November 5, 2019 was the date the men’s basketball program returned to the University of California. Steering without a coach for two full seasons of muddled, disjointed play, the Bears fielded a team from 2017-2019, but what they produced was not basketball.
On Tuesday we saw what basketball looks like. On the opening night of a new era, head coach Mark Fox sent a team out on the court that was prepared to play basketball: prepared with defensive fundamentals at the point of attack; prepared to give energy and effort for 40 minutes; prepared to face adversity and not wilt; prepared to make whatever adjustments were necessary under game conditions.