BERKELEY - Santa Clara was able to contain Kristine Anigwe for 20 minutes. Then the 2016 USBWA National Freshman of the Year got to work, scoring 13 of her 20 points in the second half as Cal defeated Santa Clara 73-58 in Monday night's home opener. Junior Mikayla Cowling had an impressive night in her own right, finishing with 16 points, five rebounds, and five assists - her third career 15-5-5 outing. Starters Asha Thomas (13 points) and Penina Davidson (12 points) also reached double-figures as the Bears improved to 2-0 on the season.

The visiting Broncos jumped out an early lead, opening the game on a 10-0 run as they tried to deny Anigwe opportunities in the post. But with the attention inside on Anigwe, Cal's outside game came alive, taking control with 15-3 run. Senior Courtney Range got the Bears on the board first with a three-pointer from the top of the arc, while Thomas continued her hot streak from downtown, going four-of-seven from three-point range. After a five-for-eight performance from three in the Bears' season opener at Saint Mary's, Thomas has nine three-pointers on the season, the most over any two-game stretch in her career.

"A lot of pressure is on Kristine, because she's one of those players, one of the best post players in the country," said Cowling. "So when you get inside to her, all four players are going at her. But she's a really good passer when she kicks it out. It helps when we have people who are able to hit outside shots when they are collapsing in on the post. We all did a really good job contributing tonight."

Despite the Bears offensive balance, Santa Clara stole the momentum again in the second quarter, using an 11-0 run to a 35-32 lead into halftime. Broncos junior Taylor Berry led all scorers with 10 points in the first half and finished the night with 19 points and 10 rebounds for her second career double-double.

"I was not very pleased with the beginning [of the game]," head coach Lindsay Gottlieb said. "I told them that, but I was pleased with the rest of it. The ability to figure out what we need to do, figure out how they're playing us, and really just about us and turning up our energy."

That energy was showcased in the third quarter as Cal came out of the locker room hungry and reclaimed the lead for good. Cowling paced the Bears with 10 points and Davidson went three-for-four from the floor as Cal outscored Santa Clara 24-13 in the third period.

And in the fourth quarter, there was simply no slowing Anigwe. The 2016 Pac-12 Freshman of the Year was held to just seven points on 3-9 shooting in the first half, but dominated the paint down the stretch, despite picking up her fourth foul midway through the third quarter. Anigwe scored 10 points in the final period to close the night with 20 points and 10 rebounds, registering her 15^th career double-double. The 6'4" sophomore from Phoenix has now scored double-figures in 32 of her 33 career games and has twelve 20-point, 10-rebound performances, tied with former UConn star Breanna Stewart for the fourth-most by any player over the last two seasons.

Cal received contributions from across the board tonight, finishing with 29 field goals and 20 assists. The Bears also only committed two turnovers the entire second half, while scoring nine points off of Santa Clara miscues during that span.

Freshmen Jaelyn Brown and Mi'Cole Cayton once again provided the Bears with valuable minutes off the bench. Brown finished with four points and four assists while Cayton added three points and three assists to go with a tenacious effort on defense.

With Monday's victory, the Bears are off to a 2-0 start for the third consecutive season and the fourth time in six seasons under Gottlieb. It also marks the 14th consecutive season that the Bears have won their home opener, the last time they failed to do so came on November 14, 2002 when the Bears lost to a Cappie Pondexter-led Rutgers squad, 56-49

The Bears continue their five-game homestand on Friday, hosting UC Riverside at 11:30 AM PT in Cal's annual "School Haas Rock".