Basketball Race Going Down to Wire

One way or another, the Big West Conference race wraps up this week. It’s not that one team will assert itself--come on, get real--it’s just that the regular season ends.

This hasn’t been a season for the ages, but it has had its moments. The title race is down to a sprint between Long Beach State and UC Irvine, and many other subplots have emerged.

Will Irvine run the table in its final two games, assuring long-suffering Coach Rod Baker the outright championship he covets? Will Long Beach hold off the closing pack and secure a first-round bye in the conference tournament? Will Pacific sneak into second place, earning a bye and improving its chances of winning the tournament?

“I can’t imagine a conference being more competitive than what we’ve had this season,” Big West Commissioner Dennis Farrell said. “Everybody is still in the hunt for something in this thing, and I think that’s good.”

Well, not quite everyone. Irvine and Long Beach last week clinched spots in the six-team tournament, scheduled for March 8-10 at the Lawlor Events Center on the Nevada campus. However, neither the Anteaters nor 49ers have secured first or second place.

“[Assistant Commissioner] Jody [McRoberts] and I sat down [last week] and developed a scenario where we could wind up with a seven-way tie for first place,” Farrell said. “It would take the stars and moon and everything to line up for that to happen, but it was possible. I think that the competitiveness of the season has translated into some real exciting crowds at some of our arenas.”

At the beginning of the week, Nevada, Utah State, Pacific, UC Santa Barbara, San Jose State and Nevada Las Vegas were vying for the final four spots. A 66-53 loss to Utah State on Saturday eliminated Cal State Fullerton, and New Mexico State can’t go to the tournament because of university-imposed sanctions on the basketball program.

“I haven’t seen many conference races like this,” San Jose State Coach Stan Morrison said. “This is probably as close as I’ve ever seen it. I’ve seen conference races where there are four or five teams right in it, but there’s a lot of ‘bunching’ right now.”

Morrison, like most of his colleagues, believe the conference would be better off with a dominant team--especially if he coached the elite group. Considering the Spartans are on the Big West tournament “bubble,” Morrison is pleased that things are still wide open.

“I think it’s exciting, and I think it captures the imagination of a lot of people throughout the conference and the fans as well. I think everyone is playing the ‘what if’ scenario right now.

“Everyone is looking at the other scores and trying to figure out who can knock off whom. Some people want to sneak in the back door, other people want to stabilize and make sure they’re there, and other people are looking for that first-round bye.”

Irvine secured one of the byes Monday with its 81-76 victory over Utah State, McRoberts said. The Anteaters will clinch at least a share of the conference title by splitting its last two games--both on the road.

The 49ers can still win the championship outright, be co-champions . . . or finish third. McRoberts said that the 49ers will clinch a bye Saturday with a victory over Santa Barbara. Nevada, Utah State, Pacific and Santa Barbara would also be in the tournament if the season ended today.

“The bottom part [of the conference] is winning games, knocking off people and upsetting people,” Morrison said. “That in itself is a major factor in creating the excitement of the league.”

The tournament’s field likely won’t be determined until Sunday. That’s when Irvine and Pacific and Fullerton and San Jose play the final regular-season games.

“All that stuff is still alive,” Morrison said. “Every one of those components is still there, and that’s what makes for great interest.”

*

No shocker: Pacific’s 71-61 victory over Long Beach at the Pyramid last Thursday, and its 79-72 upset of UC Santa Barbara in the Thunderdome Saturday, didn’t surprise the guy who signed most of the Tigers.

Dave Shoemaker, in his second year as El Toro High basketball coach, was an assistant in charge of recruiting and scouting at Pacific in the early 1990s.

“Pacific is a good team that has been underachieving all year,” Shoemaker said. “I really believe they should be competing for first place.”

Pacific is 13-11, 9-7 in the Big West.

Times staff writer Paul McLeod contributed to this story.