USC basketball: Washington pregame

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Greetings and salutations!

Coming to you from the Galen Center, situated just to the southeast of the Shrine Auditorium, which tonight is staging the 16th annual Screen Actors Guild awards show.

(Note: the show is affecting traffic on a few nearby streets. Read here for more details.)

My money is on Jeff Bridges to take home the Best Film Actor award for his role in ‘Crazy Heart.’ George Clooney’s performance in ‘Up in the Air’ will challenge, but I give the nod to Bridges, who already has a Golden Globe and is an Oscar front-runner for his role as the broken-down country singer ‘Bad Blake.’ And for Best Film Ensemble, it’s between ‘The Hurt Locker’ and ‘Inglourious Basterds.’ Winner: ‘The Hurt Locker’, which is arguably the best war film of the decade. (Want more? Check here for all the SAG info you’d ever need.)

But I digress...

Here are a few facts and stats to get you ready for tonight’s game between USC(11-7 overall, 3-3 in Pacific 10 Conference play) and Washington (12-6, 3-4), set for tipoff at 7:30 p.m. (televised on FSN West; radio broadcast on 710):

USC player to watch: forward Alex Stepheson.


These teams like to play inside the arc, as Washington and USC rank ninth and 10th in the Pac-10 in three-point shooting. That said, USC has a better inside game with Stepheson (10.1 points, eight rebounds) and Nikola Vucevic (11.7 points, a Pac-10-leading 9.3 rebounds). Vucevic has worked on his outside shooting in recent weeks, so if he steps out, that will likely pit the muscular Stepheson against Washington’s smaller front line.

Washington player to watch: forward Quincy Pondexter.

USC Coach Kevin O’Neill told me yesterdayhe thinks Pondexter (20.4 points, 7.8 rebounds) is the best player in the Pac-10. At 6 feet 6, 215 pounds, Pondexter is a nightmare matchup for defenses because he is too big for most guards but too quick and agile for most forwards. He likes to drive and shoot the mid-range jumper, but he can shoot outside. Against UCLA, he went four for four from three-point range, marking season highs in attempts and makes. He ranks 12th on Washington’s all-time scoring list, and is 19 points from passing former Huskies and current Portland Trail Blazers star guard Brandon Roy.

Key to the game: Washington’s offensive pace.

Led by Pondexter and guard Isaiah Thomas (17.8 points), the Huskies rank second in the Pac-10 in scoring (79.6) and if they can get into a rhythm, they could overpower the Trojans, whose offense ranks last in league play (57). But if USC can slow Washington early and build a lead, the Huskies, who are 0-5 in games away from Seattle, could slowly crumble.

--Baxter Holmes