Cal (7-9, 1-2 Pac-12) at Washington (12-4, 2-1 Pac-12)

Thursday, Jan. 6 | 8 PM PT | Alaska Airlines Arena | Seattle, Wash.
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California men's basketball looks to stretch its road record to a perfect 4-0 when the Golden Bears take on the Washington Huskies on Thursday evening at Alaska Airlines Arena in Seatlle, Wash. Tipoff is set for 8 p.m., with the game airing live on Pac-12 Networks and KGO 810 AM.

The Huskies are 2-1 in Pac-12 play and hosting the Bears in their first conference home game of the year. Washington won on the road at USC (88-81) and at Washington State (74-53), but fell to UCLA 74-53 to start conference action. The Bears aim to snap a two-game losing streak after dropping a pair of home games to the LA schools for the first time since 2007.

Cal is a perfect 3-0 in true road games this season. The streak started on Dec. 9 with a 63-62 victory at San Diego State, followed by a decisive 81-59 victory at Seattle on Dec. 19. The 77-74 win on the Farm came as a come-from-behind victory in which the Bears battled back from a 17-point deficit late in the second half.

Justice Sueing and Marcus Lee have emerged as leaders for the Bears through the first three games of conference play, with Sueing averaging 18.3 points per game and Lee shooting 66.7 percent (22-33) over their last three appearances. Don Coleman (11.7 ppg) and Darius McNeill (10.3) are also scoring in double figures in Pac-12 play, while Juhwan Harris-Dyson has turned in back-to-back career-high 10-point games in his last two outings.

HOW TO FOLLOW THE ACTION: Guy Haberman and Eldridge Recasner have color commentary and game analysis for Thursday's action covered live on Pac-12 Network. Fans can also follow the action on the Pac-12 Now app on mobile, and by watching at www.Pac-12.com/live on the web. The California Golden Bears Sports Network will offer play by play and analysis, as well as post-game interviews, from Todd McKim and Jay John live on KGO 810 AM. Live stats, full broadcast details and more can be accessed via the Cal men's basketball schedule page on CalBears.com, and fans can follow the Bears on social media via @CalMBball on Twitter and Instagram, and at Facebook.com/CalMBball.
 

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SCOUTING THE HUSKIES

Last Meeting: Cal downed Washington, 69-59, on Jan. 12, 2017 in the teams' lone meeting last season.
Series Record: Cal leads, 84-78
UW's 2017-18 Record: 12-4, 2-1 Pac-12
UW's Last Game: Washington trounced Washington State, 70-65, in Pullman, Wash. on Jan. 6
• Jaylen Nowell (16.3 points per game) leads a quartet of Huskies scoring in double figures. Noah Dickerson (15.1), David Crisp (12.3) and Matisse Thybulle (11.3) also own double-digit averages.
• Dickerson is third in conference and 31st across the nation in field goal percentage at 60.4 percent.
• Thybulle is fourth in the NCAA in steals per game (3.25) and total steals (52).
• The Huskies are shooting 21.8 percent (12-55) from downtown in Pac-12 play.
• The Huskies are averaging 5.3 blocks, good for 29th in the country, and 9.0 steal, good for 16th in the nation.
• Washington leads the Pac-12 in steal (144) and turnovers forced (16.13).
• Washington's lone home loss this season came against in-state rival Gonzaga, 97-70, on Dec. 10.
• UW's loss in conference play this season came at UCLA, 74-53

CAL RECORDS AGAINST WASHINGTON
Points: 33, Ryan Anderson, Feb. 2, 2008
33, Jerome Randle, Feb. 11, 2010
Rebounds: 21, Ansley Truitt, Feb. 13, 1971
FG: 14, Michael Pitts, Feb. 24, 1983
14, Gene Ransom, Jan. 12, 1978
3P: 6, Amit Tamir, Jan. 2, 2004
FT: 14, Patrick Christopher, Jan. 16, 2010

SERIES NOTES
Record at UW: 36-51
Last 10 meetings: 7-3
Most points, Cal: 96, 1982-83
Most points, UW: 109, 2010-11
Largest margin, Cal: 40, 1959-60
Largest margin, UW: 33, 2004-05
Longest Cal win streak: 8, 1956-57 to 1959-60
Longest UW win streak: 8, 1950-51 to 1952-53
Current Streak: 6, Cal 

LAST TIME OUT

The Golden Bears fell to UCLA, 107-84, in Haas Pavilion
•     Marcus Lee posted his fifth double-double of the year, finishing with 19 points and a career-high 15 rebounds. He had a double-double by halftime with 11 points and 11 boards.
•     Justice Sueing finished with 22 points, 15 of which came in the second half. The total marked his third game of at least 20 points and one point shy of his career high.
• Along with Lee and Sueing, Don Coleman (16 points), Darius McNeill (12) and Juhwan Harris-Dyson (10) scored in double figures.
• Sueing's four three-pointers marked a career-best total.
• McNeill added three of his own treys on the evening.
• After shooting just 25.6% from the floor in the first half, Cal shot 63.3% after intermission.
•     Cal out-rebounded UCLA, 40-35, including 21 offensive boards that led to 22 second-chance points. Lee led the Bears with 11 offensive rebounds.

IN THE NATIONAL RANKINGS

As a team, Cal ranks in the nation's top 25 for:
• Blocked Shots Per Game -- 17th, 5.7
• Free Throw Attempts -- 14th, 411
• Free Throws Made -- 23rd, 287
• Total Blocks -- 17th, 91

Individually, Cal student-athletes rank in the Top 50 for:
• Blocked Shots Per Game -- Kingsley Okoroh (27th, 2.38) and Marcus Lee (42nd, 2.19)
• Field Goal Percentage -- Marcus Lee (39th, 59.0)
• Free Throw Attempts -- Don Coleman (8th, 133)
• Free Throws Made -- Don Coleman (13th, 101)
• Offensive Rebounds Per Game -- Marcus Lee (14th, 3.56)
• Total Blocks -- Kingsley Okoroh (26th, 38) and Marcus Lee (35th, 35)
• Total Field Goal Attempts -- Don Coleman (30th, 248)

ROAD WARRIORS

With the Dec. 30 win at Stanford, the Golden Bears are riding a three-game win streak in games away from Haas Pavilion, and are 3-0 in true road games this season. The streak started on Dec. 9 with a 63-62 victory at San Diego State, followed by a decisive 81-59 victory at Seattle on Dec. 19. The 77-74 win on the Farm came as a come-from-behind victory in which the Bears battled back from a 17-point deficit late in the second half.

Cal's three-game road win streak is its best since 2015, when the Bears won at Washington State, Washington and Colorado between Jan. 29 and Feb. 12. The streak ended on Feb. 15, 2015, when Cal fell at No. 11 Utah, 68-61. The Bears have not recorded a four-game winning streak in true road games since the 2002-03 season, when Cal took wins at New Mexico, Cleveland State, Washington and Washington State. 

SECOND-HALF SUEING

California freshman Justice Sueing has been superior down the stretch for Cal. In three games of Pac-12 play, the rookie is averaging 14.0 points in the second half of action. In back-to-back games against Stanford and USC, Sueing tallied a combined 13 points in the final minutes. Against the Trojans, he scored five points in the final minute, plus 13 of 15 in the second half. Previously, he turned in eight points in the final three minutes at Stanford, and 14 of his 18 in the game in the second half. In Cal's outing against UCLA, he scored 15 of 22 in the second half.

ROOKIES RISING TO THE CHALLENGE

With one of the youngest squads in the nation, California's newcomers have been pushed to step up and contribute major minutes to the lineup. 

Two freshmen are averaging double figures for the Bears, with Darius McNeill (12.9 points per game) and Justice Sueing (12.8 ppg) averaging above 11.0 points.

McNeill, a Houston, Texas product poured in back-to-back career-high point totals, starting with 18 points against Chaminade and improving to 22 points against CSUN, then topped it four games later with a 30-point outing against CSU Fullerton. McNeill became the 40th player in Cal basketball history to score 30 points in a game. Against the Titans, he also recorded career-high totals for assists (6), steals (5) and rebounds (6). Following his 30-point outing against the Titans, McNeill added 20 points -- all in the second half -- at Seattle. The rookie carried a 12-game three-pointer streak before it was snapped in Cal's nonconference finale against Portland State. He has 12 games of multiple three-pointers this season.

Sueing was pivotal in Cal's come-from-behind win at Stanford, scoring 14 of his 18 points in the second half with the Bears down 17 points. Over the final three minutes, he scored eight points. Earlier this season, he scored a career-high 23 points against Chaminade, including 19 in the second half, and has scored in double figures in nine games this season while starting all but one game. His output comes after missing most of the preseason due to a stress fracture. 

Juhwan Harris-Dyson has also stepped up with solid minutes for the Bears, averaging 5.0 points and 3.0 rebounds. He came up clutch in Cal's 63-62 win at San Diego State, icing a pair of free throws with less than 8 seconds in the game to lift Cal to the win. Harris-Dyson has scored his career-high 10 points four times this season. Like Sueing, Harris-Dyson's output comes despite a weight loss of 20 lbs. early in the season after a bout with the flu.

Rookie Grant Anticevich helped fuel Cal's comeback win at Stanford with a key three-pointer at 1:19 in the second half to help erase the deficit. Anticevich was 1-10 on the season in three-pointers before making the three that brought the game within one point. Anticevich has appeared in every game for the Bears, providing valuable rest for Cal's big men.

BIG KIDS ON THE BLOCK

California's senior big men are among the country's best players on the block, with Kingsley Okoroh and Marcus Lee combining for 73 blocks so far this season.The Bears rank among the Top 20 nationally for total blocks (17th, 91) and blocked shots per game (17th, 5.7). 

Individually, Okoroh is 26th in the nation with 38 total blocks, and 27th with 2.38 blocked shots per game. Lee is 35th for his 35 total blocks and 42nd at 2.19 blocks per game. 

The 7-1 Okoroh has tied the Cal single-game record for blocked shots twice this season, recording 7 blocks against UC Riverside and against Portland State. He ties the number set by Michael Stewart (1994-97), which Stewart recorded thrice in his Golden Bear career. Okoroh has 173 career blocks, currently ranked third among Cal's career leaders. Stewart ranks second with 207 blocks, and David Kravish (2012-15) leads with 226 career blocked shots.

The Cal team record for blocked shots in a season is 161 blocks through 33 games in 2013, an average of 4.9 per game. The Bears are currently swatting shots at a pace of 5.7 blocks per game, with 91 total blocks.

Marcus Lee NAMED SENIOR CLASS AWARD CANDIDATE

Marcus Lee is one of 30 student-athletes from men's basketball programs around the country recognized as a candidate for one of the most prestigious awards in college athletics – the Senior CLASS Award. An acronym for Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School ® , the Senior CLASS Award focuses on the total student-athlete and encourages students to use their platform in athletics to make a positive impact as leaders in their communities. 

Lee, a social welfare major, is no stranger to acts of community service, earning All-NCAA Community Service, SEC Community Service and Allstate Good Works Team recognition while he was at Kentucky. At Cal, he is a member of the Student Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) and Cal's Pac-12 SAAC representative, partnering with 23 Pac-12 student-athletes to change the views on equality empowerment. He has attended numerous community service events in the Bay Area and in Lexington, including serving a pancake breakfast to seniors, spreading holiday cheer at the Children's Hospital Oakland, organizing a blanket drive and visiting children affected by pediatric hospitalization.

From the list of 30 candidates, a committee will select 10 finalists for the Senior CLASS Award in February. Those 10 names will then be placed on the official ballot for a nationwide vote open to media, coaches and fans. The Senior CLASS Award winners will be announced during the 2018 NCAA Men's Final Four.

NEXT UP

The Golden Bears wrap up their tour of the Evergreen State with a 1 p.m. tilt against Washington State on Saturday, airing live on the Pac-12 Networks.