It was an uncharacteristic start by UCLA guard Jordan Farmar
““ two offensive fouls. Though the sophomore, who leads the
Pac-10 in assists, was relegated to the bench, the Bruins
didn’t miss a beat. There was no drop-off, no hiccup in the
offense. For much of the second half of the season, freshman guard
Darren Collison has come off the bench and provided huge minutes
for UCLA. Friday night against Arizona was no different. In 23
minutes of play, Collison scored a career-high 15 points on
6-for-10 shooting. The freshman, who hit two of three 3-pointers,
also led the Bruins in scoring for the first time this season.
Collison had no turnovers, compared to his counterpart, Farmar, who
coughed up the ball seven times. Most importantly, Collison’s
constant energy paced UCLA to an all-but-convincing win Friday
night. “I thought Collison actually hurt us more than Jordan
in this one,” Arizona coach Lute Olson said. “He brings
the ball down court so quickly and makes things happen.” Over
the course of February and March, UCLA coach Ben Howland has had
both point guards in the lineup at the same time. The result has
been a more aggressive Bruin defense, with an offense that can burn
opponents on the fast break. “When we were pushing the ball,
both Darren and Jordan did a great job of running,” Howland
said. “That’s when we’re at our best.”
After the game, Collison was more excited about helping the Bruins
advance to the Pac-10 Tournament final than commenting on his
personal performance. However, he did mention how much easier the
game is coming to him. “I’m being more patient, and
I’m slowing down,” Collison said. “I’m
feeling a lot more confident out there because we’re
winning.”
California 91, Oregon 87 (2 OT) It took two
overtimes and a valiant comeback by the Ducks, but California
outlasted Oregon in the second semifinal game. The contest ended at
11:34 on Friday night. Cal will now face UCLA in the championship
game today. “They’ll definitely have the edge,”
Cal coach Ben Braun said. “We have to figure out how to take
that back, but we’ll definitely be fatigued.” Sophomore
forward Leon Powe finished with a career-high and Pac-10 Tournament
record of 41 points. “But it took him two overtimes to do
it,” Braun said. “So don’t give him too much
credit.” Cal guard Ayinde Ubaka missed a free throw in the
second overtime with 9.1 seconds remaining in the game as the Bears
were holding on to a 89-87 lead. Instead of going for the tie,
Oregon guard Chamberlain Oguchi went for the 3-point attempt and
came up short, with the ball glancing off the front of the rim.
Ubaka, who finished with 17 points, sent the game into the first
overtime on a five-foot floating bank shot with less than three
seconds remaining in regulation. With the loss, Oregon’s
hopes of going to the NCAA Tournament are dashed. After a
disappointing season, the Ducks’ last chance to make the Big
Dance was to earn an automatic bid by winning the Pac-10
Tournament. “I was thinking if Oregon won, that
would’ve hurt us a lot (in terms of the NCAA
Tournament),” Powe said.
VENUES THREATENED: In response to the potential
terrorist threats targeted at college basketball arenas or other
sports stadiums, Pac-10 schools on Friday were briefed by
tournament officials about the proper procedures in case threats
were to arise. These precautionary actions came on the heels of an
online threat of which the FBI and Homeland Security Department
were informed. According to wire services, Special Agent Richard
Kolko, an FBI spokesman in Washington released a statement stating:
“We have absolutely no credible intelligence or threats
pertaining to this issue.”
UNSUNG HEROES: Credit UCLA’s medical
staff this season. Arizona’s coach does. Despite a season
plagued with injuries, from potentially season-ending to merely
nagging, UCLA has managed to keep players on the floor.
“UCLA’s medical staff must do a great job,” Olson
said. “I’ve never seen so many improbables make it out
there. Congratulations to them.” Olson was referring to
seeing redshirt senior guard Cedric Bozeman start the game against
his team despite twisting his right ankle in Thursday’s win
over Oregon State. Aside from Bozeman, sophomore center Lorenzo
Mata, who was expected to be out for the season due to a fractured
tibia in the middle season, has come back and seen action in the
Pac-10 Tournament.
AROUND THE PAC-10: After eight seasons with
Arizona State, coach Rob Evans will not return next year. ASU
Athletic Director Lisa Love did not comment on whether Evans, 59,
was fired or quit. Love met with Evans at 9:30 a.m. on Friday.
“There are things I believe very strongly, and I’ve read a
lot of what (the media) has written regarding Arizona State
basketball, and what we can do, where we are headed, and what our
past is,” Love said in a transcript released on the Sun
Devils’ athletics Web site. “I have a great belief that
we can play good basketball. I have a great belief that arguably
one of the most exciting events in all of sports in the United
States is about to take place, and I’m referring to March Madness
and the NCAA basketball tournament. And I would like very much for
Arizona State, as a goal, to have a presence in that exciting event
on a more frequent basis than three times in 25 years.” The
Sun Devils finished this season with an 11-17 mark, losing to
Oregon State in the Pac-10 Tournament. During his eight-year tenure
with the Sun Devils, Evans amassed a 119-120 record. Evans has one
more year remaining on his contract, and Love said that ASU would
pay out the rest of his contract. Love said there is currently a
search for a successor. She said there was a list of potential
candidates, but would not identify any.
PYRAMID HALTED: After Southern Illinois
cheerleader Kristi Yamaoka suffered a broken neck and a concussion
during a risky pyramid stunt, the NCAA banned all pyramid stunts
for the remainder of the basketball season. Oregon cheerleader
Valorie Darling doesn’t agree with the ban the NCAA has
implemented. “It’s an unfortunate event that happened,
but I feel that it shouldn’t be banned,” she said.
“We are a sport, and the ban takes away from the sport. If
you take away the slam dunk from (basketball) it’s the same
thing.”
KEEP ‘EM TUCKED: Before the start of
Friday’s competition, Pac-10 Tournament staff informed all
photographers on the baseline to keep their legs tucked in after
two injuries were sustained during Wednesday’s game. One of
the injuries was Bozeman, who rolled an ankle on a
photographer’s foot in the Bruins’ win over Oregon
State on Thursday.
DRIBBLERS: The intramural team from USC won the
Pac-10 3-on-3 shootout. “¦ Women’s water polo player
Natalie Golda and men’s water polo player Joseph Axelrad were
honored with the Pac-10 Conference Medal during intermission in the
first half of the Cal-Oregon game. The medal is awarded to one male
and one female senior from each conference school for excellence in
leadership, academics and scholarship.