The game started off with both offenses setting a fast pace. Texas Tech used a 10-3 run to take a 22-16 lead with 13:24 left in the half. The Lady Raiders went on another run, this time scoring 6 unanswered points to take a 30-22 lead, their largest of the game, with 7:11 left in the half. Cal answered with a 6-0 run of their own to close the gap to 2 points with 1:29 left in the half. A late basket by Jametra Clark gave the Lady Raiders a 36-32 halftime lead.
The second half started out much like the first, with neither team able to pull away. Texas Tech managed to take their largest lead of the game when they went on a 9-1 run to make the score 63-51 with 4:31 left in the game. Cal managed to stay in the game, but didn’t have enough to get the victory. The Lady Raiders won by a score of 76-69.
Offense
The Lady Raider offense didn’t have one of their better performances tonight. At times Jia Perkins can mask a bad offensive performance, and tonight was on of those times. Perkins scored a season-high 29 points in the game. A couple of other seniors stepped up in the scoring department as well. Casey Jackson scored 17 points to go along with her 10 rebounds, while Natalie Ritchie scored 14 points in the game. Erin Grant had another solid performance, dishing out 7 assists. The biggest problem offensively was that the team never managed to get totally in sync with each other. Whether this is because of the travel, or if it was just an off night, I don’t expect this problem to happen very often.
Defense
Someone finally figured out a way to score on the Lady Raiders, who gave up a season-high 69 points in the game. Cal was able to use their quickness to penetrate and draw a post defender into the paint. This left allowed the Golden Bears to find cutting players for easy baskets. The defense did tighten up in the second half, but the Lady Raiders will have plenty to work on in the next few days. The good news is that none of the problems are impossible to fix, and I’d be surprised if this type of offense has much success in the future.