2025–26 California Golden Bears men's basketball team

2025–26 California Golden Bears men's basketball
ConferenceAtlantic Coast Conference
Record22–11 (9–9 ACC)
Head coach
Associate head coachAdam Mazarei
Assistant coaches
Home arenaHaas Pavilion
(Capacity: 11,858)
2025–26 ACC men's basketball standings
Conf. Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
No. 1 Duke † 17 – 1   .944 33 – 2   .943
No. 9 Virginia 15 – 3   .833 30 – 5   .857
No. 25 Miami (FL) 13 – 5   .722 26 – 8   .765
No. 21 North Carolina 12 – 6   .667 24 – 9   .727
Clemson 12 – 6   .667 24 – 11   .686
No. 23т Louisville 11 – 7   .611 24 – 10   .706
NC State 10 – 8   .556 20 – 14   .588
Florida State 10 – 8   .556 18 – 15   .545
California 9 – 9   .500 22 – 11   .667
Stanford 9 – 9   .500 20 – 12   .625
SMU 8 – 10   .444 20 – 14   .588
Virginia Tech 8 – 10   .444 19 – 13   .594
Wake Forest 7 – 11   .389 18 – 16   .529
Syracuse 6 – 12   .333 15 – 17   .469
Pittsburgh 5 – 13   .278 13 – 20   .394
Notre Dame 4 – 14   .222 13 – 17   .433
Boston College 4 – 14   .222 11 – 20   .355
Georgia Tech 2 – 16   .111 11 – 20   .355
† 2026 ACC tournament winner
As of March 20, 2026
Rankings from AP Poll

The 2025–26 California Golden Bears men's basketball team represents the University of California, Berkeley, in the 2025–26 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Golden Bears are led by Mark Madsen in his third season as head coach, and play their home games at Haas Pavilion as members of the Atlantic Coast Conference.

Previous season

Main article: 2024–25 California Golden Bears men's basketball team

The Golden Bears finished the season 14–19 and 6–14 in ACC play to finish in fifteenth place. As the fifteenth seed in the 2025 ACC tournament they defeated Virginia Tech in double-overtime in the First Round. In the Second Round, they faced rival Stanford for a third time during the season. They lost 78–73 to lose to their rivals three total times during the season. They were not invited to the NCAA tournament or the NIT.

Off-season

Departures

Departures
Name Number Pos. Height Weight Year Hometown Reason for Departure
Jeremiah Wilkinson 0 G 6'1" 175 Freshman Powder Springs, Georgia Transferred to Georgia[1]
Joshua Ola-Joseph 1 G 6'7" 215 Junior Brooklyn Park, Minnesota Transferred to Loyola-Chicago[2]
Andrej Stojaković 2 G 6'7" 205 Sophomore Carmichael, California Transferred to Illinois[3]
Spencer Mahoney 7 F 6'9" 230 Freshman New York, New York Transferred to Temple[4]
Jovan Blacksher Jr. 10 G 5'11" 165 Graduate Student Los Angeles, California Graduated
Mady Sissoko 12 C 6'9" 250 Graduate Student Bafoulabé, Mali Graduated, signed with Pallacanestro Trieste
Devin Curtis 13 F 6'11" 210 Sophomore Northridge, California Transferred to Southern Indiana[5]
Jack McCloskey 14 G 6'4" 180 Sophomore Santa Ana, California —
Kevin Armstrong II 15 G 6'6" 210 Freshman Minneapolis, Minnesota —
Jaden Goodall 17 F 6'6" 175 Freshman Anaheim, California Transferred to San Jose State[6]
BJ Omot 20 F 6'8" 185 Junior Mankato, Minnesota Transferred to Minnesota[7]
Christian Tucker 22 G 6'3" 178 Senior Chandler, Arizona Entered transfer portal[8]
Matt Desler 23 G 6'1" 180 Senior Oakland, California Graduated
Jayden Karapetian 32 G 6'2" 170 Sophomore Woodland Hills, California —
Vladimir Pavlovic 33 G 6'3" 190 Sophomore Herceg Novi, Montenegro Transferred to Mercyhurst[9]

Incoming transfers

Incoming transfers
Name Number Pos. Height Weight Year Hometown Previous School
John Camden 2 F 6'8" 220 Graduate Student Downingtown, Pennsylvania Delaware[10]
Dai Dai Ames 7 G 6'2" 180 Junior Chicago, Illinois Virginia[11]
Milos Ilic 8 C 6'10" 240 Graduate Student Gornji Milanovac, Serbia Loyola (MD)[12]
Justin Pippen 10 G 6'3" 190 Sophomore Los Angeles, California Michigan[13]
Dhiaukuei Manyiel Dut 12 F 7'0" 210 Sophomore Rumbek, South Sudan Georgia State[14]
Mantas Kocanas 17 C 6'11" 240 Sophomore Karčiupis, Lithuania Florida Atlantic[15]
Nolan Dorsey 21 G 6'5" 210 Graduate Student Knightdale, North Carolina Campbell[16]
Chris Bell 22 F 6'7" 195 Senior Concord, California Syracuse[17]
Sammie Yeanay 23 F 6'8" 240 Sophomore Gainesville, Florida Grand Canyon[18]

2025 recruiting class

College recruiting information
Name Hometown School Height Weight Commit date
Luke Butler
G 		Austin, Texas Westlake High School 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 180 lb (82 kg)  
Recruit ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports:    ESPN:    (NR)
Semetri Carr
G 		Mill Valley, California Redwood High School 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 170 lb (77 kg) Sep 14, 2024 
Recruit ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports:    ESPN:    (82)
Jorell Clark
G 		Palo Alto, California Palo Alto High School 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 180 lb (82 kg)  
Recruit ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports:    ESPN:    (NR)
Jovani Ruff
G 		Long Beach, California Long Beach Poly 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 205 lb (93 kg) Jun 5, 2024 
Recruit ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports:    ESPN:    (81)
Overall recruit ranking:   Scout: 54    Rivals: 87    ESPN: NR
  • Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, On3, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight.
  • In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale.

Sources:

  • "California Golden Bears". Rivals. Retrieved October 24, 2025.
  • "California Golden Bears". ESPN. Retrieved October 24, 2025.
  • "2025 Team Ranking". Rivals. Retrieved October 24, 2025.

Roster

2025–26 California Golden Bears men's basketball team
Players Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Previous school Hometown
G 0 Jovani Ruff 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 205 lb (93 kg) Fr Long Beach Poly Long Beach, CA
G 1 Dejuan Campbell 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 205 lb (93 kg) Sr Kecoughtan High School
Western Carolina 		Hampton, VA
F 2 John Camden 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 220 lb (100 kg) GS Brewster Academy
Delaware 		Downingtown, PA
G 3 Semetri Carr 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 170 lb (77 kg) Fr Redwood High School Mill Valley, CA
G 6 Jorell Clark 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 180 lb (82 kg) Fr Palo Alto High School Palo Alto, CA
G 7 Dai Dai Ames 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 190 lb (86 kg) Jr Kenwood Academy
Virginia 		Chicago, IL
C 8 Milos Ilic 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 240 lb (109 kg) GS Hoosac School
Loyola (MD) 		Gornji Milanovac, Serbia
G 10 Justin Pippen 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 190 lb (86 kg) So Sierra Canyon School
Michigan 		Los Angeles, CA
F 12 Dhiaukuei Manyiel Dut 7 ft 0 in (2.13 m) 210 lb (95 kg) RS So Greenforest McCalep Christian Academy
Georgia State 		Rumbek, South Sudan
G 15 Luke Butler 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 180 lb (82 kg) Fr Westlake High School Austin, TX
C 17 Mantas Kocanas 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 240 lb (109 kg) So Varpo Gymnasium
Florida Atlantic 		Karčiupis, Lithuania
G 21 Nolan Dorsey 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 210 lb (95 kg) GS Millbrook High School
Campbell 		Knightdale, NC
F 22 Chris Bell 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 195 lb (88 kg) Sr Wasatch Academy
Syracuse 		Concord, CA
F 23 Sammie Yeanay 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 240 lb (109 kg) So AZ Compass Prep School
Grand Canyon 		Gainesville, FL
G 26 BJ Fisher 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 180 lb (82 kg) So Redwood High School Ross, CA
G 30 Stephon Marbury II 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 170 lb (77 kg) Fr DME Academy Purchase, NY
F 31 Rytis Petraitis 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 215 lb (98 kg) Jr USAFA Prep School
Air Force 		Arlington, TX
F 34 Lee Dort 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 235 lb (107 kg) Sr Greenhill School
Vanderbilt 		Dallas, TX
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • (W) Walk-on

Roster
Last update: September 15, 2025

Schedule and results

On December 2, 2025, a 79–72 victory against Utah resulted in the school's first 7–1 start since the 2016–17 Bears team.[19] The December 13 victory over Northwestern State gave Cal its first 10–1 start since the 2014–15 team.[20] The December 21 victory over Columbia gave Cal its first 12–1 start since the 1959–60 team that entered the 1960 NCAA University Division basketball tournament with one loss and were national runner-up.[21][22] Although the team had been ranked 16th of 18 in the preseason polls,[23], after the 12-1 start, the team was expected to win over 20 games before the 2026 ACC men's basketball tournament.[24]

Source:[25]

Date
time, TV 		Rank# Opponent# Result Record High points High rebounds High assists Site (attendance)
city, state
Non-conference regular season
November 3, 2025*
7:00 p.m., ACCNX 		Cal State Bakersfield W 87–60  1–0
  22 – Camden   9 – Dort   7 – Pippen  Haas Pavilion (3,143)
Berkeley, CA
November 6, 2025*
7:00 p.m., ACCNX 		Wright State W 77–67  2–0
  23 – Ames   9 – Tied   4 – Pippen  Haas Pavilion (2,172)
Berkeley, CA
November 10, 2025*
7:00 p.m., ACCNX 		Cal State Fullerton W 93–65  3–0
  24 – Ames   9 – Pippen   6 – Pippen  Haas Pavilion (2,377)
Berkeley, CA
November 13, 2025*
6:00 p.m., CBSSN 		at Kansas State L 96–99  3–1
  27 – Bell   6 – Carr   7 – Ames  Bramlage Coliseum (7,521)
Manhattan, KS
November 18, 2025*
7:00 p.m., ACCNX 		Presbyterian
Empire Classic campus game 		W 67–57  4–1
  20 – Camden   8 – Dort   6 – Pippen  Haas Pavilion (1,894)
Berkeley, CA
November 21, 2025*
7:00 p.m., ACCNX 		Sacramento State
Empire Classic campus game 		W 91–67  5–1
  21 – Bell   9 – Ilic   5 – Tied  Haas Pavilion (4,295)
Berkeley, CA
November 25, 2025*
7:00 p.m., ESPN 		vs. No. 18 UCLA
Empire Classic 		W 80–72  6–1
  22 – Bell   7 – Petraitis   4 – Tied  Chase Center (7,293)
San Francisco, CA
December 2, 2025*
7:00 p.m., ACCNX 		Utah W 79–72  7–1
  25 – Ames   11 – Dort   3 – Dort  Haas Pavilion (2,783)
Berkeley, CA
December 6, 2025*
2:00 p.m., ACCNX 		Pacific W 67–61  8–1
  16 – Pippen   7 – Tied   3 – Carr  Haas Pavilion (2,688)
Berkeley, CA
December 9, 2025*
7:00 p.m., ACCNX 		Dominican (CA) W 93–71  9–1
  24 – Pippen   8 – Camden   5 – Ames  Haas Pavilion (1,844)
Berkeley, CA
December 13, 2025*
2:00 p.m., ACCNX 		Northwestern State W 79–70  10–1
  25 – Camden   13 – Dort   7 – Carr  Haas Pavilion (2,738)
Berkeley, CA
December 19, 2025*
7:00 p.m., ACCNX 		Morgan State W 97–50  11–1
  28 – Bell   8 – Camden   9 – Carr  Haas Pavilion (1,894)
Berkeley, CA
December 21, 2025*
2:00 p.m., ACCNX 		Columbia W 74–56  12–1
  21 – Ames   14 – Dort   5 – Pippen  Haas Pavilion (3,283)
Berkeley, CA
ACC Regular Season
December 30, 2025
6:00 p.m., ACCN 		No. 16 Louisville L 70–90  12–2
(0–1) 		 20 – Bell   9 – Dort   5 – Pippen  Haas Pavilion (6,012)
Berkeley, CA
January 2, 2026
8:00 p.m., ESPN2 		Notre Dame W 72–71  13–2
(1–1) 		 23 – Ames   11 – Dort   3 – Tied  Haas Pavilion (5,158)
Berkeley, CA
January 7, 2026
6:00 p.m., ACCN 		at No. 23 Virginia L 60–84  13–3
(1–2) 		 18 – Ames   8 – Carr   3 – Pippen  John Paul Jones Arena (11,533)
Charlottesville, VA
January 10, 2026
1:00 p.m., ACCN 		at Virginia Tech L 75–78  13–4
(1–3) 		 21 – Ames   7 – Dort   4 – Ilic  Cassell Coliseum (5,323)
Blacksburg, VA
January 14, 2026
8:00 p.m., ACCN 		No. 6 Duke L 56–71  13–5
(1–4) 		 14 – Dort   9 – Dort   3 – Tied  Haas Pavilion (11,201)
Berkeley, CA
January 17, 2026
1:00 p.m., ACCN 		No. 14 North Carolina W 84–78  14–5
(2–4) 		 20 – Camden   12 – Dort   5 – Pippen  Haas Pavilion (8,077)
Berkeley, CA
January 24, 2026
5:00 p.m., ACCN 		at Stanford
Rivalry 		W 78–66  15–5
(3–4) 		 25 – Camden   10 – Camden   6 – Pippen  Maples Pavilion (7,291)
Stanford, CA
January 28, 2026
4:00 p.m., ACCN 		at Florida State L 61–63  15–6
(3–5) 		 19 – Pippen   11 – Ilic   3 – Pippen  Donald L. Tucker Center (4,867)
Tallahassee, FL
January 31, 2026
1:00 p.m., ACCN 		at Miami W 86–85  16–6
(4–5) 		 26 – Camden   4 – Pippen   8 – Pippen  Watsco Center (6,513)
Coral Gables, FL
February 4, 2026
5:00 p.m., ACCN 		Georgia Tech W 90–85  17–6
(5–5) 		 29 – Ames   9 – Ilic   6 – Pippen  Haas Pavilion (6,018)
Berkeley, CA
February 7, 2026
5:00 p.m., ACCN 		No. 20 Clemson L 55–77  17–7
(5–6) 		 19 – Pippen   5 – Tied   2 – Tied  Haas Pavilion (5,629)
Berkeley, CA
February 11, 2026
4:00 p.m., ESPNU 		at Syracuse L 100–107 2OT 17–8
(5–7) 		 23 – Ames   14 – Ilic   7 – Pippen  JMA Wireless Dome (19,053)
Syracuse, NY
February 14, 2026
9:00 a.m., ACCN 		at Boston College W 86–75  18–8
(6–7) 		 22 – Bell   9 – Camden   4 – Tied  Conte Forum (3,485)
Chestnut Hill, MA
February 21, 2026
3:00 p.m., ACCN 		Stanford
Rivalry 		W 72–66  19–8
(7–7) 		 20 – Bell   8 – Camden   4 – Pippen  Haas Pavilion (9,020)
Berkeley, CA
February 25, 2026
7:00 p.m., ACCN 		SMU W 73–69  20–8
(8–7) 		 24 – Pippen   10 – Dort   5 – Pippen  Haas Pavilion (4,411)
Berkeley, CA
February 28, 2026
1:00 p.m., ACCN 		Pittsburgh L 56–72  20–9
(8–8) 		 11 – Ames   9 – Ilic   4 – Tied  Haas Pavilion (5,061)
Berkeley, CA
March 4, 2026
4:00 p.m., ESPNU 		at Georgia Tech W 76–65  21–9
(9–8) 		 18 – Ames   10 – Camden   8 – Pippen  McCamish Pavilion (4,124)
Atlanta, GA
March 7, 2026
1:00 p.m., ACCN 		at Wake Forest L 73–80  21–10
(9–9) 		 31 – Ames   7 – Dort   3 – Pippen  LJVM Coliseum (8,514)
Winston-Salem, NC
ACC tournament
March 11, 2026
4:00 p.m., ESPN2 		(9) vs. (8) Florida State
Second Round 		L 89–95  21–11
  27 – Ames   18 – Dort   6 – Pippen  Spectrum Center (9,620)
Charlotte, NC
NIT
March 18, 2026*
8:00 p.m., ESPN2 		(2 AL) UIC
First Round 		W 91–73  22–11
  31 – Bell   7 – Ilić   7 – Carr  Haas Pavilion (1,258)
Berkeley, CA
March 22, 2026*
6:00 p.m., ESPNU 		(2 AL) Saint Joseph's
Second Round 		      Haas Pavilion 
Berkeley, CA
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
AL=Alberquerque.
All times are in Pacific Time.

Rankings

See also: 2025–26 NCAA Division I men's basketball rankings
Ranking movements
Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking
— = Not ranked RV = Received votes
Week
PollPre12345678910111213141516171819Final
AP [26]————RVRVRVRVRV*RV—————————
Coaches—————RV—RVRVRV——————————

*AP did not release a week 8 poll.

References

  1. ^ Riley, Connor. "Georgia basketball lands first transfer-portal commitment in former Cal standout Jeremiah Wilkinson". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. ISSN 1539-7459. Retrieved April 3, 2025.
  2. ^ "Joshua Ola-Joseph". 247Sports. Retrieved October 24, 2025.
  3. ^ "Cal transfer Andrej Stojaković, son of former NBA all-star Peja, commits to Illinois". USA Today.
  4. ^ Pastor, Shawn (May 14, 2025). "Cal transfer Spencer Mahoney gives Temple another shooter". 247Sports. Retrieved October 24, 2025.
  5. ^ "Devin Curtis". usiscreamingeagles.com. University of Southern Indiana. Retrieved October 24, 2025.
  6. ^ "San José State Men's Basketball Announces Schedule for 2025-26 Season". sjsuspartans.com. San Jose State University Athletics. September 25, 2025. Retrieved October 24, 2025.
  7. ^ Rueda, Jim (April 27, 2025). "Former Mankato East standout Omot transfers to University of Minnesota". Mankato Free Press. Retrieved October 24, 2025.
  8. ^ Curtis, Jake (March 28, 2025). "Reports: Cal guard Christian Tucker Enters Transfer Portal". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved October 24, 2025.
  9. ^ "Vladimir Pavlovic". hurstathletics.com. Mercyhurst University Athletics. Retrieved October 24, 2025.
  10. ^ McGill, Jim (April 13, 2025). "Bears Add an Important Piece in Delaware Forward John Camden". bearinsider.com. CalSportsMediaLLC. Retrieved October 24, 2025.
  11. ^ Curtis, Jack (April 1, 2025). "Virginia Transfer Guard Dai Dai Ames Commits to Cal". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved October 24, 2025.
  12. ^ Curtis, Jack (April 2, 2025). "Loyola-Maryland Transfer Milos Ilic Commits to Cal". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved October 24, 2025.
  13. ^ Crawford, Brad (April 8, 2025). "Scottie Pippen's son announces college basketball transfer portal decision". 247Sports. Retrieved October 24, 2025.
  14. ^ Curtis, Jack (June 4, 2025). "Cal Signs 7-Foot Georgia State Basketball Transfer DK Dut". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved October 24, 2025.
  15. ^ "Cal Adds Mantas Kocanas To Roster". calbears.com. University of California at Berkley Athletics. June 16, 2025. Retrieved October 24, 2025.
  16. ^ Curtis, Jack (March 29, 2025). "Campbell Transfer Guard Nolan Dorsey Commits to Cal". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved October 24, 2025.
  17. ^ Ditota, Donna (April 24, 2025). "Former Syracuse forward Chris Bell has committed to a new school". The Post-Standard. Retrieved October 24, 2025.
  18. ^ Curtis, Jack (April 15, 2025). "Grand Canyon Transfer Sammie Yeanay Commits to Cal Basketball". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved October 24, 2025.
  19. ^ "Ames scores 25 and Pippen adds 23 as Cal holds off Utah, 79-72". ESPN. Associated Press. December 2, 2025. Retrieved December 18, 2025.
  20. ^ "Camden scores 25 points, Cal pulls away late to beat Northwestern State 79-70". ESPN. Associated Press. December 13, 2025. Retrieved December 18, 2025.
  21. ^ Faraudo, Jeff (December 3, 2025). "Dai Dai Ames, Justin Pippen Power Cal to its Best Start in Nine Seasons". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved December 17, 2025.
  22. ^ "Dai Dai Ames scores 21 and California defeats Columbia 74-56". ESPN. Associated Press. December 21, 2025. Retrieved December 22, 2025.
  23. ^ "Duke Selected as 2025-26 Preseason ACC Men's Basketball Favorite". theacc.com. Atlantic Coast Conference. October 14, 2025. Retrieved February 6, 2026.
  24. ^ Kyle Ngo, Aditya Hariharan, Yotam Elazar & Stefania Bitton (December 29, 2025). "2025-26 Cal men's basketball ACC shootaround". Daily California. Retrieved February 6, 2026.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  25. ^ "2025–2026 Schedule". calbears.com. University of California. Retrieved September 15, 2025.
  26. ^ "AP Top 25 Men's College Basketball Poll". AP News. Retrieved October 14, 2025.
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