The only problem is, all that encouraging, upbeat stuff might only go so far once the Wildcats get into Pac-12 play. This is a conference, after all, that put four teams in the Sweet 16 and two in the Final Four.

“It’s brutal,” Bonvicini said. “The L.A. schools are always going to get players and then you’ve got Stanford in the mix. But now you’ve got Washington? Now you’ve got Oregon State? I mean, who would have thought?

“And with the team up the freeway — a lot of people forget they were co-champs last year — (ASU coach) Charli (Turner Thorne) has been very consistent.”

Oregon State coach Scott Rueck had a similar sentiment, and that’s hardly a surprise. His team reached the Final Four last season — but was picked only fifth this season after losing two of its top three scorers.

“There’s a reason our RPI is No. 1,” Rueck said. “We’ve been keeping talent in the West and recruiting some of the talent out of the East. There’s proven coaching everywhere and you look at the universities out there — who wouldn’t want to be a part of that?

“You know each night is going to be a war and it’s not getting any easier.”