Oregon St. @ California preview

Last Meeting ( Feb 9, 2019 ) California 71, Oregon St. 79

Oregon State point guard Jarod Lucas was averaging 3.4 points before erupting for a career-high 21 points in Thursday’s 68-63 road win over Stanford. The 6-3 freshman looks to build on his breakout performance on Saturday when the Beavers conclude their Bay Area swing against California.

Lucas scored a CIF Southern California-record 3,356 career points during his high school career and made a triumphant return to the state on Thursday when he made he three 3-pointers and was 8-of-9 from the foul line in 27 minutes off the bench. The Beavers also received a spark from 7-foot center Kylor Kelley, who matched his season-high with seven blocks and finished with 10 points and six rebounds. “He’s the key to our success,” coach Wayne Tinkle told reporters. “When he’s locked in on both ends, we are a different team. We played through some shaky spots. But that guy was huge on both ends at the rim.” After snapping their four-game losing skid with an impressive showing against Stanford, the Beavers look to start a new streak against a Cal team that gave first-place Oregon a scare on Thursday before falling, 77-72.

TIME: 4 p.m. ET. TV: Pac-12 Network

ABOUT OREGON STATE (13-8, 3-6 Pac-12): Senior forward Tres Tinkle averages 19.2 points, 6.8 rebounds and 3.0 assists for the Beavers, who have recorded quality Pac-12 wins over Arizona, Stanford and Colorado. Junior guard Ethan Thompson continued his strong play with 14 points and five rebounds against the Cardinal while Kelly created havoc on the defensive end. The senior moved into first place all-time at Oregon State with 185 career blocks and has recorded multiple blocks in 19 games this season.

ABOUT CAL (9-11, 3-4): The Bears battled Oregon on Thursday but struggled to slow down Pac-12 player of the year favorite Payton Pritchard, who scored 19 of his 21 points in the second half and finished with eight assists. “This team is learning how hard you have to play. You have to answer some of the plays the other team makes,” coach Mark Fox told reporters. “You have to go through battles like this to completely understand that process.” The rebuilding Bears are led by sophomore guard Matt Bradley, who averages 17.6 points and five rebounds and scored 25 points against the Ducks.

BUZZER BEATERS

1. Cal has won eight of the last 10 meetings against Oregon State.

2. Oregon State is 23-0 over the last three seasons when scoring 80-plus points.

3. Cal junior guard Juhwan Harris-Dyson has missed the past six games while focusing on academics and is listed as day-to-day.

PREDICTION: Oregon State 74, Cal 69