Dec. 18
Wow, what a rough night for the Pac-10! All the fans on the West Coast must be wondering what's happened in terms of basketball supremacy. In case you missed it, three of the Pac-10's big boys -- Oregon, Stanford and UCLA -- went down Tuesday night. All three were favored to win. Not only did they go down, but these were Shock City losses.

It's one thing to get beaten, but quite another to fail to compete. The way the Oregon kids backed away instead of scrapping and clawing was surprising.

Think about Oregon. We were singing the Ducks' praises as an unbeaten team with wins over the likes of Kansas and Pepperdine. I couldn't wait to see the two Lukes -- Luke Jackson and Luke Ridnour -- do their thing in person. But the Ducks got blitzed 77-52 Tuesday at the Jimmy V Classic by an average Cincinnati club. The Bearcats were held to 44 points by Xavier, they lost to Dayton and they struggled to beat Tennessee Tech and LaSalle. Coach Bob Huggins questioned how his team was going to score vs. Oregon!

The Bearcats looked like a dominant team, taking charge right out of the gate, jumping to an early 17-4 lead. I was truly disappointed in the second game of the Jimmy V Classic doubleheader.

It's one thing to get beaten, but quite another to fail to compete. The way the Oregon kids backed away instead of scrapping and clawing was surprising. I know that Ernie Kent, the Ducks' outstanding coach, was upset with his team's lack of tenacity and poor mental attitude.

That was strike one for the Pac-10, like a Roger Clemens fastball.

Then there was Stanford, a squad that reached the finals of the Preseason NIT by beating a pair of ranked clubs, Xavier and Florida. Coach Mike Montgomery's team lost on Monday night in its own invitational to Montana, which has struggled this season. Coach Pat Kennedy's Grizzlies used the trifecta to score a 70-68 upset.

Tuesday night, in the consolation game, the Cardinal found out that it could actually get worse, losing to coach Jerry Wainright and Richmond 83-69. Are you kidding me?

Strike two, like a Randy Johnson slider.

As they say, three strikes and you're out, baby! Like a Tom Glavine curveball, the Pac-10 was fanned when Northern Arizona invaded Pauley Pavilion and stunned the Bruins 67-63 in a nail-biter. Ouch!

Remember, UCLA lost earlier in the season at home to San Diego. I wonder what they're saying in L.A.? Do you think there's a little nervousness in the mind of Bruins coach Steve Lavin, especially after the school fired football coach Bob Toledo recently? The new AD has put his stamp on the program, and UCLA has to travel to Lawrence, Kansas, on Saturday to face the Jayhawks, who are out for revenge. Last season, the Bruins upset the then-No. 1 Kansas squad. It could be payback time, baby!

Suffice to say, Tuesday was not a day to remember for the Pac-10.

Top-ranked Arizona is certainly holding up its end so far, and coach Lute Olson's Wildcats are clearly the cream of the crop in the Pac-10. Maybe the 'Cats are glad they didn't play Tuesday night, baby! One night doesn't make a season, but it certainly gives an indicator of the lack of strength in the conference.