BIG GAME PREVIEW: Can Cougs beat the nation's best team?

Well, I had a very long and detailed preview that I had written for the blog, one that had tons of useful, insightful information. I was putting the final touches on it, getting ready to add a photo.

Then Internet Explorer crashed on me. And it's all gone. Two hours of work. (Serves me right for not writing in an application that actually saves your work as you go. I should know better than that!) So, I'll boil it down for you because I'm really pissed right now, and I don't have the time to rewrite it.

• UCLA's really good. I think they're the best team in the country, for a lot of good reasons that now have vanished into the abyss of cyberspace. The Cougars also are very good. I'm really excited for the game.


• Three big keys: Can the Cougars contain Darren Collison (above)? Will UCLA be able to force turnovers by WSU, and capitalize on them? Can the Cougars hold UCLA in check for an entire game, or will it be a tale of two halves, as it was before? The answers to these questions likely will determine the outcome.


• My heart says the Cougs can do it, but my head is saying something else. The Bruins are immensely talented, and playing great basketball right now. The Cougars have not played their best ball in a few weeks. The game will be close, as WSU rides the wave of emotion supplied by a sell-out crowd. But, ultimately, UCLA's talent is just too much.


• Prediction: UCLA 60, WSU 58.

There you have it. Hopefully I'll be done fuming by the time the game rolls around. Sheesh.