Washington State Cougars

RECORD: 13-5 overall, 3-3 Pac-10

COMING UP: Today at USC, 7:30 p.m.; Saturday at UCLA, 1 p.m., FSN

OUTLOOK: Kevin O’Neill has lots of roots in Wisconsin. The first-year USC coach takes pride in one aspect of basketball that Dick Bennett and son Tony, both Wisconsin guys, emphasized at WSU: defense. The Trojans (11-6, 3-2) play the Pac-10’s best man-to-man defense, using their strength and athleticism to hold opponents to 36.9 percent shooting, 30 percent beyond the arc. That was the UCLA (7-10, 2-3) calling card as well in recent years under Ben Howland, but this Bruins team is nothing like the Final Four teams of just a couple of years ago. Only Stanford is poorer on the defensive end, as teams shoot 44.9 percent from the floor against the Bruins.