Virginia (8-6, 1-2 ACC) at California (7-7, 0-3 ACC)

11pm, ESPNU

Following a disappointing weekend loss to Louisville, UVa made their first ever west coast road trip in ACC play, starting that Pacific swing tonight with at California. While the Hoos had to travel a long way, Cavalier fans will have to stay up late for this one, tipping at 11pm on ESPNU. After clashing with Cal, UVa will travel a short distance over to Stanford for a Saturday afternoon affair, closing out the west coast portion of their ACC schedule.

UVa has had their fair share of struggles in ACC play, but the Bears are still looking for their first ever ACC win. Cal is 0-3 in ACC play, with losses to Stanford, Pitt and Clemson, making their first trip east last week. The Bears are 7-7 overall, and haven’t won since December 14th against Northwestern State. Cal’s best non-conference win came against USC in mid-November, though they did suffer non-league losses to Cornell, San Diego State, Missouri and Vanderbilt.

Cal is in their second year under head coach Mark Madsen, who came to Berkeley after a four-year run at Utah Valley. The Hoos and Bears last got together in 2016, with the Hoos sweeping a two-year home and home series with a pair of narrow victories.

Cal enters tonight’s game ranked #132 nationally in efficiency, which puts them third from the bottom among ACC programs. The Bears have been relatively strong offensively, ranking 66th in efficiency, but have had a rough go of it on defense, ranking 249th nationally. On offense, Cal has shot the ball pretty well from three at 35.9 percent. They also rank 27th nationally in offensive rebound rate, and 33rd in free throw to field goal attempt ratio. Their biggest weakness is taking care of the basketball; the Bears rank 245th nationally in turnover rate, and 316th in block rate.

On defense, the Bears have had a tough time getting stops. Opponents are making 37.6 percent of their threes, which ranks Cal 329th nationally in the category. Cal also struggles to take the ball away, ranking 217th nationally in turnover rate forced, and 290th in steal rate. Cal does rank 86th nationally in non-steal turnovers, and 109th in block rate.

Andrej Stojakovic, Guard

A name familiar to UVa fans who follow recruiting and NBA fans that followed the mid-2000’s Sacremento Kings, Andrej Stojakovic is Cal’s leading scorer and their best player. Stojakovic, the son of NBA star Peja Stojakovic, transferred across the Bay from Stanford after one season. With the Bears, Stojakovic is averaging 19.9 points and 4.5 rebounds per contest. He has two 30+ point games this season, most recently going for 30 at Clemson on Saturday, scoring nearly half of Cal’s points.

Jeremiah Wilkinson, Guard

Cal’s second-leading scorer is a true freshman from the east coast. 6-foot-1 guard Jeremiah Wilkinson went west from his home in Powder Springs, Georgia, and has made an immediate impact with the Bears. Wilkinson is averaging 12.6 points per game, shooting 34 percent from beyond the arc. He went for 24 in last week’s loss at Pitt.

Jovan Blacksher, Guard

Cal’s point guard, senior Jovan Blacksher is averaging 12 points and 3.4 assists per game. The Oakland native is back in his old stomping grounds, after five years spent at Grand Canyon, leading the Antelopes to several NCAA Tournament bids. Blacksher is coming off of a 15-point effort in the weekend loss at Clemson, after going scoreless in 21 minutes against Pitt the game before.

No ACC game is going to be a gimme for this Virginia team, but this seems like it might be an opportunity for a get-right game for the Hoos. Cal has struggled mightily of late, losing six of their last seven games. The Bears have just one win over a team ranked in the top 200 of the Kenpom rankings, and one win over a power-conference opponent (both coming in the win over USC). The Bears are at home, and UVa is a long way from theirs, but does it matter that much, when students are still away on winter break. Cal’s Haas Pavilion isn’t exactly Cameron Indoor, either.

UVa could certainly drop this game, but we’re going to take them to win, because they’ve been a little more effective than the Bears to this point in the season. Stojakovic will be a tough cover, but if the Cavaliers can take it to Cal’s defense as so many other teams have, they can win this one on the road.