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Cal Bears and Saint Mary’s Gaels to Play Three-Game Series

By Sean Bialaszek

March 18, 2017; Salt Lake City, UT, USA; Saint Mary's Gaels guard Joe Rahon (25) reacts during the69-60 loss against the Arizona Wildcats in the second half in the second round of the 2017 NCAA Tournament at Vivint Smart Home Arena. Mandatory Credit: Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports
March 18, 2017; Salt Lake City, UT, USA; Saint Mary's Gaels guard Joe Rahon (25) reacts during the69-60 loss against the Arizona Wildcats in the second half in the second round of the 2017 NCAA Tournament at Vivint Smart Home Arena. Mandatory Credit: Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports /
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After rumors of a potential Bay Area matchup swirled for weeks, it was made official on Tuesday. The Cal Bears and the Saint Mary’s Gaels have agreed to a three-game series, spreading out over the next three seasons, between the two schools.

In December of 2017, the series begins at Haas Pavilion, where the Bears will host the Gaels. The following season, the series shifts to McKeon Pavilion in Moraga, California, where Saint Mary’s plays host to game two. For the series finale in the 2019-2020 season, the two teams return to Berkley. The dates for these three games have not yet been announced, but the date for the first matchup should be revealed during the summer.

The Bears and Gaels are quite familiar with each other, having gone head-to-head 78 times in the past with Cal taking 62 of those games. There most recent meeting came during the 2015-2016 season, when Cal won a 63-59 nail-biter on December 12th behind 15 points, 11 rebounds, and four blocks from freshman forward Ivan Rabb. Before that, the two teams hadn’t played in over a decade, with Saint Mary’s winning a 61-52 decision on November 12th, 2004.

Saint Mary’s is coming off a 29-5 season in 2016-2017 that earned them a seventh-seed in the NCAA Tournament. They pulled off a hard-fought win against Virginia Commonwealth in the round of 64, but couldn’t overcome the second-seeded Arizona Wildcats. Despite taking a one-point lead into halftime, but were outscored by 10 in the second half. Despite the disappointing ending, it was the Gaels’ second straight season with less than 10 losses, and the 14th straight year they finished with a winning record.

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Cal was 21-12 entering Tournament time, but was one of the first four teams out of the NCAA Tournament. They were a number one seed in the NIT Tournament, but a disappointing season ended with more disappointment. Missing their top two scorers, Rabb and Bird, because of injuries, the Bears were upset in the first round by Cal State-Bakersfield.

When Cal hosts Saint Mary’s this year, they will have a completely different look to their team. Guards Bird, Sam Singer, and Grant Mullins, as well as forwards Stephen Domingo and Roger Moute a Bidias have all graduated. Center Kameron Rooks has graduated and will transfer. Guard Charlie Moore is transferring to Kansas. And of course, star forward Rabb declared for the NBA draft following his sophomore season. On top of all that, head coach Cuonzo Martin left Cal to sign with the Missouri Tigers. Wyking Jones, a Cal assistant for the past two seasons, has taken over the post.

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Saint Mary’s, on the other hand, is losing only two contributors. Guard Joe Rahon and forward Dane Pineau both graduated.

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