During the 1960¹s the Cal basketball program deteriorated. Meanwhile UCLA coach John Wooden assembled a dynasty. From 1964 to 1975 the Bruins won 10 NCAA championships, featuring stars such as Lew Alcinder (who later changed his name to Kareem Abdul-Jabbar) and Bill Walton; during this period nobody beat UCLA.
After 1975 the Westwood boys became mortal again. Other teams were able to beat the Bruins once in a while. U$C beat UCLA nine times during the Streak. Even Stanfurd posted a few upsets. Everyone beat UCLA once in a while. Everyone...except Cal.
As the losses mounted the pressure increased. Without hope for an NCAA or NIT berth, often without even a winning season, the Bears¹ season seemed to dwindle down to two games. Many fans expressed the sentiment, ³I don't care what happens this year, if we can just beat UCLA.²
In the early 1980¹s Cal came tantalizingly close, twice taking UCLA to overtime. In 1984, freshman point guard Kevin Johnson tied the game with a 19 foot shot at the buzzer; sadly, it wasn¹t enough, and the Streak was at 50.
After the Streak reached 52 in 1985, Cal hired Lou Campanelli, the respected coach who had developed the basketball program at James Madison University. The Streak intrigued Campanelli. His declaration ³We¹ve got to beat UCLA!² inspired Cal fans, young and old.
Shortly before the season began, the Rally Committee presented Campanelli with a desk plate that read: THE STREAK STOPS HERE. The coach flaunted the plate constantly, pointing to it whenever players visited his office.
The 1985-86 Cal basketball season began in exciting fashion. The Bears forged a 12-4 record. Several games were decided in the final seconds, including victories over defending Pac-10 co-champions Washington and U$C. After months of anticipation, the day finally arrived.
Hundreds of students sat in line hours before the doors opened, a scene unprecedented in many years. Once inside, the fans began loud cheers to Cal and held up signs that read ³The Streak Stops Here² and ³Nobody Beats Cal (53 times in a row).²
The first half saw the lead go back and forth, as several Bruins fell into foul trouble. Late in the half the Bears put on a burst and led 36-31 at the intermission.
In the second half Cal built the lead up to 54-45; then it started to unravel. As the lead shrank everyone got that ³here we go again² feeling. Reggie Miller¹s free throws gave UCLA a 62-60 lead with just five minutes to go. The Bruins expected Cal to fold under the pressure.
The Bears needed someone to take charge; that person was Chris Washington. The junior guard swept in for a lay-up to tie the game, then turned around as if to go downcourt. Suddenly he spun around, stealing a backcourt pass, and slammed the ball through the net to give Cal the lead. ³I knew then,² said forward Jeff Huling, ³that we were going to win the game.²
Washington¹s dramatic play brought the crowd back into the game. Leonard Taylor followed with a basket for a 66-62 lead. The Bruins called time-out, hoping to quiet the crowd. Instead the fans became more aroused, cheering ³GO!! BEARS!! GO!! BEARS!!²
After the time-out, Cal scored again, and took a 73-67 lead with 30 seconds left. As the Bears crossed halfcourt and played keep-away, it began to sink in that Cal was actually going to beat UCLA. The cheering became louder and louder, until it was deafening. The fans continued to cheer as Kevin Johnson sank two free throws to complete the scoring.
The buzzer sounded with Cal ahead 75-67. Johnson leaped into the arms of a teammate, pumping his fist high in the air. The fans flooded the court and surrounded their heroes. Forwards Eddie Javius and Ernie Sears climbed onto the rims in order to cut the nets. The Straw Hat Band broke into a long rendition of ³Louie, Louie².
Pac-10 officials convinced NBC to stay on the air an extra two minutes to capture the ecstatic celebration. As Cal fans popped champagne bottles, one announcer exclaimed, ³This is more than just a basketball game to Cal...It¹s as if they won the national championship!²
Athletic Director Dave Maggard presented the game ball to coach Campanelli as thousands of Cal partisans roared their approval. The fans continued to celebrate on the court for an hour after the game. Many parties ensued and many vows were completed in Berkeley that night.
The game was a battle of defense. The Bears shut down the Bruin leadersDon McLean (who scored 27 points against the Bears in Berkeley earlier in the season) was limited to 12, Trevor Wilson scored only 13, and star freshman Tracy Murray (whose cousin Lamond Murray played for the Bears between 1992-94) scored 13 points and made only 1 of 10 three-point goal attempts (after lighting up the Bears with 9 of 10 three-pointers in Berkeley). The Bears trailed only four times during the entire game. The last time was with 15:22 left in the game, when Cal forward Brian Hendrick turned the ball over.
The crowd expected the Bears to fold, as they had in earlier losses at Arizona (by one point in overtime) and at home against Oregon State (by 6). The Bears responded by stepping up their game. Forward Roy Fisher (who finished with 21 points) nailed a three point goal to tie the game. Bill Elleby scored a trey and a break-away layup. Team leader, guard Keith Smith (who finished with a game leading 22 points) then nailed a three pointer to put the Bears up 54-46; The Bruins could only get as close 5 points. As the game wound down, normally quiet freshman forward Brian Hendrick was fouled by Don McLean and barked ³Yes! Yes! Yes!² in return. Hendrick later commented ³The momentum was going all our way, and it suddenly rushed into my head that we¹re about to completely defeat this team, and we were doing it at Pauley Pavilion². This feeling had entered the UCLA fans, who were in shock, and the Cal fans, who were ecstatic. As time was running down, a UCLA player stole the ball; Cal radio announcer Joe Starkey said ³So What!?!². When the final buzzer sounded, the Bears rushed onto the court embracing each other. Head coach Lou Campanelli leapt in and out of the arms of his assistants, hugging and kissing each one.
The final score was Cal 79-UCLA 71. NBA star and former Cal guard Kevin Johnson sent a congratulatory telegram to the Bears. The telegram also reminded the Bears ³not to forget the other team [USC]². The Bears didn¹t and defeated the Trojans 74-70, giving Cal its first sweep in Los Angeles since 1959.
Before the game, the Hartford Civic Center was packed as the hometown fans had just watched Connecticut defeat Boston University 76-52. Because the winner of the Cal-Indiana game would play UConn on Saturday, the Husky fans stayed to watch. The UConn faithful, who one year earlier witnessed their Huskies defeat the Golden Bears in a 73-72 nail-biter, weren¹t disappointed. The first half was marked by defense. Despite shooting a miserable 26 percent, the Bears went into the locker-room at halftime with a 27-26 lead, courtesy of two free throws made by Keith Smith, who was fouled with 0.7 seconds left on the clock.
During the half, coach Lou Campanelli told the Bears to ³Go out there and have fun.² At first it didn¹t look like the Bears took his advice as Indiana led 44-36 with fifteen minutes left in the game. Then the Bears responded with a 10-0 run. The Hoosiers kept fighting despite three pointers from Cal guards Bill Elleby and Bryant Walton and forward Roy Fisher, which put the Bears up 62-56 with less than five minutes to go. The Bears then helped the Hoosiers when Bill Elleby missed a pair of free throws and then turned the ball over. After the turnover, Indiana forward Eric Anderson made a leaning layup to tie the game at 63 all with just 13 seconds left. The Bears took a time-out to set up the final play of the game.
Guard Ryan Drew passed the ball to Keith Smith, who took a step towards the basket, saw a lane open up, and drove to the hoop. As he went up for a layup, he was leveled by Anderson (the player who had just tied the game) with only 3.8 seconds left on the clock. Smith calmly nailed both free throws and the Bears celebrated their first NCAA tournament game victory in thirty years. The UConn fans, who had stayed until the end of the game, applauded and cheered for the Bears. The Straw Hat Band and Cal Spirit Groups kept celebrating until the arena officials asked them to leave. This only temporarily interrupted the party which then continued on the street outside the building and concluded with a day-trip to New York City.
When the NCAA pairings were announced, the national media anticipated a meeting between Duke and California as the ³game of the tournament.² The Blue Devils were led by All-American guard Bobby Hurley, who would match up against Jason Kidd, the Golden Bears freshman superstar point guard.
The Bears began the tournament with a hard-fought 66-64 victory over LSU. In the final seconds Kidd drove the lane and flipped up the winning shot high off the backboard into the basket. Following the game, LSU coach Dale Brown predicted, ³Cal doesn¹t have a prayer² against Duke, who had not lost an NCAA tournament game since the 1990 NCAA Championship.
After a season of surprises, including upsets of UCLA and Arizona, Cal fans believed that the Bears could keep up with the two-time defending NCAA Champion Blue Devils. During the first half of the 2nd-round game, the question became ³could Duke keep up with Cal?² In the opening minute Kidd set the tone with an alley-oop pass to forward Lamond Murray for a dunk and a 2-0 lead. Kidd and Murray dominated the first half, leading the Bears to a 47-37 halftime lead.
Early in the second half Cal took a shocking 18 point lead. In fact, the Blue Devils were so shocked that they countered with a 24-6 run. Hurley, who played all 40 minutes, kept Duke close with a game-high 32 points, including 6 three-pointers. Duke took the lead, 77-76, on a Hurley free throw with two minutes left. The play that followed would be replayed again and again for the nationwide audience.
Seeing an opening, Kidd bounced a pass to Murray, but Hurley got a hand on the ball, starting a wild scramble under the Duke basket. Diving into the fray, Kidd grabbed the ball and flipped up a bank shot while he was fouled. His ensuing free throw gave the Golden Bears a 79-77 lead with 1:11 to go. Some reporters would later dub the shot, ³a prayer².
The Blue Devils did not give up, but Hurley was clearly exhausted. He attempted a flurry of treys; all bounced off the rim. Murray grabbed his 10th rebound with 20 seconds left. A moment later, his free throws ended all doubt, making the final score Cal 82, Duke 77. In the end Kidd finished with 11 points, 14 assists, 8 rebounds, and 4 steals. Murray, who kept playing despite a first half ankle injury, scored a season high 28 points. At the end of the game, Cal fans around the nation watched in awe as the Golden Bears celebrated their most impressive victory in three decades.
The victory against Duke put California basketball in the national spotlight with a photograph on the front cover of Sports Illustrated magazine. The Berkeley Post Office issued a special cancellation in celebration of Cal¹s triumph. After being eliminated from the NCAA tournament, the Men¹s Basketball team and the Women¹s Basketball team, who had beaten Kansas in the NCAA tournament (making that the first time both the Men¹s and Women¹s teams had both won NCAA tournament games in the same year), were both honored with a parade through the streets of Berkeley, and a rally on the steps of Sproul Hall.
Copyright 1996 Sean Patrick Rouse and Andrew Gross
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