Chuck Harris led the way with 20 points, Matt Cross posted his second straight double-double with 15 points and 14 rebounds and SMU registered a 76-65 victory over Cal on Wednesday night in Dallas.
SMU (16-5, 7-3 Atlantic Coast Conference) won for the fifth time in six games. B.J. Edwards (15 points, nine rebounds) and Boopie Miller (13 points) also made key contributions for the Mustangs.
Cal (11-10, 4-6) saw its three-game winning streak come to an end. Rytis Petraitis paced the Golden Bears with 18 points and 10 rebounds. Jeremiah Wilkinson added 16 points and Jovan Blacksher Jr. chipped in 13 points.
The Golden Bears, who were playing without leading scorer Andrej Stojakovic for a third straight game, built a 21-17 lead over the first 13 minutes.
However, SMU went on a 16-3 run over a four-plus-minute stretch, highlighted by four 3-pointers. Harris and Cross made two deep balls each as the Mustangs took a 33-24 lead with 2:36 left in the half.
Miller knocked down a 3-pointer late in the period, the sixth trey in the half for the Mustangs, who led 39-29 at the break. SMU stayed in front throughout the second half.
The Mustangs used a 6-0 run to extend their lead to 53-40 with 13:43 left, capped with a two-handed alley-oop dunk by Kario Oquendo off a pass from Harris.
Cal closed the gap to six points twice down the stretch, including pulling within 61-55 with just over five minutes left. But that was as close as the visitors would get.
SMU sealed it late. A driving layup by Cross extended the lead to 73-63 with 1:12 left, and then Miller and Edwards combined to make 3 of 4 free throws in the final minute.
SMU improved to 3-1 in the all-time series vs. Cal. This marked the first conference game between the programs, and their first matchup since the 2014 NIT semifinals.
Both teams return to action Saturday as SMU hosts Stanford and Cal hosts Syracuse.
–Field Level Media
