Arizona, UCLA and Washington enter the Pac-10 tournament having demonstrated they belong in the NCAA field.
And while USC needs a very good showing and everyone else in the field must win it to get into the NCAA tournament, each of the top three teams has something to gain and/or prove at Staples Center this week.
ARIZONA
Regular-season champion Arizona, led by league player of the year Derrick Williams, was swept in its last visit to Los Angeles two weeks ago and needed a controversial blocked shot by Williams to beat Washington by a point at home the week before.
That said, the Wildcats have won 10 of their last 12 under league coach of the year Sean Miller even while playing without a true point guard.
Sophomore Williams is considered a certain lottery pick in the 2011 NBA draft if he chooses to leave school. Despite his presence, the Wildcats were bogged down offensively, losing to USC and UCLA with their two lowest point totals of the season, 57 at USC and 49 at UCLA. They shot 36 percent from the floor against UCLA and 32 percent at UCLA.
Arizona is in line to play the USC-California winner in the semifinals, and a trip to the title game could push it to a No. 4 national seed. An early exit could mess with a young, unproven team's confidence.
UCLA
UCLA's recent play makes it the favorite coming into the Pac-10 tournament. The Bruins have won 13 of their last 16 games, including a non-league victory in St. John's coach Steve Lavin's return to Pauley Pavilion. Their only losses came on the road to Arizona, Washington and California in overtime.
In a young league, the Ben Howland's Bruins are among the youngest, starting juniors Malcom Lee and Lazeric Jones, sophomores Reeves Nelson and Tyler Honeycutt and freshman Josh Smith. A JC transfer, Jones is in his first year in the program. At the same time, they may be the most athletically gifted team in the league and have improved as the season has progressed.
Other than an upstart winning the tournament, UCLA has the most to gain here. The Bruins have been undervalued much of the year but could jump a line or two in the NCAA seedings by being the last team standing. They are one of only two teams to have beaten BYU this season, 86-79 in the semi-neutral-court John Wooden Classic in Anaheim in December.
WASHINGTON
Washington needs to right its ship while preparing for its fourth-straight NCAA appearance. The Huskies have won only four of their last 10 games, with home losses to Washington State and USC and road losses at the Oregons, and they have seemed particularly vulnerable to the zone defenses played by Wazzu and USC.
A home victory over UCLA last week seemed to erase any doubts about Washington's NCAA bid, but its seeding would take a hit with another loss to first-round tournament opponent Washington State, which swept the regular-season series and is clinging to the slim possibility of an at-large bid. The Huskies played Michigan State, Kentucky and Texas A&M close but lost, and their best nonconference victory is over Virginia in the Maui Invitational.
If someone outside the top three were to win, the Huskies' status could be in jeopardy, given the Pac-10's lack of national respect.
"I feel confident" of an NCAA bid, Washington coach Lorenzo Romar said. "That doesn't mean if you are confident, you get in the tournament."
USC/CAL
The Trojans have won five of their last six, including at Washington last Saturday and at Cal, and have two of the best nonconference victories in the league, against Texas and at Tennessee. Cal has won four in a row and eight out of 12, two of its losses coming when Pac-10 freshman of the year Allen Crabbe was out of with a concussion.
The worst thing for the league is that they meet in the first round.
"I would think both of us need to win a couple of games," Cal coach Mike Montgomery said. "I don't think there is any question we're suffering from an image problem nationally."
SCOREBOARD WATCHING ...
For the Pac-10 to get a fourth team in the field, it would help if a few of these teams falter in their conference tournaments.
Alabama (20-10, 12-4)
