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BERKELEY, Calif. — Guards Dai Dai Ames and Justin Pippen, the son of Chicago Bulls great Scottie Pippen, were simply too much to handle Tuesday night.
The two guards combined for 48 points and had their way against a Utah defense that started out well but struggled to contain the one-two California punch in the second half. As such, the Bears pulled away in a tight contest with a 79-72 win at Haas Pavilion.
California (7-1) built up a game-high 9-point lead with 8:34 left to play, largely on the back of Ames and Pippen, but Utah (6-3) continued to fight down the stretch to keep it a one- or two-possession game over the final few minutes of game time.
Utah had its chances over the final two minutes, but California's defense turned it up a level and blocked a Don McHenry 3-point attempt twice and forced a shot clock violation, all but ending the Utes' hopes of a comeback.
On the offensive end, California made their free throws to keep the advantage. It's the first win over Utah since 2021.
Ames went for a career-high 25 points, including a perfect 7-of-7 from the free-throw line, to lead the Bears, with Pippen supplying an additional 23 points, including three made 3-pointers, and three assists and two rebounds.
California outrebounded Utah 36-32, which was about the only differentiator in a tight game where both teams were close in nearly every statistical category. Another was Utah going 74% from the free-throw line in a 7-point loss.
Utah had five players finish in double-digit scoring, with Terrence Brown leading the charge with 15 points. He was joined in scoring by Seydou Traore and Keanu Dawes, who each added 14 points apiece and a combined 14 rebounds.
Jacob Patrick supplied three 3-pointers to keep the game within reach in his 21 minutes of action to finish with 13 points, while McHenry rounded out the scores with 10 points.
Utah used a 12-2 run in the opening minutes of the first half, mixed with a strong defensive effort, to build up an 8-point lead before California made its push. Terrence Brown had 11 points in the half to help the Utes to its largest lead.
But the Bears capitalized on poor play from the Utes in the final few minutes of the first half — turnovers, soft defense and shots not falling for a four-minute stretch — to eventually reclaim a lead it continued to build upon in the second half.
It's a lead the Bears never relinquished.
