The San Diego program is probably at its highest level ever, and it should do nothing but improve nest season.

The Toreros return everyone on the roster next season, including all-conference players Brandon Johnson and Gyno Pomare. Over the last few games, Pomare demonstrated that he is capable of playing against the best competition in the country, and if he can attain that level often enough next year, he should be a major factor for the Toreros.

Freshmen Rob Jones and Trumaine Johnson should be improved after a year of college experience, and De'Jon Jackson showed his value when he made the game-winning shot against Connecticut.

Coach Bill Grier may be the most important ingredient, and the school realized what it had when it signed him to contract extension after just one season as a college coach. The team improved significantly as the season wore on, and it finished on a high note with consecutive victories over St. Mary's, Gonzaga and Connecticut, before losing to Western Kentucky.

Next season, the players will expect to win, and that is a major difference from this past season, when they hoped to win. The road win against Kentucky seemed to give the Toreros a huge boost, and they fed off that the rest of the season.

They could challenge both St. Mary's and Gonzaga for the conference title next season, although both those teams seem to have a talent edge on the Toreros.

That is one of the two potential problems for next season. One, Gonzaga and St. Mary's won't be getting any worse. In fact, they both might be better. Two, the conference tournament will be in Las Vegas next season, not in San Diego like it was this season. Having the conference tournament on their homecourt helped the Toreros earn an NCAA Tournament berth and come into the postseason riding high.

They need to improve their foul shooting.

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