Dec. 13, 2012

California Game Notes

BERKELEY - California looks to get back on track as the Golden Bears host their second straight nationally-ranked opponent when No. 13/16 Creighton comes to Haas Pavilion for a Saturday night showdown at 8:06 p.m. (PT).

The Pac-12 Networks will provide live national television coverage of Saturday's game with Cal's own Roxy Bernstein handling the play-by-play and Ernie Kent serving as the analyst.

The Cal IMG Sports Network will carry the game on KSFS NewsTalk 910 AM in the Bay Area with Todd McKim (play-by-play) and former Cal standout Jon Wheeler (analyst) on the call. The broadcast is also available through CalBears.com/All-Access. The pre-game show starts at 7:30 p.m. (PT). The radio broadcast will also be streamed live on SiriusXM channel 85.

California looks to bounce back from a one-point (76-75) loss to No. 18 UNLV at Haas Pavilion last Sunday afternoon. The Bears enter Saturday's contest 6-2 overall, matching their record through the first eight games last season.

Cal, playing nationally-ranked teams in consecutive games for the first time since 2009, is concluding a three-game stretch of Wisconsin (7-4) , No. 17 UNLV (8-1) and the No. 13 Blue Jays (9-1) that own a combined record of 24-6 this season.

Five of the Bears' six wins this season have come by double digits, including two of the last three victories - an 11-point win over Georgia Tech on Nov. 23 and a 20-point victory over Pacific on Nov. 25.

Cal has out-rebounded six of its first eight opponents with a 38.2 rpg. average. The Bears recorded 40 or more rebounds in four-straight games earlier this season for the first time since the 1997-98 campaign.

The junior guard duo of Crabbe and Justin Cobbs lead the Pac-12 in scoring and have paced the Bears in each of the first eight games. Crabbe is the league's scoring leader at 21.9 ppg., while Cobbs is sixth at 17.8 ppg. Crabbe ranks sixth in the nation in scoring through Wednesday's action.

The pair has combined to score 317 of Cal's 579 points and connected on 103 of the Bears' 205 field goals this season. The duo is shooting a combined .502 (103-of-205) from the floor.

Crabbe became the 42nd member of the school's 1,000-point club with 20 points at Denver on Nov. 16. He enters the Creighton game 31st in school history with 1,105 points in 73 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 eight games.

CAL AGAINST NATIONALLY-RANKED TEAMS
Saturday's game will be Cal's second consecutive game against a nationally-ranked opponent. The Bears are coming off a 76-75 setback to No. 18/21 UNLV on Sunday. The last time Cal played nationally-ranked teams in consecutive games was Nov. 29-20, 2009 in the 2K Sports Classic benefiting Coaches vs. Cancer at Madison Square Garden in New York City. Cal dropped a 95-73 decision to No. 13/25 Syracuse on Nov. 19 and suffered a 76-70 defeat to No. 15/13 Ohio State the next day on Nov. 20.

The Bears last victory over a Top 25 team came on Nov. 25, 2010 against No. 20 Temple (57-50) in Orlando, Fla. Their last win against a Top 25 team at home came on Feb. 5, 2009 against No. 22 Washington (86-71).

Cal is 3-11 against nationally-ranked teams in the Mike Montgomery era.

NON-CONFERENCE HOME GAMES UNDER MONTGOMERY
The Bears are 31-4 in nonconference home games under Mike Montgomery. The UNLV loss was the first non-conference setback at home since dropping a 78-63 decision to No. 3 Kansas on Dec. 22, 2010.

SIX WINS TO START THE SEASON
California opened the season 6-0 for the first time since the 2007-08 season. Cal defeated Southern Mississippi, Nicholls State, San Diego State, Nevada, Missouri and Jackson State in 2007.

The Dec. 2 loss at Wisconsin was the latest the Bears suffered their first loss since 2007 as well, when Cal also fell for the first time in its seventh game of the year, an 82-75 loss at Kansas State on Dec. 9. Cal recorded a perfect November (6-0) for the first time since the 2007 season as well. With six wins in its first eight games, Cal has matched its record from a year ago through eight contests. The Bears finished that season 24-10.

CRABBE NEWEST MEMBER OF 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 in the season's third game at Denver on Nov. 16. 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.

Crabbe enters Saturday's Creighton game 31st in school history in career scoring with 1,1105 points in 73 career games.

PAC-12'S LEADING SCORER
With an average of 21.9 points per game through the season's first eight contests, Crabbe is the Pac-12 Conference's leading scorer by two full points and ranks sixth in the nation overall through Wednesday's games. His career-high 33 points against Pepperdine this season equaled the most points by an individual in the conference through Wednesday'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 (3rd, 2.4), free-throw percentage (5th, .840) and three-point field goal percentage (3rd, .452) through Wednesday.

COBBS AND CRABBE
Junior guards Justin Cobbs and Allen Crabbe have combined to score 317 of Cal's 579 points through the first eight games. Crabbe has poured in a conference-leading 175 points on the year, while Cobbs is seventh in the league with 142 points through Tuesday's action.

The duo has connected on 103 of the Bears' 205 field goals this season and is shooting a combined .502 (103-of-205) from the floor through the first eight games of the year.

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 with 63 through eight games, and ranks ninth in the Pac-12 with 7.9 boards per game through Tuesday's action. The forward has posted seven or more rebounds in a game in six of Cal's eight contests so far this season. Kravish recorded his first career double-double with 11 points and 12 rebounds at Denver on Nov. 16.

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 Richard Solomon returned to the Cal lineup in the season opener, playing in his first game since Jan. 12, 2012. After missing the final 15 games last season, Solomon has started each of the Bears' first eight games, averaging 8.4 ppg. and 6.4 rpg. He has scored in double figures in three of the last four games, matching his career-high of 14 in the DIRECTV Classic title game vs. Pacific and last time out against No. 18 UNLV. The junior has totaled 29 rebounds over the last four games.

WALLACE LEARNING QUICKLY
Freshman guard Tyrone Wallace has developed into one of the Bears' leaders off the bench. The first-year player is averaging 6.0 points, 3.6 rebounds and 2.3 assists playing in every game so far. He posted a season-best 13 points on 5-of-8 shooting from the field last time out against No. 18 UNLV.

THURMAN EFFICIENT WITH MINUTES
Senior forward Robert Thurman has made the most of his minutes on the floor in 2012-13. The forward ranks second among non-starters who have played in all eight games. Thurman is averaging 5.3 points and 3.4 rebounds in 17.9 minutes per game this season.

SENIOR TRIO LOOKS FOR ANOTHER LEAGUE TITLE
The senior class of guard Brandon Smith and forwards Bak Bak and Robert Thurman have provided veteran leadership for the Bears Each was a member of the 2009-10 team that won the league title. Smith played in 26 games that season, while Bak saw action in eight contests. Thurman redshirted after transferring from Norwich University.

All three have seen action in 2012-13. Smith has started each of the first eight games with 4.1 points in 23.5 minutes per contest. Thurman is Cal's second-leading scorer off the bench with 5.3 points in 17.9 minutes per game. Bak has seen time in four games, averaging 4.8 minutes per contest.

SCOUTING CREIGHTON
Creighton comes into Saturday's contest in Berkeley with a 9-1 record and ranked No. 13 in the USA Today/Coaches poll and No. 16 in the Associated Press national poll. The Bluejays' lone blemish on their record is an 83-70 defeat to Boise State at home on Nov. 28. Creighton has won its last three games since, downing Saint Joseph's (80-51), Nebraska (64-42) and Akron (77-61).

Junior forward Doug McDermott, a consensus First Team All-American and National Player of the Year candidate, leads Creighton at 22.7 points and 6.7 rebounds per game. He is ranked fourth in the nation in scoring through Wednesday's action.

Creighton has three returning starters overall from last season in senior center Gregory Echenique, senior guard Grant Gibbs and junior guard Jahenns Manigat.

CALIFORNIA-CREIGHTON SERIES HISTORY
California and Creighton have met twice previously on the basketball court with the Golden Bears winning both contests against the Bluejays. Cal and Creighton met for the first time during the 1937-38 season with the Bears earning a 41-35 win on the road. Fifty years later, the two teams met again in Nebraska with Cal posting a 70-49 win. Saturday will mark the first meeting between the two teams in California.