Pac-10 changes with no Lute.

Byline: Bob Clark The Register-Guard

It just won't be the same in the Pac-10 this season.

How could it be? After 24 years at the helm of the Arizona basketball program, Lute Olson is on a leave of absence, and his absence leaves everybody grasping to explain the impact.

"Oh, man," Washington coach Lorenzo Romar said. "He's so well-respected by the other coaches ... you always watch from a distance to see what Coach Olson is doing.

"Him not being around, we'll all miss him."

Olson has towered over the league during his quarter-century with the Wildcats. His teams averaged a fraction under 14 league victories. In his 24 seasons, Arizona finished first or second 17 times.

Olson has won an NCAA title, which none of the other Pac-10 coaches has done. He has been to four Final Fours, and his Arizona teams have won 39 NCAA Tournament games. Of the other nine coaches, only one has been to a Final Four in his current job, and they have combined for 26 NCAA wins as Pac-10 coaches.

And now Olson is gone, at least for this season, for personal reasons.

He said this isn't retirement, but at 73 years old, there's a definite sense that his future in coaching is questionable.

"We all hope that Lute comes back because he's been so great for our business," USC coach Tim Floyd said. "He represents the coaching profession in a manner that we all hope we could.

"I hope his situation improves and he can be back with us. He's set the standard for this conference for over 20 years."

In Olson's stead, Kevin O'Neill has been elevated from assistant to interim head coach, and designated to replace Olson when he does leave coaching permanently. That was the hunch of many when O'Neill was brought back as an assistant last spring.

"I've enjoyed my time as an assistant, I've enjoyed my time as a head coach," said O'Neill, who worked for Olson in the late '80s at Arizona before moving on to head-coaching jobs in college, and as an assistant in the NBA.

"When I came in here, this was not foreseen," O'Neill said. "I'm honored to be in the position where they could have considered me a successor, but was it in the plan? No way."

Still, it seems to have turned what could have been a difficult situation into a positive change for the Wildcats.

"I've been basically coaching our guys the entire year," O'Neill said, indicating his status as assistant, interim or successor should have little impact on the Wildcats.

Elsewhere, coaching has been stable but there has been a league-wide necessity of teams adjusting to players being in and out of the lineup.

UCLA had to learn to play without point guard Darren Collison while he was sidelined by a knee injury, though that could be a bonus as the Bruins learned they could get by with Russell Westbrook. But with three-point specialist Michael Roll also out, the Bruins looked susceptible to zone defenses, and other injuries limited UCLA in practices.

Stanford went for a while without Brook Lopez because of academic issues.

He announced his return with a 24-point performance, and has had as much of an impact in rebounds and blocked shots.

"The phrase I want to use is there's been a sense of urgency," Stanford coach Trent Johnson said. "I think he was embarrassed by the situation he put himself in."

C.J. Giles might still be there. The transfer from Kansas is being counted on to bring Oregon State out of the Pac-10 cellar, but he's fouled out of three of the four games he's played in since becoming eligible; in the one game in which he didn't amass five fouls, he was held out of the first half for disciplinary reasons.

"He's overzealous in his enthusiasm," OSU coach Jay John explained of the foul problems for Giles.

Elsewhere, teams welcome and wait on their injured players.

At Washington, senior guard Ryan Appleby recovered from his injuries to return and lead the Huskies in scoring in his first two games in uniform.

"He means a lot to us," Romar said. "He's not only a great shooter but he's been with us for a while. He gives us that confidence and calmness out there that experienced players are supposed to give you."

California might expect the same contribtion from junior Theo Robertson, but there's some doubt whether he will return from a knee injury. He hasn't played yet.

"We'd love to have Theo back ASAP," Cal coach Ben Braun said. "We're trying to remain optimistic he can play without any risk of any further injury."

The Bears, even with a talented front line, can use the help if they are to keep pace in a league that seems to be brimming with talent, and potential NCAA qualifiers.

As many as six Pac-10 teams have been ranked in national top 25s so far, and the conferene is a combined 85-23 in nonleague games, with nine of those defeats by two teams. There have been some surprising losses, like Stanford at Siena and USC to Mercer, but overall only Oregon hasn't performed to expectations.

With six teams in the NCAA Tournament last season to match its all-time most, can the Pac-10 dare to think of as many as seven or eight teams named for the 65-team field on the Selection Sunday of March 15?

"It's awfully early to engage in any conversation like that," ASU coach Herb Sendek said. "There's a lot of basketball to be played."

Yes, and it again looks like the task for the rest of the Pac-10 will be challenging UCLA, which not only has consecutive conference titles but back-to-back appearances in the Final Four. The Bruins are certainly everyone's choice as the Pac-10 favorites and opened the season No. 1 in the nation in more than one poll.

"I've never put any stock in predictions," UCLA coach Ben Howland said. "It doesn't matter where they pick you, it's where you finish ... you have to go out and prove it."

Howland champions the conference as "the best in the country, top to bottom.

"It will be a very tough January, February and March in the Pac-10."

All that's missing is Lute Olson, replaced by O'Neill, who might longingly remember how his previous time in Tucson included consecutive seasons in which the Wildcats went 17-1 in conference games each year.

"We were far and away the best team," O'Neill recalled. "It appears to me nobody is far and away the best team (now).

"It's going to be challenging every night and I think that's the kind of league everybody wants to coach in."

RATING THE PAC-10

1, UCLA: Learned to play well without Collison.

2, WASHINGTON ST.: Pac-10's last unbeaten team.

3, STANFORD: Imposing front line returns.

4, ARIZONA: Coaching change has been positive.

5, USC: Have benefited from two impact freshmen.

6, OREGON: Hasn't yet performed to expectations.

7, ARIZONA ST.: Two losses are to Illinois, Nebraska.

8, CALIFORNIA: Robertson still out with knee injury.

9, WASHINGTON: Beyond Brockman, consistency lacks.

10, OREGON ST.: Waiting for Giles to settle in.