Guard Jordan Mathews was 7-of-10 from the field for 18 points and Jabari Bird added 15 points also on 7-of-10 shooting as Cal (2-0) shot 60.3 percent, including 7-of-12 from 3-point range. Bird and Mathews each added seven rebounds as the Bears won the battle of the boards 43-25.
Senior Dwight Tarwater added 10 points and four rebounds off the bench and freshman 7-foot reserve center Kingsley Okoroh from London made his college debut with four points, four rebounds and a block. Guard Nigel Pruitt had 16 points on 6-of-11 shooting to lead Kennsaw State (0-2) of the Atlantic Sun Conference.
The Bears opened the second half with a 14-5 run to lead 55-20 and cruised the rest of the way. Bird got Call off to the quick start with back-to-back jumpers, while Pruitt had the hot hand for the Owls, scoring 13 of his team's first 16 points of the second half.
The tone of the game was set from the beginning with Cal going on an 11-2 run after starting its season opener 15-0. The game was pretty much over by halftime as the Bears led 41-15 behind additional runs of 12-2 and 13-3.
GAME NOTEBOOK: The win puts Cal in the 2K Classic semifinals Nov. 21 against No. 24 Syracuse at Madison Square Garden in New York. … Mathews was named to the Pac-12 All-Freshman team last season after averaging 8.5 points per game. … The 2K Classic benefits the Wounded Warrior Project and includes a dozen teams.
Kennesaw St. | California | |
Nigel Pruitt 16 | Scoring | Tyrone Wallace 18 |
Damien Wilson 2 | Assists | Tyrone Wallace 7 |
Bernard Morena 7 | Rebounds | Tyrone Wallace 9 |
Delbert Love 4 | Free Throws Made | Tyrone Wallace 5 |
Delbert Love 2 | Steals | Sam Singer 2 |
Willy Kouassi 2 | Blocks | Christian Behrens 1 |
Team | Points | FG% | 3PM-3PA | FTM-FTA | Assists | Rebounds | Blocks | Steals | Turnovers |
Kennesaw St. | 59 | 35.0 | 5-20 | 12-18 | 7 | 23 | 5 | 5 | 15 |
California | 93 | 60.3 | 7-12 | 16-26 | 18 | 37 | 5 | 4 | 15 |