With a pair of strong back-to-back offensive efforts under their belts, a surging California men's basketball squad heads to Salt Lake City to face Utah in a battle for upward mobility in the Pac-12 standings. The Golden Bears look to upend the Utes on Saturday at 5 p.m. PT/6 p.m. MT from the Jon M. Huntsman Center and live on Pac-12 Networks.

Cal fell at No. 24 Colorado Thursday night, but the Bears took the Buffs to the wire by shooting 55.6 percent (25-45) from the floor -- their best clip in Pac-12 play and top shooting effort on the road all season. It marked the second consecutive game in which the Bears shot above 50 percent after recording 50.0 percent shooting (26-52) in the win over Oregon State last Saturday.

The Bears are shooting 51.4 percent (74-144) and averaging nearly 69 points in its last three outings, up from just 36.3 percent (124-342) and 55 points in the first six games of league action. Each of Cal's last four games has been decided by six points or fewer.

HOW TO FOLLOW THE ACTION: 
JB Long and Eldridge Rescanser will provide commentary for Saturday's broadcast. The game can also be viewed at www.pac-12.com/live and via the Pac-12 Now app. Rich Cellini and Todd McKim will deliver play-by-play and analysis for the California Golden Bears Sports Network on KGO 810 AM and via TuneIn. Live stats, broadcast info and links and more for each of Cal's games this season can be accessed via the Cal men's basketball schedule page on CalBears.com. Fans can follow the Bears on social media via @CalMBball on Twitter and Instagram, and at Facebook.com/CalMBball.
 

---

BY THE NUMBERS

8 -- Against the Buffs, Cal shot above 50 percent for the eighth time this season with a 55.6 (25-45) percentage from the floor. The Bears are 6-2 when shooting above 50.0 percent, with their only losses coming to Saint Mary's and Colorado.

0:51 -- With just one 3-pointer in the game at Colorado, Matt Bradley hit a 3-pointer with 0:51 seconds remaining in the second half to extend his streak to eight consecutive games with multiple 3-pointers, a career-long. 

2013 -- Cal's last win at Utah came on Jan. 24, 2013. The Bears topped the Utes, 62-57, behind Allen Crabbe's 23 points and 5 rebounds.

22 -- Andre Kelly is averaging 13.0 points in his last two games, with 22 of his 26 points in that span coming in the second half of games. He is now 13-15 (86.7 percent) from the floor in the last half of the previous two outings.
 

MORE NUMBERS TO KNOW

• Matt Bradley has reached double figures in all but one game this season (vs. Duke). He ranks 81st nationally with his 17.8 points per game amd 97th with 392 total points.

• Bradley ranks among the top 100 players in the nation for his free throw shooting, including: free throw percentage (68th, 84.8) and free throws made (75th, 95).

• Bradley has hit multiple 3-pointers in eight consecutive games, a career-long streak. In that span, he is shooting 19-48 (39.6 percent) beyond the arc. Bradley has also connected on at least one 3-pointer in every Pac-12 game this season.

• Against Oregon State (14 points) and at Colorado (12 points), Andre Kelly recorded double-figures in back-to-back games for the second time this season. Kelly also recorded back-to-back double-figure outings against Fresno State and Saint Mary's, with 10 and 26, respectively.

• Paris Austin has scored in double figures in four consecutive outings, his longest span of the season. He is averaging 13.3 points in that span. Austin has scored in double figures in six of nine Pac-12 games after reaching doule-digit totals just three times in non-conference action.

• Four Golden Bears have combined for a total of 11 20-point games this season: Matt Bradley (8 games), Grant Anticevich (1), Andre Kelly (1) and Kareem South (1). Bradley and Kelly's 26 points are team-highs this season.
 

SCOUTING THE UTES

• Series Record: The series is tied, 16-16
• Last Meeting: Utah overpowered Cal, 82-64, when the teams last met more than a year ago on Jan. 26, 2019 at Haas Pavilion. Matt Bradley had 11 points in that effort, while Both Gach scored 18 for Utah and Timmy Allen added 17.
• Utah's 2019-20 Record: 13-9, 4-6 Pac-12
• Utah's Last Game: Stanford took the Utes to overtime, but Utah outscored the Cardinal 14-6 in OT to win, 64-56, in Salt Lake City on Thursday. Allen and Branden Carlson turned in a pair of 15-point performances to lead all scorers.
• Allen is averaging 18.3 points and 7.5 rebounds to lead Utah in both categories.
• Rylan Jones is averaging 10.9 points and 4.8 assists. He is 89th nationally with 100 total assists.
• Both Gach is third on the team with 10.6 ppg but has missed the last three games with a knee injury.
• Jones and Gach are two of 18 players in the nation to have recorded a triple-double this season.
• The Utes are the Pac-12 free throw leader, shooting 74.2 percent at the stripe. Allen leads the Utes with 119 free throws made, which ranks 11th nationally.
• Utah is 4-1 at home against its Pac-12 opponents, falling only to Oregon, 69-64, on Jan. 4.

SERIES NOTES
Record at Utah: 5-9
Last 10 meetings: 3-7
Most points, Cal: 95, 1953-54
Most points, Utah: 99, 1964-65
Largest margin, Cal: 36, 2011-12
Largest margin, Utah: 34, 2017-18
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

RECORDS AGAINST UTAH
Points: 26, Justin Cobbs, March 14, 2013
Rebounds: 14, Ivan Rabb, Feb. 2, 2017
14, Richard Solomon, March 5, 2014
FG: 10, Justin Cobbs, March 14, 2013
3P: 4, Jabari Bird, twice, Feb. 2, 2017
and March 9, 2017
4, Allen Crabbe, twice, Jan. 24, 2013
and Feb. 28, 2013
FT: 8, Jabari Bird, March 9, 2017
8, Ivan Rabb, March 2, 2017
8, Jaylen Brown, Jan. 27, 2016
8, Justin Cobbs, Feb. 28, 2013
 

LAST TIME OUT

The Result: Cal outshot Colorado, but the Buffaloes escaped with a 71-65 victory in Boulder on Thursday night.
• Three Bears scored in double figures – Matt Bradley (17 points), Paris Austin (15) and Andre Kelly (12).
• The Bears shot 63.2 percent (12-19) in the first half, their highest first-half percentage Pac-12 play this season. Cal shot 65.2 percent (15-23) in the first half against UC Davis on Nov. 26.
• Kelly scored 8 of his 12 points in the second half, going 4-for-5 in the final 20 minutes. 
• Kareem South started the game 3-for-3, scoring 7 points before missing a 3-pointer at 10:45. 
• Cal shot 6-for-6 to open the game, with three of Cal's first 6 shots coming as 3-pointers.
 

NEXT UP

The Bears head back to Berkeley for their only regular-season action against the Arizona schools this season. The weekend series opens against Arizona on Thursday at 7:30 p.m. for Cal's annual Gold Out game, airing live on FS1. The Bears host Arizona State on Sunday, Feb. 16 to close the series. Tipoff is set for 3 p.m., broadcasting on ESPNU.