Jan. 8, 2000
BERKELEY, Calif. (AP) - Eddie House wasn't about to stop or slow down. Arizona State needed points in a big way, and he supplied them at a record-setting pace.
House scored 61 points to tie Lew Alcindor's Pac-10 record and the Sun Devils put each one of them to use in their 111-108 victory over California in double overtime Saturday night.
House had the most points by a major college player since Kansas State's Askia Jones scored 62 against Fresno State on March 24, 1994.
"I just came out and competed," said House, whose stunning performance came before many relatives and friends on hand to see the former prep star from nearby Hayward High School. "It means a lot to me to come back home and get a win like this."
House went 18-for-30 from the field, including 7-of-10 from 3-point range and made 18 of 19 free throws in surpassing his own school record and tying Alcindor's 33-year-old Pac-10 record. Alcindor also scored 61 points for UCLA against Washington State on Feb. 25, 1967.
"If Eddie was on fire, he would have been burnt out a long time ago," Sun Devils coach Rob Evans said. "He's been playing like this for over a month. He's just a great shooter."
Fittingly, House had the final say in the game, making a pair of free throws with 2.9 seconds remaining in the second overtime. Joe Shipp's desperation 3-point try at the buzzer hit the rim and bounced away.
Earlier in the period, after Cal went in front 103-99, House fueled a 10-0 Sun Devils spurt, hitting a pair of jumpers and making two free throws.
"I haven't seen a performance like that," Cal coach Ben Braun said. "You wait for a kid like that to fatigue or to start missing some shots but he did neither. He's a complete player and a great player and you've just got to take your hat off to him."
House's scoring effort in the game surpassed his previous school mark of 46 points against San Diego State on Dec. 18. He also had a 42-point game against Penn State on Dec. 29.
Throughout the back-and-forth contest, House was at the center of Arizona State's efforts to keep the game alive until they finally won it. Shawn Redhage added 15 points and Chad Prewitt 10 for the Sun Devils (9-4, 1-1 Pac-10).
Shantay Legans had a career-best 28 points to lead Cal (9-5, 0-2). Shipp added 21 points and Sean Lampley 20, which lost its first two league games for the first time since 1995.
Brian Wethers made a driving layup despite being fouled but missed the free throw and Cal led 96-93 with 21.3 seconds remaining in the first overtime. But House came back down court and with a defender in his face hit an off-balance 3-pointer in the final moments, forcing a second extra period.
Trailing by 11 points with 9:27 left, the Golden Bears went on a 10-2 run starting with Lampley's short jumper to pull to 70-67, and with 3:23 remaining, Legans made two free throws to forge a tie at 73-all.
The score was tied 81-all after Lampley made a pair of free throws with 40 seconds left in regulation. Both teams missed chances to win it in regulation. Arizona State's possession ended in a turnover while Legans' driving layup glanced off the rim as time expired, sending the game to overtime.
House scored 44 points after halftime, including 12 straight at one point to put Arizona State up 56-49 with 13:40 left.
Cal managed a 6-2 burst but Justin Allen drained a 3-pointer to stifle the Bears' momentum and House ran off nine straight points around a layup by Lampley for a 68-57 Sun Devils' lead.
House scored 17 points in the first half, including his third 3-pointer in the final seconds to help the Sun Devils take a 39-35 lead.
Cal had trailed 36-30 after a baseline jumper by House but Solomon Hughes scored five straight points, converting a three-point play and dunking off an alley-oop pass to pull the Bears within one.