OSU, USC and UW fit to challenge in Pac-10 By Scott Simonson QrQQOn iMvy f Stanford again? It's tho same quasi ion every year in women's !>askeli>al! in the* PacifiilO Conference (inn anyone Iwal Stanford, which inis won the league title eat.h of the last fiv e \ ears ' Ihe challengers trying to Unseat Stanford this season include perennial runners-up (Washington, USC) as well as teams trying to overcome a history of tneditx rily and mixed results (the Oregon s< hoots) Kven though Washington Ml in the Pac- in and Ml I overall lost two kev seniors from a team that made the N( A A tournament with a 17-12 rec ord a year ago. the Huskies have regrouped, rebuilt and appear to he one of the top teams in the i (inference l hey ic doing it with defense Alter the preseason. the Huskies ranked third nationally in si tiring (intense allowing an average ol a I Z points pet game lunior point guard kaliti FoUUlde led the Huskies ill assists and minutes ployed last season. I in* Paris native spent the summer playing on the French national team during the summer trying to improve Iter offensive game ( .enter Rhonda Smith was Washington's leading si orer and reboundor a year ago and will again play a major role. The Huskies opened at home with a big win over Stanford, arguably the most talented team m the league. Washington doesn't appear to have the talent of .1 Stanford or USC. but It* results have be«n just as impressive so PREVIEW 1994 The Emerald examines the women's basketball team in a two port senes TODAY: A look at Washington, W$U, USC, UCLA and Oregon State WEDNESDAY A look at Stanford, California, Arizona, Arizona State and Oregon far Washington Slate in the Pin Id and 5(*. finished in a tie for last place in the league last season and should end up ( lose to the bottom of the heap again The Cougars would do well pist to make 1! through the season in one pus e Seven plflvers missed more than game with injuries last vear, and three suffered career ending injuries The Cougars are led l>\ senior 1 enter Camille Thompson, who was the Cougars' top si orer last season and who hails from that legendary basketball men a of Salmon Arm. British Columbia Washington State has a glaring weakness at its forward spots Besides senior Angie Peterson, the team has three freshmen and a junior college transfer on its depth ( hart Most prognosticators have I SC, 2-0 and 9-1. in a dogfight with Stanford for the conference tit!i> The Trojans' only loss this season was on the road at then Mo 2 Purdue on n controversial last second buzzer beater The Trojans have two of the top players in Americ a One is senior forward l isa Leslie, a two-lime All American The other is first year head t oat h Cheryl Miller, who isn't allowed to play anymore but could probably still heat up on most any team in the countrv if she were given the chance Miller has the Trojans running a high-scoring offense and playing tenac ions defense in both half-court and full-c our! schemes After the presoason. the Trojans ranked sis nnd nationally in field goal percentage defense USC's strengths are its ijiiii kness and athleticism, but the Trojans c an play tough and physical I eslie was so eager to demonstrate this Thursday night at Oregon State* that she- removed one of Oregon State center Kristina Lolas’ front teeth with her elbow Next up on the Trojans’ schedule for a choc kup and cleaning is the Pm 10's other 2-0 team, Washington, in Los Angeles on Thursday The Trojans share some characteristics with their c rosstown rival. UCLA The Bruins, 1-1 and f>-4, also feature a new head coac h (Katin Olivier) and an All-American forward (Natalie Williams). However, neither Olivier nor Williams i .in rely on the depth of talent that the Trojans feature Williams, forward Amy lalewalia and center /.nnka Kristie h form a front line that mate.lies up well with almost anyone, but the Bruin hae ke cnirt is suspect and the* lienc h isn't deep The Bruins played less than stellar basketball in the preseason, compiling a 4 4 record that inc luded a loss to Boise State l ICLA is capable of beating some very good teams on its better nights, but the Bruins victory at Oregon State on Saturday was the first sign that UCLA i un win MARK Mt TV Rt f ol Oregon An A/fi^mu.’ivr A*;mw» f iiuu! i IjyttfUtJttO t mpbvft Commuud i uUuml f.Xwr\»;> anJ i a^xp/Mfu f with iht Awn.an» wtih Ihuibiluti A«s Murray honored for 62-point week WALNUT CREKK, Calif (AT) — Cal forward l.ain ond Murray, who scored (>2 points in two confer ence games last week, was named the I’m ifii -10 Conference player of the week Monday. The l>-foot-7 forward hit a career-high tt> points on tn-of-IJ shooting in thetiolden Bears' 7(t*,r>4 vic tory over Washington State Murrav also got a sea son-high 10 rebounds. In a 7‘M>-1 w in over Washington, Murray led all scorers with 2f> points on 9-of-12 shooting. As tiic Par 10's loading scorer, and averaging almost 2r> points a gome. Murray shot 79.2 per cent from the field in the two games, leading the 9 2 Bears to their seventh straight win. Also nomi nated for plover of the week were Arizona's Ka\ Owes. Stanford’s Brevin knight. UCLA’s Tyus Kdney. Southern (‘.al's Lorenzo Orr and Washing ton's Sam Allen Newly Appointed PEACE CORPS DIRECTOR Carol Bellamy Wednesday, January 12 tDirections for the 90's" Univ of Oregon ERB Memorial Union Fir Room 4pm-5pm