Pac 10 Showdown in Berkeley: Washington at California

Washington Huskies at California Golden Bears, Haas Pavilion, Berkeley, CA
Sunday, January 16, 2011, 10:00 pm Eastern, TV: Fox Sports Net
Opening Line: Washington -8
Current Line: Washington -6 1/2
Opening Total: 149
Current Total: 148
Money Line: Washington -270 / Cal +230

The Washington Huskies are 6 1/2 point favorites on the road at the California Golden Bears.

Washington is 12-4 overall and 4-1 in the Pac 10. They lost at Stanford Thursday night 58-56, a game in which the Huskies led by 11 in the second half. The Huskies had won 6 straight games before that. The loss also snapped an 11 game Pac 10 winning streak for the Huskies dating back to last year. Washington has losses to Kentucky, Michigan St and Texas A&M on the season. They have wins over Virginia, Texas Tech, USC, UCLA, oregon, and Oregon St on the season. The Huskies travel to Berkeley to take on the 9-7, 2-2 in conference, Cal Golden Bears. Cal has wins over New Mexico, Temple, Iowa St, Arizona St, and Washington St. They have losses to Notre Dame, Boston College, San Diego St, Southern Miss, Kansas, Stanford, and Arizona on the season. Washington hasn’t won at Cal since 2008. They are 2-8 at Haas Pavilion since the 2000-01 season. These two teams played in the championship game of the Pac 10 tournament last year in L.A. Washington won 79-75. Cal leads the overall series 77-75. Four of the last five games have gone over the total in this series. California is 17-6 ATS in home games versus teams with winning records the last 3 seasons.

Washington is playing without guard Abdul Gaddy who tore his ACL in practice a couple of weeks ago. He was averaging 8.5 points, 2.5 rebounds, and 3.8 assists a game before the injury. Junior guard Isaiah Thomas is averaging 15.9 points to lead the team, 3.6 rebounds, 4.9 assists to lead the team and 1.3 steals a game. Forward Matthew Brian-Amaning averages 14.8 points, 7.5 rebounds to lead the team, and 1.3 blocks a game. Justin Holiday averages 11.8 points, 5.8 rebounds, 1.8 assists, and 1.7 steals a game to lead the team. Aziz N’Diaye leads the team in blocks with 1.4. Washington is outscoring opponents 87-67 on the season. The Huskies shoot 48.4% from the field and 40.1% from 3-point range. Husky opponents are shooting 39.5% from the field. The Huskies make 64.8% of their free throws. They average 40.6 rebounds a game and have a rebounding margin of +5.9. Washington averages 17.8 assists and 11.9 turnovers a game. They force 16.4 turnovers a game on defense. Washington averages 8.1 steals and 5 blocks a game.

Guard Gary Franklin left the Cal team for personal reasons a couple of weeks ago. He was averaging 8 points a game. The Golden Bears have four players averaging double digit scoring. Forward Harper Kamp averages 13.4 points to lead the team, 5.5 rebounds, and 1.9 assists. Guard Jorge Gutierrez averages 12.7 points, 3.4 rebounds, 4.0 assists to lead the team, and 1.4 steals a game to also lead the team. Allen Crabbe averages 10.8 points, 5.4 rebounds, and 1.8 assists a game. Markhuri Sanders-Frison averages 10.3 points, and 8.3 rebounds a game to lead the team. Cal is outscoring opponents 68-67 on the year. The Bears are shooting 43.7% from the field and 33.2% from 3-point range. Cal opponents are shooting 41.1% from the field. the Bears average 36.3 rebounds a game and have a rebounding margin of +4.9. Cal averages 14.9 assists and 14.9 turnovers a game. They force 12.9 turnovers a game on defense. The Bears average 5.6 steals and 2.4 blocks a game.

Cal has been inconsistent this season. They have a very young team with 9 freshman or sophomores on the roster. Washington on the other hand has a veteran laden line-up and is the best team in the Pac 10. I think Washington will win even though Haas Pavilion is a tough place to play.