The Cardinal led by as many 21 points, and Washington really was never in this one after the opening minutes.

The Huskies can't afford many more losses this season, and certainly not at home. And things may be only marginally easier Saturday, given Cal's upset of Washington State tonight in Pullman.

Some highlights:

Star of the game: Stanford sophomore forward Brook Lopez scored a career-high 31 points. He also had 13 rebounds, three blocks, three assists and a steal.

Key stats: Washington shot 28.8 percent from the field, the lowest percentage of the season. … The Huskies were 0-for-7 on 3-pointers in the second half. … Stanford outrebounded UW, 41-36.

Key run: After a couple of quick early field goals, the Huskies missed eight straight shots over the next seven minutes – including three that were blocked by the Lopez twins – as Stanford established control early, 15-7.

Observations: This was Washington’s worst home loss - and first double-digit loss at home – since an 86-62 loss to Gonzaga in December 2003. … UW’s Tim Morris, who started his career at Stanford, scored four points against his old teammates. … Stanford’s Mitch Johnson, a junior from Seattle (O’Dea), had eight points and seven rebounds. … UW missed 10 of its first 13 free throws before hitting their next eight. … UW’s Jon Brockman said he was limited by a groin injury. … In the crowd were UW recruit Isaiah Thomas of Tacoma, now attending a prep school in Connecticut; and the mother of freshman Matthew Bryan-Amaning, visiting from Ghana.

Quotable: “I don’t know what it was. I don’t want to discredit the job Stanford did. They thoroughly beat us. But I would have liked to have played with a little more passion tonight with so much at stake.” – UW coach Lorenzo Romar.

The Huskies missed eight straight shots over a several-minute stretch early -- including three blocks -- and Stanford took early control. They haven't really let up.

Brook Lopez is doing the most damage with 15 points and five rebounds.

Washington's Jon Brockman had six points and five rebounds, while Ryan Appleby also has six points on a pair of threes.

Stanford is dominating the boards, 20-13. Stanford is dominating points in the paint, 16-6. Washington is shooting 34.8 percent.

Several of those numbers have to improve if UW is going to have any chance in the next 20 minutes.

Former Husky Brandon Roy was named today to his first NBA All-Star team.

Here's a report from the Oregonian.

The Huskies don't lose at home much, and they've won five straight over Stanford at Hec Edmundson Pavilion. However, the Cardinal comes into its big game tonight as a two-point favorite.

If they're right, that would be a huge two points to the Huskies' postseason hopes.

Meanwhile, some interesting folks are expected to be watching tonight. Matthew Bryan-Amaning's mother is here from Ghana. And UW recruit and former Curtis star Isaiah Thomas is expected to attend also.

Unfortunately, there is no TV coverage. However, I'll click in here as news breaks, then again with a halftime report, and then again with postgame notes and quotes.

(And speaking of TV, next week's home game against Southern California, which hadn't been scheduled for coverage, will be shown live (7 p.m.) on FSN Prime Ticket and Fox College Sports, but tape delayed on regular FSN.)

Football coach Tyrone Willingham made it official today, naming Ed Donatell as the Huskies' new defensive coordinator.

Willingham said that Donatell won't bring any particular defensive style to impose, but rather will run whatever defense they decide will suit their personnel.

Here is my story.

Here is the UW announcement.

And meanwhile, Jon Tenuta, whose name floated a time or two as a candidate for the UW job, signed on today with Notre Dame.

Coach Tyrone Willingham will officially introduce his new defensive coordinator this morning.

Obviously, I'll click right back in once the announcement is made.

As most Huskies fans know, the Seattle Times today concluded a four-day look at criminal and other wrongdoing within the football program, with emphasis on Rick Neuheisel's 2001 Rose Bowl team.

Many fans have been upset that the series digs up mostly old dirt and that the timing could hurt the current recruiting class and the university's chances of getting the Legislature to approve public dollars for the Husky Stadium renovation.

Here is a response from the university, including statements from acting athletic director Scott Woodward and football coach Tyrone Willingham.

Also, here is a News Tribune editorial on the series.

(And though not directly related, here is a News Tribune editorial on the stadium-financing issue.)

As for me, I was hooked for three days. However, I thought the most crucial day would be Day Four, when they promised to show how those problems of years ago are affecting the program today. I thought they were less successful in doing that, and so I see the series mostly as a cautionary tale of the past. Interesting history, not quite the vital and useful current events I had hoped.

However, that is a very different criticism from some I have heard voiced by many fans on other UW blogs and message boards. Many fans seem to believe that this is a deliberate hatchet job by the Times, intended to hurt recruiting or doom the stadium funding plan or to boost the current -- presumably cleaner -- coach, Tyrone Willingham.

Those things I don't believe. It's just not the type of motivation I've seen in more than 30 years in the business. And as a purely practical matter, a series of that depth takes months of reporting, and therefore it was begun long before anyone knew UW would go to the Legislature for funding, and probably even before it was clear that there would be a super recruting class to affect. (And I don't know why this series would affect it... most of the key characters are no longer at the university.)

Finally, I think it would be wrong for any Coug or Duck or fan of any other school to read the bottom line as necessarily exclusive to UW. I think the series should be read as bigger than that. It reveals not a bad university but a bad motivation -- an imbalance of athlete over student. UW certainly wasn't alone in that.

But all of that is a perspective from outside the Times newsroom. Here is a final link to the KJR Web site where in their On Demand section you will find a link to their Wednesday night interview with David Boardman of the Seattle Times.

And here is a link to Stewart Mandel of SI, who calls the series "the most thoroughly reported, meticulously written investigative project I've read in my nine years covering this sport."

At the start of the season, UW leading scorer and rebounder Jon Brockman said he is having fun in college and will certainly return for his senior year.

Asked Tuesday, he gave a hazier answer -- that he's focusing on college now and will decide anything else after the season.

That doesn't mean he's going. Brockman doesn't currently project as a lottery pick ... or even necessarily a first-round pick. And he admits he could increase his stock by improving his free throw shooting, his outside shot and his ball handling in a senior season.

Also Tuesday, coach Lorenzo Romar said that while the 6-foot-7 Brockman isn't as tall as the NBA would like for a power forward, he also believes that Brockman will "find his way into the NBA" ... eventually.

Here's the report from the LA Times.

The list of Wooden Award (college basketball player of the year) condidates has been cut from a preseason list of 50 to a mid-season list of 30, and UW forward Jon Brockman remains among them.

Brockman is second in the nation with 11.5 rebounds per game. He leads the Pac-10 with 13 double-doubles. He leads UW and is fourth in the conference with a 19.1 scoring average.

Here's the news from the Huskies' Web site.

The Huskies had no runs in them in the second half and the Wildcats won as easily as the score makes it sound.

Huskies fall to 3-4 in the conference. However, they took consolation on the road split and hope to take care of business as they begin a four-game homestand Thursday against Stanford.

Star of the game: Arizona freshman Jerryd Bayless hit nine of 11 shots, including five of six 3-pointers. His 26 points were the most by a UW opponent this season.

Key stats: Arizona shot 62.2 percent from the field, negating Washington’s 52.6 percentage. … Arizona hit 13 3-pointers. … Jon Brockman, UW’s leading scorer and rebounder, played only 27 minutes due to foul trouble.

Key run: Arizona scored the final eight points of the first half, ballooning its five-point lead to 45-32, and headed to the locker room with the crowd roaring.

Observations: Arizona set two high marks for a UW opponent this season: highest shooting percentage and most 3-pointers. … The Wildcats were shooting over 70 percent into the game’s final minutes before missing their last five shots. … UW center Joe Wolfinger scored 11 points in his first significant playing time since the start of conference play.

Quotable: “It’s a great lesson to young kids and anyone. He hasn’t played very much very often lately. But he comes to practice and works every day and doesn’t complain. (Saturday) he got an opportunity and made the most of it.” – Washington coach Lorenzo Romar on Wolfinger.

Next: 7 p.m. Thursday, vs. No. 20 Stanford, Hec Edmundson Pavilion.

Jon Brockman picked up his second foul less than five minutes in, and the Huskies had to go about seven minutes without him. That sure didn't help, but the Huskies hung around without their star, trailing 30-21 when he returned. However, Arizona made a nice run down the stretch -- with Brockman on the court -- and the Wildcats seem well in control right now.

Jordan Hill leads everyone with 13 points and seven rebounds. He certainly benefitted from Brockman's absence, but he was a game-changer against Washington State on Thursday, and he's doing the same on both ends today.

Despite the absence, Brockman leads UW with 10 points, Matthew Bryan Amaning leads the Dawgs with four rebounds.

The other story of the half has been the refs, who are who called 21 fouls in 20 minutes of play.

Just two and three seasons ago, an Arizona-Washington men's basketball game was crucial to the title race of the Pacific-10 Confernce. These days both teams are smack in the middle of the league race at 3-3. In an odd way, that makes today's game in Tucson more important than the old days. The winner moves into the top half of the league race and in solid NCAA position, while the loser goes back into the bottom half and the road to the big dance gets that much tougher.

A win could loom particularly large for the Huskies, who after today will play four straight home games, setting up the possibility of a real mid-season surge.

Here is my story from today's paper.

And meanwhile, Bruce Pascoe's story in the Arizona Daily Star uses his game preview for an interesting look at this season's cluttered league race.

Finally, we'll have our usual game-day blogging plan: pre-game news if/when it breaks, then halftime and postgame notes and quotes.

Tip is at noon, and the game is on FSN.

Here's the piece that ran this morning on UW's continuing plans for public funds for Husky Stadium.

Here's our piece on likely new defensive coordinator Ed Donatell.

And here's a release from the UW Web site on ticket prices for the coming season.

It appears that Ed Donatell, a longtime NFL coach most recently serving under Jim Mora with the Atlanta Falcons has been offered and will accept the Washington defensive coordinator job.

Donatell, 50, is a former UW graduate assistant under Don James in 1981 and '82. He went on to assistant jobs at Pacific, Idaho and Cal State before moving to the NFL as an assistant with the Jets, Broncos, Packers and Falcons.

UW says no official announcement is scheduled, but amid all the rumors of the past weeks, it appears that this time the Huskies have gotten their guy.

Here is a quote that I found of him discussing his defensive philosophy: “I want to apply the application that’s going to allow us to be successful. But any coordinator loves a four-man front that you can depend on, that gives you coverage opportunities. But I love to blitz. When I can see the opportunity and the advantage to it, I love to do that because it helps your aggression.”

And here is a USA Today story from when Donatell got the Atlanta job.

I'll be back talking UW athletics with Dave "The Groz" Grosby at a new time, 1:35 p.m. Friday on KJR, 950-AM.

I would suspect we'll discuss this increasingly interesting UW basketball trip to Arizona and the latest on the Husky Stadium renovation.

The conversation also will be streamed over the Internet.

Very nice win for the Huskies, beating the No. 24 team on their home floor, where the Sun Devils had been 11-0 this season.

Because everybody's a lot looser after a win, the Huskies had fun talking about coach Lorenzo Romar's outburst early in the first half, when he was trying to get his team to stop rushing bad shots. For emphasis, he threw down his clipboard, but he didn't quite get the angle right, and the thing went sliding across the court. He said he didn't intend to do that, but the display got his Huskies' attention and obviously, they won.

The win also moves the Huskies to .500 in the conference race at 3-3, same record as their next opponent: Arizona. With those losses to Syracuse and Texas A&M and Pitt in the preseason, the Huskies best chance for the postseason seems to be finishing in the top half of the Pac-10, so things are getting interesting there, too.

Some other notes:

Star of the game: UW forward Jon Brockman had a game-high 21 points and 16 rebounds in recording his 13th double-double of the season. He also played tough defense on Arizona State’s Jeff Pendergraph, who ended the night with nine points on 3-for-10 shooting.

Key stats: Arizona State shot 32.1 percent from the field. Washington shot 38.6. … The Huskies survived a 2-for-10 shooting night from Ryan Appleby.

Key run: Washington was trailing 24-15 just over eight minutes into the game. Then, junior Joel Smith nailed back-to-back 3-pointers and assisted a Brockman basket under the hoop, igniting a 12-0 run that gave the Huskies the lead and helped quiet the crowd.

Observations: Washington has now beaten ASU 11 straight times. … UW senior guard Tim Morris had a career-high eight rebounds. … This was the Sun Devils’ first home loss of the season. … The win pulled UW even at 3-3 in conference play, while knocking the Sun Devils instantly out of the league lead, and probably out of next week’s national rankings.

Quotable: “If he was 5-foot-11 and weighed 150 pounds, I still think he’d be how he is. It’s just the mentality he has. … Sometimes guys are just going to do what they do just because they have it in their head that nobody is going to stop them.” - Pendergraph on Brockman.

(Great quote, eh?)

The Huskies will practice around midday today at Arizona, and we'll get to talk to Romar and the players then.

I'll jump back after that with any new developments.

The game is noon Saturday. And unlike last night, this one will be on TV back to Puget Sound.

Well, let's start with this: James Harden seems to be feeling just fine. Dazzling player. A younger Brandon Roy in some ways. And the Sun Devils' chief weapon with 13 points.

The Huskies started with real troubles getting through the ASU zone, so they tried shooting over it for a while. And finally, that started working. At one brief point when ASU seemed to be pulling away at 22-15, Joel Smith hit back-to-back threes to get the Huskies back in it.

UW is led by Brockman with 10 points and nine rebounds, so nearly a halftime double-double. Smith has nine, Morris eight, so the veterans are leading the way.

The half also featured Lorenzo Romar about as angry as I've seen him during one timeout, punctuated by a clipboard that came bouncing out of the UW huddle and onto the middle of the court.

Neither team shooting wekk -- UW 34.4 percent, ASU 29.6 percent.

Bottom line: The game is right there for either team. ASU needs it to stay atop the conference. But there also is all kinds of upside to UW stealing a big road win tonight with Arizona up next.

ASU freshman James Harden, the No. 5 scorer in the Pac-10, is listed in the starting lineup for tonight's game against Washington.

Harden had been considered a gametime decision since suffering a groin injury against Stanford.

Washington's starting lineup is unchanged.

By the way, the Phoenix area is getting heavily into the spirit for next week's Super Bowl. There were banners all around the airport, and Spike, the Super Bowl mascot, is here at the basketball game tonight.

Both teams in final warmups now: Huskies in purple, Sun Devils in white.

I'll click back at halftime, or earlier if news breaks.

Apparenly getting half of the Husky Stadium renovation money -- $150 million -- from the state Legislature isn't going to be as easy at it initially seemed. And apparently the money isn't coming this session, if at all.

Here is the takefrom The News Tribune newsroom.

Arizona State freshman sensation James Harden, the No. 5 scorer in the Pac-10, is warming up with his teammates about an hour before tip. However, while his shooting seems lights-out, he does not seem to be moving very well. His status is a big deal in this game, and there's no clear message yet ... except maybe that if he plays he won't be at 100 percent.

Oh, how the Huskies' perceptions have fallen. I was driving in from the airport and dialed into a Phoenix sports-talk station. The announcer was saying that given the choices in the area tonight, he'll probably skip the Sun Devils and go watch Coyotes hockey. Saturday, however, when Washington State comes to town, then, he said, he'll go watch ASU.

He also speculated that Arizona State should have enough to beat the Huskies, even if freshman James Harden doesn't play.

On that topic, however, I haven't heard any firm news since arriving. It still appears to be a gametime decision.

Meanwhile, I'll post back if I hear anything from the arena.

And with NO TV tonight, I'll try to post a little more detail at halftime and after the game.

Internet speculation out of Atlanta says that Jon Tenuta could wind up at the new defensive coordinator at UW. However, there seems to nothing new about to break.

Tenuta was defensive coordinator and briefly acting head coach at Tech. Here is his resume from the Georgia Tech web site.

The Huskies left for the Valley of the Sun on Wednesday. Ahead for them are a pair of important games ... made all the more important because neither seems out of reach: Arizona State at 6 p.m. Thursday and Arizona at noon Saturday.

My preview story in the Thursday paper focuses on the key freshmen at Arizona State and Arizona, but especially on the two UW freshmen who aren't playing much but who apparently are making progress behind the scenes: Darnell Gant and Justin Holiday.

I spoke to each this week. Here are a few of their thoughts:

HOLIDAY, on when he will return to the court: I just have to keep playing, doing what I’m doing. When he needs me, he needs me and I’ll be able to come in and do what I can do.

And Gant, who is redshirting, on what he's learning this season: "I think that redshirting was a great opportunity for me to improve on my skills, increase my work ethic and try to work hard on everything that needs to be done. … My defense is getting better. When I got to college the guards are faster than they were in high school, so I have to adjust. Now I’m getting better at my help-side defense where now I’m able to block shots at this level. It’s all coming from a jump from high school to college, and I feel that I’m making that adjustment very rapidly."

Gant on his role next season: "I really do see how I can help my team. I see a big vision for the team, a big uprising for the team. This team can do many good thing if we just gel together and mix to where we can just have fun and play like we’re suppose to, like real Husky basketball should be played."

Gant on his style of play: "I’m going to bring that fire, that desire to win. You see how Joel Smith acts and how Quincy Pondexter acts on the floor? How they get excited and play off emotion? That’s kind of how I am, I play off emotion. … I tend to rise to the occasion where I tend to help my team. I’m not a selfish player, I never have been, I never will be. I won’t be the type that will try to shoot all the shots. I’ll try to just be everything that they need me to do and what I feel that I have to do to help my team win a basketball game."

Turning back to the task ahead:

WASHINGTON (11-7 OVERALL, 2-3 PAC-10)
AT NO. 22 ARIZONA STATE (14-3, 4-1)
6 p.m., Wells Fargo Arena, Tempe, Ariz.
TV: None.
Radio: 950-AM

Series: Arizona State leads 33-30 overall and 20-10 in Tempe. However, UW has won the last 10 meetings, the longest current streak in the Pac-10. In the most recent meeting, the Huskies eliminated the Sun Devils from the 2007 Pac-10 Tournament in Los Angeles.

Statistical leaders: For UW, F Jon Brockman, 18.7 ppg and 11.6 rpg; G Venoy Overton, 3.5 apg. For ASU, G James Harden, 18.6 ppg; F Jeff Pendergraph, 6.9 rpg; G Derek Glasser, 4.4 apg.

Scouting report: The availability of Harden, the No. 5 scorer in the league, could be a game time decision due to a groin injury. … The Sun Devils are off to their best start since the 1980-81 team, which featured Byron Scott, Alton Lister and Fat Lever. … ASU plays an aggressive zone defense. The Sun Devils lead the league in steals, and 3-point shooting and are second in assist-to-turnover ratio and field-goal percentage. They rank 20th nationally in scoring defense (59.2 ppg). … ASU guard Derek Glasser leads the Pac-10 in assist-to-turnover ratio. … Brockman was selected Pac-10 player of the week for his play against the Oregon schools last week. … ASU is 11-0 at home this season after going 7-11 last season.

Next: Noon Saturday, at Arizona, McKale Center, Tucson, Ariz.; FSN.

Guard Adrian Oliver, who left the UW basketball program earlier this season, has formally become a San Jose State Spartan, as has been widely expected.

Here is the release from San Jose State.

Oregon's proposed new $200 million basketball arena seems to be slowly moving closer to reality. And now the place has a face, as the university released artists drawings of the place, which could hardly look more different than the existing Mac Court.

Here are the drawings and the latest news on the arena's progress toward reality.

Wow, what a sinking ship of a season they're enduring in Corvallis.

Here is the latest.

In other Pac-10 personnel news, Arizona State freshman sensation James Harden suffered a groin injury over the weekend.

Coach Herb Sendek said this morning that Harden's status is day-to-day, which means we may not know if he'll play against the Huskies until the starting lineups are announced Thursday.

UW forward Jon Brockman has been named Pac-10 player of the week for his play in the Huskies wins over Oregon and Oregon State.

Here is the conference news release:

University of Washington junior Jon Brockman, who averaged 23.5 points and 15.0 rebounds in two wins, was named the U.S. Bank Pacific-10 Conference Men’s Basketball Player of the Week for Jan. 14-20, Commissioner Tom Hansen announced Monday.

Brockman, a junior from Snohomish (Wash.) High School, registered two double-doubles while shooting 62 percent from the field last week to lead the Huskies to a pair of home victories over their Northwest rivals.

The 6-foot-7 forward converted 7-of-10 shots from the field in a 78-70 win over Oregon on Jan. 17. He amassed 21 points, 16 rebounds, three steals and two assists in Washington’s seventh straight home victory over the Ducks.

Brockman supplied a game-high 26 points and 14 rebounds along with two assists, leading the Huskies to an 83-74 win over Oregon State on Jan. 19.

He recorded his eighth and ninth 20-point performances of the season.

Brockman, who led all Pac-10 players in rebounding and double-doubles last season, is averaging a double-double with 18.7 points and a conference-leading 11.6 rebounds per game. His 12 double-doubles lead all Pac-10 players this season.

This is the fourth time Brockman has received the Pac-10’s weekly award, his third this season. He earned the conference honor on Dec. 24 and Nov. 20. Brockman was also recognized once last season, on Feb. 12, 2007.

Brockman is just the second UW player to receive four Pac-10 Player of the Week awards during his career. He joins Brandon Roy, who collected three of his four Pac-10 weekly honors during the 2005-06 season.

Brockman garnered the 32nd Player of the Week recognition for a Husky. He is a Wooden Award Candidate and was a member of the All-Pac-10 team in 2007.

OSU coach Jay John's loss to Washington on Saturday was his last one. Amid building rumors and pressure, the school has now relieved him of his duties.

Here is the announcement from Oregon State.

I happen to be the Washington voter for the AP men's basketball Top 25 this season.

Here's this week's poll results, and here's the ballot I sent in:

1. Memphis
2. Kansas
3. North Carolina
4. Washington State
5. Duke
6. Tennessee
7. Indiana
8. UCLA
9. Georgetown
10. Michigan State
11. Texas
12. Texas A&M
13. Wisconsin
14. Mississippi
15. Vanderbilt
16. Butler
17. Pittsburgh
18. Marquette
19. Villanova
20. Drake
21. Arizona State
22. Dayton
23. Stanford
24. Baylor
25. Clemson

Our weekly quick look at Huskies basketball:

LAST WEEK
Washington (11-7 overall, 2-3 Pac-10) climbed back into the crowded middle of the conference race by sweeping the Oregon schools: a free-flowing 78-70 win over the Ducks, followed by a physical 83-74 win over the Beavers. Jon Brockman contributed double-doubles in both games and several role players stepped up their contributions.

SOMETHING TO BUILD ON
Freshmen Venoy Overton and Matthew Bryan-Amaning seemed to grow up quickly this week, culminating with career-highs for each in the OSU game: 12 points for Bryan-Amaning, and seven assists for Overton. The Huskies also showed their ability to win different types of games, keeping pace with the Ducks and banging with Oregon State.

SOMETHING TO WORK ON
The Huskies continue to rank among the worst free-throw shooting teams, hitting 57 percent against Oregon and 63 percent against OSU. It seems inevitable that giving away that many points will eventually cost them a game in a competitive league. Ryan Appleby’s shot returned against UO, but he was 2-for-8 from the field vs. the Beavers.

THE WEEK AHEAD
The Huskies are 1-5 away from home this season, and this week sends them on what has become one of the toughest road trips in the Pac-10: meeting Arizona State on Thursday and Arizona on Saturday. The surprising Sun Devils have a share of the league lead, while the Wildcats have the same Pac-10 record – and the same desperation – as UW.

POSTSEASON OUTLOOK
Consecutive conference wins have moved the Huskies into a three-way tie for sixth place in the Pac-10. Although it is still early, sixth projects as a crucial spot, perhaps the dividing line in the league standings between the NCAA tournament or the NIT or less. However, UW’s 107 RPI is ninth in the league, so a road win this week looms crucial.

A bullet dodged.

The Beavers didn't quit. In fact the game got rough, and almost out of hand at the end. But the Huskies finally pulled one out that they couldn't afford to lose. And the Beavers and embattled coach Jay John got another frustrating loss.

Some highlights:

Star of the game: UW forward Jon Brockman scored 26 points and grabbed 14 rebounds – both game highs. It was his 12th double-double of the season, most in the Pacific-10 Conference.

Key stats: Washington scored 10 fastbreak points, Oregon State scored none. … The Beavers hit only one of 14 3-point attempts (7.1 percent), that one coming in the final minute. The Huskies weren’t much better, hitting two of 11 (18.2). … Both teams got 19 points from the foul line, but OSU did it in 21 attempts, while UW took 30.

Key run: Over the last four and a half minutes, Washington hit nine consecutive shots, charging back from five points behind.

Observations: UW junior guard Justin Dentmon suffered a fractured right front tooth and needed six stitches after catching an elbow from OSU’s Josh Tarver in the final minutes. … UW two playing freshmen each set career highs: 12 points for forward Matthew Bryan-Amaning, and seven assists for point guard Venoy Overton. … Brockman was assessed with his first technical foul since he was given one in high school for hanging on the rim.

Quotable: “I’ve never seen Jon lose his temper for longer than half a second. When you play as physical a game, I’m surprised he’s not in more skirmishes. I don’t mean hauling off and hitting someone or getting kicked out, but just once in a while something might break out. ... To Jon’s credit you rarely see things happen like that.” – UW coach Lorenzo Romar, on Brockman’s technical.

Next: 6 p.m. Thursday, at Arizona State, Wells Fargo Arena, Tempe.

The Trojans beat fourth-ranked UCLA today.

When the score was announced at Hec Ed, the crowd cheered. But this may not really be in UW's best interest. Washington's best path to the postseason right now seems like an upper-half finish in the Pac-10 standings. And while no one expects the Huskies to get ahead of UCLA, there did seem to be a chance of nudging ahead of USC. That, however, became tougher today.

We've all got enough color-commentator in us to know what you're not supposed to let a big underdog do. You're not supposed to let them hang around.

The Huskies are letting the Beavers hang around.

The Huskies have given away five points at the free throw line, which has become their habit. But they've also missed a lot from close range. Both teams are shooting around 40 percent, and the Huskies are dominating the boards.

UW is being led by its juniors: Brockman eight points, Dentmon seven. Calvin Hampton leads OSU with 10 points.

Bottom line, things look OK. Except it seems like they should have a 10 point lead, and it's only four. That often comes back to bite you.

Washington is favorited by 14 points over Oregon State in their 3 p.m. game today.

The Beavers seem to be so much of a mess right now that it almost seems like a trap game if the Huskies aren't concentrating. However, that really hasn't been the case much with Lorenzo Romar teams. Both with his tournament teams and over the past season and a half, the Huskies have generally beaten the teams they should beat. I expect that to be the case again today.

In any case, we're just hours away from finding out. The game is on FSN, and I'll click in here with pregame, halftime and postgame reports.

A staggering bunch of Oregon State Beavers come to Hec Ed to meet the Huskies on Saturday. For a great behind-the-scenes look at a crumbling season, check out this full-access story by John Canzano of the Oregonian.

Meanwhile, we just got a few minutes with coach Lorenzo Romar (who said he isn't interested in giving any reporters such access). He also doesn't have any idea what affect the OSU distractions might have on the Beavers, but he's comfortable that his team won't take anything for granted.

The basics:

OREGON STATE (6-11 OVERALL, 0-5 PAC-10)
AT WASHINGTON (10-7, 1-3)
3 p.m. Saturday, Hec Edmundson Pavilion.

TV: FSN.
Radio: 950-AM
Series: Washington leads 145-136 overall and 97-40 in Seattle. The Huskies have won six of the last eight meetings and four straight at home. Last season, the teams split with each winning on its home floor.
Statistical leaders: For OSU, G Seth Tarver, 12.8 ppg; F Marcel Jones, 6.5 rpg; G Josh Tarver, 2.9 apg. For UW, F Jon Brockman 18.3 ppg and 11.4 rpg; G Venoy Overton, 3.3 apg.
Scouting report: The Beavers are the only Pac-10 team without a win in league play, the only league team with an overall losing record and the only one with a negative scoring margin, averaging 2.4 points per game less than their opponents. … Coach Jay John’s job is widely considered to be in jeopardy. … UW and OSU are the two worst free-throw shooting teams in the conference. Oregon State is last in the Pac-10 in scoring, field goal percentage, 3-point field goal percentage, assists and defensive rebounding. … Brockman is the Pac-10 leader in rebounding and double-doubles (11).
Next: 6 p.m. Thursday, at Arizona State, Wells Fargo Arena, Tempe, Ariz.

I'll be back talking UW athletics with Dave "The Groz" Grosby at a new time, 2:20 p.m. Friday on KJR, 950-AM. As always seems to be the case, there should be no shortage of things to talk about between the Husky Stadium proposal and the basketball win over Oregon.

The conversation also will be streamed over the Internet.

Yesterday was a big day for UW athletics.

Most importantly, there was the plan to go to the Legislature for half the money needed for a $300 million renovation of Husky Stadium. Here is our news story on that. And here is columnist John McGrath's take on the issue. And here is the take from the Huskies Web site.

Thursday also brough the Huskies first win of the Pac-10 basketball season, a fast-paced win over Oregon. Here is our game coverage.

Badly needing a win, the Huskies got one, their first in Pac-10 play and with Oregon State coming up Saturday.

I thought the story of the game was the pace. It had been a while since the Huskies had an opponent who wanted to get it up and down the court, and they reacted well. It was a really fun game for the nice Hec Ed crowd.

The other story was Ryan Appleby coming out of his two-game slump. And then there was the continued development of freshmen Venoy Overton and Matthew Bryan-Amaning. If they grow up fast, this team may yet live up to Jon Brockman's belief that they can still make the postseason.

Some notes:

Star of the game: Brockman produced his Pac-10 leading 11th double-double of the season with a team-high 21 points and 16 rebounds.

Key stats: Washington held Oregon 12 points below their Pac-10-leading scoring average. … The Huskies had 17 assists and 11 turnovers in a fast-tempo game. … UW dominated the boards, 45-33. ... Free throws continue to be a problem for the Huskies who went 15-for-26 (57.7 percent).

Key run: Oregon clipped Washington’s lead to three-points in the final two minutes. Then Venoy Overton found Ryan Appleby, who hit a 3-pointer that set up a strong stretch run by the Huskies.

Observations: Appleby had 19 points after being shutout over the previous two games. … This was Oregon’s seventh straight loss in Hec Edmundson Pavilion. … Oregon’s Maarty Leunen, who came into the game tied with Brockman for the Pac-10 lead with 10 double-doubles, had 22 points and but only six rebounds. … UW’s first win in league play leaves Oregon State as the only Pac-10 team without a conference win.

Quotable: “It is Brockman, No. 1. He is just a relentless rebounder, and they are a relentless rebounding team, so you need to be a relentless block-out team.” ¬– Oregon coach Ernie Kent on the rebounding disparity.

Next: 3 p.m. Saturday, vs. Oregon State, Hec Edmundson Pavilion.

Wow, just like the old days. Bodies flying up and down the court, shots swishing through the nets, crowd roaring. Lots o' fun at Hed Ed tonight.

Obviously, the Ducks are dictating the tempo, because this game is nothing like the Huskies' first three conference games. But the Dawgs are keeping up just fine.

Despite the fast pace, it's the big guys battling for scoring honors: Jon Brockman and Maarty Leunen with 13 each.

Also encouraging -- beyond what shows up on the stats sheet -- is the play of UW freshmen Mathew Bryan-Amaning and Venoy Overton. Both growing up quickly tonight, with MBA building on what he showed last weekend at USC, and with Overton apparently feeling comfortable in his match with Oregon's quick but small Tajuan Porter.

A reminder, it's on FSN, and it's hard to imagine there much on TV tonight as much fun as this one has been.

I'll be back after the game with notes, quotes and final thoughts.

The Husky Stadium renovation committee briefed the board of regents today on a scaled back $300 million renovation plan, with half of the funds coming from state money.

Interim athletic director Scott Woodward says early reaction from the Legislature has been good, and a quick check by The News Tribune legislative team is backing that up.

If the Legislature goes thumbs up, ground could be broken after the coming season, the 2009 season could be played at Qwest Field, and the Huskies could move into their new digs for the 2010 season. However, Woodward held out some hope that the Huskies might not have to go off campus.

Those new digs would include a new lower bowl much closer to field, which would be lowered and the track removed.

The scaled-back piece is the west end zone, which will still be moved about 100 feet closer to the field, but which will no longer include the coaches offices, team shop and other support facilities that would have made it something of a front door to the UW football program.

Washington's Feb. 16 men's basketball game at Oregon State that was previously listed as TBA is now set for 4 p.m. and will be shown on FSN.

If you don't think home court is a major thing in college basketball, just look at today's lineup of Pac-10 games, where ever home team is favored.

That included the Huskies, who are two-point favorites over the Oregon.

UW fans must hope that the odds-makers are right, because the Huskies are down to very little margin for error from here -- they'll pretty much need to sweep their remaining home games, split on the road and pick up a tournament game or two for any NCAA hopes.

Here is my preview story from today's paper, which deals with the Huskies' need to get some offense tonight -- as well as their recently improved defense -- in order to keep up with the high-scoring Ducks.

The Huskies return to action at the unusual start time of 6 p.m. Thursday with an almost desperately important home game against Oregon (12-4, 3-1) at Hec Edmundson Pavilion. Tickets remain available, and the game will be telecast on FSN.

The game shapes up as a change of pace for UW, who opened the Pac-10 season with three primarily defensive teams: WSU, UCLA and USC. The Ducks, meanwhile, score -- and allow -- more points than anyone else in the Pac-10.

It will be interesting to see if the Huskies can keep up.

Some notes:

Series: Washington leads 179-101 overall and 106-33 in Seattle. The teams split last season with each winning on its home floor. The Ducks have lost six straight in Seattle.

Statistical leaders: For Oregon, G Malik Hairston, 18.1 ppg; F Maarty Leunen, 9.9 rpg; G Kamyron Brown, 4.5 apg. For UW, F Jon Brockman, 18.1 ppg and 11.1 rpg; G Venoy Overton, 3.2 apg.

Scouting report: Oregon leads the Pac-10 in scoring offense, averaging 82.3 points per game. However, the Ducks are last in scoring defense, allowing 73.1 ppg. Oregon also is last in the league in turnover margin (minus-0.5) … Since Dec. 1, the Huskies are allowing an average of 63.9 ppg and haven’t allowed more than 75 to any opponent. … UW leads the Pac-10 in 3-point percentage (38.7) and offensive rebounds (15.3). … UW guard Ryan Appleby hasn’t scored in two consecutive games and his scoring average has fallen to 9.3 ppg. … This game pairs the Pac-10 leaders in double-doubles: Brockman and Leunen, who have 10 each this season. … Leunen passed 1,000 career points last week, joining teammates Hairston (1,411) and Bryce Taylor (1,247). … All five seniors on the UO roster have already earned their degrees.

Next: 3 p.m. Saturday, vs. Oregon State, Hec Edmundson Pavilion.

UW basketball coach Lorenzo Romar has used different lineups in all three Pac-10 games so far – all losses – and he said he hasn’t yet decided on his lineup for Thursday, when Oregon visits Hec Edmundson Pavilion.

What he said today that I found especially interesting today was that he might be better off with football rules, because right now he seems to have an offensive team and a defensive team and even a ball-handling team, but not as much versatility as he would like.

“It's been more difficult than in other years to come up with the group that best fits our team because you’ve got to kind of mix and match," he said. "If we have this group in there, maybe we don’t have the best scorers. Well, if we put the best scorers maybe we don’t guard as well. Well, let’s put this group together but then maybe it’s hard to pass because these guys aren’t as good as passers. Let’s put them together, but then maybe we have no shooters. That’s been probably the toughest part in selecting a lineup and maybe why there have been so many changes."

Meanwhile, the Ducks lead the Pac-10 in scoring and will present a different challenge from the defensive-oriented teams the Huskies have faced in league play so far: WSU, UCLA and Southern California.

Finally, Romar said he believes Ryan Appleby will bounce back after being held scoreless in his last two games.

And Appleby said that, too.

UW receiver Marcel Reece and tailback Louis Rankin have been selected to take part in a Texas-against-the-world college all-star game Feb. 1 in El Paso.

Here is that UW news release.

Here's our weekly look back and look ahead for Huskies basketball:

LAST WEEK
Washington (9-7 overall, 0-3 Pac-10) was swept by the Los Angeles schools, losing 69-55 to UCLA on Thursday, then falling 66-51 to Southern California on Saturday. Winning at Pauley Pavilion has been difficult for the Huskies even in the best of times, but the USC game seemed to offer a real chance for a road win and momentum.

SOMETHING TO BUILD ON
Junior forward Jon Brockman continues to be the one dependable Husky, recording 32 points and 18 rebounds on the trip. Center Artem Wallace played solid defense on UCLA’s Kevin Love, and guard Tim Morris did the same on USC’s O.J. Mayo. Freshman forward Matthew Bryan-Amaning was active and effective at USC.

SOMETHING TO WORK ON
Scoring, scoring, scoring. The Huskies haven’t topped 55 points since the start of conference play. The team shot 42 percent at UCLA and 33 percent at USC. Senior guard Ryan Appleby was shutout on the trip, and other Huskies didn’t make the defenses pay for the attention they aimed at Appleby.

THE WEEK AHEAD
Oregon arrives on Thursday and Oregon State follows on Saturday. The Ducks will visit Seattle fresh from a 71-66 win over No. 23 Stanford on Sunday. The Beavers join the Huskies as the only Pac-10 teams still looking for their first league win. Of course, that number will be reduced by Saturday night.

POSTSEASON OUTLOOK
In tough times coach Lorenzo Romar often points to the 2003-04 team that lost its first five conference games before winning 14 of their next 16 and bolting into the NCAA tournament. This UW hole is already deep enough where that kind of turnaround would be needed again, and it better start with a home sweep this week.

Here is my game story, and here is the take from the LA Times.

The bottom line is that UW leaves LA in the unwanted company of Oregon State as the only Pac-10 teams without a conference win, and the Huskies understand the trouble they have gotten themselves into.

"If you get too deep in this league, if you lose too many, you put yourself in a real real tough situation, and we’re in a pretty tough situation right now," senior guard Tim Morris said. "We’re a little buried in the hole, and we have to dig outselves out. It’s not that we have any teams coming up that are going to be easy to play."

Other notes:

Star of the game: USC forward Dwight Lewis led all scorers with 17 points. On an afternoon of poor shooting by both teams, he was the rare player to hit most of his shots: seven of 12 from the field, two of three from the free throw line.

Key stats: Washington committed 20 turnovers. … The Huskies turned 22 offensive rebounds into only eight second-chance points. … UW shot 33.3 percent from the field. … This was Washington’s third straight game scoring 55 points or fewer.

Key run: After trailing for the first 28 minutes and 41 second, Washington finally took the lead, 41-40, on a Joel Smith 3-pointer. USC answered almost instantly with a 14-0 run that settled it.

Observations: Coach Lorenzo Romar tweaked his starting lineup for the second consecutive game, inserting point guard Venoy Overton in place of Justin Dentmon. … USC freshman O.J. Mayo, the second-leading scorer in the Pac-10, had one point at halftime on 0-for-6 shooting. Mostly well-guarded by Morris, Mayo ended with 15 points on 4-of-13 shooting. Mayo has reached double figures in all 16 games of his college career. … UW senior Ryan Appleby was shut out for the second consecutive game, missing all five of his shots.

Quotable: “What we’re trying to become is a veteran team that plays through adversity and plays through mistakes. We’re not there yet.” – UW coach Lorenzo Romar.

Next: 6 p.m. Thursday, vs. Oregon, Hec Edmundson Pavilion. FSN.

Offense has been rare on both sides so far.

And exhibit A is USC's heralded freshman O.J. Mayo, who has one point on 0-for-6 shooting and 1-for-3 from the line.

However, that could be bad news for the Huskies, who trail by six despite the Trojans' leading scorer being an absolute non-factor, and perhaps a liability.

On the other hand, the Huskies have been notably better in the second half of their last two road games -- at LSU and at UCLA. If that happens again this could still get interesting, because they've hung in striking distance without looking particularly good.

The problem is that UW is shooting 30 percent, USC 42 percent.

Leading scorer overall if USC forward Dwight Lewis with nine. Quincy Pondexter leaders UW with eight, including a couple of 3-pointers.

UW has control of the boards, 22-14.

Coach Lorenzo Romar has tweaked his starting lineup again today, re-inserting Venoy Overton, this time in place of Justin Dentmon.

Overton had started the first eight games of the season before going to the bench when Ryan Appleby came available.

The Huskies are out on the floor as I type this, wearing their purples today.

Meanwhile, quite a game across town today at Pauley Pavilion, where UCLA hung on to hand Washington State its first loss.

And I've got to say again that USC really nailed this building. Right there with Hec Ed for the best in the conference, as far as I'm concerned.

Anyway, usual gameday drill: I'll jump in here with any pregame notes, then click in with a halftime report, and then back postgame with final notes and quotes.

And, of course, if anyone clicks over after the Seahawks game, it would be great to hear your impressions (on the Huskies, I mean).

Yes, the Seahawks have a big game today. And yes, the Bruins and Cougars are meeting in what is probably the game of the day in college basketball.

But Washington's game at USC is a huge one in its own way too. That's because, unlike, say, WSU and UCLA, the Huskies and Trojans may be playing for survival. They're both looking for their first Pac-10 win to revive postseason hopes that can't survive many more losses.

As of yesterday, coach Lorenzo Romar seemed to honestly belive that he saw enough in losses to WSU and UCLA to give him hope of a top-half Pac-10 finish that would likely get his team into the NCAA tournament. And while he said today isn't necessarily essential, it's hard to imagine that goal surviving long with anything less than two wins over the next three games.

And the Trojans see things the same way.

Oregon Ducks tailback Jonathan Stewart of Lacey has decided to skip his senior season and go into the NFL draft. Here is the Oregon release.

I'll be back talking UW athletics with Dave "The Groz" Grosby again at our new time, 1:35 Friday on KJR, 950-AM. Although we might be the only ones doing so, as LA today already has instantly into a buzz about the Washington State-UCLA game on Saturday. UW's game at USC has a distincly lower buzz.

The conversation also will be streamed over the Internet.

Washington's schedule offers quite a welcome to Pac-10 play: first facing No. 4 and unbeaten Washington State, then No. 5 and once-beaten UCLA.

So, with those Cougars and Bruins about to meet Saturday here at Pauley Pavilion, we figured who better to ask than the Huskies.

In one case we even got an answer, as junior guard Justin Dentmon seemed to favor the Cougs: “I think (the Bruins) were good, but I don’t think they were as good a team as we’ve seen in the past," he said. "I thought we lost a little focus in the first half, and that’s when they got away. … Washington State is more poised. (UCLA) let us back in the game. They could have put us away.”

Junior forward Jon Brockman was considerably more diplomatic: "They’re both really good teams," he said. "They’re both great teams, and it’s going to be a good matchup."

Coach Lorenzo Romar also was cautious: "That’s going to be a really good game. That’s too tough for me to call, because it’s at Pauley. I would think that if it was at Washington State, Washington State would have the upper hand. At Pauley, we’ll see."

UCLA coach Ben Howland also took a look forward: "Washington State is so tough and so good. Dick Bennett did a tremendous job turning that program around, and Tony has been great for that team since. I have so much respect for that program. It's a fantastic story. Playing that is like getting a root canal without pain killers."

Meanwhile, the LA papers also gave short note of the UW-UCLA game and began instantly turning their attention to Bruins-Cougs. Here's the LA Daily News version.

And here's a roundup of last night's Pac-10 action.

The Huskies actually outscored UCLA in the second half. But they never got the margin back into single digits and therefore never really threatened.

And that's the way the Huskies kind of greeted it. They were disappointed that they let it get out of hand early. But sort of pleased with parts of their game, and especially the second half. Although it's hard to tell how involved UCLA was by then.

In any case, the Huskies are now 0-2 in Pac-10 play and headed to USC on Saturday. That sets up as a huge game for both teams, because the difference between 1-2 and 0-3 seems huge ... especially for the Huskies, who need a road win.

Some highlights:

Star of the game: UCLA junior forward Luc Richard Mbah a Moute had 17 points, with 11 of those coming in the first half when the Bruins took control. He also played athletic aggressive defensive and helped shut out UW guard Ryan Appleby.

Key stats: UCLA outscored UW 14-6 in points off turnovers in the first half. … UCLA shot 51.9 percent, UW 39.1 percent. … UW dominated points in the paint, 38-24.

Key run: A 9-0 UCLA run a few minutes into the game pushed the Bruins’ lead to double digits for the first time, and a fast-break finished by with a touch pass from Russell Westbrook to Josh Shipp ignited the crowd.

Observations: Washington has lost 21 of its last 22 games in Pauley Pavilion. … After starting the same lineup for the previous six games – and going 5-1 – UW coach Lorenzo Romar made a switch Thursday, inserting Justin Dentmon for Joel Smith. … Washington came into the game ranked 318th out of 328 Division I teams in free throw percentage (59.5). On Thursday, the Huskies hit seven of 14 from the line. … UW senior guard Tim Morris scored four points, ending a streak of seven straight games in double figures. … New UCLA football coach Rick Neuheisel was in attendance.

UW coach Lorenzo Romar quote: "Overall, we're making progress. I feel we can finish in the top portion of this conference. I think we started out Pac-10 play by playing the two more difficult teams in our conference. I like out team's progress."

UCLA coach Ben Howland quote: Luc had a fantastic game. this is the second year in a row that he has played great against Washington at home. Kevin also had a good game."

Next: 3:30 p.m. Saturday, at Southern California, Galen Center, Los Angeles.

The Huskies were able to hang around for about six minutes. Then the Bruins scored seven straight points, which not only moved their lead into double digits, but got the crowd into the game.

The Bruins may have delivered the fatal one-two in the final minute. First, a 3-pointer by Kevin Love, which the crowd loved. Then the Huskies turned it over while playing for the final shot, and UCLA scored on a break just before heading into the locker room.

Quincy Pondexter leads UW with seven points, and Brockman has six.

Luc Richard Mbah a Moute leads all scorers with a very athletic 11 points. Love has seven points, four rebounds and three assists.

UCLA is shooting 51.9 percent, UW 39.1 percent, and the Bruins also have the edge on the boards, 16-12.

After going 5-1 with the lineup of Jon Brockman, Artem Wallace, Joel Smith, Ryan Appleby and Tim Morris, coach Lorenzo Romar has decided to make a tweak for tonight.

Junior guard Justin Dentmon, who started the first seven games, will return to the starting lineup in place of Smith, who has started 10 games.

As far as matchups, the Huskies have started with Artem Wallace guarding Kevin Love; however on the other end, the Bruins have Love guarding Jon Brockman.

The Huskies and Bruins are on the floor, about an hour before tipoff.

Those of you able to watch tonight might notice a slight difference on the UCLA uniforms: the "C" is in gold. That is in honor of UCLA becoming the first school to win 100 NCAA championships. (Eleven in basketball.) And "C," I vaguely recall from grammar school, is the Roman numeral for 100.

Also, we are told new UCLA football coach Rick Neuheisem will attend tonight's game.

I'll click back in if there is any pregame news -- a lineup change isn't expected, but is possible. And then will click in again at halftime and after the game with notes and quotes.

College football season has given way to basketball season, which was the topic of my Wednesday column.

Tonight, the Huskies might get a look at the best team in the college game: UCLA. In fact, UCLA in Pauley Pavilion might be the toughest assignment there is.

My UW preview today looks at UW's visit to Pauley and a first look at UCLA freshman sensation Kevin Love.

And finally, here is a look at the game from the LA Times focusing on UCLA's attempts to recruit Jon Brockman.

UW coach Tyrone Willingham has ascended to the presidency of the American Football Coaches Association, after having served as first vice president last year.

Here is the release from UW.

FSN will carry the Washington State-USC game live Thursday night, forcing UW fans to scramble a little bit. Although many of you will still be able to catch the game live, and everyone with cable can catch it on FSN tape delay after the Cougs and Trojans are done.

Here is the full info from the UW website.

Guard Adrian Oliver, who announced that he was leaving Washington earlier this season says he has decided to become a San Jose State Spartan. And he also says that he turned down Cal to do so.

He says it all to columnist Brian VanderBeek of his hometown Modesto Bee. Here is a link to the full story.

This college football season didn't end with a great game, nor with the game that most fans probably wanted to see -- that would have been USC-LSU.

But LSU looked like a worthy -- if mildly controversial -- champion. And the Tigers' win capped a pretty nice season, didn't it? All those upsets. Jake Locker's debut.

And it all starts again on the last weekend of August.

LSU is dominating -- 22 first downs to nine -- but the Tigers threw an interception deep in there own territory, and the Buckeyes took advantage enough to head into the final quarter with a bit of life.

The Tigers have scored 24 straight points and seem to be on their way to doing to the Buckeyes what Florida did to them last season.

Buckeyes scored on their first two possessions. LSU got on the board with a long drive near the end of the quarter.

Washington has announced the winter-quarter enrollment of six new football players, including key receivers Devin Aguilar and Anthony Boyles, running back Chris Polk and three walk-ons.

Here is the UW release.

Coin toss: We're about ready to go, and as expected the stadium seems to be at least 70 percent LSU colors.

LSU won the toss and will kickoff.

Time to play for a title.

I'll click in on the quarters with a note or two.

One hour 15 minutes till kickoff: I assume LSU will eventually enjoy a home-state advantage in the crowd tonight. However, as the teams just took the field, there were more boos for LSU and a louder cheer for Ohio State. I'm assuming the most local fans are just arriving later, while the Midwest fans wanted to come in and explore the dome. Or something. We'll see.

Two hour 15 minutes till kickoff: I just took a walk around the Superdome. It's clearly fully back from Katrina, but no greatly improved. Most of the key features I remember from being back in New Orleans when the building opened in the mid-'70s are still easily recognizable. It looks like they might have an extra bar/restaurant, and maybe some plush seating in the second level. However, Saints over Tom Bensen wasn't happy with the place before Katrina, and it's hard to see where the post-Katrina version would change that.

Now, that said, I always thought Benson's complaints about the Superdome are a lot like Clay Bennett's complaints about KeyArena. Which is to say, bogus. Yes, both arenas probably lack the most modern revenue streams. But as comfortable places to watch the respective sports, they work well enough where no reasonable person could make the case that they should come down.

Three hours till kickoff: Don't miss the national anthem tonight. We just watched and heard the reheasal, and it a was terrific, slow, old New Orleans jazz version version by the Perservation Hall Jazz Band -- which is the real thing.

Four hours to kickoff: One of the great things about the Superdome as a BCS venue is that it's located right on a fringe of downtow. That, in fact, makes it unique among the BCS stadiums. The Rose Bowl is far from LA in Pasadena. Dolphins Stadium is far from Miami, downtown or beach. And University of Phoenix Stadium is in suburban Glendale, Ariz.

However, with the Superdome located within walking distance of not only downtown New Orleasn but within walking distance of the French Quarter and Bourbon Street, fans are free to do more than tailgate for their pregame fun.

And that's sure what they seemed to be doing as I wandered the Quarter this morning and early afternoon, and then on the media bus ride over to the dome. In fact, I think I'm going to leave the press box in a few minutes and go back out and soak up some more local color before returning for what figures to be a pretty good game

There's been no recent news on Ty Willingham's plans for his Washington staff. However, Jeff Tedford just announced a major shakeup of his staff at California.

Meanwhile, head coach June Jones has decided to leave Hawaii for SMU. Which I find kind of disappointing. He aways seemed so at home coaching on the Hawaii sidelines with that flowered shirt and the lei around his neck. If he was going to let a one-loss season punch his ticket off the island, you would have thought it might have been for a better job than that former death-penalty school that has remained in a pretty deep sleep ever since.

As I have written here before, I'm pro playoff when it comes to determining a college football champion. And especially this season, with all the contending teams suffering all those losses, there really was no way that the BCS was going to serve up a conclusive pairing.

That said, LSU and Ohio State are power programs with a claim about as good as anyone's, and tonight's game looks to be an interesting one.

Last season, when Ohio State was a solid favorite, I was pretty confident that Florida would win.

This season, with LSU a mild favorite, I'm more torn. I think a lot of factors go in LSU's favor, including a home-state advantage and a somewhat shorter layoff than the Buckeyes, who haven't played since Nov. 17. (!)

However, I just think Ohio State -- with fewer local distractions and a fresh memory of last season's BCS loss -- wins it.

Lets say: OSU 31, LSU 27.

This will become a weekly look at UW basketball that we'll run in the Monday paper. Here's an early look:

LAST WEEK
The Huskies (9-5 overall, 0-1 Pacific-10 Conference) split, routing Idaho State, 82-50, before opening Pac-10 play with a competitive but painful loss to Washington State, 56-52. The Huskies ended nonconference play with a five-game winning streak, but it is more significant that they have started conference play with a home loss.

SOMETHING TO BUILD ON
The Huskies seem to have successfully transformed themselves into a solid defensive team. That was coach Lorenzo Romar’s plan after an embarrassing loss Dec. 1 at Oklahoma State, and it says something that Washington almost beat the Cougs at their own game. Senior guard Tim Morris has become a key contributor on both ends.

SOMETHING TO WORK ON
The Huskies are shooting only .595 from the free-throw line, and key misses cost them more than they could afford against the Cougars. Ryan Appleby is deadly when open, but he had trouble getting an open look Saturday. Opponents are blocking almost twice as many UW shots as vice versa. Freshman contributions are negligible.

THE WEEK AHEAD
Things don’t get any easier as the Huskies hit the road to face UCLA on Thursday and Southern California on Saturday. The Huskies were swept on this trip last season, and if that happens again it will put them in a quick 0-3 hole in conference play. However, UW won its last road game – at Louisiana State ¬– which could add confidence.

POSTSEASON OUTLOOK
The Huskies’ RPI is estimated at around 115, which likely isn’t good enough for any postseason tournament, and certainly not the NCAA. Washington’s best chance for the big dance is to finish in the top half of the Pac-10 standings, and the Huskies can give themselves a nice start by managing at least one win on their coming road trip.

Now that the Seahawks are beginning and week of preparation for Green Bay and with the Huskies and Cougars catching their breath until the LA trip begins Thursday, maybe the BCS championship game gets a couple of days of attention.

Leading up to the Monday night game, Ohio State looked at the challenge of LSU's two quarterbacks and thought back to that running back they saw in September ... Jake Locker. Here's that story.

Meanwhile, in addition to the lighter stories some of the Tigers tell in a post below, some also talked about their own Hurricane Katrina stories.

Today, the players become off limits, but we'll get one more session with both coaches. I'll drop in some highlights from that this afternoon.

Sounded like a good game, very close all the way into the final seconds. I've created this entry in case any of you wanted to talk about the game.

And once again, here's the Pac-10 site rounding up another interesting night of action.

Players from Ohio State and LSU have all represented their schools really well at the BCS events in New Orleans this week.

However, at media day today, I got a special kick out of several of the Tigers:

For example, receiver Brandon LeFell, explaining that he wears jersey No. 1 in tribute to former Husky and Seahawk Warren Moon: “When I was little I played quarterback all my life and my coach said ‘I’m going to give you No. 1 because you look like you’re going to be the next Warren Moon.’ … He was my coach’s favorite player at the time. I followed his career when he was with the Oilers, because I’m from Houston. He wasn’t my favorite player, but he was a good player.”

And Jacob Hester, explaining his move from high school nose guard to LSU tailback: “Well, you usually don't hear about nose guards switching to running back, but … in high school we really needed some defensive linemen. And we passed the ball so much having John David Booty as our quarterback, that running backs never got the ball. But one game a couple guys got hurt. And my offensive coordinator, who is now my father-in-law, put me in the game at running back. I had 200 yards, and they told the defensive coordinator, ‘I think our best player on offense is playing nose guard.’ So they switched me over.”

And finally receiver Demetrius Boyd, explaining his move from his glamorous hometown of Miami to Pearl River Community College in tiny rural Poplarville, Miss.: “When I went up there I was like, man, I’m ready to go home. I said I’m just going to wait it out. The football was great; the fans, they love me. But it wasn’t the type of place I could see myself being in. It was too boring, really. No South Beach and all like that.”

Now, I happened to know something about Pearl River because I also spent my freshman and sophomore years there. And while I think back on those as two of the best years of my life, there's simply no arguing that Poplarville isn't South Beach.

Boyd explained that he picked Pearl River because his high school coach told him he knew of only two good junior colleges: Dodge City and Pearl River. "I said, Where’s Pearl River?' He said, 'Mississippi.' I said, 'Where’s Dodge City?' He said, 'Kansas.' I said, 'Well I think we need to call Pearl River because I’m not going away to Kansas.'"

The one problem with being down here covering the BCS title game comes today, when it may cost me a look at what looks to be a fascinating Pac-10 opener between UW and WSU.

I'll be able to keep an eye on Seahawks-Redskins because that's on network TV, but catching the Huskies and Cougs down here could be tricky.

I'm hoping some of you who get to watch the game either on TV or in person will share some of your thoughts here tonight.

I'll be back talking UW athletics with Dave "The Groz" Grosby again at our new time, 1:35 Friday on KJR, 950-AM. Huskies' coaching search, Huskies-Cougars hoops, BCS ... plenty to talk about, as always, it seems.

The conversation also will be streamed over the Internet.

So much has happened over the past few months -- most of it good for Ohio State and most of it bad for Washington -- that it's almost hard to remember that back on Sept. 15 the Huskies held a second half lead against Ohio State.

Washington was ahead 7-3 and setting up for a field goal that might have increased that lead. Then Ohio State's Kurt Coleman broke through and blocked Ryan Perkins' field goal attempt, and two plays later the Buckeyes took the lead on their way to a 33-14 win -- and eventually on their way to the national championship game.

"I definitely think that was the first step in our road to success," Coleman said today. "We went out on the road, it was a hostile environment, and we came back with a win. And we had to come from behind. It showed out versatility to be able to come back no matter what."

Some other Buckeyes agreed, and I'll write more about that as part of our BCS coverage in the Saturday paper.

Here is a link to a roundup from an interesting opening night of Pac-10 men's basketball last night.

Two games were generally considered upsets, as Cal beat USC and Arizona State beat Oregon. In other action, Arizona beat Oregon State, which was surprising competitive even without suspended transfer C.J. Giles, and in the game of the night, UCLA took care of business against Stanford.

Also, here is my pre-league Pac-10 roundup from the Thursday paper. I'm a little late in posting that since yesterday was spent mostly traveling to the BCS champsionship game site in New Orleans.

Rick Neuheisel won an early battle with the Washington Huskies with the news that defensive coordinator DeWayne Walker will remain a Bruin.

Obviously, there have been a lot of false reports on this issue over the past couple of weeks, but this one has been confirmed.

The news sends Tyrone Willingham off to plan B ... or maybe C since Ron English is also off the job market.

The Sporting News is reporting that UCLA defensive coordinator DeWayne Walker has agreed to take over those duties at Washington.

There has been no confirmation from either university, so my story in the Wednesday paper stops short of calling it a done deal.

However, Walker has long been identified as coach Tyrone Willingham's top choice to replace Kent Baer, who was dismissed after the defensively dismal season.

Rick Neuheisel, who recently beat Walker out for the top job at UCLA, said he had hoped Walker would stay on with the Bruins.

Meanwhile, one certainty. Former Michigan defensive coordinator Ron English, whose name also had been mentioned in connection with the UW job, has signed a two-year contract to become defensive coordinator at Louisville.

That's what Idaho State sophomore Austin Kilpatrick said after UW's 82-50 win Monday.

Kilpatrick and the Bengals faced a brutal out of conference schedule that included four Pac-10 teams: UW, WSU, Oregon State and UCLA. And Kilpatrick -- who attended Puyallup High School -- thinks UW would be competitive with any of them and has the best defense.

"They compare with everybody," he said. "And they're the best defensive team we've faced. Washigton State lets you get the ball. Washington gets up in you and doesn't let you get the ball. That's where they're tough."

Told of the comments, UW coach Lorenzo Romar and some other Huskies seemed to appreciate the compliment, although they seemed unwilling to agree.

In any case, we don't have to wait long for a pretty good indication: Pac-10 play opens Saturday with Washington State visiting UW.

Meanwhile, ESPN's Weekly Watch is predicting a UW upset over the Cougs.