Stanford knocks off Cal in both teams' ACC opener

Jaylen Blakes, Maxime Raynaud and Oziyah Sellers combined for 35 points in a 47-point, first half explosion Saturday afternoon and Stanford ran away from California for an 89-81 Atlantic Coast Conference road win in Berkeley, Calif.

Raynaud and Blakes finished with 20 points apiece for the Cardinal (8-2, 1-0 ACC), who won their first ever game in ACC competition.

Andrej Stojakovic had a game-high 25 points and Jovan Blacksher Jr. added 14 for the Golden Bears (6-3, 0-1), who dropped their second in a row after a 6-1 start.

Playing just its second true road game of the season, Stanford scored 14 of the game's first 18 points and never looked back. Raynaud and Ryan Agarwal hit 3-pointers in the run.

Blakes had 14 points, Raynaud 11 and Sellers 10 in the first half, which ended with Stanford in front 47-31.

Cal was still down 81-65, after two free throws by Stanford's Chisom Okpara with 3:58 remaining before making a little run. Mady Sissoko converted a three-point play and Rytis Petraitis and Joshua Ola-Joseph connected on consecutive 3-pointers in a 9-0 flurry that made it a seven-point game with still 2:13 to go.

It got as close as six when Stojakovic drilled a 3-pointer with 1:21 left, but Okpara and Blakes dropped in late layups to keep the hosts at arm's length.

Seven of the nine Cardinal who saw action hit at least half his field goal attempts, led by Raynaud's 8-for-15 and Blakes' 7-for-13. Stanford finished 52.6 percent as a team.

Both were deadly from the 3-point line as well, with Raynaud going 4-for-6 and Blakes 2-for-4. With Sellers adding 3-for-6, the Cardinal made 11 of their 23 attempts (47.8 percent) from beyond the arc.

Raynaud also found time for five blocks, while Agarwal and Aidan Cammann shared Stanford rebound honors with seven. Blakes complemented his 20 points with a team-high six assists and two blocks.

The Cardinal registered 19 assists on 30 baskets, while Cal had just five on its 30 hoops.

Agarwal and Okpara each also scored in double figures with 11 points.

Facing his old team for the first time after transferring to Cal over the summer, Stojakovic shot 11-for-25. The Golden Bears finished at 42.3 percent overall and 38.1 percent (8 of 21) on 3-pointers.

Ola-Joseph and Sissoko, who had 11 points, were the game's leading rebounders with eight apiece.

-Field Level Media