UC Santa Barbara Gets a Dance Partner
UC Santa Barbara will take on Ohio State Friday
Becky Stickney
Lots of basketballs in a cage
Santa Barbara is great this time of year.
The squeaking of sneakers. The blue and gold face paint. The dancing -- NCAA tournament-style dancing, that is.
UC Santa Barbara -- not UCLA, not USC -- is in the NCAA men's basketball tournament. UCSB takes on Big Ten champ Ohio State Friday.
"This will be a great experience for our team," said UCSB head coach Bob Williams. "We will be playing against a player (Evan Turner) who many consider to be the best player in the country, and against a program with great tradition."
The Gauchos defeated Long Beach, 69-64, Saturday night to claim the Big West Title.That gave them an automatic tournament bid.
UCSB had key wins this season over Weber State, Pacific and Long Beach State. They have a 1-3 record in the NCAA tournament.
The Buckeyes? They have a 37-19 record in 20 NCAA tournament appearances.
And yes, the Buckeyes have one of the country's best players in Turner. But watch for Big West Conference Player of the Year and Big West Tournament MVP Orlando Johnson. The sophomore averages nearly 18 points per game for UCSB.
The Gauchos enter the tournament having won nine out out of their last 10 games.
Perennial powerhouses from Los Angeles will watch the NCAA games on TV. The USC Trojans have taken themselves out of postseason play for self-reported rules violations, and the UCLA Bruins have had an off year, with a 14-18 season.
The PAC-10 conference is represented this year only by conference champ Washington, 24-9, and UC Berkeley, 23-10. Last year, four PAC-10 teams made the collegiate championships.
