# 1958–59 California Golden Bears men's basketball team

The 1958–59 California Golden Bears men's basketball team represented the University of California, Berkeley in NCAA University Division basketball competition. Led by fifth-year head coach Pete Newell, the Golden Bears won their only national championship.

## Season summary

Cal was not a team that thrilled many people beyond its own fans. One writer described the Bears as "just a bunch of guys named Joe." But Cal was coached by one of the greats, Pete Newell, and his team-oriented, defensive style won the national championship as the Bears beat two teams in the Final Four that featured two of the best guards in history, Cincinnati (Oscar Robertson) and West Virginia (Jerry West).

## Schedule and results

| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | Site (attendance) city, state |
| Regular Season ||||||
| December 3, 1958* | | San Jose State | W 60–36 | 1–0 | Men's Gym Berkeley, CA |
| December 6, 1958* | | San Francisco | W 50–43 | 2–0 | Men's Gym Berkeley, CA |
| December 9, 1958* | | No. 14 Saint Mary's | W 57–55 | 3–0 | Men's Gym Berkeley, CA |
| December 12, 1958* | | No. 3 Kansas State | L 65–68 | 3–1 | Men's Gym Berkeley, CA |
| December 19, 1958* | No. 15 | at Iowa | W 71–52 | 4–1 | Iowa Field House Iowa City, IA |
| December 20, 1958* | No. 15 | vs. Wisconsin | W 68–53 | 5–1 | Iowa Field House Iowa City, IA |
| December 23, 1958* | No. 14 | at No. 16 Saint Louis | L 43–55 | 5–2 | Kiel Auditorium St. Louis, MO |
| December 27, 1958 | No. 14 | Arizona | W 90–46 | 6–2 | Men's Gym Berkeley, CA |
| January 2, 1959 | No. 20 | at Washington | W 54–43 | 7–2 (1–0) | Hec Edmundson Pavilion Seattle, WA |
| January 3, 1959 | No. 20 | at Oregon | L 57–59 | 7–3 (1–1) | McArthur Court Eugene, OR |
| January 9, 1959 | | Washington | W 55–44 | 8–3 (2–1) | Men's Gym Berkeley, CA |
| January 10, 1959 | | Idaho | W 64–39 | 9–3 (3–1) | Men's Gym Berkeley, CA |
| January 16, 1959 | No. 20 | at Stanford | L 53–56 | 9–4 (3–2) | Stanford Pavilion Stanford, CA |
| January 17, 1959 | | Stanford | W 67–46 | 10–4 (4–2) | Men's Gym Berkeley, CA |
| January 31, 1959* | No. 20 | at Santa Clara | W 66–55 | 11–4 | San Jose Civic Auditorium San Jose, CA |
| February 6, 1959 | No. 19 | at UCLA | W 60–58 | 12–4 (5–2) | Pan-Pacific Auditorium Los Angeles, CA |
| February 7, 1959 | No. 19 | at USC | W 82–55 | 13–4 (6–2) | Pan-Pacific Auditorium Los Angeles, CA |
| February 13, 1959 | No. 18 | Oregon | W 83–55 | 14–4 (7–2) | Men's Gym Berkeley, CA |
| February 14, 1959 | No. 18 | UCLA | W 64–51 | 15–4 (8–2) | Men's Gym Berkeley, CA |
| February 20, 1959 | No. 15 | at Washington State | W 61–37 | 16–4 (9–2) | Bohler Gymnasium Pullman, WA |
| February 21, 1959 | No. 15 | at Idaho | W 65–46 | 17–4 (10–2) | Memorial Gym Moscow |
| February 23, 1959 | No. 15 | at Oregon State | W 57–40 | 18–4 (11–2) | Oregon State Coliseum Corvallis |
| February 27, 1959 | No. 12 | USC | W 70–64 | 19–4 (12–2) | Men's Gym Berkeley, CA |
| February 28, 1959 | No. 12 | Washington State | W 65–45 | 20–4 (13–2) | Men's Gym Berkeley, CA |
| March 7, 1959 | No. 11 | Oregon State | W 55–52 | 21–4 (14–2) | Men's Gym Berkeley, CA |
| NCAA Tournament ||||||
| March 13, 1959* | No. 11 | vs. No. 18 Utah West Regional semifinals | W 71–53 | 22–4 | Cow Palace Daly City, CA |
| March 14, 1959* | No. 11 | vs. No. 15 Saint Mary's West Regional Finals | W 66–46 | 23–4 | Cow Palace Daly City |
| March 20, 1959* | No. 11 | vs. No. 5 Cincinnati National semifinals | W 64–58 | 24–4 | Freedom Hall (18,619) Louisville, KY |
| March 21, 1959* | No. 11 | vs. No. 10 West Virginia National Championship | W 71–70 | 25–4 | Freedom Hall (18,498) Louisville, KY |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Pacific Time. ||||||

## NBA draft

Two Golden Bears were selected in the next two NBA drafts
| Year | Round | Pick | Player | NBA Club |
| 1959 | 6 | 45 | Bob Dalton | Syracuse Nationals |
| 1960 | 1 | 3 | Darrall Imhoff | New York Knicks |
    Source: