Stanford pulled off an 18 point comeback to shock Cal in overtime in the first round of the Pac-12 tournament, 87-76.
With 14 minutes to go, Jalen Celestine hit Cal’s sixth three pointer in three minutes to put the Golden Bears up 18. By all accounts, it seemed like it was not Stanford’s day. That was all about to change. Not at all quickly, but it did change.
In total, Cal went 9 ½ consecutive minutes without a point. The Stanford defense locked in, forcing Cal into sloppy play. Future NBA draft pick Jaylon Tyson drew the full attention of a very motivated Spencer Jones, who did not want to go out in the first round of his final tournament.
“[Tyson’s] tough,” Spencer said. “He's got a bunch of moves. The one thing Coach was telling me is he loves to go right, so trying to send him left. A guy that good, he's going to find a way to get to his spots. I knew it was going to be a tough defensive assignment. I was gassed for a little bit. And the guys were able to pick it up while I was gassed until I was able to finish it off.”
Stanford inched their way back into things. Their offense continued to struggle to knock down perimeter shots, sitting at 2-21 from three entering the final minute. But they were able to get the ball into the paint, and force Cal to commit a bevy of fouls. Stanford left points at the foul line, but they slowly limped their way closer. They also crucially forced the disqualifications of Cal starters Fardaws Aimaq and Jalen Celestine.
Despite the defensive effort, Stanford still trailed by 4 points with 32 seconds on the clock. Spencer Jones drew a quick foul and headed to the line. He missed the first, made the second. On the ensuing inbounds, Cal threw the ball into the corner, where a double from Brandon Angel and Benny Gealer forced an errant pass. The ball was tipped around, with Spencer Jones getting his mitt in there, before it plopped into Gealer’s lap. He found a relocating Michael Jones, who confidently let a three go, holding his follow-through as it swished cleanly through the net.
With the game now tied, Stanford stole the following inbounds pass. Spencer was unable to get the winning shot to go down, and the game went to overtime. Importantly, Cal played the extra period without the services of Aimaq and Celestine.
“I think for a lot of people it feels like a movie,” Maxime Raynaud said. “Like, oh, we need a 3. We steal the ball, we make a shot. But I think what Coach always talked about is belief. And I think we believe in our players. We believe in our system. We believe that even down to the very last possession to Cal we could still get a steal and get that 3 up.”
But the fairytale was not yet complete. In extra time, Stanford added their fourth and fifth three pointers of the night to push the lead to 6. Their defense remained locked in, with Spencer Jones blocking Tyson on consecutive possessions. The lead ballooned as the Cardinal broke the trap with touchdown passes and put the finishing touches on a whale of a comeback.
“The feeling I have right now more than anything else is pride,” Jerod Haase said. “Obviously winning the game, but more because of the approach of how the guys were steady in the huddles. We made some adjustments. They made the adjustments on the court. And we were able to make a heck of a run that second half. Guys stepped up and made plays.”
Stanford finished the game with a +14 rebounding advantage. They outscored Cal 42-14 in the paint, and had 6 key blocks. They shot 5-24 from three and 24-36 from the foul line, but made the shots when they counted.
Maxime Raynaud led the team with 21 points and 13 rebounds. Spencer Jones had 20 points to go with 7 rebounds, 4 steals and 2 blocked shots. Brandon Angel and Kanaan Carlyle joined them in double figures with 16 and 10, respectively. Benny Gealer proved to be a key factor in the comeback, finishing +26 during his minutes on the court.
“[Benny] brought a spark of energy,” Maxime said. “When we're down like this, oftentimes we can just give in and start being stressed, taking quick shots, quick 3s. He did a great job getting the calls, getting stops, running our offense.”
Jaylon Tyson and Fardaws Aimaq combined for 24 points in the first half. They combined for just 2 in the second and overtime. Jalen Cone led the team in scoring with 19 points, including 5 made threes. Tyson needed 20 shots to get his 18 points. Celestine finished with 14, while Keonte Kennedy added 11.
This marked the largest Stanford comeback since 2004. It was also the second largest in Pac-12 tournament history.
“At some point the Xs and Os aren't going to be enough, and there has to be players like these guys here that are out there competing and making plays,” Jerod Haase said. “And they did that tonight.”
Tomorrow night the Cardinal get a chance to do it again, as they face second-seeded Washington State in the quarterfinals.