Cal (15-6, 5-3 Pac-12) vs. Utah (15-6, 5-3 Pac-12)

Thursday, Feb. 2 | 6 PM PT | Haas Pavilion | Berkeley, Calif.

TICKETS | PAC-12 NETWORK | GOLDEN BEAR SPORTS NETWORK (KSFO 560 AM) | LIVE STATS

MEDIA CENTER | FACEBOOK | INSTAGRAM | TWITTER

With both California and Utah among the three teams deadlocked at third in the Pac-12 at the midway point of the conference season, the Golden Bears have an opportunity to take control in the latter half of their schedule when they host the Utes Thursday night at Haas Pavilion. The game tips off at 6 p.m. from Pete Newell Court, live on Pac-12 Network and KSFO 560 AM.

The Bears and Utes have identical records at 15-6 overall and 6-3 in league action, with all three conference losses on each side coming to ranked Arizona, UCLA and Oregon squads. Both are tied at third in the Pac-12 alongside UCLA. In conference play, the Utes and Bears rank third and fourth in scoring defense, respectively. Utah leads the Pac-12 in defensive rebounds (29.1) and Cal leads in offensive rebounds (13.3), while big men Ivan Rabb and Kyle Kuzma are among the conference's top four rebounding leaders and each leads the Pac-12 in double-doubles inleague play with six apiece.

Cal went 1-2 against Utah last season, splitting the regular-season series and falling in overtime of the Pac-12 Tournament semifinals. Rabb is Cal's leading returner against the Utes after averaging 14.7 points between the three contests last season, including a pair of double-doubles in the regular season.

Thursday's promotion features "Keep Berzerkeley Weird Night," with free "Bears Get Weird" hats to the first 2,000 students and free tater tots while supplies last. Fans who arrive in their weirdest costume will be eligible to win Beats by Dre headphones.

HOW TO FOLLOW THE ACTION: Thursday's battle airs live on Pac-12 Network with Spero Dedes and Don MacLean providing play-by-play and color commentary. California Golden Bears Sports Network has the radio call from Todd McKim and Jay John on KSFO 560 AM. Follow the Bears on social media for a behind-the-scenes look at Facebook.com/CalMensBball and on Twitter and Instagram @CalMensBball.

---

SCOUTING THE UTES

Last Meeting: No. 24 Cal fell to No. 12 Utah, 82-78, in overtime in the Pac-12 Tournament semifinal on March 11, 2016
Series Record: California leads, 14-13
Utah's 2016-17 Record: 12-6, 6-3 Pac-12
Utah's Last Game: Bounced back from a loss to Oregon with an 86-78 win vs. Oregon State
• The Utes are averaging 80.3 points while holding opponents to 69.4 points.
• Utah leads the Pac-12 with an 8.1 rebound margin and is second for defensive rebounds per game (29.29), fouls (357) and field goal percentage (51.8).
• Kyle Kuzma has recorded 12 double-doubles this season, scoring 18 points and 12 rebounds in the Utes' most recent outing against Oregon State. 
• Kuzma leads the Utes with 15.6 points per game through 21 games, and 16.9 ppg in Pac-12 play.
• David Collette (13.4 ppg), Lorenzo Bonam (12.9) and Devon Daniels (12.6) are all putting up double-figure scoring totals.

CAL RECORDS AGAINST UTAH
Points: 26, Justin Cobbs, March 14, 2013
Rebounds: 14, Richard Solomon, March 5, 2014
FG: 10, Justin Cobbs, March 14, 2013
3P: 4, Allen Crabbe, Jan. 24, 2013/ Feb. 28, 2013
FT: 8, Jaylen Brown, Jan. 27, 2016
8, Justin Cobbs, Feb. 28, 2013

SERIES NOTES
Record at Cal: 7-3
Last 10 meetings: 5-5
Most points, Cal: 95, 1953-54
Most points, Utah: 99, 1964-65
Largest margin, Cal: 36, 2011-12
Largest margin, Utah: 25, 1964-65
Longest Cal win streak: 5, 2008-09 to 2012-13
Longest Utah win streak: 3, 1939-40 to 1945-46;
2012-13 to 2014-15
Current Streak: 2, Utah

LAST TIME OUT

The Bears powered past Stanford, 66-55, in Haas Pavilion
• The Bears shot 47.7 percent (21-44) with a season-low 44 field goal attempts.
• After shooting just 37.0 percent from the floor in the first half, the Bears shot 64.7 percent after the break.
• Ivan Rabb and Jabari Bird combined for 42 of Cal's 66 points with 25 and 17, respectively.
• Rabb recorded his sixth double-double of conference play, and 10th this season.
• Charlie Moore dished out a career-best 8 assists.

HALLMARK SUCCESS IN FEBRUARY

Cal's game against Utah begins another February stretch with Cuonzo Martin at the helm. His squads have historically had strong success in the month before the madness begins, with Martin-coached teams going 34-12 over the past six seasons. That includes stops at three different schools -- Cal, Tennessee and Missouri State. At Cal, the Bears are now 11-3 in February under Martin, including a 7-0 stretch last season. During the  February 2016 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  Feb. 2016 wins was by less than 12 points, and the Bears hit the 80-point barrier four times. 

DOUBLE-DOUBLE STANDARDS

With six double-doubles in nine games of Pac-12 play, double-double point and rebound totals are making frequent appearances in Ivan Rabb's statline. Among active Pac-12 players, Rabb is now second in the conference in career double-doubles with 22, behind Washington State senior Josh Hawkinson. In the Cal record books, Rabb is fourth among all Golden Bears in the last 20 seasons, trailing Sean Lampley (1st, 30), Leon Powe (2nd, 29) and Ryan Anderson (3rd, 24).

LONG RANGER

Jabari Bird's perimeter shooting is among the best in program history. With five three-pointers at No. 11 Oregon, the senior moved into the top 10 in program history for three-point field goals made, and already ranks top 10 in three-pointer attempts. Bird has currently hit at lease one three-pointer in a career-long 11 consecutive games and is 30-81 (37 percent) from beyond the arc in that span. In the record books, he checks in at:

Cal Career Three-Point Field Goals Made
1. Jerome Randle (2007-10) -- 252
2. Ryan Drew (1988-91) -- 214
3. Allen Crabbe (2011-13) -- 209
...
7. Ayinde Ubaka (2004-07) -- 160
8. Jabari Bird (2013-present) -- 158 
9. Joe Shipp (2000-03) -- 157 

Cal Career Three-Point Field Goals Attempted
1. Jerome Randle (2007-10) -- 622
2. Ryan Drew (1988-91) -- 560
3. Allen Crabbe (2011-13) -- 547
...
7. Ayinde Ubaka (2004-07)........................ 474
8. Joe Shipp (2000-03)............................... 464
9. Jabari Bird (2013-present) -- 432 
10. Randy Duck (1994-97) -- 423

PARTY LIKE A BLOCK STAR

Kingsley Okoroh is climbing up the Cal career record charts for his prowess in protecting the rim. Okoroh has moved into sole possession of No. 6 all-time with 113 career blocks. With 52 blocks this season, Okoroh has already surpassed his previous single-season high of 33 blocks across 34 games in 2015-16.

Cal Career Blocked Shots Leaders
1. David Kravish (2012-15) -- 226
2. Michael Stewart (1994-97) -- 207
3. DeVon Hardin (2005-08) -- 132
4. Solomon Hughes (1999-02) -- 122
5. Richard Solomon (2011-14) -- 119
6. Kingsley Okoroh (2014-present) -- 113
7. Tom Schneiderjohn (1976-79) -- 105 

Cal Single-Season Blocked Shots Leaders
1. David Kravish (2014) -- 73
2. David Kravish (2013) -- 63
3. Michael Stewart (1994) --  59
4. Michael Stewart (1997) --  56
5. Jamal Sampson (2002) -- 54
6. Kingsley Okoroh (2017) --  52
T7. David Kravish (2015) -- 49
T7. Michael Stewart (1995) -- 49

BEARS BUILD ON DEFENSIVE PROWESS

With defense as a staple of head coach Cuonzo Martin's program, California has once again emerged as a force on the floor, where the Bears rank among the nation's elite. Cal is:
• 13th for rebound margin (7.9)
• 14th for scoring defense (62.4 ppg)
• 18th in defensive rebounds per game (28.24)
• 20th for total rebounds per game (39.95) 
• 21st for field goal percentage defense (39.4 percent)

RABBID PLAY

AP Preseason All-American Ivan Rabb is living up to his billing this season, averaging 15.6 points and 10.7 rebounds with 10 double-doubles this season, including six in Pac-12 play. He ranks in the top 30 in the country in defensive rebounds per game (11th, 7.79), rebounds per game (11th, 10.7) and double-doubles (28th, 10).

Rabb started Pac-12 play with a string of three double-doubles -- all three coming with 15 or more rebounds -- including a career-best 20 boards at No. 4 UCLA. He became the first Golden Bear with 20+ boards since Leon Powe in March 2006. He has now recorded six double-doubles in nine Pac-12 contests.

In back-to-back games, Rabb scored a then-career-best 25 points in Cal's OT win over Louisiana Tech, then followed it up with a 26-point game against Alcorn State. He scored the 26 points on a 10-12 outing from the floor and 6-7 clip at the charity stripe in just 29 minutes. Rabb upped his career-high rebound total to 16 against 18th-ranked Arizona, and owns a team-best five double-doubles this season.

Rabb made his return to the Cal lineup for the first time this season against San Diego State, where he came off the bench and logged a team-high 30 minutes of action. Though Rabb had just three points in the first half on a 3-5 performance at the charity stripe, he finished the game only two points shy of his career-high total with 19 points. After returning from injury, Rabb posted a career-long four-game double-double streak.

THE KING'S COURT 

Okoroh's paint presence ranks among the best in the country, where he is top 20 in two categories. Okoroh is averaging 2.48 blocked shots per game, a total that ranks 19th the nation and 2ndin the Pac-12, and his 52 total blocks this season are 20th in NCAA action.

In a four-game stretch from Nov. 21 to Nov. 30, the Derby, England native set career-highs in each game. He started the string off by setting a personal-best rebound total of 9 against San Diego State, and followed the performance with a career-high 5 blocks against Wyoming. He capped off the week by matching both his career-best point (10) and rebound (9) totals and setting a new personal-best mark for assists with 3 against Southeastern Louisiana. Against Louisiana Tech, Okoroh set new career-high boards (12) and assist (4) totals on top of matching his career-high blocks (5).

GLASS ACT

Ivan Rabb, who broke the Cal freshman rebounding record last season, has continued his stellar play on the glass as a sophomore. Rabb is averaging 10.7 rebounds per game and has been on a hot streak as of late with a 12.4 rebounding average in Pac-12 play. He ranks second in the conference in rebounds per game and defensive rebounds per game (7.79) behind Washington State's Josh Hawkinson (8.14). In four of the nine Pac-12 games this season, Rabb has pulled down 14 or more boards. 

NEXT UP

California completes its three-game homestand against Colorado on Sunday, Feb. 5. Men's basketball tips off at 1:30 p.m. from Haas Pavilion, live on ESPNU. The action follows a 10:30 a.m. contest featuring Cal Women's Basketball vs. USC on Pete Newell Court.