When it comes to making tournament bracket predictions a few weeks out I'm glad that this blogger doesn’t seem to have a clue. Sure, did manage to predict Oregon State would finish 10th. Oh, here’s a grand prognostication. My picks of UCLA to finish 1st and Stanford to come in 2nd turned out to be correct as well. That’s it folks. The way the rest completed conference play came as a surprise. Or did it?
Wait a minute. The prediction garbage is over. Now it’s time to look at the real deal.
If you’re a Coug you have to be pleased with the way the brackets worked out for the Pac-10 Tournament. Washington State won’t face UCLA unless they reach the finals. First up for the Cougars are those Fightin’ Ducks from Eugene. Oregon came on strong at the end of the season because of some very nice sharpshooting from outside. WSU knows how to beat this Oregon team because they have already accomplished that feat twice this year.
Sorry, but this blogger doesn’t buy into all the history of Oregon and Coach Ernie Kent dominating WSU in recent years. That was then. We’re trying to take a look at the reality of today. If ever there was a team ripe to knock off the Cougs because of losing a couple in a row to them, it’s the Huskies. After the double overtime win last Saturday, WSU has a streak of seven in a row over the Dawgs. This Cougar team will be coached to perfection by Coach Tony Bennett. Will they execute his game plan? You bet. Cougs will make it three in a row over Oregon.
Looking at the bracket Washington State is in, the first game is an early Christmas present for Arizona. The ‘Cats get to beat up on the Beavers one more time, mercifully ending the nightmare for Oregon State called the “2007-2008 season”.
The reward for Arizona? No, it’s not settling the impending controversy raised by the return of Coach Lute Olson next season.
The ‘Cats get another crack at Stanford. The Cardinal have managed two nail-biting wins over Arizona during conference play. Can they do it again? Will the Lopez towers dominate? Nope. No sir. Stanford can be beaten by teams that can drain threes. Arizona will do that very thing.
As match-ups go, Coach Bennett and his team would’nt mind getting another crack at the Wildcats. WSU lost both games to Arizona during the regular season. In fact, Arizona blew the Cougs away in Tucson. Coach Bennett has yet to come up with a way to slow down Chase Budinger. Then again, very few coaches have figured that one out. If the WSU defense can keep the combination of Budinger and Jerryd Bayless
4 comments Last one added about 1 year ago — Leave a Comment
Bryan Milward about 1 year ago
Budinger has been on and off this year for U of A. Ben Howland figured out in the first UCLA game that the way to beat him is to double him when he comes off screens since so many of his threes come that way. I don't see U of A getting past Stanford unless Nic Wise sees a miracle healer between now and the game. As for WSU, they've had a good year but I think they go down in the semis to Stanford, thats just a bad matchup for them. So I'd put it Stanford over UCLA in a tight one for the finals
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Lew Wright about 1 year ago
You've captured the excitement of the Pac-10 this season Bryan. Anyone can beat anyone on a given night. OK, the Beavers are the exception to the rule. Keeping in mind that even the experience of WSU rests on the shoulders of pretty young men, accurate predictions of outcomes is an exercise in frivolity. Yeah...fun stuff!!!
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Jimmy Bromberg about 1 year ago
I think the one team that could potentially win the Pac-10 tourney other than UCLA is USC. They've looked good recently and may surprise some in the NCAA tournament. Also, if the Huskies lose badly tonight I think it shows that Jon Brockman should have been the Pac-10 MVP or at least an all Pac-10 first team selection. Love was great, but so were Westbrook, Collison and the rest of UCLA. Brockman is the heart and soul of UW.
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Lew Wright about 1 year ago
Couldn't agree with you more about Jon Brockman and his value to both the team and the UW basketball program. Unfortunately, the Dawgs didn't play small at the end against Cal and now are done. USC has a tremendous starting five. Depth? They don't really have it. If they get into foul trouble, that's it. Done. Because this is tournament time, officials call the game a little looser, so there's a chance fouls won't be an issue for the Trojans. And as long as you're bringing up the is of MVP or key players, it's easy to see what Daniel Hackett means to USC. In the end, UCLA should still handle USC is a very hotly contested game that may get very, very physical.
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