BERKELEY – California will dive back into nonconference play when it welcomes Eastern Washington to Haas Pavilion on Wednesday night. The first meeting between the two programs in nearly eight years will be televised on the Pac-12 Network with Troy Clardy and Ben Braun on the call.
 
The Golden Bears (0-9, 0-2 Pac-12) saw their season-opening skid continue this past week with a pair of conference losses against USC and at then-No. 4 Arizona. Cal's 81-68 loss to the Wildcats in Tucson was its best offensive performance of the early season, as it totaled 28 made field goals while Devin Askew and Lars Thiemann both scored career highs with 25 and 18 points, respectively.
 
Eastern Washington arrives in Bear Territory with a 3-5 overall record, most recently besting North Dakota State 78-70 on Saturday in Cheney, Wash.
 
GAME INFORMATION

• Date & Time: Wednesday, Dec. 7 | 7 p.m. PST
• Location: Berkeley, California | Haas Pavilion
• Watch: Pac-12 Network | Troy Clardy (PxP) & Ben Braun (Analyst)
• Listen: 810 AM & The Varsity App | Rich Cellini (PxP)
• Live Stats: StatBroadcast

 
NOTEWORTHY

• Cal has been plagued with injuries early this season, as five scholarship players have missed a combined 30 games. Guards DeJuan Clayton (1,534 career points scored) and Jalen Celestine (Cal's leading returning scorer at 7.5 points per game last season) both have not played this season and were expected to be focal points of the Bears' offense. Timetables for their returns are undetermined.
• Junior guard Devin Askew and senior center Lars Thiemann have paced the Bears offensively with a combined 31.2 points per game this season. Both players scored career highs at No. 4 Arizona on Sunday with 25 by Askew and 18 by Thiemann on 9-of-14 shooting.
• Askew is third in the Pac-12 in scoring (18.3 points per game) and is the only conference player averaging at least 18 points, three rebounds and three assists this season. The transfer has been asked to do plenty in playing 34.0 minutes per game.
• Thiemann has started the past 19 games for Cal and has averaged 9.8 points (4.4 career PPG) and 6.1 rebounds (3.1 career RPG) per game in that span.
• Cal continues to excel at the free throw line, leading the Pac-12 in percentage (77.2%) while averaging 13.5 makes in 17.5 attempts. Kuany Kuany (87.5%), Askew (86.4) and Thiemann (77.8) all rank among the conference's top 10 individually.
• The Bears are 17-7 in nonconference home games under head coach Mark Fox.
• Six of Cal's next seven games through Jan. 6 will be played in Berkeley.
• Cal is 3-0 all-time against Eastern Washington dating back to the 1998-99 season. Its three wins have come by a combined 71 points and Cal's 27 points allowed to the Eagles in the second meeting (56-27 win on Nov. 16, 2001) are the fewest allowed by the Bears in a single game dating back to Dec. 13, 1946 when they defeated San Francisco State 52-23.

 
UP NEXT
Cal hosts Butler at 2 p.m. PST Saturday, Dec. 10 in Haas Pavilion. The first all-time meeting between the two programs will be televised on the Pac-12 Network.
 
STAY POSTED
For further coverage of Cal men's basketball, follow the Bears on Twitter (@CalMBBall), Instagram (@CalMBBball) and Facebook (/CalMBBall/).