BERKELEY – The California men's basketball team pulled ahead late in the first half and did not look back, using a strong defensive effort to secure a 61-55 win over Dartmouth on Sunday afternoon at Haas Pavilion.
 
Jordan Shepherd scored 11 of his 18 points in the second half, Grant Anticevich pulled down a career-high 15 rebounds and Andre Kelly tallied his fifth double-double (14 points, 10 rebounds) of the season for the Golden Bears (7-5), who have won their last three games and seven in a row at home.
 
Cal halted a late 6-0 run by Dartmouth when Anticevich found Kelly for a fast break layup, making it a 57-52 contest with 45 seconds remaining. Shepherd hit two free throws to seal the victory with 17 seconds left.
 
Despite Dartmouth's (3-7) early lead and a sluggish start by Cal, the Bears kept within striking distance by holding the Big Green to just 30 percent shooting (6-20) in the game's first 11 minutes. A triple by Shepherd with 4:32 on the clock gave Cal its first lead, 22-21, of the afternoon and keyed a 7-0 run. The Bears held Dartmouth to 1-11 shooting over the final five and a half minutes of the first half and entered the locker room with a 27-23 advantage.
 
"We found ourselves defensively late in the first half and maintained that for most of the game," Cal head coach Mark Fox said. "That was really the key to our win."
 
Back-to-back baskets from Kelly – who had 10 points and eight rebounds after halftime – got Cal rolling in the second half. The Bears pushed their lead to double digits, 45-34, on a layup by Sam Alajiki with 11:11 on the clock.
 
Cal outrebounded Dartmouth 45-33, marking the ninth time in 12 games that the Bears have won the battle on the glass.
 
Cam Krystkowiak paced Dartmouth with 20 points. Cal held Brendan Barry, who ranks fourth nationally with an average of four 3-pointers per game, to 1-6 shooting behind the arc.
 
UP NEXT
Cal wraps up non-conference play in its final game of the 2021 calendar year against Pacific at 3 p.m. PT on Wednesday, Dec. 22. The Pac-12 Networks will broadcast the game from inside of Haas Pavilion in Berkeley.
 
STAY POSTED
For complete coverage of Cal men's basketball, please follow the Bears on Twitter (@CalMBBall), Instagram (@CalMBBball) and Facebook (/CalMBBall/).