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There’s no denying it: the Bears are on a roll. This week’s games will go a long way to determine just how serious they are about keeping it going. 

The Cal men’s basketball team is tied for fourth in the Pac-10 standings at 5-2 and has won four in a row, but don’t start congratulating them yet. They haven’t beaten a single team ahead of them in the standings. The Bears were beaten soundly by front-runners Stanford and Arizona, and will face off against UCLA and USC on Thursday and Saturday, respectively. 

How the Bears handle this week’s games is the first true test of the conference schedule. No one really expected them to beat Arizona; despite the Wildcats ups and downs this year, they are a supremely talented bunch. And asking the youthful Bears to upset the No. 1 Cardinal is a bit unrealistic. And victories over weak teams like Washington State and Arizona State don’t really prove much. But the teams from down south are much like Ben Braun’s team: going well now, but with serious questions about their continued success. 

UCLA, which will visit Haas Pavilion on Thursday, is a collection of McDonald’s All-Americans that just hasn’t been able to put it together the past few seasons. The trio of wingman Jason Kapono, center Dan Gadzuric and forward Matt Barnes provide enough firepower for the Bruins to blow away just about any opponent. Kapono is a pure shooter and slasher, Gadzuric is immovable in the middle, and Barnes’ skills has been compared to those of NBA superstar Grant Hill. But promise has faded into disappointment for UCLA in the last few years. 

Kapono is an unquestioned star, fourth in the conference in scoring (17.8 ppg) and striking fear into opposing coaches’ hearts. But Gadzuric is wildly inconsistent, capable of putting up 20 points and 10 rebounds but disappearing at the most inopportune times. Barnes is making the transition from playing on the perimeter to heading into the post, and his scoring is down. 

“Out of necessity for our team’s needs, he understands that he’s going to receive an ample amount of minutes on the front line,” says UCLA head coach Steve Lavin. “As a result, he’s found that he’s pretty effective, a tough matchup for most post players. He’s got versatility and an unusual skill set for his size.” 

The Bruins are tied with Arizona at 6-1 in Pac-10 play, and are thriving under a full-court press installed this season. But they also collapsed in the second half against Arizona, and have yet to face powerhouse Stanford. Lavin says the new defense has energized his team. 

“We worked on the press from day one in practice, but only used it in games on occasion early in the year and went 4-4. But at North Carolina we went down 19, stayed with the press and went up four. We have pressed 40 minutes every game since,” Lavin says. “It creates a real aggressive mindset in our players.” 

Cal head coach Ben Braun agrees that the press seems to have woken up the UCLA players. 

“UCLA has been very consistent in pressuring full-court, and been doing a very good job of it,” Braun says. “They’ve been forcing turnovers and creating points.” 

The Bears could have difficulty breaking the UCLA press, especially when point guard Shantay Legans heads to the bench. Backup Donte Smith has been struggling with his confidence this year, reportedly considering a transfer recently only to change his mind. If Smith shows weakness against the Bruins, the Bears will pay for it with some easy UCLA baskets. Barnes has taken a leading role in the Bruins’ new defense. 

“He’s real weapon in the press because he’s so long, has a real sense of anticipation. He’s really the point man on the press, creating turnovers for our guards,” Lavin says. 

USC is another team that has yet to live up to their talent, but for a different reason: injuries and suspensions. Several players went down last year with various ailments, and a quick start turned sour as the Trojans finished at 16-14. But head coach Henry Bibby has all five starters back now, as guard Jeff Trepagnier has finally returned from an NCAA suspension. His presence make the Trojans one of most talented teams in the country. They are tied with the Bears at 5-2 in conference play. 

“I have a better feel now for who I’m going to use with Jeff back on the team. I’m set on a certain rotation that I’m going to stay with,” Bibby says. “Jeff has missed a lot of basketball, and he’s not back to where he was before.” 

The Bears do have a six-game winning streak against the Trojans, but will be hard-pressed to keep up with the Trojans this year. 

“We’ve just played well against them,” Braun says. “They’re a very talented team, and sometimes a talented team can get you to play better and harder.” 

In Trepagnier’s absence, the Trojans have leaned heavily on forwards Sam Clancy and Brian Scalabrine. Clancy, who missed a big chunk of games with a fractured foot last year, has always been a strong presence on the glass and is pulling down 7.2 rebounds per game. But Clancy has come on strong on the offensive end to become the team’s leading scorer at 18.4 points per game. 

“Clancy’s really given their team life this year after being spotty with the injury last year,” Braun says. “He can obviously go get rebounds for them, and he has really improved his offense this year.” 

Scalabrine was USC’s leading scorer last year, but has made a lot of improvement on defense this year. He is second on the team in blocked shots while continuing to be a key part of the offense. 

“Brian does so many things to help us win on the floor,” Bibby says. “He’s just added the shot-blocking this year.” 

If the Bears can sweep the SoCal schools at Haas, it will give them a leg up on claiming an NCAA bid. A split would be acceptable in keeping the Bears in contention, but if they lose both games this week, they may get stuck in the middle of the Pac-10, better than the weak sisters up north but unable to play with the big boys.