards in Terrence Ross and Tony Wroten, but I think Oregon State’s Jared Cunningham is the best pro prospect in the league. The junior guard, who has yet to sit out, has 11 points, four rebounds and two steals, powering the Beavers’ impressive first half. OSU is shooting 50 percent from the field (compared to Arizona’s 35.7 percent) and has three more rebounds than the Wildcats. Otherwise, the teams’ stats are pretty similar.
Dinner – review
The Chicken, which looked to be a little dry, was actually quite good. The salmon could have used some pesto or aioli, but I’m not complaining. The cheddar cheese was a nice addition to the mashed potatoes. I think the surprise of the meal was the green beans — gotta eat your veggies.
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Women’s Game 2: California vs. Washington State
Final – Cal 64, WSU 49
1:01 – Cal 61, WSU 48
The Bears have been more careful with the ball in the last few minutes. They haven’t missed a field goal in the last five minutes of the game. Boyd keeps going to the foul line.
7:27 – Cal 43, WSU 42
When the Bears aren’t turning the ball over, they’re usually scoring. Unfortunately for Cal, the turnover total has reached 22.
11:31 – Cal 38, WSU 37
The Bears retake the lead on back-to-back buckets by Gray and Clarendon.
12:59 – Cal 34, WSU 35
Consecutive baskets by Brandon as Cal chips away.
15:41 – Cal 30, WSU 35
Washington State has taken the lead early in the second half

Seven points at the half for Talia Caldwell, but most came in the first few minutes. Marcus Gedai/Staff
Halftime – Cal 26, WSU 26
5:04 – Cal 22, WSU 20
Five points in a row for the Cougars, including a 3-pointer by Perkins.
8:46 – Cal 20, WSU 12
Boyd swishes in a floater, then Clarendon steals the ball and Caldwell is fouled on the offensive rebound. She makes a free throw. The Bears in a full-court press now — they get two steals and two Boyd layups. Timeout Cougars.
10:50 – Cal 13, WSU 12
Romberg hits back-to-back threes. Cal calls timeout.
12:00 – Cal 13, WSU 6
Sherbert misses a corner three, but Boyd pulls down offensive board and flips it cross-court to Sherbert, who makes her second try.
14:00 – Cal 10, WSU 4
April Cook hits a long two, but Caldwell answers with a layup for her sixth point.
15:27 – Cal 8, WSU 0
Boyd drives in and hands it off to Caldwell for an easy layup. Adzasu misses a layup, then dribbles off Boyd’s foot on the next possession. Clarendon is fouled but misses both free throws. Perkins misses a layup, but Noyes grabs the rebound and is fouled. She’ll shoot two after the timeout.
18:20 – Cal 4, WSU 0
Clarendon hits a short jumper for the first points of the game. Gray follows with a bucket inside.
Starters:
Washington State: Sage Romberg, Brandi Thomas, Carly Noyes, Jazmine Perkins, Rosetta Adzasu
California: Reshanda Gray, Brittany Boyd, Layshia Clarendon, Talia Caldwell, Lindsay Sherbert
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This area is packed compared to the section behind the other basket.

It's really hard to concentrate with the noise from all the fans sitting behind me. Marcus Gedai/Staff
Pregame
The Bears won the teams’ only meeting this season, a 60-55 decision on Jan. 22 in Berkeley. Guard Layshia Clarendon had 15 points, while forward Gennifer Brandon had 13 and 12.
For the Cougars, Ireti Amojo is the Cougars’ leading scorer, but since a January injury, she has been out for the season. Senior guard Jazmine Perkins averages 8.5 points per game and 7.6 boards a game. Sage Romberg has made a team-best 28 3-pointers this season — the sophomore forward averages just over seven points a contest.
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Women’s Game 1: Stanford vs. Arizona State
Final – Stanford 52, ASU 43
The Ogwumikes combined for 36 points and 25 rebounds. Both Stanford and ASU had shot under 30 percent from the field. The Sun Devils committed 20 fouls, putting the Cardinal on the foul line 27 times. No. 1 seed Stanford will face the winner of Cal-Washington State in Saturday’s tournament final at 11:30 a.m.
1:24 – Stanford 44, ASU 36
Stanford’s shooting is very, very bad. The team is under 30 percent from the field. The Ogwumikes continue to rebound many of the misses, but the ball is not going into the hoops enough for the Cardinal to take out their starters. But a win is a win.
6:55 – Stanford 39, ASU 32
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When I went back to the buffet for dessert, they had brought more ketchup. My timing is just off …
8:40 – Stanford 37, ASU 27
Nine steals for the Sun Devil, partly why they are within 10. But Stanford is definitely in complete control.
Lunch – review
The shrimp was tasty, not as crispy as I would have liked but good nonetheless. The jambalaya, which I ate over rice, was just the right amount of spicy. The onions were nice and sweet. It’s not easy to eat fried chicken with a plastic knife and fork, so the meat I was able to cut out was tender. Unfortunately, when I was at the buffet, the ketchup bottle was out. Yes, I know, what a travesty. I only had a drop of ketchup.
Halftime – Stanford 29, ASU 15
Nnemkadi rebounds her little sister’s miss and scores to push the lead to nine. On Arizona State’s last possession, Chiney Ogwumike forces a jump ball, so Stanford gets the last shot of the half. Nnemkadi hits a floater and is fouled with two seconds left. The free throw is, not surprisingly, good. The Ogwumike sisters have 18 combined points, outscoring the Sun Devils.
3:58 – Stanford 20, ASU 14
Not a whole lot to say. The Cardinal are the better team but seem to be playing on cruise control — which is good enough to beat even a solid squad like Arizona State. Stanford will probably either break open the game to start the second half or just finish things off in the last four minutes.
9:15 – Stanford 14, ASU 10
The older Ogwumike has six points now, including a jumper from the top of the key and a turn-around fadeaway from just beyond the elbow. The Cardinal aren’t pulling away just yet…
15:56 – Stanford 2, ASU 4
Stanford is still losing…. Just throw it into Nnemkadi Ogwumike every time. The Sun Devils can’t stop her.
19:43 – Stanford 0, ASU 2
Stanford is losing!
Pregame
Stanford is the best team in the Pac-12 – and I’m not specifying just the women’s league. The Ogwumike sisters are the best forward tandem in the country. Nnemkadi, the senior, could probably start at least on Utah and USC on the men’s side.

Staples Center during the quarterfinals on Thursday — it looks a lot more crowded on than it really was. Will more people show up on Friday? Marcus Gedai/Staff
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