UCLA, Huskies in Must-Not-Lose Game

What both UCLA and Washington had hoped was going to be a high-noon showdown for first place in the Pacific 10 has turned into a sideshow, a little playoff for temporary possession of fourth place.

The Bruins and Huskies, both coming off surprise losses, meet today at Hec Edmundson Pavilion. Washington’s Marv Harshman says his team would need a “miracle” to win the conference. This would be bad news to UCLA’s Walt Hazzard, since both teams have 6-4 league records.

The Bruins-Huskies winner doesn’t figure to be in much better shape than it is now. The loser will be in major trouble, potentially three games behind USC, with four teams ahead of it in the standings. This is “must-win,” or more precisely, “must not lose.”

For the Huskies, defending co-champions and overwhelming preseason favorites, this season has been a massive disappointment. They are 15-7 overall and had fallen to No. 25 in USA Today’s poll even before losing Thursday on their home floor to USC, a team they’d beaten by 16 points on the road.

The Huskies opened the season short on leadership in the backcourt, which forward Detlef Schrempf was supposed to be able to assume. Schrempf, weighed down by ballhandling chores and a succession of ankle injuries, has also had a succession of low numbers in big games. He had eight points against the Trojans here Thursday night, and four points in the Huskies’ 63-51 loss in Pauley Pavilion two weeks ago.

In Pauley, the 6-6 Nigel Miguel held the 6-9 1/2 Schrempf to 2 for 7 from the floor, with help from freshman Craig Jackson. Harshman complained later that Miguel had roughed Schrempf up. Hazzard replied that the elbowing had gone both ways. Miguel wore a flak jacket to practice for the next two days, protecting his own bruised ribs.

Schrempf is not likely to offer condolences.

“I’m sure Schrempf has been waiting to get Miguel on his home court,” Hazzard said last week.”

For the Bruins, this season had become anything but disappointing until last weekend. They had improved their record to 9-7 and were 6-2 in the conference.

That was before they took back-to-back one-point losses to USC and Notre Dame. They played well in both, but lackadaisically in Pullman Thursday night, allowing themselves to be beaten by an injury-battered Cougar team with a seven-game losing streak.

The Bruins have still won only one game on the road this season, at Arizona State after the Sun Devils’ Ron Singleton missed a free throw in the closing seconds that would have sent the game into overtime.