January 3, 2013; Los Angeles, CA, USA; California Golden Bears guard Justin Cobbs (1) moves the ball against the UCLA Bruins during the first half at Pauley Pavilion.. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports

The Basics

Pac-12 men’s basketball comes to Berkeley for the first time this season as the Washington Huskies (9-5, 1-0 Pac-12) visit Mike Montgomery’s squad in Hass Pavilion. The Golden Bears (9-5, 1-1) are coming back from a Southern California road trip with a split, while the Dawgs opened up their conference season with a win over their rivals, WSU, in Pullman. It’s always great entertainment when Cal meets Washington, so end your Hump Day on a high note.

Cal + Washington + Haas – Winter Break = EXCITEMENT! (The students aren’t all back from Winter Break yet, so we’ll see what it looks like. But the game is on ESPN2, and we all know how college students feel about the chance to be on TV.)

Matchup to Watch

No one is going to mistake these two teams for 2011-12 Kentucky. I actually feel ridiculous using that comparison. Just making the tournament would be a success for either. But, we do have a pretty good matchup between two of the top scorers in the Pac-12: Allen Crabbe and C.J. Wilcox. Crabbe has the edge in points (21.4 vs. 18.4) and FG% (.498 vs. .464), but Wilcox shoots better from the outside (.398 vs .364); still, the numbers are eerily intertwined (take a closer look). Both are juniors, both are guards, both are about 6’5″, both WEAR THE #23. Like I said, eerie. They should be directly matched-up throughout the night, so enjoy.

This isn’t related to basketball, but . . .

I just wanted to mention again that the game is on ESPN2. This is the first year of a 12-year TV deal inked by commissioner Larry Scott back in 2011, and tonight’s game is a shining example of how great it will be for Pac-12 Basketball. When I was a student at Cal, I believe I watched a triple-overtime classic between these same two teams on Comcast SportsNet California: Alternate. Now, a nationally-televised game on the Worldwide Leader? Incredible.

(OK, the Worldwide Leader 2, but still. Considering ESPN runs the sports world, it’s good to showcase the conference on any one of their channels, even if it is the little brother.)

Prediction

Not making one, other than the game should be tightly-contested. Just enjoy the game on a beautifully-presented high definition feed. Again, it’s on ESPN2 at 8 PM PST. If you’re an East Coast fan, stay up late and boost the numbers, got it? Good.