The Barometer Online

Issue date: 3/7/07 Section: Sports

Media Credit: Nick Fradkin / The Daily Californian The Cal Bears denied Josh Tarver (5) and the Beavers a win on the road two weeks ago, using a late push to beat Oregon State 84-80 in overtime. OSU and Cal square off tonight at 6 for a right to play No. 1 seed UCLA in the quarterfinals of the Pac-10 men's basketball tournament.

Following a tough road loss to rival Oregon, the Beavers begin a new season of sorts, heading to the Staples Center for the Pacific 10 tournament to face opening round opponent Cal. The Bears, who won both regular season games, will meet the Beavers at 6 p.m.

"It's like a whole other season," said Beaver guard Jack McGillis. "We can beat anybody in this league, so it's going to be exciting to go out there to play and compete."

McGillis came off the bench to lead the Beavers with 24 points on 5-of-9 shooting from beyond the arc in the last matchup between the two teams, an eventual four-point overtime loss at Haas Pavilion. A 3-pointer at the buzzer from Angelo Tsagarakis sent the game into overtime, during which the Bears outscored Oregon State 13-9 to come out with the win.

"You can't rule out our history playing Cal," McGillis said. "We have been very close, and that gives us more confidence going into that game."

In the earlier season matchup, guards Ayinde Ubaka and Ryan Anderson both led the Golden Bears with 22 points, and the Beavers (11-20, 3-15 Pac-10) shot just 55 percent from the free throw line in rout to a loss at Gill. Marcel Jones led the Beavers with 29 points, but it wasn't enough, as Cal beat Oregon State for the 22nd time in 24 games.

"Cal is a good team," said Beaver guard Wesley Washington. "They beat us three times in a row. Last time we won was last year at their place, but playing them is definitely a positive thing for us because we feel very confident going into this game."

The Bears (14-16, 6-12) head into the tournament on the heels of a devastating one-point loss to a lackluster Arizona State team, souring Ubaka's senior night and cutting any momentum they may have had heading to the Staples Center.

Ubaka leads Cal with 14 points per game and five assists and was named an All Pac-10 honorable mention selection.

"I think we're pretty closely matched," McGillis said. "Obviously, you can tell by the scores this season, we're two closely matched teams with an overtime game and a three-point loss at home."

With the possibility of a win Wednesday night against Cal, the road to a NCAA Tournament berth for the Beavers wouldn't get much easier, having to face No. 1 seed UCLA, then the winner of the Oregon/Arizona game.

"Some people are not as confident as they should be," Washington said. "And I'm not just talking about players, but fans also. I think if everyone buys into what we're doing right now, we can make this happen."

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