Washington Basketball: 10 Reasons the Huskies Win the Pac-10

The Washington Huskies, led in part by guard Isaiah Thomas, tasted success last year as the winners of the 2010 Pac-10 Tournament. Coach Lorenzo Romar helped guide his team all the way to the Sweet 16 last year as they upended teams like Marquette and New Mexico.

While 2010 was a good year for the program, that's all in the past. 

It's time for the Huskies to assert themselves as the best team in the Pac-10; they're the preseason favorites to win the conference and garner the league's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. 

Here are 10 reasons the Huskies will win the Pac-10 this year. 

While preseason rankings are largely unreliable and a poor predictor of the final standings, they can be useful if examined in context.

The context here is that there are no other Pac-10 teams in the rankings. 

The Washington Huskies are the only team in the Pac-10 conference with a ranking in the preseason top 25. The AP Poll has them at No. 18, while the ESPN/USA Today Poll rates the Huskies as the No. 17 team in the land. 

This is a good confidence booster for the team and it says a lot about the quality of the other teams in the league. 

The Huskies are without only one starter from last year's Sweet 16 squad, swingman Quincy Pondexter, their leading scorer who is now plying his trade with the New Orleans Hornets. 

Pondexter is a big loss to overcome, but if any team can do it, it's Washington. They are returning the rest of their starting five and they have one of the most experienced teams in the Pac-10. 

They are loaded with upperclassmen like Justin Holliday and Venoy Overton, selfless players who are great leaders, as well. This experience will be greatly appreciated come tournament time. 

When you think about Pac-10 basketball, your mind will undoubtedly turn to the usual suspects: the UCLA Bruins and the Arizona Wildcats. 

Shockingly enough, neither of these teams qualified for the NCAA Tournament last year. Two of the perennial favorites were shut out of the tournament, while the Huskies gained invaluable experience.

The Huskie roster is awash with players who have participated in games on the biggest stage. They will be ready for anything and they will not be easily intimidated by the bright lights. 

The Cal Bears, a team that won the regular season title in the Pac-10, has lost seven of their top 10 scorers entering the 2010-2011 season. 

Their top two scorers, Jerome Randle and Patrick Christopher, have graduated, leaving the backcourt bereft of any legitimate scoring option. 

They have one of the youngest teams in the country and it's not too early to say that they will not being winning the conference this year. They were one of the best teams in the country last year and, with them out of the picture, the Huskies will have one less obstacle on their way to a championship. 

Isaiah Thomas, the diminutive guard for the Huskies, will be looked at as the No. 1 scoring option now that Quincy Pondexter has moved on to the NBA.

Thomas will be more than ready to handle the added responsibility. 

His scoring average increased last year from his freshman season, and his turnovers declined. As he matures, his game is becoming more polished and his experience is growing. 

After playing deep into the tournament last year, Thomas is ready for big games and he has the skills to back it up. Expect the Nate Robinson lookalike to be the driving force behind the Huskies' conference title run. 

Matthew Bryan-Amaning, the 6'9" forward from London, England, is poised to become one of the biggest frontcourt threats in the Pac-10. 

The Huskies are a team built around speed and perimeter play; they're a team with a lack of frontcourt talent outside of Bryan-Amaning. That being said, he needs to play at a very high level to carry the big men on this team, and I think he can do it. 

His numbers really took off in the second half of last season, and he played well for England's Under-23 team in the summer. 

His numbers have improved each year that he's been here, and I don't expect that to change this year. 

Justin Holiday is another senior who's played quality minutes for the Huskies. At 6'6", he's a long player who can really lock down on defense. Last season saw him average one steal per game and 0.6 blocks per game, both career highs.

His perimeter shooting also improved last year, as he posted a .333 percentage from three point range, also a career high.

With Pondexter in the mix last year, Holiday wasn't asked to do too much. This year, however, Holiday will have to step up and provide some more offense than the 5.9 PPG he averaged last year. 

Holiday has improved every year, and, like Bryan-Amaning, I expect him to make more strides this season as he assumes a more important role on the team. 

Aziz N'Diaye is a transfer from the College of Southern Idaho, a JUCO school. At 7'0", he is raw talent from Senegal who can come in and contribute immediately off the bench. 

While he won't give them much on the offensive end, he will be invaluable as a rebounder/shotblocker. 

In a thin Huskie frontcourt, he's bound to see time. If he delivers on the promise that he's shown thus far, he may be a major part of the reason Washington wins the conference. 

Terrence Ross, one of the top 10 shooting guard prospects in the country, will be playing for the Washington Huskies this coming season. The Jefferson High School (OR) product will be competing for playing time in a deep backcourt, but I expect him to make his presence felt. 

By all accounts, he's cool under pressure and a great perimeter shooter. His defense is lacking right now, but at 6'5", he has the build to develop into a lock down guy. 

Lorenzo Romar has made the Washington Huskies a program that stands out in a usually deep Pac-10 conference. While he hasn't won a National Title in his time there, he has the Huskies playing in the tournament year in and year out. 

He's proven himself to be a good recruiter and he's produced NBA players like Nate Robinson and Quincy Pondexter. 

Romar, a former Huskie player himself, played for the Golden State Warriors for five years and has a good basketball background. 

The 2010-2011 season should be an interesting one in college basketball, but there is little doubt in the Pac-10: the Washington Huskies will win the regular season conference title. 

Mike Osterberg is a student at Penn State University and a writing intern at BleacherReport.com. Follow him on twitter @Mike_Osterberg.