Pac-12 Basketball Power rankings: The week of the upset strikes Arizona
By Mason Duhon
2. . . 13-3, 5-0 in Pac-12, 17 votes in Poll. Last week: 2. 2. . 515. .
In its lone matchup of the week, Oregon took care of business at home against Cal and now remains the sole Pac-12 team undefeated in conference play. The Ducks fell into an 18-point hole but rallied behind Jermaine Couisnard, who finished the night with 18 points, to erase the deficit. They even held Cal off when it moved into striking distance a couple of times. All around, the Ducks played well and won a game that they should have.
Next week: The Ducks will be heading to the mountains for next week's road trip against two of the better teams in the conference in Colorado on Friday and Utah on Sunday. The pristine record in Pac-12 play won't last for much longer, and this seems to be the most likely week for it to happen.
Tournament bid or bust
. . . 3. . 3. 12-5, 3-3 in Pac-12, 3 votes in Poll. . Last week: 3. 843
Utah must have been dealing with some lingering frustrations from the Arizona loss; it's not often that a blue-blood program gets handed a nearly-50-point L. Utah simply could not be stopped as they put UCLA to bed in a 90-44 attempted murder. Five players, including two off the bench, put up double-digit points and the team shot exactly 50% from the field and 40.6% from the arc. Aside from a sluggish start to the second half, the Utes laid a good old fashioned smackdown on the Bruins.
Things got strange against Stanford, though. Being down starter Rollie Worster and bench guard Brandon Haddock, the Utes' struggles on the road continued as they fell in a 79-73 showdown in Palo Alto. Deivon Smith had his best showing of the season, posting a triple-double (16 points, 11 rebounds, 10 assists) in Worster's place, but it was all for naught.
Next week: Utah will have a shot at one of the better teams in the conference this week when it returns home. Oregon State will be the appetizer on Thursday before Oregon comes to town on Saturday to deliver the main course.
4. Colorado, 12-5, 3-3 in Pac-12, X votes in AP Poll?, Last week: 4
. 4. 4. Last week: 4. . 12-5, 3-3 in Pac-12. . 514. .
On a day full of upsets, Colorado also fell victim to the curse that overtook Purdue, Houston, Kansas, and Tennessee on Wednesday. Despite a double-double from Eddie Lampkin Jr. with 22 points and 11 rebounds and the return of Cody Williams and Tristan Da Silva to the hardwood, the Buffaloes squandered a 16-point second-half lead against Cal and lost 82-78.
The Buffs managed to settle in a little more against USC on Saturday. They overcame being down over 10 points in the second half and rallied behind J'Vonne Hadley of all players to pull off the 68-58 win. The big names on the squad, Tristan Da Silva, Cody Williams, and Eddie Lampkin Jr., all finished with double-digit points and capitalized on a shorthanded USC team.
Next week: The Buffs will be in Boulder next week to host the Oregon-based schools. The Ducks, one of the best teams in the Pac-12, will be the first test on Friday before the sailing gets smoother with a reeling Oregon State team coming to town on Saturday.