Armed with its highest seed in school history, the fourth-seeded California Golden Bears open the NCAA Tournament against 13th-seeded Hawai'i at 11 a.m. Friday at Spokane Arena. The South Regional contest will be broadcast on TBS, KSFO 560 AM and Westwood One.
Cal, ranked 23rd in both the Associated Press and USA Today polls, earned its berth after compiling a 23-10 overall record, tying for third in the Pac-12 and reaching the semifinals of the Pac-12 Tournament. Hawai'i (27-5) captured the Big West Tournament title and received the accompanying automatic bid.
The winner of Friday's game will meet the winner between No. 5 Maryland and No. 12 South Dakota State on Sunday (time TBA).
Built around a strong defense, Cal leads the Pac-12 in scoring defense (67.0 ppg), field goal percentage defense (39.3%) and fewest 3-pointers allowed (5.5 per game). The Bears also rate first nationally in 2-point field goal percentage defense at 40.9 percent and are 10th in the country for fewest 3-pointers allowed per game (first among Power 5 Conference schools).
Senior Tyrone Wallace paces the offense with 15.3 ppg, while 2016 Pac-12 Freshman of the Year Jaylen Brown adds 15.0 ppg. Fellow freshman Ivan Rabb is snaring 8.5 rpg, and guards Jabari Bird and Jordan Mathews have combined to make 147 3-pointers this season.
Cal in the NCAA Tournament
The Golden Bears are in the South Region and are marking their 19th all-time appearance to the NCAA Tournament. Cal has earned a berth 14 times since 1990 and is 20-18 all-time in NCAA Tournament games, including a national championship in 1959 and a runner-up finish in 1960. The Bears own a 12-6 mark in opening-round contests. In Cal's most recent time in the field, the Bears, as a 12 seed, defeated No. 5 UNLV, 64-61, before falling to No. 4 Syracuse, 66-60.
For head coach Cuonzo Martin, this is the second time he has directed his squad to the NCAA Tournament, having guided Tennessee to the Sweet 16 in 2014. In addition, he took Missouri State to the National Invitation Tournament in 2011 and Tennessee to the NIT in both 2012 and 2013. His first Missouri State squad in 2010 played in the Collegeinsider.com Tournament.
Bears Earn Highest Seed Ever
With a No. 4 seed in the South Region, Cal has earned its highest seed in school history. The Bears were a No. 5 seed in both 1994 and 1997 - reaching the Sweet 16 in '97 - and a sixth seed in 1993 when they also advanced to the Sweet 16. In the days of head coach Pete Newell, which included four NCAA Tournament berths with a national championship in 1959 and a secoond-place finish in 1960, seeds were not handed out.
Wallace, Domingo Bring NCAA Experience
Two members of the Bears bring past experience to the NCAA Tournament. Senior Tyrone Wallace was a starting guard as a freshman in 2013 when the Bears, as a 12 seed, upended No. 5 UNLV before falling to No. 4 Syracuse. He had three points, four rebounds and four assists against the Rebels, then totaled 12 points vs. the Orange. Domingo was part of one NCAA team at Georgetown in 2013 before transferring to Cal in 2014 after his sophomore season. He played one minute vs. Florida Gulf Coast but did not record any stats.
Cal Against Spokane Opponents
Cal is 12-1 all-time against Hawai'i, last playing the Rainbow Warriors in the second round of the 2006 Great Alaska Shootout - a 72-56 Bear victory. Cal is 0-2 vs. Maryland, which includes an 84-71 loss in the first round of the 2009 NCAA Tournament. Cal and South Dakota State have not met previously.
Cal Trio Earns All-Pac-12 Honors
Three Golden Bears - Jaylen Brown, Ivan Rabb and Tyrone Wallace - have earned all-conference recognition from the Pac-12, as determined by the league's coaches. Brown was chosen first-team All-Pac-12, with Rabb on the second team and Wallace an honorable mention choice. In addition, Brown and Rabb were selected to the Pac-12 All-Freshman squad, and Brown was tabbed Pac-12 Freshman of the Year. Brown is scoring 15.0 ppg while also pulling down 5.5 rpg, and Rabb averages 12.5 ppg and a team-best 8.5 rpg. Wallace, a first-team choice last year, contributes a team-leading 15.3 ppg, 5.4 rpg and 4.4 rpg. Brown is the first Cal freshman to make first-team all-conference since Leon Powe in 2003-04. Brown and Rabb become the 22nd and 23rd Bears to earn all-freshman accolades and the fourth tandem, joining Chris Washington and Kevin Johnson in 1984; Jamal Sampson and Amit Tamir in 2002; and Leon Powe and Marquise Kately in 2004.
Brown is also the eighth Bear to be selected Freshman of the Year, joining Dave Butler (1983), Leonard Taylor (1985), Jason Kidd (1993), Tremaine Fowlkes (1995), Shareef Abdur-Rahim (1996), Leon Powe (2004) and Allen Crabbe (2011).
Cal Seeks High Win Total
Cal enters the NCAA Tournament at 23-10 overall and with one more victory will match the Bears' highest total since the 1960 NCAA runner-up squad finished 28-2. Cal was 24-10 when it captured the Pac-10 title in 2009-10, and finished 24-11 in 2011-12.
Brown Finalist for Tisdale Award
Forward Jaylen Brown has been named one of five finalists for the Integris Wayman Tisdale Award, which is presented annually to the national freshman of the year by the U.S. Basketball Writers Association. The other finalists are Henry Ellenson, Marquette; Brandon Ingram, Duke; Jamal Murray, Kentucky; and Ben Simmons, LSU. The USBWA began selecting the National Freshman of the Year in 1989, with Cal's Jason Kidd winning the award in 1993. The award will be presented on April 11 at the College Basketball Awards gala and dinner in Oklahoma City.
Cal Leads Pac-12 in FG%, Scoring Defense
Cal has developed into one of the top defensive teams in the country and leads the Pac-12 in both field goal percentage defense (39.3 percent) and scoring defense (67.0 ppg). The Bears last paced the Pac-12 in scoring defense during the 1996-97 campaign (67.8 ppg), while the Cal's most recent time on top of the league in field goal percentage defense was in 2012-13 (39.3%).
Cal is also first nationally in 2-point field goal percentage defense at 40.9 percent, just ahead of Cincinnati and Valparaiso, who are also at 40.9 percent. The figure is down from 45.6 percent last season, which ranked 90th in the country.
Cal Near Top in Fewest 3-Pointers Allowed
Entering the NCAA Tournament, Cal has allowed just 180 3-pointers or 5.5 per game. That average ranks 10th nationally and first among schools from the five power conferences. Within the Pac-12, the Bears have surrendered 16 fewer treys than Washington, which is second with 186 and has played one less game than Cal. In conference games only, Cal gave up 79 3-pointers in 18 games (4.4 per game, Pac-12 low 31.7%) - well ahead of No. 2 Utah and Colorado (110, 6.1 per game).
A Perfect February for Bears
With its win over USC Feb. 29, Cal completed February with a 7-0 record, giving the Bears their first undefeated February since Pete Newell's 1959-60 squad finished 6-0 during the month. During the run, Cal posted several impressive numbers - 80.3 ppg, a +10.6 rebounding margin and a +14.6 scoring margin. Only one of Cal's wins was by less than 12 points, and the Bears hit the 80-point barrier four times (compared to none in their first nine Pac-12 games).
February success has also become a hallmark of Cuonzo Martin-coached teams, which are 34-12 over the past six seasons at three different schools. At Cal, the Bears are now 11-3 in February under Martin the last two years.
Cal's 7-0 stretch was its longest in Pac-12 action since also putting together a seven-game streak in 2013.
Homecourt Heroes
After completing its home schedule with an 18-0 mark inside Haas Pavilion, Cal has extended its homecourt winning streak to 19 games when including a victory from the final contest of the 2014-15 campaign. The run is the second-longest in school history and the eighth-longest current streak in the country.
Cal's Longest Homecourt Win Streaks
1. 26, Dec. 27, 1958 to Dec. 16, 1960
2. 19, March 1, 2015-current
3. 17, Feb. 20, 2011 to Jan. 29, 2012
3. 17, Feb. 2, 2002 to Feb. 15, 2003
Bears Set Home Wins Mark
At 18-0 this season, Cal set a school record for consecutive home victories in a single season. The old record was 13 in a row during the 1953-54 and 1959-60 seasons.
How Cal's Home Record Stacks Up
At 18-0, Cal posted the best home record against Division I opponents in the country this year. Oregon is also 18-0, but one win came against Division II Western Oregon.
Defending the Home Court
Cal's defense was particularly stingy inside Haas Pavilion this year with the Bears surrendering just 62.8 ppg and 37.7 percent shooting from the floor. Cal owned a +10.0 rebounding margin and averaged 6.1 blocks per game.
Individually, three Cal players contributed at least 14 ppg at home - Jaylen Brown (14.8), Tyrone Wallace (14.5) and Jordan Mathews (14.4).
Wallace All Over the Record Book
Senior guard Tyrone Wallace, a first-team All-Pac-12 last year and an honorable mention choice this season, will go down as one of the most versatile players in school history, and a quick check of the record book explains why. He is the only Bear to rank among Cal's all-time top 10 in scoring, assists and steals, as well as in the top 15 in rebounding. This season, he scored a high of 26 points in Cal's Pac-12 semifinal game vs. Utah and also poured in 24 points against UC Santa Barbara at home and at Arizona State on the road. In addition, he set a career high with 10 assists (1 turnover) in the Pac-12 quarters vs. Oregon State.
Cal Career Scoring
6. Kevin Johnson (1984-87) - 1,655
7. Bob McKeen (1952-55) - 1,632
8. Tyrone Wallace (2013-present) - 1,613
Cal Career Rebounds
12. Roy Fisher (1988-91) - 697
13. Tyrone Wallace (2013-present) - 676
Cal Career Assists
5. Jason Kidd (1993-94) - 494
6. Tyrone Wallace (2013-present) - 437
Cal Career Steals
6. Michael Chavez (1980-83) - 140
7. Tyrone Wallace (2013-present) -139
Rabb, Brown Climbing Freshman Charts
With 33 games already in the books, freshman forwards Ivan Rabb and Jaylen Brown are imprinting their names on the Cal freshman charts. Rabb broke Ryan Anderson's school freshman record during the Pac-12 Tournament and now has 279 on the season. And his 41 blocks tie for third among Golden Bear rookies (David Kravish in 2011-12). Brown is fourth all-time among Cal freshmen with 494 points. His 15.0 ppg scoring average is behind only Shareef Abdur-Rahim (21.1 ppg, 1995-96), Ryan Anderson (16.3 ppg, 2006-07) and Leon Powe (15.1 ppg, 2003-04).
Brown Delivers Big on the Road
Some of Jaylen Brown's biggest games have come away from home, including all six of his 20-point efforts. He tallied a career-high 27 points vs. Richmond during a November tournament in Las Vegas and later matched the total at Utah in late January. In addition, he scored 20 points at both Oregon and Oregon State, had 21 points (all in the second half) at Colorado and helped Cal to a win at Washington with a team-best 23 points. Even when he's not scoring at such a high rate, he's finding ways to help in other areas, as when he dished out seven assists in the Bears' 74-73 victory over Arizona in Berkeley.
Brown, Rabb Combo Averaging 27.5 ppg
Cal's two freshman forwards, Jaylen Brown and Ivan Rabb, are combining to average 27.5 ppg and 14.0 ppg, all while shooting 51.0 percent from the floor. They are striving to become the top scoring freshman tandem in school history, a mark currently held by Leon Powe and Marquise Kately, who contributed 25.6 ppg in 2003-04. Other notable rookie combos for the Bears have been: Lamond Murray and Alfred Grigsby in 1991-92 (24.0 ppg); Shareef Abdur-Rahim and Kenyon Jones in 1995-96 (23.8 ppg); and Ryan Anderson and Jerome Randle in 2006-07 (22.8 ppg).
Back-to-Back 20+ Games for Bird
Junior Jabari Bird put together the two best back-to-back games of his career Feb. 11 and 13 when he averaged 23.5 ppg and 6.5 rpg in double-digit home wins over Oregon and Oregon State - performances that earned him Pac-12 Player of the Week honors. Against the Ducks, he shot 9-of-14 from the floor and 5-of-8 from 3-point range to tie his personal best of 24 points. Two days later, he totaled 23 points, again on 9-of-14 shooting (4-8 3P). It marked the first time in Bird's three seasons at Cal that he had scored at least 20 points in consecutive games. During Cal's seven-game winning streak in February, he averaged 15.3 ppg on 57.1 percent shooting from the floor and 57.9 percent shooting from 3-point range (22-of-38). For the year, he has a career-best 61 3-pointers made and is shooting a career-high 40.9 percent behind the arc. Combined with Jordan Mathews, the pair have connected on 147 3-pointers this season.
Kam Can on the Glass
Since the Jan. 23 Cal-Arizona game, sophomore center Kameron Rooks has set or tied his career high in rebounding five times. He had a then-PR seven boards against the Wildcats and matched the total in his next outing at Colorado. Rooks pulled down 12 caroms at Utah and had another 12 at home vs. Stanford. Then in the Feb. 18 win at Washington, he corralled 14 boards and followed up with nine more at Washington State. He had his first career double-double with 11 points and 12 rebounds vs. Stanford. Rooks is averaging 6.9 rpg over his past 14 games, compared to 3.4 rpg before he started his rise.
Rabb Among Cal's Most Accurate
Freshman forward Ivan Rabb is averaging 12.5 ppg and shooting an impressive 62.2 percent from the floor (second in the Pac-12). Over his last two games, he was 9-for-11 from the field vs. Oregon State and 6-for-7 against Utah, which helped him earn Pac-12 All-Tournament honors. His totals against the Beavers were 21 points and 15 rebounds - both career highs. No Cal player has shot more than 60% for a full season since Solomon Hughes in 2000-01 (62.9%), while the school freshman record is 64.0% by Tony Gonzalez in 1994-95. In addition, Rabb owns a team-best 10 double-doubles.
Hot from Downtown
Since a 12-for-22 night from 3-point range against Davidson Dec. 28, Cal has been particularly accurate from long-range, going a combined 154-for-394 from behind the arc (39.1%) over its past 21 games (compared to 33.2% over the first 12 contests). What makes the stat more remarkable is that the stretch includes an 0-for-12 night at Oregon in early January. Toss out that contest and the Bears are shooting 40.3 percent as a team during the period. Cal's total of 233 3-pointers is second in school history behind the 249 made in 2006-07.
Mathews Firing from Deep
Junior Jordan Mathews, who topped the Pac-12 last season when he connected at a 44.3% clip from behind the arc, is keeping up the pace this season as Cal's top marksman by hitting 41.7 percent of his 3-point attempts. He sank a season-best six treys vs. Arizona in Berkeley and had five against both Davidson and Colorado. Now with 198 career triples, he is fourth all-time at Cal. He's also set his career high for a season with 86 - No. 2 on the school season charts - and with a similar year as a senior, he would easily eclipse Jerome Randle's career mark of 252 3-pointers from 2007-10
Cal Career 3-Pointers Made
3. Allen Crabbe (2011-13) - 209
4. Jordan Mathews (2014-) - 198
Cal Career Scoring
26. Ayinde Ubaka (2004-07) - 1,194
27. Gene Ransom (1976-78) - 1,185
28. John Coughran (1971-73) - 1,183
29. Jordan Mathews (2014-) - 1,179
29. Chris Washington (1984-87) - 1,179
Cal Season 3-Pointers Made
1. Jerome Randle (2009-10) - 92
2. Jordan Mathews (2015-16) - 86
Singer Finding the Open Man
Junior Sam Singer, inserted as Cal's starter at point guard for the first time this year when Tyrone Wallace went out with a hand injury, broke his career high in assists twice in his eight games as a starter. He had nine vs. Stanford and raised it to 11 vs. Oregon. As a starter, Singer dished out 40 assists (5.0 apg) against just 16 turnovers.
Bears Having a Block Party
Cal is closing in on the school record for blocks in a season. The Bears enter the NCAA Tournament with 159, which ranks second in school history behind the 161 in 2012-13. Cal is averaging 4.8 blocks per game, and since stat began being kept in 1978-79, the Bears have averaged more than 4.0 just five times.
Individually, Ivan Rabb leads with 41 blocks, while Kingsley Okoroh has 33, Kameron Rooks 28 and Jaylen Brown 22.
Boards Make a Difference for Bears
So far this season, Cal is 20-3 when it wins the rebounding battle, with the lone setbacks at Virginia when the Bears held a 36-30 edge on the glass, at Oregon (38-35) and at Arizona (44-31). Cal raised its differential vs. the Ducks to +13 at home, which helped in an 83-63 victory, while the Bears had 28 second-chance points at UA. Cal has had a double-digit difference in 14 of its victories, including a high of +21 at Washington State Feb. 21. Overall, Cal owns a +6.8 rebounding margin, which, if it holds up, would be the second highest in school history.
Wallace Makes Return vs. Ducks
Senior guard Tyrone Wallace, who missed five consecutive games starting Jan. 16 after he broke a bone his right hand in practice, gained medical clearance not long before Cal's home contest vs. Oregon Feb. 11 and returned to the lineup that night. “Tyrone is cleared for takeoff,” is how head coach Cuonzo Martin announced the news in a text to the team. Wallace came off the bench to contribute 10 points, a team-high eight rebounds and four assists in 28 minutes during an 83-63 victory over the Ducks.
New Look to Haas Pavilion
Thanks to a generous $10 million gift from the Evelyn and Walter A. Haas Jr. Fund, Haas Pavilion received much needed improvements before the start of the 2015-16 season. The upgrades include a new center-hung scoreboard with additional LED boards around the arena, an enhanced sound system, an enlarged and modernized video control room, and improved lighting for the court.
We're No. 1
Generally considered the top-ranked public school in the world, Cal has held the No. 1 spot among the U.S. News & World Report rankings of public national universities for 17 consecutive years. In its Best Global Universities ratings, U.S. News places Cal third overall behind only Harvard and MIT.
Bears Enjoy Themselves Down Under
Prior to the start of the 2015-16 season, the Bears embarked on a four-game tour of Australia in August where they got a chance to bond as a team, do some sightseeing and win three of four contests over a 12-day trip.
“We competed, we played hard, we played together, we defended, we worked hard, we dove on the floor, and we rebounded,” was head coach Cuonzo Martin's assessment.
'Real Talk' with the Bears
While the Bears practice, play and train during the season, meetings in Cal's locker room below the court level at Haas Pavilion tackle a different subject far from the view from their fans. One-hour “Real Talk” sessions held each weekend and moderated by director of operations Marco Harris provide opportunities to discuss just about any subject except basketball. Themes and topics can range from dealing with tough times and difficult situations, to morals and family crises. Head coach Cuonzo Martin introduced Real Talks when he was head coach at Missouri State and has carried them with him over the course of his career.
A Promise to His Grandfather
After his junior season ended last March, Tyrone Wallace explored skipping his senior year for a chance at the NBA. But after careful consultations, he elected to remain in school. One of the primary factors was a promise he made to his grandfather, who since passed away, that he would finish his studies and be the first in his family to earn a college degree. Wallace is on track to receive his bachelor's degree in social welfare this spring.
It's All Business for Singer, Domingo
On Feb. 19, both Sam Singer and Stephen Domingo learned that they had gained admission to the prestigious Haas School of Business at Cal. Singer earned honorable mention Pac-12 All-Academic honors as a sophomore last season, while Domingo graduated in just three years at St. Ignatius College Prep in San Francisco before beginning his college career.
Jabari Bird Channels His Inner Popeye
Junior Jabari Bird gets his days off to a healthy start, eating a bowl of raw spinach for breakfast at least 4-5 days per week. It started as a way for him to improve his nutritional intake as the suggestion of strength & conditioning coach Nicodemus Christopher, who used these straight-forward words of encouragement: “You don't want to put regular gas in a Lamborghini.”
Mathews Signs Up for ASL Class
Jordan Mathews took a class in sign language during the 2015 fall semester – Linguistics IA – that offers an introduction of the fundamentals of American Sign Language, including comprehension skills, grammatical structures and exposure to deaf culture. For the final exam, the students had a conversation in ASL with prompting from the professor. He is following up this spring with another class in ASL, Linguistics 1B.
Family Ties to Sports
Cal's roster is filled with student-athletes whose fathers or siblings have played or coached at the collegiate and professional levels:
- Jabari Bird – father, Carl Bird, was a standout basketball player for the Bears who was team MVP in 1975-76 (15.2 ppg)
- Nick Kerr – father, Steve Kerr, is head coach of the Golden State Warriors and sister, Maddy Kerr, is a libero on the Cal volleyball team
- Jordan Mathews – father, Phil Mathews, is a longtime college basketball coach, including a stint as head coach at San Francisco. He's currently at Riverside City College
- Roger Moute a Bidias – brother, Luc Richard Mbah a Moute, played at UCLA and is currently a member of the Los Angeles Clippers
- Kameron Rooks – father, Sean Rooks, starred at Arizona, played in the NBA and is now an assistant coach for the Philadelphia 76ers
- Cole Welle - grandfather, James Black, played for John Wooden at UCLA and his father, Tom Welle, played basketball at Alaska-Fairbanks.
Golden Bear Notes
Tyson Jolly, a 6-4 guard out of Oklahoma City, signed with Cal on Nov. 11. The Oklahoman's 2014-15 Big All-City Player of the Year, he is enrolled this year as a post-grad student at the Elev8 Sports Institute in Florida ... senior guard Brenden Glapion, a walk-on from San Francisco, was awarded a scholarship for his final semester during a surprise presentation on Jan. 16 ... Brian Hendrick, a 6-8 forward for the Bears from 1990-93, was inducted into the Pac-12 Basketball Hall of Honor.
