A 3-Way Race for Title in Pac-10 : USC Leads Arizona, Oregon State Going Into the Stretch

It is apparent now that it’s a three-team race for the Pacific 10 basketball championship.

USC, 16-5 overall and 10-2 in league play, is the leader, followed closely by Arizona and Oregon State, both 8-3.

Washington (8-5) and UCLA (6-5) aren’t out of it, but it appears they have too much ground to make up. One more loss for either team and they’ll be awaiting NIT bids.

USC and Arizona will meet today (noon, Channel 5) at the Sports Arena in what may be the most meaningful game of the conference season.

If the Trojans win, they will have a 2 1/2-game lead on the Wildcats and will be difficult to catch in the remaining five games.

If Arizona wins, USC still will have a half-game lead, but the leaders will be bunched and the race will revert to a game-by-game proposition down the stretch.

With Washington and UCLA still contenders, here’s the conference schedule for the five teams the rest of the season:

USC--Arizona today; at Stanford Thursday; at California next Saturday; at UCLA Feb. 28; Oregon March 7 (Sports Arena); Oregon State March 9 (Cal State Dominguez Hills).

Arizona--USC today; at Washington State Monday; Oregon Thursday; Oregon State next Saturday; at Washington Feb. 28; at UCLA March 2; Arizona State March 9.

Oregon State--Washington today; at Arizona State Thursday; at Arizona next Saturday; Stanford Feb. 28; California March 2; at UCLA March 7; at USC March 9.

Washington--at Oregon State today; Washington State next Saturday; Arizona Feb. 28; at California March 7; at Stanford March 9.

UCLA--Arizona State tonight; at Stanford Monday; at California Thursday; USC Feb. 28; Arizona March 2; Oregon State March 7; at Oregon March 9.

USC, Oregon State and UCLA have three games remaining against contenders, Arizona has four and Washington only two.

But second-division teams such as Oregon, Stanford and Cal may be spoilers in the weeks ahead. There is precedence. USC would be in an even more dominant position if it hadn’t lost to Stanford Jan 28. Stanford has also beaten Arizona, Cal has knocked off Oregon State, and Oregon beat Washington Thursday night.

Arizona is embarking on what appears to be the critical portion of its schedule with four games in eight days.

“After this stretch, we’ll either have a good-sized foot in the door, or the door will be closed in our face,” Arizona Coach Lute Olson said.

The Wildcats and Trojans are playing the best basketball in the league now. Each team has won five straight, and the Trojans have won nine of their last 10.

USC beat Arizona last month in Tucson, 63-62, but the Wildcats were missing two starters. Brock Brunkhorst, the point guard, had a strained knee, and forward Morgan Taylor was academically ineligible.

They rejoined the team in a game against Oregon State at Corvallis last month and the Beavers barely beat the Wildcats, 59-55. Since then, Arizona hasn’t been extended, winning its last five games by 12 points or more. During that stretch, however, the Wildcats played only one contender, Washington.

“No question, we wouldn’t have three Pac-10 losses with Brock,” said Olson, who played Brunkhorst only 22 minutes against Oregon State.

Brunkhorst’s return enables Steve Kerr to become a shooting guard again, a role in which he is more comfortable.

USC Coach Stan Morrison said that Arizona has the quickest front line in the league in Taylor, Eddie Smith and Pete Williams, all 6-7 leapers. Smith, who is averaging 16.6 points a game, scored 28 against USC last month. Williams led the conference in rebounding last year and is averaging 8.4 rebounds this season.

“We have a legitimate chance to to win at USC,” Olson said. “We feel confident we’ll play well. Other teams will have to play well to beat us.”

Arizona has obviously improved, but so has USC. The Trojans had a devastating 20-1 spurt against Arizona State on the way to a 76-60 victory Thursday night at the Sports Arena.

Previously, the Trojans had picked away at their opponents with a pounding inside game to get a modest lead before winning at the free-throw line.

Trojan Notes USC center Clayton Olivier is questionable for today’s game. He suffered a broken blood vessel in his right foot and didn’t play against Arizona State. Charlie Simpson, a 6-10 sophomore, filled in commendably. He had 10 points, 8 rebounds and 2 blocked shots while playing 20 minutes. . . . USC leads the Pac-10 in rebounding, averaging 36.2 a game. The Trojans have also committed the fewest turnovers, 12.3 a game. . . . Pete Williams leads the Pac-10 in field-goal percentage with .614. . . . Arizona’s Lute Olson and USC’s Stan Morrison are the conference’s leading candidates for coach of the year.