Cal Closes Exhibition Play With Cal State San Marcos Thursday
BERKELEY – The California men’s basketball team closes out exhibition play against Cal State San Marcos on Thursday, Nov. 6, at 7:30 p.m. PT at Haas Pavilion. The Golden Bears opened the Cuonzo Martin era with a 94-50 exhibition victory over Cal State East Bay last Friday (Oct. 31) in Berkeley.
Thursday’s game against Cal State San Marcos will be televised nationally on the Pac-12 Networks with former Golden Bears head coach Mike Montgomery (analyst) on the call alongside Ted Robinson (play-by-play). Montgomery will be making his debut with the conference’s television network.
CAL STATE EAST BAY RECAP
In a game that saw five Golden Bears in double-figures, California utilized a balanced attack in a commanding 94-50 exhibition victory over Cal State East Bay on Halloween night at Haas Pavilion.
Sophomore Jordan Mathews and junior Tyrone Wallace set the pace for the Bears with 21 points apiece, senior David Kravish and sophomore Jabari Bird poured in 11 points each, while sophomore Sam Singer logged 10 of his own. Fellow sophomore Roger Moute a Bidias chipped in seven points for Cal, and redshirt junior Christian Behrens, freshman Kingsley Okoroh and graduate student Dwight Tarwater logged 15 points, collectively.
THE CUONZO MARTIN BEGINS IN BERKELEY
Martin, who was introduced as Cal’s 16th head men’s basketball coach in program history on April 15, brings a track record of success that includes a conference Coach of the Year honor and postseason berths each of the past five seasons. He guided Tennessee the past three years, including a spot in the NCAA Tournament Sweet 16 last season, and prior to that served as the head coach at Missouri State for three years. In his first six seasons as a head coach, Martin owned a 124-82 career record. He has directed his teams to a greater win total than the previous year at each of his coaching stops.
RETURNING TO THE LINEUP
The Golden Bears return three starters – senior forward David Kravish, junior guard Tyrone Wallace and sophomore guard Jabari Bird – from a 21-win team a year ago. Cal’s top returning scorer (11.4 ppg.) and rebounder (7.7 rpg.), Kravish has started the Bears’ last 88 games and enters the 2014-15 season just 30 blocks shy of Cal’s all-time record of 207 and just 107 points shy of 1,000 for his career. He was a Pac-12 All-Defensive Team selection after posting a school single-season record 73 blocks as a junior. Wallace was the team’s third-leading scorer (11.4 ppg.) last season, and also led the team in steals (44) and three-point field goals (43) a year ago. Bird averaged 8.3 ppg. overall, and 16.7 ppg. in Cal’s three postseason games, making 12 starts as a freshman last season.
Cal’s deep backcourt also features 2014 Pac-12 All-Freshman Team selection Jordan Mathews (8.5 ppg. last season). The Golden Bears, who placed third in the Pac-12 last year, welcome back eight letterwinners overall.
THE NEWCOMERS
The Golden Bears welcome six newcomers to the roster in 2014-15. Freshman 7-1 center from Derby, England, Kingsley Okoroh, became the first signee of the Cuonzo Martin era at Cal. He is joined by fellow post player Dwight Tarwater, a 6-6 graduate transfer who played at Cornell the past four seasons. Cal also welcomes 6-7 junior guard Stephen Domingo. The San Francisco native will sit out the season after transferring from Georgetown. The Bears continue to build their backcourt depth with the addition of Alexandria, Va. native Brandon Chauca (5-9) and Los Angeles native Nick Hamilton (6-4), and reinforce their frontcourt depth with 6-7 forward Cole Welle from Aptos, Calif.
THE OFFICIAL TIP-OFF
Cal will open the 2014-15 regular season with a pair of games at Haas Pavilion next weekend. The Bears officially tip-off the Cuonzo Martin era in Berkeley with a 7 p.m. PT contest against Alcorn State on Friday, Nov. 14, and host Kennesaw State at 5 p.m. PT on Sunday, Nov. 16, at Haas Pavilion as part of the regional round games of the 2K Classic, benefiting the Wounded Warrior Project. Cal will hit the road for the first time on Thursday, Nov. 20, facing Syracuse at Madison Square Garden in New York, N.Y. in the Championship round of the 2K Classic.