Dog fight

For six years, Gonzaga basketball has safely stood as the No. 1 hoops program in the state of Washington, overpowering instate rivals on its rise to national stardom.

And in each one of those years, the Bulldogs have beaten the Huskies. This year's match-up, however, is shaping up in a different fashion.

The No. 14 Huskies (4-0) face the Bulldogs (3-1) today in Spokane at 5 p.m. at the renovated McCarthey Athletic Center.

Gonzaga dropped out of the rankings Monday for the first time in more than a year when the Zags were throttled 89-72 by No. 3 Illinois Saturday, while the UW jumped eight spots in the latest AP poll to No. 14, its highest ranking since 1999.

"We want to be the top dogs," senior swingman Tre Simmons said with a smirk.

Simmons will likely start for the Huskies today in place of junior Brandon Roy who is expected to miss four to six weeks after tearing a ligament in his knee against Oklahoma. Roy had surgery on his knee yesterday.

"He's our best all-around player, so he brings a lot to the team," Simmons said. "I just have to pick up where he left off."

Roy will be difficult to replace. He led the Huskies in scoring with 23 points against Seattle Pacific Nov. 19 and scored 25 points against Utah Friday in the opening round of the Great Alaska Shootout.

"We've got a lot of good guys on this team," Roy said, "and our team has got a real deep bench."

Last year, when the Huskies faced Gonzaga in Seattle, the Bulldogs defeated Washington 86-52. For 15 minutes, the Huskies were incapable of putting the ball in the basket, missing 22 consecutive shots.

"We make a couple more buckets and we would have been in the game," junior guard Nate Robinson said. "It's not like they just played phenomenal defense."

UW coach Lorenzo Romar agreed.

"We weren't playing real good basketball at that time," he said.

Once again, Washington will have to deal with touted Bulldog big man Ronny Turiaf, who posted a 40-point effort against Idaho Nov. 24.

During the Huskies' championship run at the Great Alaska Shootout, containing big men was a constant issue. Andrew Bogut of Utah, Kevin Bookout of Oklahoma and Alabama's Chuck Davis all had big days against the Huskies.

But even without a true center, or a big man over 6-foot-9 to battle in the low post, the Huskies have managed to outpace their opponents.

"Our team is playing with a lot of confidence right now," Romar said.

For that, the Huskies do not expect to go into another scoring drought against the Zags.

"Last year their team had so much experience," said Robinson, who was recently named Pac-10 Player of the Week. "Now, we're a veteran team, so it is different. We've got to be focused and we've got to be ready."