Thursday Lay-up Lines: Battle atop the Pac-10

The big game of the night takes place out in Pauley Pavilion as UCLA (19-6, 8-4) hosts Washington (19-6, 10-3). The Bruins were in first place in the Pac-10 until last weekend when they got swept at the Arizona schools. Washington was able to move into sole possession of first thanks to their own sweep of the Oregon schools (UCLA now sits in third). The Huskies look, and have looked, like the best team in the Pac-10 this season. They've beaten UCLA and Arizona State (ASU on the road) and their conference losses have come to Arizona and Cal on the road, and a 3OT thriller at home against Cal (a game they would have won if it weren't for this stupidity - no condensed video, so you have to go to the 9:00 mark).

But UCLA is UCLA. They aren't quite as good defensively as they have been in the past, but until someone unseats them from atop the Pac-10, you have to keep them in the mix. U-Dub, here is your chance.

I think Washington goes into Pauley and wins this one. I don't know why, but I really like how the Huskies are playing right now. They have two great scorers in their back court in Isaiah Thomas and Justin Dentmon, a water buffalo on the block in Jon Brockman, and a group of excellent athletes to surround those three (Quincy Pondexter, Justin Holiday, Matthew Bryan-Amaning). While I expect Josh Shipp and Darren Collison to keep Dentmon and Thomas in check, I think that the Huskies are going to be too athletic and too big inside for the Bruins.

Of note, Jrue Holiday, UCLA's stud freshman, and Justin Holiday are brothers.

As I'm writing about this game, I have gotten to thinking about who is the best team on the west coast. Is it the winner of this game? Check back tomorrow for that.

The rest of the games from Thursday (which is a pretty terrible night in terms of hoops - seriously, ESPN's games are Duke-St. John's and Wisconsin-Indiana):

• 7:00 PM: Minnesota (19-6, 7-6) @ Michigan (16-10, 6-7): Probably the second most significant game of the night given the bubble implications. Both teams really could use the win, as successful non-conference seasons have not turned into good Big Ten years. Michigan is probably in more trouble than the Gophers, as a loss drops the Wolverines to two games below .500 in the conference.
  
• 7:00 PM: Xavier (21-4, 9-2) @ Charlotte (9-15, 3-7)
• 7:00 PM: Duke (20-5, 7-4) @ St. John's (12-13, 3-10)
• 8:00 PM: Western Kentucky (17-8, 11-3) @ Arkansas Little-Rock (9-6, 12-2)
• 9:00 PM: Wisconsin (16-9, 7-6) @ Indiana (6-18, 1-11)
• 9:00 PM: Rutgers (10-15, 1-11) @ Villanova (20-5, 8-4)
• 9:00 PM: Loyola Marymount (2-24, 1-9) @ Gonzaga (19-5, 10-0)
• 9:00 PM: Cal (19-6, 8-4) @ Oregon (6-19, 0-13)
• 10:30 PM: Washington State (13-12, 5-8) @ USC (15-9, 6-6)
• 11:00 PM: San Diego (13-13, 5-6) @ St. Mary's (20-5, 7-4)