Cal at Stanford

Thursday, March 7 | 8 PM PT | Maples Pavilion | Stanford, Calif.
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Riding a two-game win streak following a weekend sweep of the Washington schools, California men's basketball looks to finish the regular season strong down at the Farm, where the Golden Bears meet the Stanford Cardinal. Cal's Pac-12 regular-season finale is set for 8 p.m. at Maples Pavilion, and airing live on ESPNU.

The Bears broke a 16-game losing streak with an upset of No. 25 Washington last Thursday, then followed it up with a victory over Washington State on Saturday to build momentum heading into the final week of the regular season. Darius McNeill led the Bears with 18.0 points per game in the sweep, including a 56.0 percent clip from the floor. He was one of four Bears to average double figures in the back-to-back wins, alongside Connor Vanover's 14.0 points and 6.5 rebounds, Justice Sueing's 12.0 points and 7.0 reboounds, and Paris Austin's 10.5 points and 6.0 assists.

Cal returns to Maples for the first time since Dec. 30, 2017, when the Bears overcame a 17-point second-half deficit to claim a 77-74 victory over the Cardinal. It was Cal's first win at Stanford since 2014. Stanford won the first game in this season's series, 84-81, in Berkeley.

HOW TO FOLLOW THE ACTION: Thursday's regular-season finale from the Farm airs live on ESPNU, with Roxy Bernstein and Corey Williams on the call. Fans can also watch at www.watchESPN.com or on the watchESPN app. Todd McKim and Rich Cellini have the action for the  California Golden Bears Sports Network on KGO 810 AM and via TuneIn. Live stats, broadcast info and more can be accessed via the Cal men's basketball schedule page. Fans can follow the Bears on social media via @CalMBball on Twitter and Instagram, and at Facebook.com/CalMBball.
 

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BY THE NUMBERS

13 -- Cal tallied 13 steals against Washington State, notching double-digit steal totals for the seventh time this season. The Bears' 7.2 steals per game average ranks 84th nationally, with three Cal players in the Pac-12's Top 10 for steals per game -- Justice Sueing (3rd, 1.66), Darius McNeill (9th, 1.45) and Paris Austin (10th, 1.41).

18.0 -- Cal's weekend sweep of the Washington programs saw Darius McNeill average 18.0 points and shoot 56.0 percent (14-25). He went 5-13 from 3-point range, and also added 4 steals on the weekend.

46 -- Cal's 46 points in the paint against Washington is its second-highest total all season long, and its most in Pac-12 play. The Bears score 48 points in the paint against Santa Clara. In Pac-12 play, Cal also reached the 40-point mark against Stanford (40) in February and UCLA (44) in January.

2 -- Two Golden Bears averaged 5.0 or more assists in Cal's current two-game winning streak. Paris Austin averaged 6.0 assists in the last two outings, while Matt Bradley averaged 5.0. As a team, the Bears averaged 16.5 assists in their sweep of the Washington schools, including a season-high 22 vs. Washington.

17 -- Last year at Stanford, Cal stormed back from a 17-point deficit more than halfway through the second half. Justice Sueing scored eight points in the final 3 minutes of action, leading the Bears to their first win at Maples Pavilion since 2014.
 

SCOUTING THE CARDINAL

• Series Record: Cal leads, 149-125
• Last Meeting: Stanford left Berkeley with a slim 84-81 victory on Feb. 3, lifted by KZ Okpala's 30 points plus 16 from Bryce Wills and 14 from Daejon Davis. Justice Sueing led Cal's effort with 23 points and was one of four Bears in double figures (Paris Austin - 15, Connor Vanover - 15, Matt Bradley - 13).
• Stanford's 2018-19 Record: 15-14, 8-9 Pac-12
• Stanford's Last Game: Stanford dropped a one-point game to No. 25 Washington, 62-61, despite double-figure outings from Josh Sharma (16), Oscar Da Silva (15) and Cormac Ryan (13).
• Okpala is averaging a team-high 17.3 points per game in Pac-12 play, while Sharma is averaging 11.3 points.
• Davis suffered a foot injury against Washington State on Feb. 28 and missed the Washington game. He is second among the Cardinal in scoring in league play, averaging 11.9 points.
• Davis' 4.6 assists per game rank 94th nationally and pace Stanford.
• The Cardinal are 39th nationally in blocked shots per game (4.6) and 40th in total blocks (132), led by Sharma's 1.31 blocks per game.
• Sharma also leads Stanford in rebounding, averaging 7.9 rebounds in Pac-12 action. 

SERIES NOTES
Record at Stanford: 76-73
Last 10 meetings: 3-7
Most points, Cal: 101, 1976-77
Most points, Stanford: 101, 1999-00
Largest margin, Cal: 40, 1946-47
Largest margin, Stanford: 51, 1999-00
Longest Cal win streak: 14, 1924-25 to 1929-30
Longest Stanford win streak: 9, 1996-97 to 2000-01
Current Streak: 3, Stanford

RECORDS AGAINST STANFORD
Points: 41, Ray Murry, March 5, 1977
Rebounds: 22, Ansley Truitt, Feb. 4, 1972
FG: 17, Dick Tamberg, Feb. 26, 1954
3P: 7, Jabari Bird, Feb. 17, 2017
FT: 16, Jackie Ridgle, Jan. 17, 1969
 

LAST TIME OUT

• The Result: The Bears earned their first weekend sweep since 2017 by defeating Washington State, 76-69
• Cal won back-to-back Pac-12 games for the first time since downing Oregon State (67-62) and Utah (78-75) on March 8-9, 2017, in the Pac-12 Tournament.
• It was Cal's first weekend sweep since the Bears swept Colorado and Utah in Berkeley in 2017.
• Four Bears scored in double figures -- Darius McNeill (17), Paris Austin (12), Justice Sueing (10) and Connor Vanover (10).
• Matt Bradley matched a career-best 6 assists.
• At halftime, Cal had outscored Washington State 16-0 in points off turnovers and 26-4 in points in the paint. 
• The Bears ended the game with a 30-6 advantage in points off turnovers and totaled 46 points in the paint.
 

BEARS STRING TOGETHER STREAK

California's back-to-back wins over the Washington programs broke a 16-game losing streak for the Bears. In the two-game win streak:
• Cal swept a Pac-12 weekend for the first time since Feb. 2017 against Utah and Colorado, and for the first time in the Wyking Jones era.
• The Bears snapped a 23-game losing streak to Pac-12 opponents, taking their first over a league opponent since Feb. 3, 2018 (Oregon State) with the Feb. 28, 2019 win over No. 25 Washington.
• Cal topped a ranked opponent for the first time since Jan. 8, 2017 (at No. 25 USC), and for the first time under Jones.
• Four Bears averaged double-figure scoring: Darius McNeill (18.0), Connor Vanover (14.0), Justice Sueing (12.0) and Paris Austin (10.5).
• Cal averaged 10.5 steals per game, and 16.5 assists per game.
• The Bears shot 50.9 percent (58-114) from the floor, and 41.4 percent (12-29) from deep.
 

RANKING ROUNDUP

As a team, Cal ranks Top 50 nationally in:
• Fewest Turnovers: 45th, 333
• Turnovers Per Game: 47th, 11.5

Individually, Cal players rank in the Top 100 nationally in:
• Free Throws Made: Justice Sueing (84th, 127)
 

EYE ON THE RECORDS

Approaching the end of the regular season, Cal players are closing in on the following records:

SINGLE-SEASON RECORDS
3-POINT FG MADE
1. Jerome Randle (2010) - 92
2. Jordan Mathews (2016) - 89
3. Allen Crabbe (2012) - 83
...
6. Jordan Mathews (2015) -- 70
7. Ryan Drew (1990) -- 68
8. Darius McNeill (2018) -- 67
T9 Darius McNeill - 65 
T9. Jabari Bird (2017) -- 65

STEALS
1. Jason Kidd (1993) -- 110
2. Jason Kidd (1994) -- 94
3. Gene Ranson (1978) -- 63
...
T9. Anwar McQueen (1997) -- 52
T9. Shareef Abdur-Rahim (1996) -- 52
...
Justice Sueing -- 48

FRESHMAN RECORDS
3-POINT FG MADE
1. Darius McNeill (2018) -- 67
2. Allen Crabbe (2011) -- 62
3. Ryan Drew (1988) -- 60
4. Ryan Anderson (2007) -- 58
5. Shantay Legans (2000) -- 47
...
Matt Bradley - 45
 

NEXT UP

The Bears head to Las Vegas, Nev. for the Pac-12 Tournament at T-Mobile Arena. Cal's tourney action begins with a first-round matchup against the No. 5 seed, to be determined this weekend. Cal's first game in Las Vegas is set for Wednesday, March 13 at 2:30 p.m. PT.