The No. 18-ranked Arizona Wildcats (22-7) and the Pac-12’s fourth-ranked offense welcome the No. 25-ranked California Golden Bears (21-8) and the first-ranked defense in the conference. Action begins at 9:00 pm ET on Thursday, Mar. 3 and will air on ES3.
The Wildcats are hoping for a better outcome after their 70-64 loss to Utah in their last game. Allonzo Trier finished with 23 points to lead the game. The Golden Bears, meanwhile, are coming off an 87-65 win over USC in their last game. Ivan Rabb played well, recording 18 points and 10 rebounds to claim his ninth double-double of the season.
From an eFG% perspective, this will be a matchup of two heavyweights. The elite offense of Arizona is ranked 35th in the nation in that metric at 54.0%, while California is fourth-best in the nation at making opponents miss (43.4%).
This is the second game of the season between these two teams, with the Golden Bears winning the first matchup 74-73. Jordan Mathews had a standout performance in the victory, putting up 28 points, three rebounds, two assists, one steal, and six three-pointers.
The Wildcats look to build on their records of 22-7 Straight Up (SU) and 15-14 Against The Spread (ATS). Over their last 10 games, they have had success covering the spread (8-2). Arizona has gotten to the free throw line often this season. They average 18 made free throws per game, which is 22nd-best in Division I.
Across the court, the Golden Bears have 21-8 SU and 17-12 ATS records. The California defense has been a problem for competitors, allowing only 5.0 field goals from three-point range per game. They average 5.0 blocks per game, good for 28th in the nation.
California beat Arizona in their most recent meeting this season, but Arizona still leads the head-to-head record, 7-3 SU, over their most recent matchups. The Wildcats also hold the advantage ATS with a record of 5-4-1. Arizona topped the Golden Bears in three key areas (field goals, rebounds, and three-pointers) twice over the last five matchups. California has never had the edge in all three categories.
Predictions: SU Winner – Ari, ATS Winner – Ari
Notes
Arizona is one of the highest-scoring teams in the nation, averaging 81.1 points per game (ranked 18th). California allows 66.7 points per game (ranked 50th).
Arizona averages 82.5 points per home game (ranked 36th). California allows 70.9 points per away game (ranked 67th).
In its last game, California won by a margin of 22 points. Arizona is 8-0 in games decided by a margin of 18 points or more. California also has an 8-0 record in blowouts.
Ranked 23rd, the Arizona Wildcats have one of the top defenses in the country, giving up just 96.4 points per 100 possessions. The California Golden Bears rank 75th in offense, scoring 110.6 points in the same number of possessions.
The Arizona Wildcats have one of the best field goal percentages this season, ranking 15th in the nation with a FG% of 48.8%. The California Golden Bears have split their games this season (1-1) when opponents record a similar or higher FG%.
The Arizona Wildcats and the California Golden Bears both rank higher in average field goal percentage when compared to their effective field goal percentages. Arizona is 35th and 15th in the nation for eFG% and FG% respectively, while California ranks 53rd and 48th in these categories.
Arizona ranks 89th in assists, registering 14.7 per game. California performs worse at 192nd with 13.3 assists per game.
Arizona ranks 19th in rebounds per game with 40.5 and California ranks 24th with 40.3 rebounds per game.
California ranks 138th in offensive rebounds, while Arizona ranks at fifth in defensive rebounds.
On average, Arizona forces a turnover rate of 16.5%. When California turns over the ball at a similar or higher rate, the team has a winning 12-7 record.
