BERKELEY – The California women's basketball team wraps up the regular season on the road, beginning with a matchup at No. 8 Utah on Thursday, Feb. 23 at 4 p.m. The game will be televised on the Pac-12 Network.
 
This game marks the 29th all-time meeting between the two programs with the series even at 14-14, although Utah has won the last four matchups. The last Bears' victory in the series came on an 88-74 win at Utah on Feb. 16, 2020.

Utah is led by eighth-year head coach Lynne Roberts and is coming off a 21-12 record and a berth to the NCAA Tournament in which the Utes advanced to the second round. Utah returns four starters and is led by Alissa Pili, who was named to the Wooden Award and Ann Meyers Drysdale Award Midseason Watch Lists and reigning Pac-12 Coaches Freshman of the Year Gianna Kneepkens.

GAME INFORMATION

• Date & Time: Thursday, Feb. 23 | 4:00 p.m. PT
• Location: Salt Lake City, UT | Jon Huntsman Center
• Watch: Pac-12 Network
• Live Stats: StatBroadcast

QUICK HITS

• In the 81-78 OT win against No. 25 USC:
  • Cal was led by Jayda Curry's team and season-high 27 points, just three shy of her career-high and her sixth 20-point game of the year. She also added four 3-pointers (seven in the last two games) which matched her career-high, while grabbing six rebounds, marking the ninth game she has had at least five this season.
  • Kemery Martín scored 15 points and Evelien Lutje Schipholt added 14 with eight rebounds
  • Michelle Onyiah came up big in overtime, scoring six of Cal's nine points and grabbing the game-saving rebound to secure the win. She tied the game-high with nine boards overall.
  • The Bears shot 44.4% from deep, the highest percentage this season against USC, which came into the game leading the Pac-12 in 3PT percentage defense.
  • It was a tight game throughout, featuring 23 ties and 18 lead changes with neither team having more than a five-point lead.
  • The 81 points marked a team season-high for conference play.
• Against Top 10 opponents:
  • Against then No. 9 Notre Dame on Nov. 12, Cal scored the most 3-pointers (9) and points (79), had the most assists (17) and steals (12 - only opponent to register double-digit steals) against Notre Dame among any of its opponents this season. Fighting Irish opponents include No. 5 UConn, No. 9 Virginia Tech and No. 13 Maryland.
  • In the first meeting at No. 2 Stanford on Dec. 23, Cal shot 43.9 percent from deep, the highest percentage allowed by Stanford this season. The Bears also held Stanford to just 29.2 percent from 3-point range, its fourth lowest percentage of the season. The 69 points the Bears put up were the third-highest total allowed by the Cardinal all season. In the second meeting at home on Jan. 8, Cal held Stanford to its lowest FG (32.3) and 3PT (20.0) percentages, scoring output (60 points) and 3PT makes (4) of the season.
  • Against No. 8 UCLA On Jan. 15, Cal was able to take control of the game early with a 15-2 lead and was down just one point in the fourth quarter before going on a scoring drought to seal the loss. The Bears shot 47.1 percent from deep, their second highest mark of the season.In five of the nine losses to ranked opponents, Cal has had a lead or trailed by no more than three points in the fourth quarter.
• Team national rankings: 51st 3PT% (34.4), 67th asst/to ratio (1.04), 74th fewest turnovers per game (14.2), 80th assists per game (14.8)
• This season Cal is averaging 68.4 points per game, the sixth highest average in program history since the 1999-00 season.
• With her four 3-pointers against USC, Curry kept her streak of consecutive regular season games with at least one 3-pointer going at 49 games. Her streak is the longest among all active Pac-12 players and now marks the longest streak of any Pac-12 player since the 1999-00 season.

Jayda Curry, Cal	49	11/09/2021 - PRESENT
Shay Murphy, USC	45	02/18/2005 - 01/05/2007
Kelsey Plum, Wash	38	01/17/2016 - 02/10/2017
Sabrina Ionescu, Oregon	34	01/29/2017 - 02/04/2018
Sabrina Ionescu, Oregon	30	02/11/2018 - 02/15/2019

 

• Curry is the only player in the Pac-12 who has a hit a 3-pointer in every game this year.
• Curry's 55 3-pointers this season is tied for the 10th spot on Cal's all-time single-season list. She is nine 3-pointers away from tying for first place. Martín has 54 3-pointers this season and is on the verge of entering the top 10.
• With her 375 career assists, Leilani McIntosh is just eight shy of tying for the ninth spot on Cal's all-time list.
• McIntosh is the only player in the Pac-12 shooting 48% overall, 42% from deep and ranking in top 10 in assists (3.7). Her FG% is third among all guards in the Pac-12.
• Impressive Backcourt Trio:
  • Cal is the only school in the Pac-12 with two players in the top 10 in both 3-point makes - Curry (5th) - 55; Martín (6th) - 54 and 3-point percentage -  McIntosh (6th) - 42.3; Martín (10th) - 38.8.
  • Curry and McIntosh are also one of just two pairs in the Pac-12 to rank in the top 10 in assists, as they are tied for 6th at 3.7apg.
• The duo of Curry and Martín rank second in the Pac-12 for 3-point makes (109) and is one of only two pairs among Pac-12 schools with 54+ 3-pointers.
• Curry ranks second among all sophomores in the Pac-12 in scoring (14.7) and 29th nationally. She has scored in double-figures in all but seven games this season.
• Senior Evelien Lutje Schipholt's has moved into fifth place on Cal's all-time career blocks list.
• Lutje Schipholt has been a steady force, leading the team for most of the season in rebounding (5.0 rpg) and ranking fourth in scoring at 9.9 points per game (career-high). Her 60 offensive rebounds rank 9th in the Pac-12. Her 45.3 offensive rebounding percentage ranks 1st in the Pac-12 among the top 30 rebounders.
• McIntosh has dramatically improved her accuracy from deep, continuing her year-over-year improvement. She is currently shooting a career-high 42.3 percent from 3-point range and is the only player in the Pac-12 shooting at least 48 percent from the field and 42 percent from deep (among qualified players).
• Martín has been one of the Bears' most consistent players from 3-point range this season, shooting at a 38.3 percent rate. She has hit at least two 3-pointers in all but 11 games this season and nine of 16 conference games.
• Off The Bench: Michelle Onyiah has been a key contributor off the bench this season. Onyiah is Cal's leading scorer off the bench (6.5 ppg) and has two double-doubles this season.  In Pac-12 play, she is leading the team in rebound average (5.8). Her 52 offensive rebounds this season rank in the top 20 of the Pac-12 and she is the only player on that list who has not started a game this year.
• Cal's offense is coming from multiple sources this season with three Bears averaging double-figure scoring: Curry - 14.7, Martín – 10.7, McIntosh - 10.1. Last season, only Curry averaged double-figures.
• Peanut Tuitele has been instrumental in helping the Bears control the glass this season, currently tied for the team lead in rebounding average at 5.0 boards per game. She also has had 35 offensive rebounds this season.

UP NEXT
The Bears wrap up the regular season at No. 21 Colorado on Saturday, Feb. 25 at 11 a.m.