Arizona softball looks to keep its undefeated home record intact as California and Stanford come to Hillenbrand Stadium this weekend.

The Wildcats (46-2, 10-1 Pacific 10 Conference) face No. 5 Cal (38-10, 5-7) today in their final Pac-10 meeting. The two teams faced each other last at California on April 17 and April 18 - two of the closer contests the UA has played all season, as both were

eighth-inning Arizona victories, 2-0 and 3-2. [Read article]

With 12 Pac-10 games remaining this season, the Arizona baseball program knows that it's time to make a push for a playoff bid is running out.

"I hope they sense the immediacy of playing well every weekend," said head coach Andy Lopez. "We don't have to go out and sweep the next five weekends, but we definitely cannot go out and not play well. We need to go out and win, probably two out of three." [Read article]

The Arizona track and field teams open a four-week homestand tomorrow as they host instate rivals Northern Arizona and ASU.

If recent rankings are any indication, competition should be stiff.

All three teams cleared the top-40 mark in Monday's U.S. Track Association power rankings. The Sun Devils lead the men, ranking fourth. The Wildcats and Lumberjacks come in at No. 30 and 36, respectively.

Arizona set the women's standard at No. 19, while Northern Arizona comes in at 27th and ASU sits 31th. [Read article]

TEMPE - Lute Olson and Joan Bonvicini can both count on steady paychecks through 2009, though Olson will earn a base salary more than five times larger than Bonvicini's.

The Arizona Board of Regents yesterday approved five-year contract extensions for Olson, the head men's basketball coach, and Bonvicini, who heads the women's squad.

Olson will earn a base salary of $700,000 per year with the possibility for $355,000 in performance incentives, while Bonvicini will earn a salary of $135,000 with the possibility for $140,000 in incentives. In contrast, new UA football head coach Mike Stoops will earn a $450,000 base salary next season. [Read article]

NBA CHAMPIONSHIP

Why are we picking the champs now? Well, two reasons: The first is that this is my last chance to do Staff Picks before a guy who watches "The Bachelor" takes over. The second is that, like most NBA fans, we don't have the patience to wait through two months of playoffs. I'm hoping Sacramento takes it, just so nobody has to watch the Spurs outdefend some Eastern Conference patsy like the Nets. [Read article]