I’m really tempted to just re-write my column from last week.

UCLA had just swept Utah and Colorado at the Sports Arena to run its home record in Pac-12 play to 4-0, and had to feel pretty satisfied with all the helpings of home cooking.

Then the Bruins hit the road for the Pacific Northwest, making stops in Seattle (a two-point loss to Washington) and Spokane (a three-point victory over Washington State).

As with any weekend of conference play, plenty of storylines emerged – for one: given the competition, which game was more encouraging? – but I think the biggest thing to take out of the weekend was the play of sophomore center Joshua Smith, who happens to hail from the state of Washington and had dozens of friends and family able to see him perform in person.

Given the chance to experience some of his own personal home cooking, Smith delivered what was by far his most productive and efficient weekend as a Bruin. He had 24 points in 26 minutes on Thursday and 19 points in just 22 minutes on Saturday, leading UCLA in both games. Not only that, he maximized his touches: The big man shot a combined 17-22 from the field in the two games. Wowzers.

The problem for Smith is, the question of “has he turned the corner?” has been raised before, most notably after UCLA’s win over Arizona State back on Jan. 7 when Smith scored 18 points and absolutely dominated the Sun Devils. That performance looked like an anomaly until this weekend, when he showed the desire and the discipline to supplement his physical gifts.

The one potential caveat? Playing at home. Is this a new Smith, or was he merely temporarily energized by the family, the friends and the fish scents drifting in from Pike Place Market? Last year on this road trip, the then-freshman was above-average, scoring 12 points and 10 points in the two games. He was even better this year, amid discussion that his conditioning has regressed and his motivation isn’t there.

Opponents know his capabilities: Teams have been throwing a lot of zone defenses at the Bruins the last few weeks, not only to capitalize on UCLA’s inconsistent outside shooting but also to prevent Smith from getting touches in the post. That’s the kind of treatment you’re going to get when you can shoot 17-22 from the field over the course of a weekend.

As a columnist, I admittedly love Joshua Smith. The guy is a fascinating, multi-faceted player whose career arc has been rife with storylines.

Fans of the program have a love-hate relationship with the guy, whose flashes of brilliance make the moments of struggle and the lapses in desire all the more frustrating and head-scratching.

That’s why I think this upcoming weekend will be the biggest of Smith’s career. UCLA welcomes in Cal and Stanford, two of the conference’s top teams and two of the Bruins’ conference losses. Smith will be coming off the most productive weekend of his collegiate career in his home state, and if he can replicate those performances, then UCLA has a shot at grabbing a huge win or two at the Sports Arena.

He hasn’t strung together this many strong outings in a row yet, but maybe this time he really has turned a corner. We’ll find out soon enough.

If you’re like him and Smith and perform better when your mom is watching/reading, email Eshoff at reshoff@media.ucla.edu.