Estimated read time: 4-5 minutes
LAS VEGAS — I got a tip from a Pac-12 Conference insider a few years ago. The source directed me to do some reporting about where Commissioner Larry Scott was staying during the 2019 conference basketball tournaments.
Turns out Scott had booked himself the Sky Suites two-bedroom Sky Villa at ARIA Resort and Casino. It has 3,370 square feet of space and includes 24-hour butler service, a marble soaking tub, and a private pool.
Nightly rate: $7,500.
Scott was furious that I wrote about it. He called it a personal attack. But it wasn't. It was an important and relevant piece. The commissioner spent lavishly and lived large. The conference was underfunding its universities and spending too much of the hard-earned revenue on private planes, hotel suites, and year-end parties.
The Pac-12 was on the path to destruction. That Scott was sipping Veuve Clicquot champagne and nibbling on chocolate-dipped strawberries was tone deaf.
I spent 11 days embedded on The Strip in Las Vegas that year. I watched college basketball tournaments and filed columns. I tracked Scott and visited with conference athletic directors and presidents. I also learned a lot about concrete workers as "The World of Concrete" convention happened to be going on.
(Here's what I learned about concrete: If you're going to hold a concrete convention, do it in Las Vegas. If you hold it in Omaha, nobody's coming.)
During the next 10 days, I'll cover the men's and women's Pac-12 Conference basketball tournaments in Las Vegas. I'm working for you now. The women go first. I'll post up at MGM Grand Garden Arena for the rest of this week, reporting and writing. Next week, the men's teams will take over T-Mobile Arena.
Among the things I'm curious about:
• Will this Pac-12 tournament have the same feel as the end of conference play in the college football season? The football programs left me wanting more.
• What do leaders at the departing Pac-12 schools have to say on their way out?
• What's the future of this event? Do Oregon State and Washington State envision a presence in Las Vegas as part of their rebuild?
• Will George Kliavkoff make good on my request for a sit-down interview? The ex-commissioner told me in January that he had a story to tell. He lives in Las Vegas. I've reached out. He's been too quiet for too long. Time for a sit down.
• What's Oregon State's ceiling this season in women's basketball? The Beavers have depth, and talent, and are well-coached. Will OSU get past No. 1-seed Stanford on Friday night in a potential semifinal thriller?
• What is Stanford's Cameron Brink, an Oregon native, playing for now? She had 23 rebounds and 25 points in a remarkable performance against Oregon State during the regular season.
• Juju Watkins, a 6-foot-2 star at USC, scored 51 points in a game earlier this season. Is Watkins going to steal the show? I'm here for it.
• Will this women's tournament provide another surprise? Washington State shocked the field last year. The Cougars upset three ranked teams, cut down the nets, and performed snow angels in the confetti on the court. It was a fun scene. JohnCanzano.com has a pair of photographers in Las Vegas in the next two weeks. They'll be filing daily photo galleries that bring you closer to the action.
• How about Oregon's Dana Altman? Will the coach have any fun next week in Las Vegas? His last three seasons have been marred by injuries and poor team chemistry. Altman told reporters this week that he's not retiring. UO needs to win the tournament to make the NCAA field. As the Ducks' coach told me: "Making the NIT isn't our goal."
• Will Washington State win the men's tournament? Kyle Smith's team is one of the best stories in college basketball. WSU disrupted the Pac-12 regular season, knocking Arizona out twice. The Cougars are hungry, talented, and tall.
The second anniversary of JohnCanzano.com is a few days away. I'm grateful for the early adopters who supported this independent endeavor. I'm also thankful for those who have found my work more recently.
I'm working for you now.
I'm excited about where the next two weeks will take us.
Read more of columnist John Canzano exclusively at JohnCanzano.com.
