Nov. 21, 2012
California Game Notes 
BERKELEY - California heads to Anaheim, Calif. to compete in the DIRECTV Classic over the Thanksgiving holiday. The Golden Bears look to open the season 4-0 for the second straight season and the third time under fifth-year head coach Mike Montgomery when they take on Drake at the Anaheim Convention Center Thursday at 8:30 p.m. (PT).
The ESPN family of networks will provide live television coverage of the DIRECTV Classic. The Cal-Drake matchup will be televised on ESPN2 with Dave Flemming handling the play-by-play and Sean Farnham serving as an analyst. The game can also be accessed on WatchESPN.com.
The Cal IMG Radio Network will carry the game on KSFS NewsTalk 910 AM locally with Cal alum Roxy Bernstein (play-by-play) and Todd McKim (analyst) on the call. The broadcast is also available through CalBears.com/All-Access. The pre-game show starts at 8 p.m.
The 2012 field for the DIRECTV Classic consists of Cal, Drake, Rice, Georgia Tech, Drexel, Saint Mary's, Xavier and Pacific. Twelve total games will be played beginning Thursday and running through Sunday evening. There will not be any games played on Saturday.
Thursday, November 22
• Game No. 1 - Pacific vs. Xavier, ESPNU, 11 a.m. PT
• Game No. 2 - Drexel vs. Saint Mary's, ESPN2, 1:30 p.m. PT
• Game No. 3 - Rice vs. Georgia Tech, ESPNU, 6 p.m. PT
• Game No. 4 - Drake vs. Cal, ESPN2, 8:30 p.m. PT
Friday, November 23
• Game No. 5 - Games 1 & 2 winners/Semi-finals, ESPN2, 12:30 a.m. PT
• Game No. 6 - Games 1 & 2 losers, ESPNU, 3 p.m. PT
• Game No. 7 - Games 3 & 4 losers, ESPNU, 6:30 p.m. PT
• Game No. 8 - Games 3 & 4 winners/Semi-finals, ESPN2, 9 p.m. PT
Sunday, November 25
• Game No. 9 - Games 6 & 7 winners, ESPNU, 10:30 a.m. PT
• Game No. 10 - Games 6 & 7 losers, ESPN3, 1 p.m. PT
• Game No. 11 - Games 5 & 8 losers, ESPNU, 3:30 p.m. PT
• Game No. 12 - Games 5 & 8 winners/Championship, ESPN2, 6 p.m. PT
Cal enters this week's tournament 3-0 overall thanks in large part to the junior guard duo of Allen Crabbe and Justin Cobbs. Crabbe leads the way with a Pac-12 leading 26.7 points per game. The total is also the fourth-highest in the nation through Monday's games. Cobbs averages 20.7 points per contest as the pair have combined for 142 of the team's 229 points this season. Crabbe became the 42nd member of the school's 1,000-point club with 20 points last time out at Denver. He enters the DIRECTV Classic with 1,010 points in 82 career games.
Crabbe and Cobbs are joined in the line-up by junior forward Richard Solomon, sophomore forward David Kravish and senior guard Brandon Smith. The Bears have used the same starting lineup in all three of their games this season.
CRABBE ENTERS 1,000-POINT CLUB
Junior Allen Crabbe became the 42nd player in school history to reach the 1,000-point milestone for his Golden Bear career. He hit the four-digit total with a three-pointer at the 9:34 mark of the second half at Denver last Friday. Crabbe achieved the milestone in his 68th career game, which is 19 games less than it took Cal's all-time leading scorer Jerome Randle (1,835 from 2006-10) to reach the 1,000-point mark.
PAC-12'S LEADING SCORER
With an average of 26.7 points per game through the season's first three contests, Crabbe is the Pac-12 Conference's leading scorer by more than three points over UCLA's Jordan Adams through Monday's contests. His career-high 33 points against Pepperdine this season equaled the most points by an individual in the conference through Monday's action. Oregon State's Ahmad Starks scored 33 against New Mexico State on Nov. 11. He is also among the conference leaders in three-point field goals made per game (1st, 3.3), free-throw percentage (5th, .941), three-point field goal percentage (6th, .588) and minutes played (8th, 33.0) through Monday's games.
SCORING IN BUNCHES
Crabbe has scored 17 or more points in a single half in each of the first three games. In the first half of the season opener vs. CSUB, the junior poured in 20 points on 8-of-12 shooting, including 4-of-4 from the three-point range. In the second half of the Pepperdine contest, the guard registered 24 points on 7-of-10 shooting, including a perfect 7-of-7 from the free-throw line and 3-of-4 from beyond the arc. In the second half of the Bears' game at Denver, Crabbe posted 17 points on 5-of-7 shooting and 6-of-6 from the free-throw line.
FROM THE LINE
Crabbe has attempted 198 career free throws through the first three games of his junior season in Berkeley, converting 165 of those attempts. The guard owns a .828 free-throw percentage, which ranks sixth on the school's all-time list. He was a perfect 9-of-9 on free-throw attempts last time out against Pepperdine and is 10-of-11 from the free throw line overall this season.
FROM BEYOND THE ARC
Crabbe is one of the Pac-12 conference's top three-point shooters. Through three games of his junior season, he has drained 155 career three-pointers, which ranks seventh on Cal's all-time list. His .408 three-point field percentage ranks fifth-best in school history. As a sophomore in 2011-12, Crabbe recorded 62 three-pointers, which ranked as the seventh-most in a season in school history.
MORE ON CRABBE
Crabbe has scored 20 or more points in at least three-straight games for the second time in his career. He opened the 2012-13 season with 27 points vs. CSU Bakersfield and a career-best 33 points against Pepperdine. The guard recorded four-straight games of 20 or more points during his freshman season, pouring in 26 at Oregon State, 24 vs. Stanford, 21 against USC, and 20 vs. Mississippi in consecutive games.
COBBS AND CRABBE
Junior guards Justin Cobbs and Allen Crabbe have combined to score 142 of Cal's 229 points through the first three games. Crabbe has poured in a conference-leading 80 points on the year thanks to a career-high 33-point outing vs. Pepperdine. Cobbs, who was an All-Pac-12 honorable mention pick last season, isn't far behind with 62 points.
The duo has connected on 51 of the Bears' 84 field goals this season and is shooting a combined .607 (51-of-84) from the floor through the first three games of the year. The pair has also accounted for 17 of Cal's 41 assists this season.
COBBS AMONG LEAGUE'S ASSIST LEADERS
Junior Justin Cobbs ranks among the conference leaders in several categories. He is third in scoring (20.7 ppg.), fourth in field goal percentage (.686), sixth in free throw percentage (.917) and tied for 14th in assists per game (3.0). Cobbs leads the Bears in assists (9) for the second-straight season. The 6-3 guard, who transferred from Minnesota, made his Cal debut last season after sitting out 2010-11 due to NCAA transfer regulations. He earned a starting role eight games into last season and finished the year with a 12.6 points-per-game average. Cobbs was Cal's assist leader and ranked third in the Pac-12 Conference in assists with 169 last season for a 4.9 assists-per-game average. His 169 assists was the ninth-most in a season in school history.
KRAVISH PROVIDES POST PRESENCE
After a 2011-12 season where David Kravish earned a spot on the All-Pac-12 Freshman team, the 6-9 forward added 20 pounds to his frame in the off-season and has become a bigger presence in the post. In the season opener vs. CSU Bakersfield, the sophomore posted a game-high three blocks to go along with nine rebounds. He is the team's leading rebounder by more than 11 boards with 28 through three games, which ranks third in the Pac-12 through Monday's action. The forward is coming off his first career double-double with 11 points and 12 rebounds last time out at Denver.
As a freshman, Kravish started 24 games and averaged 6.9 points and 5.6 rebounds. He recorded 41 blocks - the third-most by a freshman in school history - ranked ninth overall and second among freshmen in the Pac-12. Kravish's .594 field-goal percentage (98-of-165) was the highest among Cal's regular starters last season.
SOLOMON RETURNS TO LINEUP
Junior forward Richard Solomon returned to the Cal lineup in the season opener, playing his first game since Jan. 12, 2012. After missing the final 15 games last season, Solomon has started each of the Bears' first three games. He finished the season opener with eight points and nine rebounds in 27 minutes. The forward averaged 6.0 points and 6.2 rebounds to go along with 16 blocks last season.
3-0 START
California has opened the season 3-0 for the third-straight season and the fourth overall under fifth-year head coach Mike
Montgomery. It is the second-straight season the Bears have won their first three games by a double-digit margin.
CONTROLLING THE GLASS
Cal has out-rebounded each of its first three opponents, with a +8 (46-38) advantage against CSU Bakersfield, a +3 (39-36) edge vs. Pepperdine, and a +12 (40-28) advantage at Denver.
SHARP-SHOOTING KREKLOW MAKES CAL DEBUT
Sophomore guard Ricky Kreklow played in a collegiate game for the first time in nearly two years against Pepperdine on Nov. 13. He made his Cal debut 6:30 into the game against the Waves, playing 17 minutes total. The guard recorded three points, four rebounds, three steals and two assists in limited action while he continues to recover from pre-season foot surgery. In an increased role (28 minutes) at Denver last time out, Kreklow posted 10 points, six rebounds, three assists and two blocks.
The Missouri transfer sat out last season due to NCAA transfer regulations after leaving the Tigers' program following the 2009-10 season. He played in 32 games as a true freshman at Missouri, averaging 2.1 points and 1.3 rebounds in 9.8 minutes per contest for the Big 12 school. At Missouri, 13 of Kreklow's 22 field goals were from three-point range.
DRAKE SCOUTING REPORT
The Drake Bulldogs, out of the Missouri Valley Conference, come into Thursday's contest 1-1 overall. They split their first two games of the season, with a 96-66 season-opening victory over William Jewell and an 85-79 loss at Detroit.
Drake has five players averaging double figures in the scoring column through two games, with Ben Simons leading the way at an 18.0 ppg. clip. Richard Carter is averaging 14.5 points and Chris Hines is contributing 14.0 points per contest. Jordan Clarke controls the glass for the Bulldogs at 8.5 rebounds per game.
CALIFORNIA-DRAKE SERIES HISTORY
Cal and Drake have met four times previously with the Bears winning three of the four contests. The Bears and Bulldogs met last met during the 1985-86.
DRAKE CONNECTIONS
Two Golden Bears have connections to Drake. Sophomore guard Ricky Kreklow's father, Wayne, was an All-American basketball player at Drake in 1980 before he was drafted by the Boston Celtics. He went on to win the 1981 NBA Championship with the Celtics. His father is now the head coach of the Missouri Volleyball team and his mother is former head coach at Missouri and current Director of Volleyball Operations.
Cal assistant coach Gregg Gottlieb was a two-year letterman at Drake from 1991-93.
