It may not have been the playoff tournament they hoped for, but for California and Washington State the season lives on for at least another day. Both teams host first round matchups Wednesday in the NIT.
California tips off at 6pm Pacific time against Mississippi in Haas Pavilion. The Golden Bears took a young and inexperienced team into the season and managed to finish tied for fourth in the Pac-10 with a record of 10-8. Led by impressive freshman Allen Crabbe and juniors Jorge Gutierrez and Harper Kamp, Cal has seen marked improvement since scoring just five points in the first half against Notre Dame earlier in the season.
Mississippi is paced by senior guard Chris Warren, who is averaging 19 points and 3.8 assists per game. Senior guard Zach Graham chips in 14.1 points and 4.5 rebounds per game for the Rebels.
The winner will take on the winner of the Colorado-Texas Southern matchup.
Washington State looks to bounce back from a heartbreaking loss in the first round of the Pac-10 Tournament to rival Washington. With hopes of reaching the NCAA Tournament on the line, the Cougars faded just slightly at the end of the game, and fell two points short. But the Cougars take their two-seed up against Long Beach State University Wednesday night at Beasley Coliseum in Pullman, Wash. Coming off of a 43-point effort, junior wing Klay Thompson will look to continue his hot shooting at the expense of the 49ers. The Cougars also hope to get continued production from junior forward DeAngelo Casto, who has become a dominant force down low as the season has progressed.
Juniors Casper Ware and Larry Anderson lead the 49ers with 17 and 14.5 points per game, respectively. But Long Beach State is a balanced team with five players averaging double figure points per game.
Whoever gets past this game will face Oklahoma State this weekend, with the location still to be determined.
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