Cal, SMU in Clash With ACC Tournament Seeding Implications

Cal faces the stiffest test remaining on its ACC regular-season schedule tonight when high-scoring SMU visits Haas Pavilion. Tipoff is 7 p.m.

The Bears’ path over their final three games features Pitt, Georgia Tech and Wake Forest, with a combined ACC record of 10-33.

But the Mustangs (19-8, 8-6) are an explosive offensive team that has won four of its past five games, including a 95-85 victory over a 24th-ranked Louisville.

And they reside alone in eighth place in the ACC standings, one rung above the Bears (19-8, 7-7), who are tied for ninth. The top nine teams earn first-round byes in the ACC tournament, set for March 10-14 at Charlotte, NC.

“It’s a huge game, no doubt,” Cal coach Mark Madsen said. “They’re playing pretty well and I feel like we’re playing pretty well, too. It’s going to be a battle of two teams that are trying to peak at the right time.”

SMU leads the ACC and is tied for 14th nationally, scoring 86.8 points per game, and has topped 90 points on 11 occasions. The Mustangs are tied for 17th in field-goal accuracy at 50.3 percent and convert 41.3 percent from the 3-point arc in ACC play.

“SMU’s a really good basketball team. They have a lot of weapons, they have tremendous size, and whether it’s their man or their zone (defense), they’re very sound in what they’re trying to accomplish,” Madsen said.

“They have players that can find their way into seams of the defense. They’re a great passing team, they shoot the 3-ball well. There’s a reason why they’re one of the top teams we’re going to play this year.”

SMU is led by senior point guard Boopie Miller, a 6-foot native of Chicago, who made stops at Central Michigan and Wake Forest before settling in at SMU before last season. He averages 18.7 points and ranks tops the ACC with 6.9 assists per game.

Miller has scored 20 points or more 33 times in his career, 13 of those games coming this season. He also has five double-digit assist games this year.

“He gets to the rim. He can shoot it. He’s a great leader. He plays hard all the time on both sides of the ball,” Madsen said. “You’ve got Boopie out there and you’ve got lot of good, tough guards and wings who can gamble a little bit because they have pretty good rim protection behind them.

“This is a talented team and it’s a very well-coached team.”

Coach Andy Enfield’s team is ranked No. 31 by the NET computer and projected as a No. 8 NCAA seed by ESPN bracketologist Joe Lunardi. . The Bears are No. 59 in the NET and listed as the third team out of Lunardi’s bracket.

The Mustangs’ remaining starters are 6-5 junior guard Jaron Pierre Jr. (17.6 points, 5.0 rebounds), senior guard B.J. Edwards (13.0 points, 5.0 assists, ACC-leading 2.4 steals), senior forward Corey Washington (11.4 points, 4.9 rebounds) and 7-2 sophomore Samet Yiğitoğlu (10.8 points, 3.9 rebounds, 1.4 blocks).

Among five true freshmen is Jermaine O’Neal Jr., whose father played 18 NBA seasons. O’Neal scored 16 points in win over Boston College on Saturday.

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