Arizona State is 12-5 in Pacific-10 Conference play. Washington is a game and a half behind at 11-5.
Something has to give. Or does it?
With just two games left in conference play, about the only thing for sure is that Stanford has won its 11th conference title in 16 years.
The Sun Devils’ (21-7 overall) only remaining regular season game is against Arizona on Saturday. Washington (16-9), however, has two Pac-10 games left. The first one is against Oregon State (13-13, 9-7) Thursday, with Oregon (14-11, 9-7) visiting Saturday.
If Arizona State and Washington tie for second, the first tie-breaker would go to the team with the advantage in the season series. But both teams have dominated on the road this season, with Washington winning in Tempe, Ariz., and the Sun Devils in Seattle.
The next tie-breaker goes to the team with the better record against Stanford, the conference’s champion. However, the Cardinal are perfect in the Pac-10, so this is a moot argument.
USC remains the next highest seed, but both Arizona State and the Huskies have split the season series with the Trojans.
That puts Oregon, the fifth place team in the conference, central in the picture. Because Arizona State took both games from the Ducks this season, the Sun Devils would earn second place in the conference.
The Ducks defeated the Huskies, 69-56, at McArthur Court on Dec. 28.
However, the Sun Devils and Huskies have been playing well of late.
“I feel confident going into the Pac-10 Tournament,” Washington head coach June Daugherty said. “We have a big week ahead of us, at home against Oregon State and Oregon to close out the regular season. We really do take it one game at a time, one practice at a time. We work on what needs to improve. We can control that.”
Arizona State plays its second rivalry game of this season when the Sun Devils travel to Tucson, Ariz., to take on the Wildcats. Arizona State dominated in the first game, 87-64.

Surprise?
The Cardinal have sophomore Nicole Powell and senior Lindsey Yamasaki.
Their head coach, Tara VanDerveer, is one of the most revered in the sport.
Should it be a surprise that Stanford clinched their 11th conference title in 16 years?
No, not really.
Stanford is 16-0 in the Pac-10 this season. The Cardinal’s only loss came to Tennessee, then ranked No. 2, in December, and that was by a scant six points.
The only other team to come within five of the Cardinal?
Oregon, which lost 77-72 at Mac Court on Feb. 7.
It’s a Stanford team that has no foreseeable end. They’ve already clinched the No. 1 seed in Pac-10 Tournament, and barring an upset, will most likely host a regional series in the NCAA version.
“Finally, I feel this is our year,” Bethany Donaphin told the Stanford Daily. “Our team is so excited and we get along so well. The chemistry is better than its ever been. We kind of expected it (the conference championship) but it’s still so sweet.”

Bracket Baby
As most know, MacArthur Court will host the first ever women’s Pac-10 Tournament, beginning March 1.
In the past, the team with the best overall record automatically won the conference’s title and automatic entry into the NCAA Tournament. With the addition of the tournament, the team that goes all the way gets the bid, while the teams with the best regular season records fall in behind.
If the tournament started today, Arizona and Washington State would face off in the first game of the tournament, starting Friday, followed by UCLA and California.
The winner of UCLA-Cal would take on Stanford the next day, with Arizona State taking on the winner between the Wildcats and Cougars.
Washington would take on Oregon State in the game featuring seeds three and six, with USC and Oregon finishing up Saturday night at 8:15 p.m.
Whatever the result, the inaugural Pac-10 Tournament is shaping up to be an intense weekend of action.