Feb 7th, 2010
Perhaps a snapshot of the Pac-10 and West Coast Conference standings should be taken right now, because Bay Area teams are alone in first place in both conferences, but neither is feeling particularly comfortable about its status.
St. Mary's coach Randy Bennett has to figure out how to beat Gonzaga on the Bulldogs' homecourt, something the Gaels have not done since 1995 -- Photo by Liz Mangelsdorf/San Francisco Chronicle
St. Mary’s moved a half-game ahead of Gonzaga in the WCC with its 73-57 victory over San Francisco on Saturday, but the Gaels play Gonzaga on the Bulldogs’ home court on Thursday in a game that may define the Gaels’ season. St. Mary’s is one of just two Division I teams (Syracuse is the other) that has yet to lose a game on its opponent’s homecourt this season. Gonzaga’s homecourt is a different animal, though. The Bulldogs are 71-4 at the McCarthey Center and are coming off impressive wins over Portland and Memphis.
Cal has regained sole possession of first place in the Pac-10, but we know better than to make any predictions about the Bears or the Pac-10.
Coaches insist it’s vital to start a game well. To which we reply, “Chortle, chortle, guffaw, cachinnation, titter, giggle” – at least as it pertains to Cal. On Thursday, the Bears seemed to have USC buried early by blowing out to a 30-17 lead. Cal ended up losing by three. On Saturday, Cal appeared headed for a humbling defeat when UCLA jumped out to a 22-8 lead. The Bears won by 14.
So what does it mean that Cal is in first place with seven games left? Not much. Cal is just 7-4 in the conference, and its dependence on three-point shooting makes consistency elusive. However, it seems 12-6 might be good enough to win the Pac-10, and even 11-7 may earn a share of the title. No team with as many as six losses has ever won the title in this conference, going all the way back to its origin in 1915, when Cal, Oregon State and Washington were its only three teams in the Pacific Coast Conference (FYI, Cal and Oregon State tied for the 1915-16 PCC title at 5-3).
Stanford’s Landry Fields is the best player in the Pac-10 at the moment. He has to be to give the Cardinal a chance to win both games in Los Angeles this week. Stanford ended up losing both – by four to UCLA on Thursday and by five to USC on Saturday – but Fields deserves some kind of honor for keeping the Cardinal competitive with virtually no help. Perhaps the NVMOS award, for amazing production despite No Visible Means Of Support., would be appropriate He had 62 points in the two games, and his teammates totaled 60.
On Saturday, Fields did not even get the assistant of Jeremy Green, who did not score until less than two minutes remained. Fields has averaged 30.4 points over his past five games, but Stanford has lost four of them, and finds itself alone in last place, albeit just three game out of first.
