November 13, 1998
California Golden Bears (0-0)
at Hawaii Rainbows (0-0)
Sunday, Nov. 15, 4:30 p.m. HT/6:30 p.m. PT, Honolulu, HI
A Quick Look at the Golden Bears
Cal opens the 1998-99 season Sunday at Hawaii, the teams first trip to Oahu since December 1990 when the Bears played in the Rainbow Classic, losing to both Stetson (69-66) and Alaska-Anchorage (88-73). However on their last visit to the Islands, the Bears captured third place in the 1996 Maui Invitational, with wins over Iowa (75-59) and Massachusetts (59-55) sandwiched around a loss to Kansas (85-67). Cal has not played against Hawaii in Honolulu since Dec. 29, 1971, an 87-79 victory for the Rainbows. That has been the only setback for Cal against Hawaii, as the Bears own a 10-1 series lead.
This years version of the Cal basketball team features four seniors who are eager to lead the Bears back into the NCAA Tournament. After advancing to the Sweet 16 in 1997, Cal was unable to go to the postseason last year and finished with a 12-15 overall record and a tie for fifth in the Pac-10 with an 8-10 mark. But with that ban now lifted, the Bears are eager to return to the national spotlight and have been rated among the Top 35 teams in the country almost every preseason publication.
Leading the way for Cal is senior guard Geno Carlisle, the No. 2 returning scorer in the Pac-10 after averaging 17.9 ppg in 1998. Carlisle led the Bears in scoring 13 times last season, making a team-best 51 three-pointers.
Carlisle is joined in the backcourt by fellow senior guard Thomas Kilgore, who averaged 12.9 ppg and swiped a Cal-high 45 steals in 21 games for an average of 2.14 per contest. Up front is the senior tandem of forward Mike Gill and center Francisco Elson. Gill is healthy again after playing through an injury-plagued campaign last year. Despite the setbacks, he was named team MVP in 98 after averaging 10.4 ppg. Elson was voted MVP of the Golden Bear Classic last December and ranked among the Pac-10 leaders with 25 blocks.
Two other returning players are junior guards Raymond Circus King and Robbie Jones. King paced Cal with 89 assists last season, while Jones is a walk-on who earned 10 starts in 1998, including nine in Pac-10 play. However, Cal will be without sophomore forward Sean Lampley, a member of the 1998 Pac-10 All-Freshman team, who is sidelined with a hand injury.
The Bears have welcomed four newcomers to the roster in junior guard/forward Carl Boyd and freshmen Dennis Gates and Shahar Gordon. Boyd was an all-state player at Porterville College last season, while Gates, a 6-3 guard from Chicago, was named MVP of the state championship game after leading his Whitney Young HS squad to the Illinois title. Gordon, a 6-10, 240-pound center, was team captain of the Israeli Junior Nation team last year.
Cal on the Radio
All California games will be broadcast on KABL Radio (960 AM) in San Francisco and KATD Radio (990 AM) in Concord with Roxy Bernstein calling the action. Each broadcast begins 20 minutes prior to tip-off with the Cal Basketball Pregame Show. After the game, head coach Ben Braun will recap the action on the Cal Basketball Postgame Show. In addition to the radio, broadcasts can be heard on the Internet at www.broadcast.com. www.calbears.com tc
"www.calbears.com"
All Cal releases, results, statistics, box scores, schedules and coach and player information, as well as historical data, is available on the Internet at www.calbears.com. Game recaps and statistics are updated after each contest. The site also includes information on all 27 of Cals teams.
Cal Radio on Telephone tc "Cal on 800 Service"
All Cal basketball radio broadcasts during the 1998-99 season are available nationwide via telephone through TRZ Telephone Broadcast Services. Fans may access the Cal games from anywhere in the country by dialing 800-846-4700, extension 5918. The cost is 50 cents for the first minute, with decreasing rates for each addition minute.
New Arena in Oakland
While Haas Pavilion is under construction on campus, Cal will play all of its home games at the New Arena in Oakland. Recently renovated and expanded to 19,200 seats, the facility also serves as host to the NBAs Golden State Warriors. Cal played its first game in Oakland in 1974 and has an all-time mark of 26-18 there. The building, which was originally built in 1966, served as host of the mens NCAA West Regionals in 1990 and 95 and the womens regionals in 1998.
Cal Coach Ben Braun
Ben Braun (Wisconsin '75), who was named the 14th head coach in Cal history on Sept. 15, 1996, is in his third year in Berkeley and 22nd season as collegiate head coach. He agreed to a new eight-year contract with Cal in October 1997 that extends through the 2004-05 season. His record at Cal stands at 35-24, while his career mark, which includes 11 years at Eastern Michigan and eight seasons at Siena Heights College, is 368-259. The 1997 Pac-10 Coach of the Year and a finalist for 97 National Coach of the Year honors, Braun led the Bears to the NCAA Sweet 16 in 1997. At EMU from 1985-96, the three-time MAC Coach of the Year guided the Eagles to three NCAA Tournaments and one NIT appearance with an overall record of 185-132. A native of Chicago, Braun played one year of basketball at Wisconsin-LaCrosse before transferring to Wisconsin-Madison, where he earned a teaching degree in English with a minor in African-American studies in 1975. He received his master's degree in guidance and counseling from Siena Heights.
Hawaii Scouting Report
A Look at Hawaii (0-0) - Hawaii is coming off a 21-9 season and a berth in the NIT, where the Rainbows reached the third round, beating Arizona State (90-73) and Gonzaga (78-70) before falling to Fresno State (85-83). Mike Robinson, a 6-8 senior forward, is the lone returning starter from that unit and averaged 8.6 ppg and 6.0 rpg last year. Erin Galloway, another 6-8 senior forward, was named to the WAC All-Newcomer and Defense teams after averaging 7.6 ppg, shooting 58.3 percent from the floor and blocking 41 shots.
Cal-Hawaii Series History
Cal owns a 10-1 series lead, including a 4-1 record in Honolulu. The teams last met on March 16, 1989 in Berkeley in the first round of the NIT, a game the Bears won, 73-57. In its most recent trip to Honolulu, Cal lost, 87-79, in the Rainbow Classic on Dec. 29, 1971.
Hawaii Head Coach Riley Wallace
Riley Wallace begins his 12th season at Hawaii, entering the year with a 176-152 record with the Rainbows. He has led Hawaii to one NCAA Tournament and four NIT berths.
Probable Starters
Pos No Name Ht Wt Yr Ppg* Rpg*
F 4 Mike Robinson 6-8 240 Sr 8.6 6.0
F 21 Casey Cartwright 6-6 205 Sr 5.4 1.9
F 44 Marquette Alexander 6-8 269 Jr 0.0 0.0
G 11 Johnny White 6-0 194 Jr 0.0 0.0
G 30 Geremy Robinson 6-2 170 Jr 0.0 0.0
*1997-98 averages at Hawaii
Golden Bear Notes
Carlisle Moves to Point GuardSenior Geno Carlisle, who averaged 17.9 ppg as Cals starter at shooting guard last season, is making the transition to point guard this year. The 6-3 Carlisle last played the point during his freshman season at Northwestern in 1994-95 when he dished out 101 assists for the Wildcats. He moved to shooting guard as a sophomore at NU and continued in that position for the Bears in 1997-98. Carlisle finished last season with 50 assists in 22 games (2.3 per game) with a high of five assists at both Oregon and Oregon State in January games in which he also scored 28 points.
Lampley Out for Hawaii Game with Hand Injury
Sophomore forward Sean Lampley, who started the seasons final 11 games last season and averaged 8.4 ppg, will not play against Hawaii this week as he recovers from a hand injury suffered in practice two weeks ago. Lampley sprained a ligament on his right thumb when he hit his hand on the rim Oct. 26. His hand was in a cast for two weeks and he sat out both exhibition games. Lampley had the cast removed on Wednesday, but he is being held out of the season opener to let the injury heal completely.
Bears Picked High in Preseason Polls
With seven returning players and a highly regarded recruiting class, most preseason publications have forecast that the Bears will return to the upper echelon of college basketball. The loftiest prediction comes from Basketball News, which tabs Cal No. 20 in the country. In addition, The Sporting News has ranked the Bears 23rd and named senior guard Geno Carlisle a preseason first team All-Pac-10 choice. In the Associated Press preseason poll, Cal was just out of the Top 25, coming in 27th with 92 points.
Golden Bear Breakdown
By Class
Senior (4) - Geno Carlisle, Francisco Elson, Mike Gill, Thomas Kilgore
Junior (3) - Carl Boyd, Robbie Jones, Raymond King
Sophomore (1) - Sean Lampley
Freshman (2) - Dennis Gates, Shahar Gordon
By Height
7-0 Francisco Elson
6-10 Shahar Gordon
6-7 Sean Lampley
6-6 Mike Gill
6-5 Carl Boyd
6-3 Geno Carlisle, Dennis Gates, Robbie Jones
6-2 Thomas Kilgore
5-10 Raymond King
Games* Career Starts
Francisco Elson 27 14
Raymond King 27 12
Sean Lampley 27 12
Robbie Jones 23 10
Geno Carlisle 22 19
Thomas Kilgore 21 15
Mike Gill 19 14
Carl Boyd 0 0
Dennis Gates 0 0
Shahar Gordon 0 0
Points* Career Avg.
Geno Carlisle 394 17.9
Thomas Kilgore 271 12.9
Mike Gill 197 10.4
Sean Lampley 226 8.4
Raymond King 175 6.5
Francisco Elson 136 5.0
Robbie Jones 48 2.1
Carl Boyd 0 0.0
Dennis Gates 0 0.0
Shahar Gordon 0 0.0
Rebounds* Career Avg.
Sean Lampley 141 5.2
Francisco Elson 126 4.7
Raymond King 75 2.8
Geno Carlisle 67 3.0
Mike Gill 65 3.4
Thomas Kilgore 47 2.2
Robbie Jones 39 1.7
Carl Boyd 0 0.0
Shahar Gordon 0 0.0
Assists* Career Avg.
Raymond King 89 3.3
Thomas Kilgore 54 2.6
Geno Carlisle 50 2.3
Sean Lampley 45 1.7
Mike Gill 18 0.9
Francisco Elson 14 0.5
Robbie Jones 12 0.5
Carl Boyd 0 0.0
Shahar Gordon 0 0.0
*Cal statistics only
Cal Picks Up Two Exhibition Wins
Cal played a pair of exhibition games to prepare for the 1998-99 season, and the Bears came away with two victories. In the first game against the Costa Rican National Team on Nov. 9, Cal routed the visitors, 86-34. Senior forward Mike Gill paced the assault with 25 points (8-11 FG, 2-2 3P, 7-9 FT) and nine rebounds. Three other Bears also scored in double figures: Thomas Kilgore (15 points), Dennis Gates (12) and Francisco Elson (11). Carl Boyd had a good all-around effort with eight points, eight rebounds and five assists. Then on Nov. 12, Cal ran past the California Midwest All-Stars, 94-58. The Bears held the All-Stars without a field goal for the games first 13 minutes, cruising to a 55-24 halftime lead. Geno Carlisle scored a team-high 13 points and added four assists (no turnovers), while Gill posted a double-double with 13 points and 12 rebounds.
Bears Picked Fifth in Pac-10 Race
Cal was picked to finish fifth in a vote of writers who cover Pac-10 basketball. Stanford was the overwhelming favorite to take the title, garnering 36 of 37 first-place votes. However, Cal kept the choice from being unanimous, as the Bears pulled down the other first-place vote. Below is a look at Pac-10 media poll:
Team Points
1. Stanford (36) 369
2. Arizona 298
3. Washington 277
4. UCLA 271
5. California (1) 253
6. Arizona State 150
Oregon 150
8. USC 144
9. Washington State 65
10. Oregon State 56
First-place votes in parentheses
Cal Looks for Quick Start to 98-99 Season
When Cal opens the regular season at Hawaii Sunday, the Bears will looking to get off to a stronger start than last year, when they began with an 0-4 record. However, that mark is a bit deceptive due to the fact that Cal lost its top seven players from its 1997 NCAA Sweet 16 squad and had only seven scholarship players available until transfers Geno Carlisle and Thomas Kilgore became eligible in late December. Overall, the Bears are 6-1 in their last seven season openers and have won 21 of their last 24 to begin a season.
Cal Hosts Strong Home Schedule
Cals home schedule at the New Arena in Oakland is shaping up as one of its most attractive in many years. Highlighting the slate is a date with North Carolina on Dec. 29 in the first half of the Pete Newell Challenge. The second game of that twinbill features Stanford versus Temple. In addition, Houston, which is coached by former NBA great Clyde Drexler, comes to town Dec. 3, and 1998 Elite Eight team Rhode Island visits Dec. 5. The Golden Bear Classic Dec. 21-22 features Eastern Kentucky, Southwestern Louisiana and 1996 Final Four participant Mississippi State. Other non-conference games at home are against Eastern Washington and Coppin State.
Haas Pavilion to Open for 98-99 Season
Cal will open the 1998-99 season in a new on-campus arena the Walter A. Haas Jr. Pavilion. The facility, which is being built on the site of the former Harmon Gym, will have a capacity of 12,300 up from 6,578 in Harmon and is named in honor of Walter and Evelyn Haas, who donated a lead gift of $10 million. Construction on the $50 million project got underway in the summer of 1997. The Bears played in Harmon Gym for 64 seasons (1933-97) and compiled a 588-300 record there. The final game at the facility came on March 6, 1997 when Cal defeated Arizona State, 84-66.
Golden Bear Notes
Cals last trip to Hawaii came in November 1996 when the Bears played in the Maui Invitational; in that tournament, Cal placed third, defeating Iowa (75-59), losing to Kansas (85-67) and beating Massachusetts (59-55) ... senior forward Mike Gill, who missed eight games last year due to injury (abdomen strain/oral surgery) is back at full strength for the start of the season ... 19 of Cals 28 games will be televised this year ... senior center Francisco Elson and freshman center Shahar Gordon attended Pete Newell's Big Man Camp in Hawaii over the summer also during the summer, Carl Boyd was a member of the Dream Team that captured the title in the San Francisco Pro-Am League.
1998-99 Cal Schedule & Results
11-9 COSTA RICA# W 86-34
11-12 CALIFORNIA ALL-STARS# W 94-58
11-15 at Hawaii 6:30 p.m. PT
11-25 E. WASHINGTON (FSBA) 7:30 p.m.
11-28 at DePaul 2:00 p.m. PT
12-3 HOUSTON (FSBA) 7:30 p.m.
12-5 RHODE ISLAND (FSN) 2:00 p.m.
12-7 COPPIN STATE 7:30 p.m.
12-19 at Brigham Young 6:00 p.m. PT
12-21 EASTERN KENTUCKY 7:30 p.m.
12-22 MISS. ST. or SW LOUISIANA 5/7:30 p.m.
12-29 NORTH CAROLINA+ (FSN) 6:00 p.m.
1-2 OREGON* (FSBA) 1:00 p.m.
1-4 OREGON STATE* 7:30 p.m.
1-9 at Stanford* (FX) 7:30 p.m.
1-14 at UCLA* (FSN) 7:30 p.m.
1-16 at USC* (FSBA) 5:00 p.m.
1-21 WASHINGTON* 7:30 p.m.
1-23 WASHINGTON ST.* (FSBA) 1:00 p.m.
1-28 at Arizona State* (FSBA) 5:30 p.m. PT
1-30 at Arizona* (FSN) 3:00 p.m. PT
2-3 STANFORD* (FSN) 7:30 p.m.
2-11 USC* (FSBA) 7:30 p.m.
2-13 UCLA* (ABC) 1:30 p.m.
2-18 at Washington State* 7:05 p.m.
2-20 at Washington* (FSN) 3:00 p.m.
2-25 ARIZONA* (FSN) 7:30 p.m.
2-27 ARIZONA STATE* (FSBA) 1:00 p.m.
3-4 at Oregon State* (FSBA) 7:00 p.m.
3-6 at Oregon* (FSN) 3:00 p.m.
Home games at the New Arena in Oakland
#Exhibition game
*Pacific-10 Conference game
Golden Bear Classic
Pete Newell Challenge
FSN Fox Sports Net TV
FSBA Fox Sports Bay Area TV
All games can be heard on KABL Radio (960 AM)
Probable Starters & Key Reserves
POS NO NAME HT YR PPG* RPG* NOTES
F 33 Mike Gill 6-6 Sr 10.4 3.4 Named Team MVP last season despite missing 8 games w/injury
F 23 Carl Boyd 6-5 Jr 0.0 0.0 Averaged 17.0 ppg at Porterville College last year
C 41 Francisco Elson 7-0 Sr 5.0 4.7 Led Cal with 25 blocks last season
G 15 Thomas Kilgore 6-2 Sr 12.9 2.2 Ranked third in the Pac-10 with 2.14 steals per game in 98
G 25 Geno Carlisle 6-3 Sr 17.9 3.0 Moved to point guard; No. 2 returning scorer in Pac-10
G 10 Raymond King 5-10 Jr 6.5 2.8 Had a team-high 89 assists last season
G 3 Dennis Gates 6-3 Fr 0.0 0.0 Named Chicago All-Academic Player of the Year in 1998
F 40 Shahar Gordon 6-10 Fr 0.0 0.0 Captain of Israeli Junior National Team last summer
*1997-98 averages at Cal
Head Coach: Ben Braun (Wisconsin '75)
35-24 at Cal (3rd year) & 368-259 overall (22nd year)
