Anigwe plays up to All-America status in Cal women’s win

The Cal women’s basketball team’s postgame news conference was slightly delayed as Kristine Anigwe and Mikayla Cowling argued about who would get the single bottle of Gatorade sitting on the table.

Anigwe recorded a double-double, and Cowling stuffed the stat sheet as the Bears beat back a solid Santa Clara team 73-58 to win their home opener Monday night at Haas Pavilion.

Anigwe, a preseason All-America selection, recorded game highs in points (20) and was co-leader in rebounds (10).

Cowling put up 16 points, five rebounds, five assists and three steals.

“I don’t even need to look at the stat sheet to know what (Cowling) does for us,” Cal head coach Lindsay Gottlieb said.

Cal also got double-digit scoring from Asha Thomas (13 points and four assists to one turnover) and Penina Davidson (12 points, six rebounds), and everybody played well on defense.

Cal missed its first five shots and committed four turnovers during the stretch, falling into a 10-0 hole.

The Bears boosted their lead to 24-17 before Santa Clara picked up the tempo during an 11-0 run that put the Broncos ahead 28-24 with three minutes left in the first half.

Anigwe returned to start the fourth quarter and completed a three-point play to give Cal a 59-48 lead with 8:36 to play.