Clean Sweep

The Bears sweep the Arizona schools for the first time in as long as I can remember. Though this time it was ASU that was ranked, I think we can all admit that beating Arizona for only the third time in 10 years was a bit more gratifying. Yeah Lute is gone, the Cats are not that deep, and the program is in no man's land right now, but I don't care. Heck, you could argue Cal was in no man's land for years under Braun, so it's about time the tables turn.

But then to come back two nights later and beat a legit, top 25 team in ASU, who runs a totally different zone than Arizona ran, is impressive. For this team to be so prepared for a new defensive look after only a day of preparation in between says a lot about Montgomery's coaching ability. And Randle said as much after the game:

"Coach should take some credit for having the faith in me to go out and run the team," Randle said, with Montgomery to his left. "I'm a decent player, but the system has been great. Penetrate and kick, we get a lot of shots. It's really been the system, and we know what to do every time down the floor."

Wow. I never thought I'd hear those words come out of a Cal basketball player's mouth. They certainly weren't spoken by Bozeman's player's, or Braun's players. Win or lose, it is refreshing to finally have a basketball team that puts a competent, precise, and practiced product on the floor, on both sides.

Here are links to a couple write-ups. Bear Insider and CC Times.

In other news, Sarkisian is making a run at USC defensive coordinator and defensive line coach Nick Holt. Link. This could have a ripple effect on the whole conference.

First off, UW would have a senior former USC coach from each side of the ball, giving them a definite advantage in game planning against the Trojans. Second, it would mean USC would lose a big-time recruiter in Holt, which might help the rest of conference reclaim some of the west coast talent that USC has been hoarding. Third, it might mean a down year or two for USC. I don't care how much talent you have. Losing your OC and DC in the same year is going to disrupt things.

With the bottomless pit of money these two programs have, you can bet UW is going to offer this guy this moon, and USC is probably going to do the same. One way or another, one thing is for sure: Nick Holt is going to be a rich man very soon.