Arizona Wildcats
• Last year: 19-15 (8-10), lost in first round of NCAA tournament
• Coach: Russ Pennell (first year)
• Downgrades: G Jerryd Bayless, G Jawann McClellan, F Bret Brielmaier
• Upgrades: G Kyle Fogg, a late signee in the spring, gives the Wildcats a combo guard who can run the floor.
• Naming convention: G Garland Judkins
• About this team: The Wildcats have neither a long-term coach nor a tangible 2009-10 recruiting class but could still make the NCAA tournament in a relatively weak conference.
• Random access memory: The Pride of Arizona performed during pre-game and halftime at the first Super Bowl in 1967.
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• The number: 5 — The Wildcats were ranked No. 5 in ESPN's "Prestige Rankings" this off-season for all-time program success — behind Duke, North Carolina, Kansas and Kentucky.
• Set your TiVo: Dec. 23 vs. Kansas, 8:30 p.m. (FSAZ)
• On the Web: www.arizonaathletics.com
Arizona State Sun Devils
• Last year: 21-13 (9-9), lost to Florida in NIT quarterfinals
• Coach: Herb Sendek (283-193 in 15 seasons, 29-35 in three seasons at ASU)
• Downgrades: G Christian Polk, G Antwi Atuahene
• Upgrades: No one. A young ASU team will not need its freshmen to play right away.
• Naming convention: F Rihards Kuksiks
• About this team: For the first time in six years, the Sun Devils can argue that, on talent alone, they deserve to be near the top third of the conference.
• Random access memory: ASU's alumni association threatened to sue "Orange Julius" in the early 1980s, claiming the juice mascot represented Sparky the Sun Devil.
• The number: 3.95 — Sendek's GPA during four years at Carnegie Mellon University
• Set your TiVo: Nov. 18 at San Diego State, 9 p.m. (CBS College Sports)
• On the Web: www.thesundevils.com
California Golden Bears
• Last year: 17-16 (6-12), lost in second round of NIT
• Coach: Mike Montgomery (547-244 in 34 seasons; first year at Cal)
• Downgrades: F Ryan Anderson, C DeVon Hardin, F Eric Vierneisel
• Upgrades: G Jorge Gutierrez, who grew up in Chihuahua, Mexico, was the first recruit signed by Montgomery.
• Naming convention: G Nican Robinson
• About this team: Had Anderson not left early for the NBA draft, we would call Cal a dark horse to make the NCAA tournament. Now, Montgomery will have to rely almost exclusively on G Patrick Christopher, the best-kept secret in the Pac-10.
• Random access memory: Berkelium, an element with the symbol Bk, was first synthesized by Cal professors in 1949.
• The number: 30.4 — Points per game lost when Anderson and Hardin left for the NBA draft.
• Set your TiVo: Dec. 7 at Missouri, noon (ESPNU)
• On the Web: www.calbears.com
Oregon Ducks
• Last year: 18-14 (9-9), lost to Mississippi State in first round of NCAA tournament
• Coach: Ernie Kent (301-214 in 17 seasons, 211-134 in 11 seasons at UO)
• Downgrades: G Malik Hairston, F Maarty Leunen, G Bryce Taylor
• Upgrades: C Michael Dunigan gives Kent maybe his first-ever true center and should help make up for the loss of the Ducks' three best players.
• Naming convention: G Kamyron Brown
• About this team: Kent will have to rely on inconsistent guard Tajuan Porter and a talented incoming class. Making the tournament could be his coaching triumph.
• Random access memory: UO architecture graduate Tinker Hatfield designed the world's first cross training shoe, the Nike Air Trainer.
• The number: 2013 — Although seemingly always under fire, Kent's contract was extended through the 2012-13 season in July. He received a $60,000 raise from his original $1 million base salary.
• Set your TiVo: Nov. 24 vs. Alabama, 10 p.m. (ESPN2)
• On the Web: www.goducks.com
Oregon State Beavers
• Last year: 6-25 (0-18)
• Coach: Craig Robinson (30-28 in two seasons, first year at OSU)
• Downgrades: F Marcel Jones, F Sean Carter
• Upgrades: F Daniel Deane, a Utah transfer and Gatorade Player of the Year in the Beehive State (2005-06), is the Beavers' lone new player on scholarship.
• Naming convention: C Roeland Schaftenaar
• About this team: Robinson might be the most famous coach in the Pac-10 — he is Michelle Obama's brother. The former Brown coach now needs to find a way to translate his prominence into some much-needed recruiting attention.
• Random access memory: The Oregon state flag is the only one in the nation to have different images on each side — and on the back side sits a beaver.
• The number: 0-18 — The Beavers' Pac-10 record last season.
• Set your TiVo: Dec. 6 at Iowa State, noon (ESPNU)
• On the Web: www.osubeavers.com
Stanford Cardinal
• Last year: 28-8 (13-5), lost to Texas in Sweet 16
• Coach: Johnny Dawkins (first year)
• Downgrades: F Brook Lopez, F Robin Lopez, F Taj Finger
• Upgrades: G Jeremy Green, from Austin, Texas, was once on the Wildcats' radar and could be the Cardinal's top newcomer.
• Naming convention: G Da'Veed Dildy
• About this team: The usually stable program lost three mainstays — the Lopez twins and coach Trent Johnson, who bolted for LSU. We smell a drop-off.
• Random access memory: Formally, the school is named Leland Stanford Junior University after the son of former California governor Leland Stanford, whose son died at 15 of typhoid fever.
• The number: 2,556 — Duke's all-time scoring record, held by Dawkins — until J.J. Redick (2,769) broke it in 2006.
• Set your TiVo: Dec. 28 vs. Texas Tech, 8 p.m. (FSAZ)
• On the Web: www.gostanford.com
UCLA Bruins
• Last year: 35-4 (16-2), lost to Memphis in Final Four
• Coach: Ben Howland (294-144 in 14 seasons, 126-45 in five seasons at UCLA)
• Downgrades: C Kevin Love, G Russell Westbrook, F Luc Richard Mbah a Moute, C Lorenzo Mata-Real
• Upgrades: G Jrue Holiday leads the Bruins' freshmen, at least four of whom should see time in the team's rotation.
• Naming convention: Center J'mison Morgan
• About this team: UCLA lost two players in the first half-hour of the NBA draft but has maybe the nation's best recruiting class and a senior point guard. Anything but a fourth straight Pac-10 title would be stunning.
• Random access memory: When football coach Red Sanders took over in 1949, he switched the Bruins' uniforms from navy to what he called "powder keg blue."
• The number: 15-3 — The Bruins have averaged a 15-3 record in conference play over the past three years — and 32 overall wins per season.
• Set your TiVo: Dec. 4 at Texas, 7p.m. (ESPN2)
• On the Web: www.uclabruins.com
USC Trojans
• Last year: 21-12 (11-7), lost to Kansas State in first round of NCAA tournament
• Coach: Tim Floyd (306-167 in 15 seasons, 63-37 in three seasons at USC)
• Downgrades: G O.J. Mayo, F Davon Jefferson, G Angelo Johnson
• Upgrades: G/F Demar DeRozan could be the best athlete in the conference by the time the season ends.
• Naming convention: G Percy Romeo Miller, aka the rapper formerly known as Lil' Romeo (he has dropped the Lil')
• About this team: Mayo and Jefferson left early, so DeRozan will have to use his star power to keep the Trojans in the top four in the conference.
• Random access memory: USC was founded by a Protestant horticulturist, an Irish-Catholic former governor and a German-Jewish banker and philanthropist.
• The number: 10-15 — Interim head coach Jim Saia's record in 2004-05 after replacing Henry Bibby. Floyd was hired in midseason and monitored the team.
• Set your TiVo: Dec. 4 vs. Oklahoma, 5 p.m. (ESPN2)
• On the Web: www.usctrojans.com
Washington Huskies
• Last year: 16-17 (7-11), lost in first round of NIT
• Coach: Lorenzo Romar (212-160 in 12 seasons, 119-72 in 6 seasons at UW)
• Downgrades: G Ryan Appleby, G Tim Morris
• Upgrades: G Isaiah Thomas — no relation to the former Knicks boss — has been compared by Romar to former UA guard Salim Stoudamire.
• Naming convention: F Tyreese Breshers
• About this team: In a conference where the best players seem to flock to the NBA draft early, the experience of seniors Jon Brockman, Justin Dentmon and Artem Wallace could vault the Huskies to the Big Dance.
• Random access memory: Thomas' father, James, lost a bet on a 1989 Lakers-Pistons playoff game, forcing him to name his son Isaiah.
• The number: 1936 — Seventy-two years ago, Washington's eight-man crew team represented the United States in the Berlin Olympics. The Huskies defeated the Germans and won gold medals in front of Adolf Hitler
• Set your TiVo: Nov. 24 vs. Kansas, 8 p.m. (ESPN2)
• On the Web: www.gohuskies.com
Washington State Cougars
• Last year: 26-9 (11-7), lost to North Carolina in Sweet 16
• Coach: Tony Bennett (52-17 in 3 seasons at WSU)
• Downgrades: G Derrick Low, G Kyle Weaver, F Robbie Cowgill
• Upgrades: G Klay Thompson, the son of former NBA star Mychal, is one of six true freshmen on the team and should start right away.
• Naming convention: C Aron Baynes
• About this team: The Cougars lost three of their four best players from last year, so Bennett's newfound reputation as one of the top coaches in the West figures to be tested.
• Random access memory: When he signed a contract extension this off-season, Bennett became the first WSU employee to make $1 million a year.
• The number: 66.9 — Points per game averaged by WSU last year, ninth-most in the conference
• Set your TiVo: Dec. 27, at LSU, noon (ESPN2)
• On the Web: www.wsucougars.com
