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Veteran Bruins are back on top
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UCLA will rely upon sharp-shooting Jason Kapono to carry the load this year.
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Arizona's consecutive win streak against Washington State. It's been 16
seasons since the Cougars have defeated Arizona. Even then it was a struggle (65-63 in OT). In that time, WSU has had four head coaches.
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"We're going to be great. When I came in as a freshman
Stanford had just lost four seniors and people were saying we weren't going to be that good. Yet, we were ranked No. 1 for half the year. Nobody can tell me that my team isn't going to be good."
-- Stanford standout Casey Jacobsen, speaking of his team's prospects this season despite him being the lone returning starter.
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By Steve Rivera, Special to CNNSI.com
UCLA goes into the season as the prohibitive favorite to win the
league race. And that's a good thing for the Bruins, a team that over the
years has been able to meet its expectations when it comes to conference
success.
Of course, it's been more than four seasons since the Bruins were
conference favorites. It was also the last time they won the conference,
ending a three-year dominance.
Well, with four starters returning and two key stars (forward Jason Kapono
and center Dan Gadzuric ), the Bruins should be back in the conference
spotlight. Arizona and Stanford, the resident kings of the conference in the
last four years, likely will have to take a back seat.
"There might be some new sheriffs in town," said Mike Montgomery, coach of
defending champion Stanford. "I think people are champing at the
bit and licking their chops to get at us."
At least there may be a few new fresh faces to make a run at Stanford and
Arizona's recent dominance. And you can include USC in the mix. The Trojans
return three quality starters -- guard Brandon Granville, forwards Sam Clancy
and David Bluthenthal -- to a team that went to the Elite Eight last season.
"The expectations for us will be high and they should be," said USC coach
Henry Bibby. "We set a level of play where we want to go. My goal is to get
back there. It'll take a lot of work and sacrifice."
Ditto for Arizona, which last year played in the NCAA championship against
Duke, losing 82-72. But with only one returning starter and five freshmen on
the roster, UA doesn't look to be near the top. At least Arizona coach Lute
Olson doesn't.
"It'll be hard for anyone to figure out where we'll be based on our lack of
experience," Olson said. "... We could be picked anywhere, because of the
tradition of the program we could be high or anywhere from five on down."
UCLA won't have that problem. Expectations are the Bruins have a Final
Four-caliber lineup. Yet, expectations have long killed the Bruins.
"We do have a chance to have a special season," UCLA coach Steve Lavin
said. "Every year it's our goal to win the Pac-10 and that sets the table to
have a long run in the NCAA tournament. I like the intelligence of this
group. As a group we don't talk about the external expectations. It's a
process. We always have high expectations for ourselves."
Now, it's proving it.
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UCLA freshman point guard Cedric Bozeman may have some
pressure attempting to fill the shoes of departed Earl Watson, but he'll have a smooth transition in that he has plenty of a supporting cast.
The situation is no different than former Arizona point guard Mike Bibby, who went to UA with the same credentials (McDonald's All-American) and finished his first year with a NCAA title.
Clearly, much is expected of Bozeman, a 6-foot-6, 183-pound quick and athletic guard, who looks to get everyone involved. Already, teammates have said Bozeman is quicker than they expected and might have an advantage over smaller guards.
"The good thing is that he doesn't have the pressure of leading a young group," said UCLA teammate Kapono, the team's leader. "He's playing with guys here who have been through the Pac-10. He just needs to come in and play his role. He doesn't have to carry us. He's experienced so he won't be scared."
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HOT: Stanford's Casey Jacobsen
He comes into the season as the league's top returning scorer (18.1 ppg) and perhaps the league's best player. He's one of only two two-time all-conference picks in the league.
NOT: Washington
Coming in it appeared as though coach Bob Bender had made strides in recruiting top local talent. Well, he did, only to see 6-9 forward Anthony Washington not qualify because of academics.
HOT: UCLA's Dan Gadzuric
If Gadzuric can play the way he did for the last half of last season few teams have a chance in stopping him. In last season's final month, Gadzuric averaged 11.7 points and 8.6 rebounds.
NOT: Arizona, Stanford
Each team is talented, but each still has only one returning starter on its roster. Complicating UA's situation is that it does not have a senior on its roster.
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Just a
couple of short months after getting caught chasing down Rick Pitino in an
attempt to see if he was available to coach (blunder No. 1), UCLA athletic director Peter Dalis had to
issue an apology to Allan Elliott for accusing Elliott of sending out an
e-mail that all but threatened the Bruins basketball program.
Dalis did so
in a teleconference on April 5.
The e-mail (of unknown origin) listed
allegations involving Lavin. After checking into the matter, the Pac-10
cleared the program.
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 USC coach Henry Bibby
Entering his seventh season as the Trojans head coach, he'll very likely reach the 100-win mark this season. He stands at 82-75.
The conference
The league had
had a nation's-best 11 players drafted into the NBA for this season. The Big East was second with seven.
California
If Cal gets to the postseason it'll be the fourth consecutive time, something not done since 1957-60.
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It might take well into February
for the league race to start to shake out. Arizona at UCLA on Valentine's Day could very well
determine who's in first or second place in the league race. UA has lost two
of three at Pauley and faces a tough task on the road with a
wet-behind-the-ears group.
Call it a reversal of fortune. Last season UCLA
did the improbable of going into Maples Arena to knock off then-No. 1
Stanford. When they meet there Feb. 23, it looks like UCLA could be one of the nation's top
teams with Stanford hoping to make use of the home-court advantage, although
UCLA has won two straight at Maples.
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UCLA's Lavin lifted the two-game
suspension of senior Rico Hines for hitting teammate Matt Barnes last
season. Hines reportedly hit Barnes with a metal stool that caused a cut
needing eight stitches. Hines sat out last season as a redshirt after having
knee problems. ... Arizona enters the season as the nation's winningest
program in the last 14 seasons. It's won 377 games and lost 87 for an 81.3
percentage. Second is Duke and Kansas each at 79.3 percent. Duke is 391-102;
Kansas is 382-100. ... Oregon is determined to return as one of the league's
best defensive teams. It wasn't one last season. The Ducks gave up 78.8
points per game last year; it gave up 68.2 the year before. To help with the
defense, former UO women's basketball assistant Fred Litzenberger is now on
staff. The Oregon women led the league in scoring defense for three of
Litzenberger's six years there. ... What is it with Laguna Beach High
graduates? In a matter of a week, former Laguna Beach teammates Travis
Hanour and Chris Manker each quite their Pac-10 teams. Hanour, a guard, left
the Arizona program, and two days later Manker, a center, left Oregon
State.
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Steve Rivera covers the Pac-10 for the Tucson Citizen. His "This Week in the Pac-10" column will appear weekly during the season.
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