Conference Tournament Preview: Pac-10

Where: Staples Center, LA

When: March 10th-13th

Final: 6:00 pm CBS




Favorite: Cal Bears

Cal was the preseason conference favorite, and while the Pac-10 has been down, Cal has been the best team in the league over the last month. The Bears have one of the best back courts in the country with Jerome Randle, Patrick Christopher, and Theo Robertson. And if those three can do anything, they can score. Cal ranks fourth in the country in offensive efficiency, and when Randle and company get it going from deep, they are a difficult team to slow down.

Jerome Randle was the Pac-10 POY.
(photo credit: ESPN)

Cal seemingly has a bid locked up, but a poor showing here could really hurt the Bears. In a way, the Pac-10 has become similar to the better mid-major leagues. Cal is really the only team that can absorb a loss and feel comfortable about their standing. If nothing else, it should be entertaining to watch.


And if the lose?: Washington Huskies

Washington has been a major disappointment this season. Billed by some as a potential Final Four team in the preseason, the Huskies never quite put it all together. Some of it was the overwhelming expectations Abdul Gaddy had coming in, some of it was a lack of defensive intensity, some of it was simply poor play on the road. No one other than those involved with the program can really know the answer to that.

But what is clear is that this Washington team has as much pure talent as anyone in the league. Isaiah Thomas and Quincy Pondexter are undeniably as good of a 1-2 punch as you will find. They have athletes every where on their roster. This is a dangerous team if they can put it all together. And that may just be the case coming in. Washington has won four in a row, with three of those four wins coming on the road, a place that has not been kind to the Huskies.


Don't count out: Arizona State Sun Devils

ASU is a team that is going to grind out wins. They play a methodical pace, working the ball offensively as they try to find their best shot. ASU has been playing a different system than you are used to seeing a Herb Sendek team play. Instead of running a Princeton-style offense -- which requires a big man with perimeter and passing skills -- they have gone to something closer to a motion offense utilizing a high pick-and-roll with PG Derek Glasser.

If we see Derek Glasser and Isaiah Thomas go head to head again, it will be for a tournament berth.
(photo credit: flickr)

Both Arizona State and Washington are on the bubble right now, and given their combined lack of quality wins -- and the fact that neither of them are going to be adding to their resume much in the Pac-10 tournament -- if looks like it is going to take a trip to the finals to earn a bid. What's interesting is that the two teams are projected to meet up in the semis, assuming both can get by their first round opponents. Does this qualify as a play-in game?


Sleeper: Arizona Wildcats

Finding a sleeper in this group is tough because, well, after the top three there is a whole lot of not much in the Pac-10. But if the Pac-10 qualifies as not much, than Arizona is the "ehh" that makes you wonder. This is a young team with a new coach in Sean Miller, but the Wildcats do have a veteran PG with some tournament success under his belt in Nic Wise and a couple of quality forwards in Derrick Williams and Jamelle Horne. Perhaps more importantly, they own wins over Washington, Arizona State, and Cal.

Names you need to know

• Derrick Williams, Arizona: Nic Wise is the leader of this team. He's the guy that takes and makes the big shots. But for those that haven't followed the Pac-10 all that closely, would you be surprised if I told you that Derrick Williams is, in fact, this team's leading scorer and rebounder? Williams is kind of a glorified garbageman at this stage in his development, as he doesn't have a great back-to-the-basket game. But he can rebound the ball and is an excellent finisher inside.


• Jamal Boykin, Cal: You know about Cal's three guards, but Boykin may be the most important piece to this Cal team simply because they don't have any other big guys that are a scoring threat. The Bears him to be able to handle his own in the paint on both sides of the ball as well as on the glass.


• Landry Fields, Stanford: Stanford is bad this year, but that is not Fields' fault. He's averaged 22.8 ppg and 8.7 rpg for the Cardinal. He's arguably the best basketball player in the conference and shown the ablity carry Stanford this season.