Failure By Design?

I can't wait to see the size of the rabbit Lute Olson pulls out of his hat this time. Because, let's face it, he had to have known what he was doing by bowing out of the Pac 10 tournament on day one, right? Right? Am I placing too much faith in Lute by thinking that yesterday's performance was part of some master plan?

The signs are there if you look for them. After a week of press conference quotes describing the uselessness of this tournament, should we be surprised that the team came out flatter than a Jawann McClellan free throw? Was it all just a passive-aggressive protest against the LA-run Fox Sport Net machine?

Of course not. Besides, if Lute wanted to further discuss his dislike for the event, he could have just used his "inside voice" from the bench during the game. The place was so empty, you could literally hear his every word during the broadcast. That game wouldn't have sold out Bear Down Gym. This is the kind of atmosphere I imagine you'd find at the NIT. (Luckily, considering Arizona has made the Big Dance every year since I was three, I've never been forced to actually watch one of those games. In fact, I don't even know what NIT stands for.) The Staples Center was so lifeless, every time I thought the crowd was starting to get into it, I realized that the sound guy had just moved the microphone closer to the cheerleaders.

The Pac 10 Tournament is a joke. But sadly, on Thursday, we were the punch line.

Marcus Williams, our sole all-conference player, was harder to watch than that fetus growing out of Tajaun Porter's ear. Our seniors will be lucky not to find themselves asking "Have you seen me?" from the side of a milk carton. And the uniforms... oh man. If there's one way to convince a nation of sportswriters that a once-proud program has jumped the shark, we certainly found it.

I stand by the belief that, given the right match ups, this team could do damage in the NCAA tournament. But with a game like that fresh on the minds of the selection committee, I wouldn't be surprised if the 300 were drawn as our opening game next weekend. And next weekend is all we have left... well, unless of course Lute really is keeping a trick or two up his sleeve. But I must say, that'd be one heck of a rabbit.

Bear Down and believe...