BERKELEY, Calif. – The Cal women's basketball team (6-1) easily defeated Arkansas-Pine Bluff (1-6), 85-51, in the first game of the 2^nd Annual Raising The B.A.R. Invitational at Haas Pavilion Saturday. In the game, Jayda Curry recorded her first career double-double with 19 points including three 3-pointers and a career-high 10 rebounds, while adding a career-high tying seven assists. The 10 rebounds marks an individual season-high for the Bears. Three other Cal players finished in double-figures led by Jadyn Bush with a season-high 15 points (11 of which came in the second half) and followed by Evelien Lutje Schipholt and Leilani McIntosh with 12 and 11 points respectively.
 
"I thought it was good win for our team," Cal head coach Charmin Smith said. "We're working on playing to our potential instead of to our competition. I saw some progress in that today and now we have to shift our focus to a really good SMU team. I thought we did better defensively today. Our goal was to hold them off of the offensive boards and we did that. We showed progress in our ability to lock into the game plan."
 
The Bears got off to a fast start with Curry going off for 11 points in the first quarter including back-to-back 3 pointers that were part of a Cal 8-0 run to end the quarter up 19-8 while holding the Golden Lions to shooting 15.4 percent. After Arkansas-Pine Bluff opened the second quarter with a field goal, Cal went on an 11-0 run, helped by four Golden Lion turnovers, to get its largest lead of the game at that point of 20 points before going into the half up 16 points.
 
The Bears shot 50 percent and held the Golden Lions to just 23.1 percent shooting in the third quarter and used an extended 20-2 run between the third and fourth to extend the lead to 36 points at the 7:56 mark of the fourth quarter, which was capped off by back-to-back buckets by Bush.
 
Cal has now held its last three opponents to 51 points or less and has won by an average of 24.3 points. Cal totaled season-highs of 20 assists and 21 offensive rebounds that led to 24 second-chance points and outscored Arkansas-Pine Bluff's bench 31-8.
 
Arkansas-Pine Bluff had three players score in double-figure led by Raziya Potter's 17 points.
 
The Bears will continue play in the Raising The B.A.R. Invitational taking on SMU on Dec. 4 at 1 p.m. Tomorrow's game will be dedicated to supporting Brittney Griner and the efforts to release her from imprisonment in Russia. A station will be setup for fans to be able to write letters of support that will be sent to Brittney's team, who has established a goal of getting 10,000 handwritten letters of support for her release. In addition, former Cal women's basketball player and WNBA veteran Layshia Clarendon will be donating $1,000 to the Brittney Griner fund which Coach Smith will match.
 
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