Cal Basketball: Bears Head to Florida to Play a Pair of High-Level Opponents

The Cal basketball team jumps into the deep end of the pool this week in Fort Myers, Florida.

Cal (2-2) takes on No. 24 Florida 24 (3-0) on Monday at the Fort Myers Tip-Off Classic before facing either No. 19 Ohio State (3-1) or Seton Hall (3-0) on Wednesday.

Florida, a regular at the NCAA tournament and a two-time national champion (2006 & 2007), already owns a win this season over in-state rival Florida State.

Seton Hall knocked off No. 4 Michigan 67-65 last Tuesday. The victory was the Pirates’ first-ever on the road against a non-conference opponent ranked in the top-5.

Ohio State lost 71-65 at in-state rival Xavier on Thursday. The Buckeyes roster includes former Cal star Justice Sueing (6.0 points, 3.5 rebounds), but he has missed the past two games with an abdominal injury and is not expected to play this week.

Meanwhile, Southern Utah coach Todd Simon told ESPN on Sunday that a scoring error cost his team a made free throw in the second half vs. Cal on Thursday, a game the Thunderbirds ultimately lost 75-68 in double-overtime.

Simon explained that video from the Pac-12 Network coverage of the game shows that Jason Spurgin made two free throws with 14:02 left in the game, which should have pushed Southern Utah’s lead to 43-34. Instead, the scorer said Spurgin made just one of two free throws and insisted no mistake was made. The scoreboard showed 42-34.

"At the time, I argued with the scorer's table, and after a couple possessions, I got the officials' attention," Simon told ESPN. "The scorer's table insisted they were right. Not much we could do beyond that. The lead official took their word and didn't go to the monitor.

“Unfortunately, it had to take some gymnastics from the stat crew doing play-by-play, the scorekeeper, etc., to all make the math work. Their official stat crew made a free throw make a miss and a dead-ball rebound. Very bizarre.”

NCAA rules offer no remedy for situations like this once the game is over, so the Bears keep the win.

FORT MYERS TIP-OFF

CAL (2-2) vs. NO. 24 FLORIDA (3-0)

WHERE: Sun Coast Credit Union Arena, Fort Myers, Florida

WHEN: Monday, 5:30 p.m.

TV/RADIO: FS1/810-AM

CAL-FLORIDA HISTORY: Cal leads 2-0, with an 83-80 win at the 1986 Rainbow Classic in Honolulu and a 73-58 victory in the 1988 Great Alaska Shootout.

CAL STORYLINES: The Bears have won two in a row after opening 0-2 but face by far their stiffest challenge with a pair of games this week in the Sunshine State. After taking on Florida, Cal will play either Ohio State or Seton Hall on Wednesday . . . The Bears have a ranking of No. 228 in the latest Ken Pomeroy computer ratings while Ohio State (No. 18), Florida (No. 20), Seton Hall (No. 29) all are top-30 teams . . . Cal shot 67 percent (10-for-15) from the 3-point arc in its win over San Diego but has converted just 29 percent (17-for-58) in its three other games . . . Only one of Cal’s four opponents — UC San Diego at 52 percent in the opener — has exceeded 41 percent vs. the Bears . . . Senior forward Andrew Kelly leads the Bears in scoring (16.8) and rebounding (11.0) and leads the Pac-12 in the latter category. He’s also shooting 61 percent from the field and is coming off career bests of 29 points and 17 rebounds in a win over Southern Utah. He was the first Cal player with a 25-15 game since Ryan Anderson had 33 points and 17 rebounds against Washington on Feb. 2, 2008. He was the first Pac-12 player with at least 29 points and 15 rebounds since Deandre Ayton of Arizona on March 10, 2018 . . . Graduate transfer guard Jordan Shepherd is second on the team at 13.5 points per game but has struggled to make shots the past three games, hitting just 29 percent (10-for-34) from the field.

FLORIDA STORYLINES: The Gators have beaten Elon, Florida State and Milwaukee by an average of nearly 22 points to open the season . . . Four Gators average double-digit scoring, led by 6-11 senior center Colin Castleton (17.3 points, 10.3 rebounds, 4.3 blocked shots), who began his career at Michigan, and senior transfer guard Myreon Jones (13.0 points, 5.3 rebounds), a two-time All-Big Ten honorable mention choice while at Penn State. Castleton had 15 points, 16 rebounds and six blocked shots in Florida’s win over Florida State . . . The Gators are not particularly big (Castleston is the only starter taller than 6-foot-7) but they are experienced, with four seniors and a graduate in their starting five. They also will try to push the pace against Cal, which ranks 341st (ninth-slowest in the country) in tempo . . . In their seventh season under coach Michael White, the Gators have played in the past four NCAA tournaments and nine of the past 11. They have a run of six consecutive seasons with at least a .500 record in the Southeastern Conference.

CAL GAME NOTES: Click here

FLORIDA GAME NOTES: Click here

Cover photo of Colin Castleton by Brad McClenny, The Gainesville Sun/USA Today

Follow Jeff Faraudo of Cal Sports Report on Twitter: @jefffaraudo