Pac-12 men’s basketball power rankings
New conference No. 1 as Ducks fall to Beavers
1. No. 16 Colorado
The Buffaloes are the new number one in the conference after winning both of their games this weekend. They won their first game against California behind 21 points from junior guard Tyler Bey, one of four starters to hit double-figures. They followed up their win with another victory against Stanford. Four starters scored in double-digits again but this time they were led by junior guard McKinley Wright IV with 21 points.
2. No. 17 Oregon
The Ducks lost their top spot on the conference standings after a game against Oregon State where they did not play like the top team in the Pac-12. They scored 53 points versus the Beavers, which was their worst offensive output of the season. The biggest reason for the loss: fouls. The Ducks committed 10 more fouls than the Beavers and made 10 fewer free throws. Coincidentally, they lost by 10 points.
3. Arizona State
The climb up the conference continued for the Sun Devils as they beat UCLA and USC this weekend. Their first win was a much easier contest; shooting over 50 percent on 3-pointers can do that sometime. They beat the Bruins by 18 points behind 26 points off the bench from junior guard Alonzo Verge Jr. They had to work harder for their win over the Trojans. Junior guard Remy Martin was the hero in that game. He led the team with 22 points and secured their two-point win with his jumper with 19 seconds left.
4. No. 23 Arizona
Arizona split their pair of games this weekend. They started it off with a high-scoring, five-point win over USC. The Wildcats took the lead about six minutes into the game and never gave it up, despite a late surge from the Trojans. They were led by at least 18 points from each member of their trio of starting freshman: forward Zeke Nnaji and guards Nico Mannion and Josh Green. The Wildcats could not keep it rolling against UCLA. Nnaji led the team in scoring with 14 points and Green was his only teammate to score in double-digits with 11 points.
5. UCLA
The Bruins escaped their road trip to Arizona with a split. They started it off with a uncompetitive loss to an Arizona State that held a comfortable lead for the entirety of the second half. Sophomore forward Cody Riley gave the Bruins 16 points, but it was not enough to down the Sun Devils. They rebounded against the ranked Arizona school, beating the Wildcats by 13 points. Junior guard Chris Smith led the team with 15 points but freshman guard Tyger Campbell was the leading scorer for the weekend with 25 combined points in the two games.
6. USC
The Trojans probably wished their weekend went much better than it actually did. They experienced back-to-back losses for the first time this season as they extended their losing streak to three games. Both losses were close ones for the Trojans. Their first loss was a five-point game to Arizona. Freshman forward Onyeka Okongwu led the way with 23 points, nine of them coming from the free throw line. Their loss to Arizona State was even closer. In a two-point game that came down to the wire, senior guard Jonah Matthews was the leading scorer with 22 points.
7. Utah
The Utes had one of the better weeks in the conference. They followed up getting swept last weekend with a sweep of their own. They needed overtime to beat Stanford, outscoring them six to 14 in the extra period. Only seven players saw the court for Utah but each one scored at least five points, led by 15 points from both sophomore forward Timmy Allen and freshman center Branden Carlson. Allen led the team again in their win against California. He was the only Ute to hit double-digits, scoring 21 points.
8. Stanford
The Cardinal had an unfortunate weekend, enduring their second string of multiple losses. It lost both games, making it five losses in the last six games for the Cardinal. Stanford took Utah to overtime before eventually falling short after a lackluster extra period, scoring only six points. Freshman guard Tyrell Terry was the leading scorer with 14 points and the only starter to hit double-digits. Terry had another solid game in their second loss to Colorado. He had 18 points and once again paced the starters in scoring. Their leading scorer came off the bench, as sophomore forward Jaiden Delaire scored 19 points.
9. WSU
The Cougars only had one game over the weekend, but they made the most of it. They beat their in-state rival Washington in the first Apple Cup match-up. Sophomore forward CJ Elleby led the way for WSU in a game that was close until the Cougars puled away late. Elleby had a career-high 34 points, his first time surpassing 30 points, on a career-high six made 3-pointers. He also chipped in a perfect 10 for 10 from the free throw line, matching his previous season-high for points from the charity stripe. Three of the other starters also scored at least 10 points including junior guard Isaac Bonton who has reached double-digits in every conference game.
10. Oregon State
Another big week with another big win for the Beavers this week. This time they were able to take down their in-state rival the Ducks. The Beavers were able to win despite finding themselves down by 10 points at the start of the second half. Oregon State was able to storm back in the second half, outscoring Oregon by 14 points behind leading scorer junior guard Ethan Thompson with 15 points.
11. California
The Golden Bears got swept once again after avoiding that fate for the past two weekends. They gave Colorado a tough contest in a six-point loss where the teams were tied at halftime. They were not as fortunate in their second game, losing to Utah by 15 points. Sophomore Matt Bradley was the leading scorer in both games, scoring a combined 30 points over the course of the weekend. Only two other players reached double-digits in a single game. Both came against the Buffaloes as senior guard Paris Austin had 15 and sophomore forward Andre Kelly had 12 points off the bench.
12. Washington
This team must be getting comfortable at the bottom of the standings, making their own little den down there. The only positive from the weekend is that the Huskies only had one game, meaning they could only add one more loss to their total. Their loss to the Cougars gave them their sixth loss in a row, ninth conference loss and brought their overall record down to .500. Junior guard Nahziah Carter led the team with 18 points on only three missed shots. Freshman forward Jaden McDaniels had one of his better games of the year. He finally decided to stop pouting on the sideline and play basketball, resulting in 16 points, six rebounds and a team-high three assists.
Cody is a senior majoring in journalism and media production from Tacoma, Washington. He hopes to work as a sports journalist after graduation.