Cal overcomes slow start to topple Beth-Center, 68-56

By Adam Brewer

MVI Sports

Coming into its very own tip-off tournament, there were already a lot of high expectations for the California boys’ basketball team.

That pressure doubled after the Trojans got off to a slow start and trailed Beth-Center by double-digits midway through the opening quarter Friday night.

But Cal didn’t fold and was able to battle through the sluggish start and capture a 68-56 victory to kick off the 2019-20 season.

Malik Ramsey, who missed the opening quarter due to a coach’s decision, poured in a game-high 25 points for the Trojans (1-0).

“Obviously getting Malik back on the court was a huge lift for us, but basically our defense stepped it up after being down early in the game,” California head coach Aaron Balla said. “We had some jitters and we were not rotating on defense. This is a mature team and they knew what they had to do to turn this game around for us.”

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