NCAA Tournament Play In Games Tuesday Wednesday

NCAA Tournament Play In Games Tuesday Wednesday, The fallout from a season where Pac-12 basketball was held in little esteem nationally has landed Cal in an NCAA tournament First Four game against South Florida on Wednesday in Dayton, Ohio.

“I feel like it is a little disrespectful. It shows you how they feel about the conference,” Cal sophomore point guard Justin Cobbs said.

“We have to go in with a chip on our shoulder,” added sophomore Allen Crabbe, “and prove we can compete with any team.”

The Bears (24-9), who tied for second in the Pac-12 standings, fared better than Washington. After losing in the quarterfinals of the Pac-12 tournament, the Huskies became the first regular-season champion from a BCS conference in the modern era to be left out of the field.

Cal’s players were wondering if that was their fate, too, as CBS unveiled the 68-team bracket Sunday. The first three regions were announced before Cal was chosen to play in one of the First Four games in the Midwest region.

“It was pretty tense,” senior forward Harper Kamp said of the wait.

President Barack Obama plans to be in Dayton for games on Tuesday but will not be on hand to watch the Bears.

A victory over the Bulls (20-13) of the Big East Conference would give the Bears the No. 12 seed and send them to Nashville, Tenn., for a Friday game against fifth-seeded Temple (24-7).