Pac-10 Conference Notebook
by Scott Allen
Six-Pac: Six of the conference’s top players, teams and stories from the past week.
1. Matt Haryasz, Stanford: The Page, Ariz., native and Cardinal senior averaged 26 points and 8.5 rebounds as Stanford split a pair of games in Arizona.
2. Leon Powe, Cal: Not to be outdone, Powe had 20 points and 10 rebounds two days before going for 23 and 12.
3. Washington Huskies: Lorenzo Romar’s squad proved they can win ugly and going away in sweeping the Oregon schools at home.
4. Washington State Feeling Low: The Cougars have used five different lineups since losing starting point guard Derrick Low to a broken foot and are 1-4 in those games.
5. Rodgers Out, Onubun In: In the aftermath of Chris Rodgers’ dismissal from the team, Arizona added freshman forward Fendi Onobun to its active roster last weekend. The 6-foot-6 Houston, Texas, native, who was redshirting, had 12 points in two games for the Wildcats.
6. UCLA Picked Clean: In one of the more exciting games of the weekend, UCLA fell 60-56 to West Virginia after Mike Gansey stole the ball away from Jordan Farmar in the final seconds.
Washington Huskies (16-2, 5-2)
The Huskies increased their Pac-10 win streak to four games with a sweep of the Oregon schools at home. Oregon State gave Washington a scare on Thursday, but the Huskies overcame a 16-for-28 performance from the free throw line to win 69-65. Jamaal Williams rebounded from a four-point outing against the Beavers to post 20 points and six rebounds in a 78-59 win over Oregon on Saturday. Brandon Roy had 19 points for Washington and Bobby Jones added 15.
UCLA Bruins (15-4, 5-2)
After dominating rival USC 66-45 on Thursday, the Bruins hosted last year’s NCAA tournament darling West Virginia on Saturday. UCLA fell behind by as many as 20 points early in the second half before rallying to pull within three in the final minute. Mike Gansey, who scored a game-high 24 points for the Mountaineers, stole the ball from Jordan Farmar in the final seconds to preserve the win. Farmar poured in 22 points in the loss and drained three 3-pointers for the second consecutive game.
Arizona Wildcats (12-6, 5-3)
The Wildcats bounced back from getting swept on the road at Oregon to taking care of business at home in two tough games against Stanford and Cal. Freshman Marcus Williams scored 22 points to lead the Cats past the Cardinal, 90-81 in overtime, on Thursday, while Arizona overcame 33 percent shooting against the Bears to win 60-55 on Saturday. Arizona outrebounded the Bears 43-25. With Chris Rodgers dismissed from the team, the Cats need Williams to take a more active role on the offensive end, as will Mustafa Shakur, who had four straight solid outings before being held to four points against the Bears.
California Bears (10-6, 4-3)
The Bears earned a split on the road in Arizona last week, including a 30-point win over Arizona State on Thursday. Leon Powe had his sixth double-double of the season with 20 points and 10 rebounds and would record his seventh two days later with 23 points and 14 rebounds in a loss to Arizona. Ayinde Ubaka continued his impressive season with a game-high 24 points against the Sun Devils, as Cal scored 52 second-half points to turn a six-point game at halftime into a rout. The Bears shot 31-for-38 from the free throw line.
Oregon Ducks (10-9, 4-3)
The Ducks earned a gritty 52-50 win at Washington State before getting walloped 78-59 at Washington two days later. Malik Hairston single-handedly rescued Oregon against the Cougars by draining two 3-pointers in the final 12 seconds on Thursday. He finished with only 12 points in the game. Jordan Kent led the Ducks with 13 points and 12 rebounds, while point guard Aaron Brooks added 10 points. Hairston’s 17 points on Saturday weren’t nearly enough to carry the Ducks in Seattle, as Washington shot 52 percent from the field and rolled.
Stanford Cardinal (8-7, 4-3)
Stanford earned a split at Arizona, falling in overtime to Arizona on Thursday before rebounding to knock off Arizona State. Senior Matt Haryasz, making his final regular-season trip to his home state, led the Cardinal in both games with a combined 52 points. Perhaps the most promising sign for the Cardinal in Thursday’s loss was the play of freshman Lawrence Hill, who scored 13 points and had seven rebounds off the bench. Fellow freshman Mitch Johnson hit two late threes to help Stanford force overtime. The two combined for just eight points against Arizona State, but Haryasz’s 27 points were enough. Dan Grunfeld added 15 points in the win.
USC Trojans (12-6, 3-4)
In their only game of the week, the Trojans were rocked 66-45 at UCLA. It was one of USC’s worst performances of the season, particularly on the offensive end. No starter reached double figures and Gabe Pruitt was held to four points on 1-for-9 shooting. The Trojans shot 29.5 percent as a team and trailed by 20 at the half. It was the fewest points USC scored against its crosstown rival since 1969.
Oregon State Beavers (10-8, 3-4)
The Beavers salvaged a split in Washington, shaking off the disappointment of a near upset in Seattle to down the Cougars 59-20 in Pullman. The Beavers held the Huskies to just 33 percent shooting but couldn’t muster enough of their own offensive firepower to win. Four players scored in double figures, but Oregon State shot just 2-for-10 from long range as a team and committed a horrendous 28 turnovers. The Cougars took better care of the ball (12 turnovers) and got 23 points from Chris Stephens to defeat Washington State on Saturday. Sophomore guard Wesley Washington added a career-high 10 points.
Washington State Cougars (9-7, 2-5)
After a 2-1 start in conference play and with a victory over Washington to their credit, the Cougars are suddenly reeling. Dick Bennett’s squad has lost four straight, including two setbacks to the Oregon schools last weekend in which the Cougars mustered only 50 points per game. Washington State is 1-4 without injured point guard Derrick Low. The Cougars lost a heart-breaker to the Ducks on Thursday before losing by nine to the Beavers on a day in which Washington State shot 1-for-16 from beyond the arc.
Arizona State Sun Devils (7-10, 1-7)
The Sun Devils could have used Ike Diogu on Saturday. The former All-American who is now making a living in the NBA used to own Stanford, which knocked off Arizona State behind a career-high 27 points from Matt Haryasz on Saturday. Diogu might not have been enough to save the Sun Devils on Thursday, however, as Cal rolled to an 88-58 victory. Things don’t get any easier for Arizona State this weekend, as they host rival Arizona.
