Cal still has hopes of making the NCAA Tournament despite a turbulent run in Atlantic Coast Conference play.
Those hopes would likely be dashed if the Golden Bears fall short against a struggling Pitt team Saturday in Berkeley, Calif.
Cal (20-8, 8-7 ACC) is coming off a 74-69 triumph over SMU on Wednesday that marked the team’s third consecutive win. The Golden Bears are currently the first team out of the NCAA Tournament in ESPN’s latest bracketology projection entering the weekend.
“We have a huge test with Pitt coming in here, but (winning) this is meaningful because our goal has always been since we got here to make a deep run in the NCAA tournament,” Cal coach Mark Madsen said after the SMU win. “We said it early on. We clearly defined it. We’re not there yet. We have a long way to go to try to make it, but this was an important step and building block in that direction.”
Dai Dai Ames leads Cal in scoring with 16.6 points per game, but he struggled against the Mustangs, tallying a season-low two points on 1-of-10 shooting. Justin Pippen (24) and Chris Bell (20) picked up the slack to help the Golden Bears lead for almost the entirety of the bubble matchup.
Pitt (10-18, 3-12) is playing merely for pride at this point. The Panthers did snap a five-game skid against fellow ACC bottom-feeder Notre Dame on Feb. 21 but failed to carry momentum into Wednesday’s 75-67 loss at Stanford, blowing a seven-point lead it created through a hot start in California.
Panthers coach Jeff Capel wasn’t hearing any excuses about the extensive travel playing into his team’s loss at Stanford.
“This is our first time doing it,” Capel said. “I thought we were ready to play. I don’t know if (it’s any more difficult), besides playing good teams in Stanford and Cal on Saturday. The travel is what it is. It’s probably more challenging for them. They have to do it every other week.”
Cameron Corhen leads the Panthers in both scoring (12.8 ppg) and rebounding (7.2 ppg). He tallied 22 points — his most since the season opener — against the Cardinal, adding eight rebounds, four assists and two steals.
