Scouting report: Washington at California mens basketball

Matchup: Washington Huskies (12-4 overall, 4-1 Pac-10) at California Golden Bears (9-7, 2-2)

Tip: Sunday, 7 p.m., at Haas Pavilion, Berkeley, Calif.

TV, radio: FSN-NW will broadcast the game locally, with Barry Tompkins and Ernie Kent calling the action. The game also may be heard on the radio on KJR 950-AM.

Coaches: Lorenzo Romar, Washington (ninth year); Mike Montgomery, Oregon State (third year).

Series: California leads the all-time series 77-75 and has won eight of the past 10 games played in Berkeley. The Huskies went 2-1 last season against the Bears, including a 79-75 win to claim the Pac-10 tournament championship. The Huskies used their momentum from the win over Cal to advance all the way to the Sweet 16 a year ago.

About the Huskies: After a 4-0 start to conference play, the Huskies blew an 11-point second half lead with 11 minutes to go Thursday night and lost to Stanford, 58-56. The Huskies are now tied atop the Pac-10 with Arizona. Isaiah Thomas has been the key player for the Huskies since the injury to Abdul Gaddy, and after a 14-point performance against the Cardinal, the Huskies will rely on Thomas' ability to get to the basket and score to avoid getting swept in California this week.

About the Bears: Cal has a completely different team after losing its main contributors from last the 2009-10 regular season conference championship team. Instead of facing the familiar faces of players such as Jerome Randle and Patrick Christopher, the Huskies will need to learn how to stop this new-look Cal team that includes freshman sensation Allen Crabbe. Crabbe had 30 points that included 4-for-6 shooting from beyond the arc in Cal's last game, an 88-81 overtime win over Washington State. Junior Harper Kamp has stepped up for Cal this season as the Bears' leading scorer, averaging 13.4 points per game. Jorge Gutierrez is a player Huskies fans may remember. Known for his aggressive, in-your-face defense, Gutierrez has a history of feuding with UW's starting point guard, Venoy Overton, something to pay attention to in Sunday night's matchup.

Projected starters for Washington:

G Venoy Overton6-0 185 Sr. Seattle, Wash. 5.5 ppg, 4.0 apg

G Isaiah Thomas 5-9 185 Jr. Tacoma, Wash. 15.9 ppg, 4.9 apg

C Aziz N'Diaye 7-0 260 So. Dakar, Senegal 5.1 ppg, 6.3 rpg

F Justin Holiday 6-6 185 Sr. Chatsworth, Calif. 11.8 ppg, 5.8 rpg

F Matthew Bryan-Amaning 6-9 240 Sr. London, England 14.8 ppg, 7.5 rpg

Projected starters for California:

G Jorge Gutierrez 6-3 195 Jr. Chihuahua, Mexico 12.7 ppg, 4.0 apg

GAllen Crabbe 6-4 205 Fr. Los Angeles, Calif. 10.8 ppg, 5.4 rpg

GBrandon Smith 5-11 185 So. San Ramon, Calif. 4.6 ppg, 3.4 apg

F Harper Kamp 6-8 245 Jr. Mesa, Ariz. 13.4 ppg, 5.5 rpg

C Markhuri Sanders-Frison 6-7 265 Sr. Portland, Ore. 10.3 ppg, 8.3 rpg

UDubSports.com pick: Washington, 79-74.