It’s been just a little over three weeks since the Cal women’s hoops team lost in a heart-breaker to GW in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.

It was just last week when Tennessee took home its second consecutive national title. But these critics like to start early, as ESPN and SI.com have announced their pre-, pre-, pre-, pre-season rankings for the 2008-09 season.

And where is Cal? ESPN has the Bears at No. 7 heading into next year and Sports Illustrated has Cal at No. 6. (Click here to read more…)

For the first time in about 15 years, the Cal women’s hoops team finds itself in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.

But the Bears’ next opponent may give them fits, so much so that ESPN predicts a nice little second-round upset when sixth-seeded George Washington plays Cal tonight at Maples Pavilion.

We’ll see if that happens, but for now, the Bears can relish finally winning a first round game. Some keys for tonight’s game: (Click here to read more…)

The NCAA Tournament hasn’t been too fruitful for the Cal women’s hoops team.

The Bears haven’t won a Tournament game in about 15 years. Granted, Cal hasn’t been dancing all 15 years, but its has been to the Tourney each of the last two years and has gone one-and-done.

But it looks like this year may be the year that the Bears finally get out of the first round. With a No. 3 seed in its pocket and traveling down to a familiar (yet unfriendly place) in Maples Pavilion in Stanford, Cal has to be thinking this is the year.

The Bears have only one Tourney win in their history and it might be two after they play No. 14-seed San Diego. But of course, after watching the Toreros men take down power UConn yesterday in the men’s Tournament, the women’s side has got to be thinking that it can also pull off the upset.

Some keys: (Click here to read more…)

I kind of didn’t half believe the type of crowd that the Cal women’s basketball team was going to get for its matchup with No. 7 Stanford. But as I sit here in press row with just over 40 minutes before tipoff, I’m in awe.

There has to be already the Bears’ season average sitting in the Haas Pavilion stands. The team just got a rousing ovation as they left the court for its final talk before the game.

There are a lot of kids here, but what can you expect for a women’s hoops game? That’s its main draw.

To give you the scope of the magnitude of this game, columnists from the San Francisco Chronicle and from the San Jose Mercury-News are here. Also, I just passed by a sign reserving a seat for Pac-10 Commish Tom Hansen. Everyone is sending their big guns to this game.

People have bought into the hype of today’s contest. (Click here to read more…)