The California Golden Bears closed out the season winning nine of their last 11 after a dreadful 4-5 start in conference play. The Golden Bears earned their first top-five seed since 1997, when they went to the Sweet 16. Their matchup against the Hawaii Rainbow Warriors in the NCAA tournament will be offense vs. defense.
The Golden Bears were first in the Pac-12 in opponent’s field goal percentage and top 20 in the nation (39.3 percent), while the Warriors were first in the Big West in scoring (77.8 points per game).
The expectations are high for Cal with two future NBA first-rounders and obvious one-and-done freshmen Jaylen Brown and Ivan Rabb, but this one will not be a blowout. Hawaii has the Big West Player of the Year, Stefan Jankovic, and the conference leader in assists and steals, Roderick Bobbitt.
Jankovic dominates the ball, but he will need help if the Warriors have any chance of pulling the upset because he’s going to have his hands full with Rabb and Brown. Rabb’s greatest strength right now is on the defensive end, but he’s also shooting an absurd 62.2 percent and grabbing 8.5 rebounds. Brown was named Pac-12 Freshman of the Year due to his scoring prowess (15.0 points per game).
This game will be close, much too close for the Bears’ liking, but their superior talent will overwhelm Hawaii in the end. Cal has five players who score in double figures and two who shoot over 40 percent from behind the three-point line. That depth will be a killer. The Golden Bears take this one.
Prediction: Cal 80, Hawaii 74