February 28, 1999
BERKLEY, Calif. - For the first time in school history, the Cal men's basketball team has defeated three Top 10 schools during the regular season. On Dec. 29, the Bears upended then-No. 9 North Carolina, 78-71, at the Pete Newell Challenge. Then to begin the final stretch of the Pac-10 schedule, Cal beat then-No. 9 UCLA, 85-67, Feb. 13 for the Bears biggest home win over the Bruins since 1948. And last Thursday (Feb. 25), Cal came back from 10 points down to cruise past then-No. 7 Arizona, 89-76.
During the 1959-60 season, when Cal finished as the NCAA national runner-up, the Bears also beat three Top 10 teams, but one of those came in the NCAA Tournament. At the Los Angeles Invitational in December 1959, Cal defeated No. 10 Illinois and No. 2 West Virginia. In the national semifinals, the Bears, who were ranked No. 2 at the team, upset top-ranked Cincinnati to advance to the championship game. However, Cal fell to No. 3 Ohio State in its quest for a second straight NCAA title.
CAL MOVES UP IN RPI RATINGS:
By virtue of its wins over Arizona and Arizona State (78-73) this past weekend, Cal jumped 12 spots in the RPI from 63rd to 51st. The RPI which ranks teams based on overall record and opponent strength, is one of the key factors used in determining the NCAA Tournament field. Other Pac-10 teams high in the most recent RPI are Stanford (3), UCLA (15), Arizona (18), Washington (26) and Oregon (43).
The 64-team NCAA bracket will be revealed the afternoon of Sunday, March 7. If Cal is not selected, the Bears are expected to receive a bid to the NIT, which will be announced Sunday night.
CAL SETS ATTENDANCE RECORD:
When 10,833 fans attended Cal's final regular season game against Arizona State Saturday, the Bears broke their single-season attendance record. For the 16 home dates in 1998-99, Cal drew 174,218 fans to the Oakland Arena, an average of 10,889 per contest. The previous record was 166,317 set during the 1993-94 season.
Aiding the record were three crowds over 15,000 19,657 for North Carolina, 15,269 for Stanford and a Pac-10 single-game record 15,676 for UCLA.
