Seniors Joel Brown and Lars Thiemann scored 17 points apiece, and California became the last Division I men’s basketball team to register a win this season with a 73-51 romp over Texas-Arlington on Wednesday afternoon in Berkeley, Calif.
Kuany Kuany chipped in with a career-high 16 points off the bench for Cal (1-12), which ended its season-opening skid despite the absence of leading scorer Devin Askew, who sat out with a foot injury.
Shemar Wilson had 14 points as part of a double-double with a game-high 11 rebounds to pace Texas-Arlington (5-8), which was held under 55 points for the third time this season.
Coming off a win at San Francisco on Monday to kick off a two-game Northern California swing, the Mavericks held Cal to six points in the first seven minutes and led 7-6 before a three-point play by Kuany at the 13:00 mark.
The Golden Bears took off from there, adding a jumper by Wrenn Robinson, a jumper and a free throw by Brown and three consecutive hoops — one a three-point play — by Thiemann to complete a 17-3 burst that produced a 23-10 advantage.
Cal went on to lead 28-19 at the break and gradually pulled away over the final 20 minutes, lengthening its lead to as many as 28.
Brown’s 17 points were a career best, topping the 15 he had against USC in January of 2021. He hit seven of his 13 shots, helping Cal outshoot the visitors 56.5 percent to 32 percent.
Meanwhile, Thiemann’s 17 were one off his career high set in December at Arizona. He also found time for five rebounds, one fewer than team co-leaders Brown and Kuany.
Wilson’s double-double was his third of the season. He made one of his two 3-point attempts, while his teammates combined to miss 19 of their 23 tries.
Chendall Weaver added 12 points and Marion Humphrey a game-high six assists for the Mavericks.
–Field Level Media
