San Diego-California Preview

3/22/2008 9:11 AM

By NICOLINO DI BENEDETTO
STATS Writer

California hasn't won a game in the NCAA tournament in 15 years, and the Golden Bears' late-season stumble has already cost them.

They hope playing close to home can help solve both of those issues Saturday when they open tournament play against San Diego in the first matchup between the teams.

Third-seeded and 10th-ranked Cal (26-6), which set a school record for wins in a season, is 1-5 all-time in the NCAA tournament with the lone victory coming against Kansas in 1993.

The Bears followed up on that season by missing the tournament for 12 consecutive years before qualifying for each of the last three. However, they have been eliminated in the opening round in the last two seasons in games played at Pennsylvania venues, including a 62-59 loss to ninth-seeded Notre Dame in 2007.

This time, the Bears will play at Maples Pavilion in Stanford.

"Just being able to play at home is huge," Cal coach Joanne Boyle said. "I think overall it's a really good situation for us.

"I think there is a different expectation when you build something for three years and to still not be satisfied just going to the tournament. We had set goals at the beginning of the season to get to the Sweet 16 and really advancing in the tournament and not being one and done."

The Bears, though, stumbled into the tournament, splitting their last six games. Cal blew a chance to share its first Pac-10 title with No. 4 Stanford by losing the regular-season finale at Washington 74-66 on March 2.

The team then struggled through its first two games in the conference tournament - wins over Oregon and Arizona State - before shooting a woeful 26.8 percent (15-for-56) in a 56-35 loss to the Cardinal in the title game.

Despite that difficult stretch, the Golden Bears secured an at-large berth and feel confident they can go deep into the tournament.

"If we get two (wins) we're going to keep going," Cal junior forward-center Devanei Hampton said. "It would mean a lot to us and for our fans. We've broken all the records that have been set for Cal. But that's not enough for us. We want to get more."

Hampton is coming off a dismal performance in the Pac-10 championship game, shooting 2-for-15 from the field while making only 1 of 4 free throws to finish with five points and seven rebounds. She is second on the team with 13.6 points and 8.2 boards per game.

Fellow junior Ashley Walker, the team leader with 15.0 points and 9.3 rebounds per contest, also had a difficult time in the conference title game, going 1-for-6 for a season-low two points.

San Diego (19-12), the 14th seed in the Greensboro Regional, is making its first tournament appearance in eight years after going 8-for-11 from 3-point range to win the West Coast Conference tournament with a 70-66 victory over Gonzaga on March 9.

Morgan Henderson has keyed the Toreros' four-game winning streak, averaging 15.0 points and shooting 10-for-16 from 3-point range. The sophomore forward was outstanding against the Bulldogs, making 6 of 8 from beyond the arc and scoring 20 points.

San Diego has lost all nine of its games against Top 25 opponents.

The winner of this game will face sixth-seeded George Washington or No. 11 seed Auburn in the second round on Monday.