Husky Men's Basketball Blog

As the Huskies prepare for their Pac-10 opener against Cal this Friday, here is a look at the potential road bumps and land mines for the UW during conference play.

Jan. 8, at UCLA: Last year, the Huskies were only beaten twice during the regular season by one team. The Bruins gave the Huskies trouble with their huge size advantage last year, and you better believe they remember that. Ben Howland has a fantastic group of freshmen, and he started four of them against Michigan State recently.

Jan. 27, at Arizona: I’m willing to bet a lot of money that Lute Olsen circled this game on his calendar the day he got it. How often does Arizona lose three games in a year to the same team? The Huskies beat U of A soundly every time they saw them last year, including Nate Robinson’s coming out party in Seattle last January. The Huskies will run into a very motivated Wildcat team.

Jan. 30, at ASU: The Arizona trip will be extremely demanding for UW. Ike Diogu is the single best player in college hoops. The guy has recorded a double-double in every game he has played in at ASU! That is absolutely absurd. I don’t think Mike Jensen is going to break that streak. Sorry Mike.

Feb. 10, at Oregon: Nate Robinson’s dunk in the waning seconds of last year's game in Seattle did not sit well with the Ducks, and they’ll be ready for the Huskies. So will Oregon’s fans, who are among the rowdiest in the country. Aaron Brooks still doesn’t scare me though.

Trips to Stanford and Cal at the end of the year could be tough, but so could any road game in the Pac-10. I really think that the Huskies can run the table at Hec Ed, because the crowd is so incredible. Remember, these are only POTENTIAL problems for the Huskies. They won at Arizona and ASU last year, and are much better than Oregon and UCLA. Washington State has one of the most anemic offenses in the country. I didn’t know Oregon State still had a basketball team, and USC is still clearly a football school

One more thing to keep in mind. On Friday, for the first time all season, the Washington Huskies will be at full strength. Hakeem Rollins will play, giving Lorenzo Romar his full rotation. I know I just ran down a list of games the Huskies could lose. But the way this team has played, and is capable of playing, I really could be (and hope I am) wrong on all of those.