The Sports Xchange

OVERVIEW

A highly versatile big man who can score near the basket or outside the three-point arc, Anderson emerged as one of the top freshmen in the country in 2006-07, even though he was forced to play out of position at center when DeVon Hardin missed most of the year with an injury. Back at his comfortable power forward position as a sophomore, Anderson became the first player in school history to score more than 600 points (697) and grab more than 300 rebounds (328) in the same season.

The Bears' seventh player in the past 15 years to lead the Pac-10 Conference in scoring during his sophomore campaign (21.1 ppg), Anderson also became the first sophomore in California annals to score 1,000 points in a career. His 1,225 points scored shattered the previous sophomore career record of 970 by Brian Hendrick. Only Lamond Murray (1,301 points, 1993-94) scored more points in back-to-back seasons than Anderson's 1,225.

At Oak Ridge High School, Anderson earned All-State first-team honors from Cal-Hi Sports. He was named the Sierra Valley Conference Most Valuable Player and chosen Player of the Year by the Sacramento Bee. He also added Northern California Division II Player of the Year accolades and was an All-State first-team pick as a junior.

Anderson was third-leading high school scorer in the state of California as a senior in 2005-06, pouring in 28.9 points per game, as he also averaged 10.9 rebounds and 3.9 blocks. He shot 55.8 percent from the floor, 33.1 percent from three-point range (41-124) and 83.9 percent from the free throw line, leading his team to a 26-3 record and the Sierra Valley Conference title. That year, he scored 50 points and grabbed 18 rebounds vs. Pittman High in a sectional playoff opener.

At the 13th annual Slam N Jam All-Star Game, Anderson scored 38 points to claim MVP honors for his team. As a junior, he led Oak Ridge to the state Division II championship with a 60-44 victory over Mater Dei High, as the squad compiled a 31-4 mark. He paced the league in scoring (17.4 ppg), rebounding (9.1 rpg) and blocks (71), while also shooting 52.0 percent from the floor.

Playing most of his freshman year at center, Anderson paced the California Bears in both scoring and rebounding as a rookie, shooting 38.2 percent from three-point range (58-152) and 79.8 percent from the free throw line (103-129). He produced eight games with at least 20 points, as he averaged 16.3 points, 8.2 rebounds and 0.5 blocked shots per game.

Anderson was a member of the 2006-07 Pac-10 Conference All-Freshman team and was honorable mention All-Pac-10. He was also chosen a second-team Freshman All-American by Basketball Times and named All-District XIV by the NABC.

After attending the Pete Newell Big Man Camp over the summer, Anderson trimmed some baby fat and added muscle to his frame, returning to power forward for all but three games during the 2007-08 season. He earned second-team All-American and first-team All-Pac 10 Conference honors. He became the first player in school history to score 600 points with 300 rebounds in the same season and the first to score at least 500 points and 250 rebounds twice in a career.

Anderson's 697 points scored (21.1 ppg) rank second on the school single-season record list. His 328 rebounds (9.9 rpg) also rank second on Cal's annual record chart. He shot 49.0 percent from the field, making 41.0 percent of his three-point attempts (64-of-156), along with an 86.9 percent success rate from the foul line.

In his two-year career, Anderson ranked 16th on Cal's all-time scoring list with 1,236 points - a school record for a sophomore - while he is ninth in three-pointers with 122, eighth in rebound average (9.0 rpg), sixth in three-point percentage (39.6 percent ), fifth in scoring average (18.7 ppg) and third in free throw shooting (84.1 percent ).

ANALYSIS

Positives: Lacks ideal foot quickness and shot blocking ability, but is a pure offensive scoring machine who can also crash the boards on a regular basis…Has great face-the-basket scoring ability and is deadly when parked along the perimeter, as he has a high release point and good quickness getting off his shot…Has a wide array of offensive moves around the basket and is tough for defenders to box him out…With his smooth release and size, he easily gets his shot up and over the bigger front court defenders…Joined the Bears with a little bit of excess weight, but hard work in the training room honed that baby fat into muscle while also improving his overall agility and stamina…Rare to see him give anything but 100 percent effort on both ends of the court (179-of-579 rebounds came from the offensive glass)…Has a complete inside/outside game, where he is extremely accurate shooting from the perimeter while displaying a nice touch working inside…Compensates for a lack of great leaping ability by using his size and long wingspan to extend and go for the put-backs above the rim…With his strong face-up game, Anderson is ideal for a team that wants its forwards to be active enough to play in the pick-and-pop…Solid in transition, showing the range and accuracy to score from those situations…Possibly the best three-point shooter in the West among forwards, as few have the quick and high release that he is capable of displaying…Very good at getting into position on the offensive side, where he showed better ability to stand closer to the basket for the rebounds and put-backs last year, compared to how he seemed to be too far back as a freshman…Has become equally effective with his back to the basket as when facing up, doing a nice job of getting position or slipping past a lethargic opponent…Rare frontcourt player who has the strength to take on power forwards and centers under the rim and enough elevation and balance to post up vs. smaller opponents…Instinctive player with efficient passing skills for a forward…Has a smooth drop step and the lateral agility to execute spin moves to get space to take his shot over the defender from mid range…Has very good passing skills in his half court game…Shows good aggression attacking the basket, as he has the ability to put the ball on the floor for a few more dribbles than most big men when trying to slash and penetrate vs. the more physical centers…Alert to the high post activity and has developed into a quality passer out of the paint, as he has the vision to quickly spot the open teammate…Dominating rebounder with the size, length and solid lower body strength to establish position under the boards…Very physical on the offensive glass and things that every put-back should be his…Better when he uses his length to handle the bigger forwards than defending vs. smaller men along the perimeter… Appears comfortable when defending in the post, as he might not leave his feet as often as he should going for the block, but holds his position well and this forces the smaller forwards to take off-balance shots or push the ball out…His all-out, hell-bent attitude fighting for position lets him get to the rebound well, despite lacking a strong vertical leap…Displays a very accurate jump shot from 15-20 feet away from the basket…Does a very good job creating his own shot, especially off the dribble…Even when he has trouble creating his shot, he has the intelligence to rotate behind the ball and spot up…Is a high percentage free throw shooter who not only does a great job drawing contact to get to the foul line, but has a quick release with good elbow bend to sink most of his attempts from the line…Very effective at successfully executing the elbow-to-elbow jumpers… Has smooth footwork getting around his man on drives from the perimeter to the rim.

Negatives: Has an obvious lack of foot speed, but compensates with a good knowledge for establishing position in the paint…Better in the half court game, as quicker perimeter shooters have good success slashing by him to the rim…Has the length to catch the ball in the post, but struggles to create his shot or push the ball out when double teamed when working around the rim…Has just average athleticism, relying more on court smarts and aggression to get the job done…Feels more agile at his reduced weight, but might have to put some bulk back on to compete with the more physical NBA frontcourt types….His lateral agility is suspect, getting exposed when he has to defend vs. shooters on the outside (gets caught standing around instead of staying in front of his man), as he does not have the quickness to close on quicker opponents…Can get caught out of position on the low block ... Despite improved strength, he still backs off when getting pushed around by bigger centers in the paint…Great long-range shooter, but does spend too much time on the perimeter rather than driving to the basket for a big man ... Needs to be more selective with his moves playing inside the post.

Compares To: JACK SIKMA-ex-Seattle/Milwaukee…The more you watch Anderson play, the more he reminds of the old school types like Sikma and Dave DeBusschere, as he might lack the athleticism you want, but is a smart player who fights for position inside and has deadly range putting up his shots from the perimeter. He lacks explosiveness driving to the rim, but is highly productive facing the basket with his jumper. He is an all-out hustler who competes defensively on both ends of the glass. He has a good scoring touch working inside, but will fade away from contact, as he does get into a rhythm where he gets too enamored with his long-range shooting skills. He's really not the most creative guy you will find, but has the length and quick release to consistently get his shot off with good accuracy. He will never be a superstar, but with Anderson doing the grunt work on the boards and bouncing out to the perimeter to consistently make the three-point shot, he will get quality minutes at the next level, especially as his body grows and matures.

CAREER NOTES

Ranks 16th on the school's career record list with 1,236 points, becoming the first sophomore in school history to score more than 1,000 points in a career…His 1,236 points rank second in school annals over a two-year span behind Lamond Murray (1,301 points, 1993-94)…In 2007-08, Anderson became the first player in school history to score more than 600 points (697) and grab more than 300 rebounds (328) in the same season…Also became the first player to score 500 points and have 250 rebounds twice in a career (539 points and 269 boards in 2006-07)…In school history, only four others Bears have managed to pull score 500 points and secure 250 rebounds in the same season: Leonard Taylor in 1987 (649 points, 270 rebounds), Mark McNamara in 1982 (593-341), Ansley Truitt in 1972 (544-382) and Leon Powe in 2006 (553-273)…With 17 rebounds vs. Oregon State (1/12/08) and 15 boards vs. Arizona State (1/17/08), Anderson became the first Cal player to have at least 15 boards in back-to-back games since Brian Hendrick had 15 at Washington State and 17 vs. Arizona State (2/01 and 2/06/92)…His 597 rebounds during his first two seasons with the Bears are the fifth highest total by a Bear in back-to-back seasons…His average of 18.7 points scored per game rank fifth on the school all-time record list…His average of 9.0 rebounds per game place him eighth on the school career record chart…Made 122 three-point field goals during his career, the ninth-best total in school history…His free throw percentage of 84.1 percent is the third-best in Cal annals behind Jerome Randle (84.6 percent , 2007-present ) and Michael Chavez (84.3 percent , 1989-83)…His 697 points scored in 2007-08 rank second on the school single-season record list, surpassed by Murray (729 points, 1993-94)…His 21.1-point scoring average as a sophomore is the fifth-best season total in school history…Anderson's 328 rebounds in 2007-08 placed him fifth on Cal's single-season record books…His 230 field goals made in 2007-08 tied Murray (1992-93) for the fifth-best season total in school annals…Made 64 three-point shots as a sophomore, tying Bill Elleby (1991-92) for second on the school single-season record list behind Ryan Drew (68 in 1989-90)…His 173 free throws made in 2007-08 rank fourth on Cal's annual record chart…His free throw percentage of .869 as a sophomore rank fifth on the school's single-season record list…Set a school freshman record by grabbing 269 rebounds in 2006-07, breaking the old mark of 256 set by Powe in 2003-04 ... Made 58 three-pointers for the second-highest Cal freshman total ever (Ryan Drew, 60 in 1987-88) ... His point total (539) is second only to Shareef Abdur-Rahim (590 points, 1995-06) on the Cal freshman charts.

2007-08 SEASON

All-American second-team selection by The NBA Draft Report and The Sporting News, adding third-team honors from Collegehoopsnet.com…NABC and United States Basketball Writers Association All-District choice…Wooden All-American team finalist…All-Pac 10 Conference first-team pick and named the Bears' Most Valuable Player…Voted to the Golden Bear Classic all-tournament team…Led the Pac-10 in scoring with a 21.1-point average (697 points), as he shot 49.0 percent from the field (230-of-469), 41.0 percent from three-point range (64-of-156) and 86.9 percent from the free throw line (173-of-199)…The two-time Pac-10 Player of the Week pick ranked third in the league in free throw shooting and rebounds (328, 9.9 rpg)…His three-point shooting accuracy placed him sixth among Pac-10 players and was credited with 47 assists (1.4 apg), 12 steals (0.4 spg) and 18 blocked shots (0.5 bpg)…Turned the ball over 74 times…Produced double-figure scoring in all 33 games, scoring more than 20 points 18 times and more than 30 points in four games…Also credited with 16 double-double performances.

2007-08 GAME ANALYSIS

Scored 27 points on 9-of-16 shooting, as he also totaled eight rebounds vs. Nicholls State…Added 23 points with 13 boards, two assists and a blocked shot vs. San Diego State…Poured in 36 points on 14-of-23 field goals while snaring 13 boards vs. Nevada…Scored 23 points on 9-of-11 shooting vs. Jackson State and followed with 24 points, 11 boards and two assists vs. Kansas State…Had a 27-point performance on 10-of-13 shooting, as he chipped in two assists and nine rebounds vs. Delaware State…Totaled 19 points and 13 boards to go with a pair of assists vs. Utah…Posted 27 points, three assists, two blocks and 12 boards vs. North Dakota State…Collected seven rebounds with three assists and 22 points vs. Oregon and in the second matchup vs. the Ducks, he moved to center, putting in 17 points with six boards…Delivered 17 points and 17 rebounds vs. Oregon State and on the return encounter, he hit the Beavers up for 12 boards and 22 points at center…Back at power forward, Anderson generated 32 points and 15 boards in 46 minutes vs. Arizona State and facing the Sun Devils later in the month, he totaled 28 points with four steals and 11 rebounds…Grabbed seven rebounds while generating 30 points vs. Arizona, coming back with 19 points, a pair of assists and 15 rebounds in the Bears 'second meeting vs. the Wildcats…Scored 27 points and had nine boards in the Washington clash, followed by 17 rebounds, a block and 33 points vs. Washington…Made all 10 free throw attempts, gaining 15 points with 11 rebounds vs. Stanford…Totaled 22 points, 12 boards and two assists vs. Southern California and had 21 points with eight rebounds vs. UCLA in the Pac-10 Tournament, followed by 16 rebounds, an assist and 22 points vs. Washington in tournament action…Handed out three assists, as he put in 26 points with six rebounds vs. New Mexico in the opening round of the NIT Tournament… Finished the season with just 11 points, but grabbed 11 boards in a 73-56 loss to Ohio State in the next round of the NIT.

2006-07 SEASON

Member of the 2006-07 Pac-10 Conference All-Freshman team and was honorable mention All-Pac-10…Chosen a second-team Freshman All-American by Basketball Times and named All-District XIV by the NABC…Selected Cal's Outstanding Freshman…Playing most of his freshman year at center, he led the Bears in scoring and rebounding…Scored 539 points (16.3 ppg), as he made 189-of-397 field goals (47.6 percent ), 58-of-152 three-point attempts (38.2 percent ) and 103-of-129 free throws (79.8 percent )…Grabbed 269 rebounds (8.2 rpg) and blocked 18 shots (0.5 bpg)…Had 16 assists with 22 steals, along with 47 turnovers…Had eight games with at least 20 points ... Reached double figures in scoring 30 times in 33 games…Paced the Bears in scoring 18 times and in rebounding on 22 occasions.

2006-07 GAME ANALYSIS

Scored at least 20 points in each of his first three games (20 vs. Utah Valley State; 21 at San Diego State; 25 vs. Santa Clara), joining Abdur-Rahim as the only Cal players to do so…Named MVP of the Great Alaska Shootout after he led Cal to the title, averaging 17.3 ppg and 9.3 rpg ... In his first game after DeVon Hardin went out with a foot injury, finished with 24 points and 16 rebounds at DePaul, including 17 points and 11 boards in the first half ... In a matchup vs. Washington center Spencer Hawes in Berkeley, Anderson had 18 points and 14 rebounds in a 77-69 victory ... Scored 18 of his 22 points in the first half at Oregon State ... Played well at UCLA with 21 points vs. the Bruins ... Named to the all-tournament team at the Pac-10 Tournament after he averaged 20.7 ppg and 11.7 rpg in three games ... Set his season scoring high with 27 points and grabbed 15 rebounds in an opening-round win over Oregon State ... Also had 18 points in a quarterfinal upset over top-seed UCLA and 17 points and 12 boards vs. Oregon in the semifinals.

INJURY REPORT

2007-08 Season: Missed 10 minutes of the second half vs. Southern Mississippi (11/14/07) due to blurred vision in his left eye, a condition doctors believe was a form of a migraine.

HIGH SCHOOL

Attended Oak Ridge (El Dorado Hills, Calif.) High School, earning All-State first-team honors from Cal-Hi Sports…Named the Sierra Valley Conference Most Valuable Player and chosen Player of the Year by the Sacramento Bee…Added Northern California Division II Player of the Year accolades and was an All-State first-team pick as a junior…Was third-leading high school scorer in the state of California as a senior in 2005-06, pouring in 28.9 points per game, as he also averaged 10.9 rebounds and 3.9 blocks…Shot 55.8 percent from the floor, 33.1 percent from three-point range (41-124) and 83.9 percent from the free throw line, leading his team to a 26-3 record and the Sierra Valley Conference title…That year, he scored 50 points and grabbed 18 rebounds vs. Pittman High in a sectional playoff opener…At the 13th annual Slam N Jam All-Star Game, Anderson scored 38 points to claim MVP honors for his team…As a junior, he led Oak Ridge to the state Division II championship with a 60-44 victory over Mater Dei High, as the squad compiled a 31-4 mark…Paced the league in scoring (17.4 ppg), rebounding (9.1 rpg) and blocks (71), while also shooting 52.0 percent from the floor.

PERSONAL

General Studies major…Son of Sue and Jack Anderson…Born Ryan James Anderson on 5/06/88 in Sacramento, California…Resides in El Dorado Hills, California.