SoCal Flavor Saturates the Sweet 16

It is appropriate that the NCAA West Regional is in Southern California, at the Arrowhead Pond, this year.

Because, to be blunt, SoCal college basketball rules.

As we begin the glorious four days of regional semifinals and finals, it’s time for the rest of the country to notice what Southern California has transported everywhere--fantastic basketball players and confoundedly intriguing teams.

USC and UCLA, surprising Sweet 16 participants together in Philadelphia, weren’t rewarded with West Regional berths, but Stanford was.

And, look. The Cardinal has four starters from within 50 miles of the Pond: hard-nosed point guard Michael McDonald of Long Beach; big and powerful twins, Jason and Jarron Collins from North Hollywood; and clever, creative guard Casey Jacobsen from Glendora. Stanford is as local as UCLA and USC and mostly better too. At least this season.

So if you’re home complaining, USC or UCLA fan, about what to do with that West Regional ticket you bought a year ago because you were sure USC or UCLA would either be playing at the Pond or finished altogether, quit whining and come on down. Bring a radio and earphones. That way you’ll get four games for the price of two.

But it’s not just at the Pond, or across the country in Philadelphia where we can appreciate SoCal hoops.

In San Antonio, in the Midwest Regional, Arizona plays Mississippi.

The heart of the Wildcats, the passion of the Wildcats, comes from guard Gilbert Arenas. A sophomore guard, Arenas is from North Hollywood, same as the Collins twins. He was kind of ignored by UCLA but is smooth and creative and has made such a name for himself in two years at Arizona that he might leave school early for the NBA.

Plus we can almost take credit for Luke Walton. He may be from San Diego, but Luke is really from Bill and Bill is from John Wooden and UCLA and is all Los Angeles. So let’s count Luke as one of ours.

And in the other Midwest game, Kansas plays Illinois. Kansas has a center, Eric Chenowith from Villa Park High School. He has not always been as dominant as Coach Roy Williams would like a 7-foot-1 player to be, but Chenowith, even if he doesn’t start all the time, has become the voice of the Jayhawks. That is, there is no radio talk show to which Chenowith won’t call. Turn on any sports radio talk show the last week, you had a good chance to hear Chenowith talk Jayhawk hoop.

And we take it to the South Regional where, of all places, that Philly school, Temple, has found Los Angeles. Sophomore Greg Jefferson graduated from Fairfax High. He isn’t a star at Temple yet, but Jefferson has played in 26 games, including both of the Owls’ NCAA tournament victories. He is a contributor. John Chaney won’t play anybody any minutes unless that player understands fundamental, smart basketball.

It’s obvious USC and UCLA don’t have the corner on SoCal players.

Jayson Kapono, Matt Barnes, Brian Granville, David Bluthenthal, they might all be local, but no one has had a better NCAA tournament than Tayshaun Prince, the Kentucky guard. Prince is from Compton. Prince is ours, too.

So often at NCAA time we hear about the New York and Philadelphia guards or the big guys from Chicago. When we hear about West Coast basketball, it is too often with derision, with the comments that the West is soft, the West only produces pretty boys who like to score but not defend, who like to shoot but never rebound, who like to run but never stop and set a pick.

But these kids from L.A., the ones who have gone everywhere, played the motion offense of Roy Williams at Kansas, the matchup zone of John Chaney at Temple, the press for Tubby Smith at Kentucky, the simple, direct style for Mike Montgomery at Stanford, they all can play.

If you are privileged to have a ticket to the games at the Pond Thursday or Saturday, don’t be conflicted over whether to watch USC and UCLA on TV. Be happy you can come in person to watch Stanford versus Cincinnati and Georgetown against Maryland.

Different styles, different kids, different coaches.

But what the Bruins and Trojans will be going through across the country, you can see and hear in person at the Pond.

You will almost feel the shake and shudder when a Jason Collins sets a pick on a Jamaal Davis--two 6-10 kids who want nothing more in the world in that moment than to knock the other off one sweaty spot on the basketball court.

You will want to cover your ears when Cincinnati Coach Bob Huggins sprains his vocal cords hollering at his guards and you will want to cover your eyes when Maryland Coach Gary Williams turns all red-faced and bug-eyed because Terence Morris was a second late for that rebound.

And you will lose your breath running from the concourse and the TVs tuned to USC or UCLA. You will have to see those games for a minute, but you won’t want to miss when Juan Dixon drains a three for Maryland or Mike Sweetney slams in a rim-rattling rebound basket for Georgetown.

Most of all, for a moment, you might wish all those other SoCal kids--McDonald and Jacobsen, Chenowith and Arenas, etc., etc., etc., had stayed home and played for USC and UCLA. Because then the Trojans or Bruins might have been top-seeded in the West and been playing at the Pond.

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Diane Pucin can be reached at her e-mail address: diane.pucin@latimes.com