Toyminator's 1999 Pac Ten Conference Preview

The Pac Ten should remain one of the top conferences in the country this season with the usual suspects leading the way. UCLA, Arizona & Stanford should be constants in the Top 25, while we may see some teams like Oregon & Oregon St. flirt with it this season, as well. There should be some good battles between these teams during conference play, providing some exciting basketball for us the fans. And while the conference lost some top players to the NBA, there remains a boatload of young talent that should step up this season to lead their teams, such as Michael Wright of Arizona, Dan Gadzuric of UCLA, Casey Jacobsen of Stanford, and Freddie Jones of Oregon.

The rest of the conference won't be too bad either, but will struggle to get wins against the Top 5. One or two should break out of the pack and have a shot at some postseason play. USC & Washington have the best shot, but if the new guys at Arizona St & California come through, then they may push them aside.

ON THE RISE: Oregon St.
You used to be able to pencil in the Beavers for 9th or 10th every year. But despite the loss of some key players the past few years, they improved greatly last season and became a very tough out, especially at home in front of their riotous fans. Now, with key recruit Brian Jackson manning the middle, and a talented & experienced backcourt to control the ball, they have a shot at reaching the NCAA's.

IN DECLINE: Washington
Todd MacCullough was such a horse down low, that he alone won many games for the Huskies the past few years. With him gone, and nobody even close to replace his inside production, the Huskies will slide this season. A good backcourt will have to carry them throughout the season, but a postseason berth is going to be tough to achieve for Bender's Boys.

1. UCLA

Strengths: Excellent team offense. Big, yet quick frontcourt. Defense forces many turnovers.
Weakness: Horrible FT shooting team. Questionable ball-handling & outside shooting.
Outlook: With a year under their belt & Davis gone, the sophs should carry this team. Watson needs to focus on running the team.

2. ARIZONA

Strengths: Excellent frontcourt. Good rebounding & shooting team. Good team quickness. Solid offensively. Very deep!
Weakness: Turn the ball over too much! Don't defend the "3" well. Very inexperienced.
Outlook: Talent is here to make run at title, but experience may not be (especially at PG). Even so, another good year in Tuscon.

3. STANFORD

Strengths: Excellent team defense. Big, deep frontcourt that loves to rebound. Good FT shooting team. Take care of the ball.
Weakness: Can be stagnant on offense. Questionable PG.
Outlook: Lost 4/5 of starting lineup, but they shouldn't miss a beat. Could be better offensively this season.

4. OREGON

Strengths: Talented & deep backcourt. Good rebounding team. Good 3-pt shooting team.
Weakness: Poor team defense. Too many turnovers.
Outlook: The best backcourt in conference will lead this team back to the NCAA Tournament this season.

5. OREGON ST.

Strengths: Excellent backcourt. Good team defense. Good rebounding team.
Weakness: Limited offensively. Poor FT shooting team.
Outlook: This year's sleeper team could frustrate many teams on their way to postseason play.

6. USC

Strengths: Quick, talented backcourt. Force many turnovers. Good FT shooting team.
Weakness: Poor rebounding team. A little loose on defense. Thin & inexperienced bench.
Outlook: Seems to be the best of the lower tier. With luck, a NIT bid is possible.

7. WASHINGTON

Strengths: Excellent backcourt. Good 3-pt shooting team. Lots of depth at forward.
Weakness: Big hole in the middle. Poor rebounding team. Too many turnovers.
Outlook: With nobody to score inside, the backcourt needs to do it all if they want to be competitive.

8. ARIZONA ST.

Strengths: House's scoring ability. Goof FT shooting team. Good ball handling.
Weakness: No defense whatsoever! Poor rebounding team. Little inside scoring.
Outlook: Evans is a good coach and will be able to squeek out some wins, but this program needs some time.

9. CALIFORNIA

Strengths: Young talent. Good size. Force many turnovers.
Weakness: Poor rebounding team. Poor 3-pt shooting team. Too much inexperience!
Outlook: With Lampley the only experienced player left, there won't be too many wins unless the frosh are awesome.

10. WASHINGTON ST.

Strengths: Experienced, but undersized backcourt. Good 3-pt & FT shooting team.
Weakness: Horrible team defense. No inside game. Poor rebounding team. No true PG.
Outlook: Same story as always!

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Last updated on 9/25/99 by toyminator@prodigy.net