UCLA Basketball tries to avoid getting swept on the road as they head across the bay to Cal after a tough loss to Stanford. Here is how to watch and what to know…
The UCLA Basketball team is once again consistently inconsistent, a theme we had pointed out in our ‘5 Things We Learned From the Non-Conference Schedule‘.
RELATED: UCLA sits outside the Top 25 after home wins
The Bruins were on a high with wins over Kentucky, Washington State and Washington… that all went out the window when UCLA blew a 13-point lead in a double overtime loss to Stanford on Thursday. If the Bruins want to stay relevant in the Pac-12, they need to avoid the bad road losses to lesser conference teams… enter Cal.
Here is everything you need to know about UCLA vs. Cal…
UCLA Basketball vs. Cal Game Day Info
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Records:
UCLA Bruins 11-4, 2-1
California Golden Bears 7-8, 1-1
Location: Haas Pavilion, Berkeley, CA
Tipoff: 3:30 p.m. PT
TV: Pac-12 Network
Live Stream: Pac-12 Live
Radio: AM 570 or 1150 Los Angeles
On-line Radio: Tune-In
Odds: UCLA -7.5, O/U: 156
Last Game:
Stanford d. UCLA, 107-99 (2OT)
USC d. Cal, 80-62
ESPN Win Predictor: UCLA 77.0% – Cal 23.0%
Projected Starters:
UCLA – G Aaron Holiday, G Prince Ali, F Kris Wilkes, F Gyorgy Goloman, C Thomas Welsh
Cal – G Darius McNeill, G Don Coleman, C Kingsley Okoroh, F Justice Sueing, F Marcus Lee
Head Coaches:
UCLA – Steve Alford | Cal – Wyking Jones
Rosters:
UCLA Basketball vs. Cal: Stats, Final Word and Prediction
Key Individual Stats:
Aaron Holiday – 19.3 ppg, 5.3 apg, 4.1 rpg, 1.7 steals
Thomas Welsh – 12.3 ppg, 10.9 rpg, .463 FG%
Kris Wilkes – 13.4 ppg, 5.5 rpg, .447 FG%
Team Stats:
| Team | Avg Pts | Opp. Pts | FG% | Rebs | Asts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UCLA | 84.1 | 77.0 | .465 | 41.3 | 14.9 |
| Cal | 75.1 | 79.7 | .447 | 37.0 | 10.9 |
Related Story: Holiday, Welsh get to 1,000 career points in same game
Player to Watch:
The UCLA Youth – Wilkes, Jaylen Hands and Prince Ali need to to step up and contribute more if the Bruins are going to be competitive in the Pac-12. Cal is having trouble lately, so this is the perfect opportunity for the Bruin youth to show what they are made of.
Last Word:
Cal is similar to Stanford in the fact that they are trying to rebuild but are no where near where they need to be to compete for the Pac-12. With Cal welcoming UCLA to Haas Pavilion, it is the perfect setup for the Golden Bears to surprise the Bruins and pull off an upset.
The Bruins had a bad loss to Stanford, one that they hopefully take to heart. If they can understand how crucial it is to get a conference road win, then they should have no problem with Cal. But that is the problem, the Bruins can only rely on Holiday and Welsh. On top of that, with Welsh getting smacked in the nose on Thursday and needing to wear a protective mask, it clearly affected his play, so will that continue against Cal?
Either way, every single person not named Holiday or Welsh has to pick up the pace and help the Bruins take down the Golden Bears. Though it should be a blow out, expect a close game.
Next: The UCLA Basketball All-Time Team
Prediction: UCLA 82 – Cal 73