Nov 19, 2014 5 min read

CALIFORNIA – The majority of college basketball teams have the luxury of spending the first month or two of the season keeping tabs on their conference brethren from afar, through scores in the newspaper or watching them play on television as they fatten their records against overmatched opponents that should have names like Our Lady of Consecutive Defeats.

In the PSAC – the largest conference in college athletics with 18 members – there is no time for easing into the season. PSAC teams must hit the court running because the first conference games are scheduled less than a week into the season.

The men’s and women’s teams at California and Mercyhurst went through an early season test run Wednesday night at the Convocation Center and came away with a split decision.

The Cal women used a strong second half to cruise to a 69-57 win, but the men’s team still has some fine-tuning to do. Cal sputtered in the second half when it made only six field goals and Mercyhurst rallied to beat the Vulcans, 60-55, in the PSAC West Division.

The Cal men (0-1, 2-2) had their best start of the season, forging a 24-11 lead, and were up 31-23 at halftime. The Vulcans, however, struggled offensively in the second half against the puzzling and consuming matchup zone defense of the Lakers. After shooting 50 percent from the field in the first half, Cal made only 6 of 16 shots in the second half and was held to just two field goals over the final 12:44.

“Mercyhurst is a very unique team,” Cal coach Bill Brown said. “They play a matchup zone that makes you pass it around. We played three games and averaged 87 points per game. We got bogged down tonight.”

After defeating Penn State-Fayette at home Monday, Cal had only one day of practice to prepare for Mercyhurst’s zone. With a team loaded with newcomers, Cal could have used some extra time to get ready for the Lakers and the conference schedule.

“Playing conference games this early is a disadvantage to the entire conference,” Brown said. “Most conferences don’t play league games until January. We play our conference opener in the fourth game of the season. It puts undo pressure on everyone, but you can’t control your schedule, you just have to play it.”

A field goal by Arman Marks gave Cal a 39-34 lead with just under 13 minutes remaining. The Vulcans would make only two more field goals the rest of the way, both by freshman Nick Miller. Mercyhurst took its first lead at 43-42 on a three-pointer by Gerrae Williams with 9:43 to play.

Williams converted a rare four-point play that gave the Lakers a 51-44 edge with 6:33 remaining. Cal fought back in the closing minutes and Miller made a three-pointer from the right corner that cut Mercyhurst’s lead to 56-55 with 50 seconds to play.

Following a Mercyhurst turnover, transfer Richard Smith had a chance to give Cal the lead, but missed a three-pointer with 3.9 seconds left. Mercyhurst’s Damon Jones then converted four free throws to secure the win for the Lakers.

Jones and Williams led Mercyhurst with 18 points each. Smith, Marks and Tony Richardson each had 10 points for Cal.

Senior Emma Mahady led four California players in double figures with 18 points and sparked a 20-7 second-half run as the Vulcans rallied to win and improved to 3-0.

Mahady, one of four returning starters for the Vulcans, helped turn a 29-20 deficit late in the first half into a 13-point lead in the closing minutes.

“We had a 20-minute lapse in defensive pressure in the first half. We didn’t get our legs moving,” Cal coach Jess Strom said.

Mahady scored 13 points after halftime, including two free throws that gave Cal the lead for good at 47-45. A jumper by CeCe Dixon, a three-point play by Miki Glenn and two baskets by Mahady pushed the Vulcans’ advantage to 56-48 and Merychurst (0-1, 0-3) never got closer than seven points the rest of the way.

Glenn scored 15 points, while Kaitlynn Fratz and Irina Kukolj each had 11.

Strom said her team realizes the importance of playing well early in the season. The Vulcans stumbled out of the gate last season losing their first four games and never fully recovered. A few wins in those games would have come in handy at season’s end as Cal regrouped to finish 18-9 but had its string of Division II tournament appearances end.

This year, Cal already has three wins, including one over 18th-ranked West Liberty in the PSAC-MEC Challenge.

“We have a new focus,” Strom said. “The kids returning were disappointed with how last season started and how it hurt us when it came time for selecting teams for the NCAA tournament.”

That’s why returning starters Mahady, Glenn and Fratz each played at least 36 minutes against Mercyhurst. Cal knows there is precious little time to work in freshmen when the schedule provides conference matchups in the season’s first week. The Vulcans play Saturday at Edinboro.

“Playing Mercyhurst in the third game of the season and then Edinboro is different,” Mahady said. “Those are teams we usually don’t play until late January.”