SAN JOSE, Calif. — California overcame woeful free throw shooting in the final moments to hold off UNLV and advance to the Round of 32 with a 64-61 win over the Running Rebels. The Golden Bears, seeded 12th in the East Regional, won in front of a pseudo-home crowd to play the winner of Syracuse and Montana on Saturday.

Here are a few rapid-reaction thoughts from HP Pavilion on California:

•  The Golden Bears play zone — California used a hybrid blend of 2-3 and 3-2 zone Thursday to frustrate UNLV. Anthony Bennett, UNLV’s leading scorer and a potential No. 1 pick in the NBA Draft, was held to 13 points on just 3-for-10 shooting. The Rebels also shot only 28.6 percent from beyond the 3-point arc.
• Robert Thurman is a menace — Thurman walked onto the team following one year at Norwich in Connecticut. He’s a 6-feet-10-inch, 265-pound bruiser whose offensive repertoire consists of little more than dunking the ball. But he did that well Thursday (12 points on 6-for-7 shooting) and helped lock down Bennett on defense.
• Allen Crabbe is for real — Crabbe is California’s leading scorer (18.7 points and 6.0 rebounds per game). The 6-feet-6-inch guard is a talented slasher who can also hit from 3-point range. He led the Golden Bears with 19 points on 7-for-16 shooting Thursday while also grabbing eight rebounds and dishing out five assists.
• California struggled at the free-throw line — The Golden Bears almost choked the game away against UNLV on Thursday due to poor shooting from the charity stripe. Of all the California players to attempt free throws, only Crabbe shot better than 40 percent. Justin Cobbs shot 2-for-5, Richard Solomon was 0-for-2 and Tyrone Wallace was 1-for-4.

The time for Saturday’s game between California and the Syracuse/Montana winner has not been announced.