WHAT TO LOOK FOR

How they got here: No. 8-seeded UCLA’s subregional victories were startling, No. 12 Missouri’s were surprising, No. 3 Arizona’s were workmanlike and No. 2 Oklahoma’s were expected. UCLA had the most exhilarating performance, beating No. 1 Cincinnati, 105-101, in double overtime, and the biggest blowout, 80-58, over No. 9 Mississippi. Missouri followed its upset of No. 5 Miami with the most one-sided second-round game, an 83-67 upset of No. 4 Ohio State. Arizona turned back upstarts UC Santa Barbara and Wyoming. Oklahoma has momentum--and perhaps a chip on its shoulder. The Sooners were seeded below Cincinnati despite beating Kansas in the Big 12 Conference tournament final and knocked off pesky Illinois Chicago and Xavier in the first two rounds.

Difference makers: UCLA still might not have faced the best player to wear a Cincinnati uniform. Oklahoma forward Aaron McGhee, who left the Bearcats after one season, scored 25 points against Xavier and 26 against Illinois Chicago. But the Bruins won’t see him unless they get past Missouri and Kareem Rush, younger brother of former Bruin enigma JaRon Rush. Kareem, a forward who considered attending UCLA, averages 20.3 points and 5.3 rebounds. Although Arizona has two freshmen starters, veterans Jason Gardner and Luke Walton were integral to the Wildcat run to the national title game last season. The best matchup Thursday will be Gardner against Oklahoma’s Hollis Price, an in-your-face defender who dates an Italian runway model. But the biggest difference-maker of all might be Arizona Coach Lute Olson, who usually has his team at its best in the second half of close games.

Team tidbits: Maybe UCLA can shake Missouri by yelling “Tyus Edney” whenever a Tiger gets ready to shoot. In a second-round tournament game in 1995 at Boise, Idaho, the UCLA point guard drove the length of the court in 4.8 seconds and made a layup to give the Bruins a 75-74 victory. UCLA went on to win the national championship and Missouri did not make the tournament for the next four years. Now Missouri can make history with a victory by becoming the first No. 12 seed to advance to the round of eight. Oklahoma was outrebounded by Xavier but had only six turnovers. Arizona’s victory over Wyoming at Albuquerque might have been expected, but the Cowboys have won more games at “the Pit” than any other visiting team.

How it shakes out: The winner of Oklahoma-Arizona undoubtedly will be favored over either UCLA or Missouri. But why not go with the Bruins? They have gotten to the Elite Eight only once under Coach Steve Lavin and haven’t made a Final Four since that Edney-fueled NCAA title run in 1995 under Jim Harrick. They need to end Missouri’s sudden rebirth to gain either a rubber match against Pac-10 foe Arizona or a showdown with the Sooners, the regional’s hottest team with a 10-game winning streak. The Bruins won’t fear the Wildcats, who had to overcome a 20-point second-half deficit to beat UCLA at Tucson and fell, 77-76, at Pauley Pavilion. Dan Gadzuric had 22 points and 16 rebounds in the Bruin victory and would relish another matchup with Wildcat freshman center Channing Frye.