BERKELEY – The USF women's basketball team suffered a 75-52 loss to the Cal Bears on Friday afternoon in the first game of the Cal Classic at Haas Pavilion. Rachel Howard paced the Dons (3-2) offensively with 10 points, while Nia Alexander added seven points and a pair of assists and Alicia Roufosse scored six while grabbing a team-best six rebounds in USF's first meeting with Cal since 2001-02.  
 
The Dons put together a strong third quarter to chip away at the Cal lead and inch within 10, but the Bears' 46.9 percent shooting on the day proved too potent and helped keep any USF momentum at bay.
 
Michaela Rakova hit the first layup of the game, but that would prove to be USF's only lead of the contest as Cal (5-0) jumped out to a 16-8 lead after the end of the first quarter. The Dons battled the turnover bug in the first frame, committing seven while shooting just 25 percent from the field to open the game.
 
USF took better care of the ball in the second quarter but struggled to find open looks against the longer Cal defense. A 10-1 run to start the second quarter helped Cal open up a 20-point lead with just over four minutes in the half before the Bears closed the half with a 39-21 advantage.     
 
Whatever second-half adjustments head coach Molly Goodenbour drew up in the locker room helped the Dons open the third quarter by scoring the first five points and eventually used Howard's jumper with 1:21 remaining to cap off a quick 6-0 spurt that saw USF bring the score to 48-38.
 
However, that would be as close as the Dons would get for the remainder as Cal shot 56.3 percent (9-16) in the fourth quarter.
 
The Bears got a game-high 25 points from Courtney Range, who connected on 5 of 11 from the perimeter, including three 3-pointers in the third quarter alone.
 
USF will play the loser between Duquesne and Western Carolina Saturday afternoon back at Haas Pavilion with tip-off slated for 1 p.m.