Besides crowning a champion for Pac-10 men's basketball, this weekend's Pacific Life Pac-10 Tournament also provided a unique opportunity to evaluate the talent on the baseline. In a surprising upset, UCLA has officially been crowned LAist's Pac-10 Cheerleader Champions for the 2007-2008 basketball season. Can we get an 8-clap? Or a phone number? While Oregon led in the hearts and (filthy) minds of most Pac-10 creepazoids observers this year, in person they just weren't......

The UCLA Bruins were gifted their third consecutive Pac-10 title by the referees in their game against the #7 Stanford Cardinal. With less than two seconds to go at the end of regulation Darren Collison drove to the basket and pulled up for a five-footer. Lawrence Hill went up and blocked the shot. Replays clearly showed that Hill got all ball and absolutely no body contact. So of course Hill got called for the......

by Joe King, from Pyle of List. No, this isn't about Pete Carroll returning to the NFL. That would definitely be time to panic, maybe even call the National Guard...if they're back from Iraq yet. This is about the first USC-UCLA game of the college basketball season. This is important people. Both teams played well in last year's NCAA tournament. Both teams had high expectations before the season started. Both teams had blue-chip freshman that......

Reaction to Final BCS Standings....

You may remember Stephanie as Miss Howard TV for the month of October on HowardTV, (Howard's on-demand uncensored channel on cable television), but really it feels like she's the 13th girl in 12 months that Stern-sidekick Artie Lange has fawned over. However with Stephanie, there was that special "paisan" connection. If you go to ASU, you've probably facebook stalked her. If you have HowardTV, you're well ahead of the game. She is also Miss......

The Bruins were lucky enough to get coverage on FSN this time while breaking away from a 10-10 tie at the half to outlast Washington 44-31 last night. Washington's Jake Locker threw three deadly touchdown passes in the fourth quarter. It was a difficult game for the Bruins, until the Huskies' defense started to give during the second half. Each touchdown pass that Locker completed, the Bruins were able to respond to until finally opening......

Everybody's favorite LA football team the UCLA Bruins face BYU in their home opener at the Rose Bowl tomorrow. If you have tickets, make sure you arrive early for the Air Force fly-by before the game -- it's always a guaranteed tearjerker. Ex-BYUman Ben Olson scoffed at the supposed challenge that BYU brings, stating: "I look at this as any other game.” That's my boy! Unfortunately you cannot catch the game on any of......

Dodgers 5, Rockies 4 - Los Angeles must feel like they dodged a bullet after Thursday night -- not because of Colorado's attempted comeback, but because of all the pitching injuries. Brad Penny earned his 13th win, but was pulled out of the game in the seventh after an all-out sprint to earn a single. Turns out he only had a bad cramp. Takashi Saito returned after missing seven games with shoulder trouble, taking the......

Angels 7, A's 6 - Francisco Rodriguez blew a save opportunity despite a three run lead. Fortunately, he was saved by Maicer Izturis' RBI single with two out in the bottom of the ninth. Vladimir Guerrero took the day off and while the Halos generated plenty of offense without him, none of the 15 hits left the park. The team's recent home run slump coincides with Vlad's, who hasn't gone yard in 24 games despite......

On a balmy 4th of July at the beach this week, LAist spotted USC football coach Pete Carroll playing catch in his front yard with his family. He looked relaxed and seemed to be having a good time. If it weren't so sandy, it could have been right out of a Norman Rockwell painting. We're not sure if Les Miles is bitter that his front yard is next to a swamp, but something big is......

Marlins 6, Dodgers 5 - The Dodgers could only briefly enjoy their five run inning. After erasing a 3-0 deficit with two out in the fifth, the Blue Crew eventually turned into the Blew Crew. Takashi Saito botched just his second save of the year, and Florida scored the winning run in the top of the 10th. The Dodgers loaded 'em up in the bottom half of the frame, but couldn't get anybody home. Yankees......

Marlins 6, Dodgers 5 - When the Dodgers return to Chavez Ravine on Friday they'll be exposed to smoke, haze, and bad condition caused by nearby fires -- just like they're experiencing in Florida. The Marlins are hosting Los Angeles and are suffering from similar early summer blazes near the stadium. Some observed that the conditions are like a fog in San Francisco, but worsened by dry throats and stinging eyes. On Tuesday night the......

Lakers 115, Warriors 113 - Kobe joked about having an "off-night" after scoring 43 against Golden State, the first time in five games that he failed to reach the 50 mark. The Lakers have won all five of those games to recover from a seven game losing streak that was the worst of Phil Jackson's career. Kobe also had nine rebounds in the winning effort, but contributed seven turnovers to the Laker's season high 24.......

Tobacco Road, watch your back. Gainesville, better enjoy that trophy while you’ve got it. LA is back with a vengeance and is ready to reclaim its place atop the college basketball kingdom. With UCLA and USC both advancing to the Sweet 16 for only the second time ever, the local buzz hasn’t been this great in decades. The Bruins have been a consistently good program since the departure of John Wooden from the sidelines......

Nuggets 113, Lakers 86 - When Phil Jackson went to bed on Wednesday, he was probably looking forward to the day ahead. Things were set up nicely for a home game with Lamar Odom and Luke Walton both returning from injuries. Then his alarm clock rang. Within a few hours, the NBA dished out $100,000 in fines for his comments about a Kobe "witchhunt" and the Lakers lost for the seventh time in a row.......

Dallas 108, Lakers 72 - The last time the Lakers lost at home this bad, "home" was Minneapolis. Things got so ugly that LAist writers were wondering if Smush Parker's ejection (after a second technical) might help the team. But with three players sidelined with injuries, the it turns out a streamlined roster wasn't much of a solution. Dallas rolled to its 17th win in a row and held Los Angeles to within two points......

-- 15 teams of sheriff's deputies and undercovers nabbed 58 people across Southern California Saturday on suspicion of providing alcohol to minors. It was the was the largest one-day "hey mister / shoulder tap" sting operation in state history. - MyFoxLA.com. -- A wildfire north of Anaheim charred 2,000+ acres and threatened homes. It's still burning, as is a smaller fire near Corona. Do your best to not burn down your neighborhood -- it's hot,......

Oregon 81, USC 57 - LAist predicted that USC and UCLA would play for the Pac 10 title. When the top seeded Bruins were knocked off by #8 Cal, it was up to the Trojans to represent LA. They couldn't. The 24 point margin doesn't begin to explain the Duck's domination. After beating Washington State in the semifinals on Friday night, USC left Staples Center in the wee hours of the morning on Saturday. They......

USC 70, Washington State 61 - After loosing to the Cougars twice in league play, the Trojans avenged the regular season by beating Washington State in the Pac 10 Tournament semifinals. USC led most of the way, thanks in part to 24 of 33 shooting from the charity stripe compared to just 6 of 8 for the Cougs. The Trojan's tenacious D also held their opponent to 36.1 percent shooting. Oregon 81, Cal 63 -......

The most exciting college sports action is going down this weekend in Los Angeles and this time there's no pigskin involved. The Pac 10 Men's Basketball Tournament is taking place Staples Center. It's a little like that awkward moment just before the Big Dance. It can be expensive to go, you wish you were with one of those cheerleaders, somebody already got upset (big time), and somebody hopes to get lucky. Come to think......

Timberwolves 117, Lakers 107, 2OT - Kobe had 37 points in regulation but could only manage 3 in two overtime periods as Los Angeles fell to Minnesota. The star of the game was Timberwolves' center Mark Blount. Unlike most 7 foot tall dudes, he was able to rain down three pointers when it counted. With a trio of trays in the final three minutes, he helped the T-Wolves even up and send the game into......

The Bruins should have been worried, walking onto a court of 11,000 hardcore WSU fans, jumping and cheering at the top of their lungs -- "should have", but they weren't. Instead they bounced back from a 23-22 halftime deficit and extinguished any notion that they did not have control. UCLA finished the game 53-45 over WSU, and clinched the Pac-10 title; meaning UCLA could become the top seed entering the NCAA Tournament. Arron Afflalo led......

Kings 4, Ducks 3, OT - LAist revels in rivalries, especially local ones. Take Los Angeles and Anaheim. Despite gaining parity in baseball and cartoon production, they've seen a major gap in hockey. The Kings are at the bottom of the Western Conference standings, while the Ducks have spent most of the season on top. Yet when the teams face off, that doesn't mean a thing. Los Angeles won in overtime, giving them three wins......

Trailblazers 112, Lakers 108 - When your best player wins the All Star MVP award and a guy from the bench scores 23, things should be clicking. Instead, the Lakers lost their sixth in a row. This is the longest loosing streak in Phil Jackson's career. When he joined the Lakers in 1999 there was a distant memory of a five game loosing streak with the Bulls. He added another five game streak last season.......

Ducks 3, Kings 2, SO - With both local teams struggling lately, Los Angeles and Anaheim opened a weekend home-and-home series at Staples Center. The Kings tied it up with about five minutes to play, and neither team could score in overtime. The Ducks, with one of the best records in hockey, skated away with a shootout win over the Kings, with one of the worst. The scrappy rivalry featured 56 penalty minutes issued in......

Stars 1, Ducks 0 - Rookie goalie Mike Smith blocked 32 shots for Dallas and didn't allow a goal in six power plays, leading the Stars to a tight win against their division rival. The game featured a fight after just 35 seconds, resulting in a couple 5 minute penalties and another classic photo for LAist. Anaheim's wheels started to fall off just before the All Star break, and the team has spiraled to 3-6-1......

Bruins 70, Trojans 65 - For the second time this season, LAist correctly predicted a barn burner. UCLA didn't have a lead until the final six minutes, when USC's foul trouble unraveled an impressive game from the matchup's traditional underdog. The Bruins went 23-31 at the line, compared to a mere 3-5 for the Trojans. USC kept it close until the final seven seconds, hitting a string of deep shots to pull within three. A......

Knicks 102, Clippers 90 - Each team had five players score in double digits with just four other players adding 16 points to the game. The Clippers dominated the first half, leading by as many as 12 and going into the locker room up by 10. Something pretty inspirational must have happened at intermission, because New York scored the first ten points to even it up, then went on to win by 12. What did......

Lakers 90, Hawks 83 - Kobe Bryant seems to be winning back the hearts and minds of America on this road trip. With three games to go until returning to Los Angeles, the Lakers are now 3-2 with many of those games showing major crowd support for the Laker's star. Bryant's 27 points against Atlanta weren't particularly impressive, but 11 came in the fourth quarter. College Hoops - USC exploded back into the men's top......

Lakers 118, Wizards 102 - Some say the Gilbert Arenas - Kobe Bryant rivalry has sprouted, and LAist is pretty sure it's budding. Both players have denied any personal friction despite mild trash talking in the media. Their exciting play against each other in Washington demonstrated talent and mutual admiration. Kobe had 39 points and Arenas had 37, several of which came on spectacular plays against one another.     Kings 7, Panthers 0 - It wasn't the Miracle On Ice, but it......