Pac-10 Tournament Preview - 4 States Collide
by Mike Rose
The NCAA Tournament is almost here, (Get the BetUS March Madness Bracket Here!) but as an appetizer to the festivities, the best in the West will do battle in the Pac-10 Tournament starting Wednesday night.
The 9th ranked Stanford Cardinal (17-12, 16-10-1 ATS) looked primed to make a run towards following a perfect 11-0 record in non-conference season. Unfortunately for them, a 6-12 record left them in a position where they’ll need to win the Pac-10 Tourney to go dancing. They’ll tackle the surprising #8 Oregon State Beavers (13-16, 11-13 ATS), who erased the memories of a dismal ’07-’08 season by going 7-11 in conference this year. Stanford got swept by the Beavers this season, so don’t be shocked to see another ‘W’ for OSU. The winner draws the top seeded Washington Huskies (24-7, 17-10-1 ATS), who should easily coast into the conference semis having gone a combined 4-0 SU and 3-1 ATS against the Cardinal and Beavers this season.
In the other first round match-up, the #7 Washington State Cougars (16-14, 10-16-1 ATS) will do battle with the hapless #10 Oregon Ducks (8-22, 9-20 ATS). It took until February 21st for the Ducks to win their first Pac-10 game of the season, while the Cougs had won three straight games before losing at Washington to end the regular season. Still, they’re one of the hotter teams in the Pac-10, and at 16-1, could be a juicy underdog to steal the automatic bid. The #2 UCLA Bruins (24-7, 15-14-1 ATS) await the winner. Wazzou already beat the Bruins 82-81 three weeks ago in Pauley Pavilion, so the #1 defense in the land could be set for a deep run into this tournament.
The most intriguing match-up in the second round is clearly going to be between the #4 Arizona State Sun Devils (22-8, 16-10 ATS) and the #5 Arizona Wildcats (19-12, 18-12 ATS). Arizona State has already beaten its rivals from the desert twice this season, but it only won the two games by a combined eight points. The Wildcats badly need at least one more win on their resume to get a nod from the selection committee. A third loss to the Sun Devils will certainly seal their NIT fate.
Finally, the #3 California Golden Bears (22-9, 16-12 ATS) will do battle with the #6 Southern California Trojans (18-12, 14-14 ATS). The Golden Bears are almost certainly in the field after they beat Arizona 83-77 on March 5th. It’s hard to fathom that 11 wins in conference and 22 overall can’t be good enough, but just to be sure, a win over the Trojans wouldn’t hurt. That win won’t come easily, as the Trojans know that they need at least a pair of victories to have a legitimate chance of putting on their dancing shoes.
UCLA has been made a +110 favorite for the Pac-10 Tournament by the oddsmakers. The team lost in the shuffle seems to be Arizona State, which is 7-1 to take the Pac-10 crown. The Sun Devils may have lost three straight games down the stretch before beating Cal in the regular season finale, but with wins over all of the big boys in the conference, there’s no counting them out.
No matter which team you plan on betting on in this heated ten-team tourney, BetUS has odds on all of your favorite teams. Login to your account right now and place your bets before the tournament starts Wednesday night!
