Joe Jackson gives his Pac-12 basketball power rankings for week 4 of the season.
Matchup of the week: UCLA vs. Oregon (Dec. 4)
Sneaky good matchup of the week: Colorado vs. Arizona State (Dec. 1)
All times listed are EST.
1) Arizona Wildcats
Last week’s ranking: 1 (-)
Record: 6-0
Last week: #17 San Diego State (W) 87-70, #10 Creighton (W) 81-79
Next week: @ Utah (Dec. 1 – 8:30 p.m.), California (Dec. 4 – 5 p.m.)
Best wins: Creighton, San Diego State, Cincinnati
Worst losses: N/A
Arizona has continued its dominance, winning the Maui Invitational with an impressive win over San Diego State and a thrilling win over Creighton in the championship. This team is deep, and it can be anyone’s night on any given night. In the championship game against Creighton, center Oumar Ballo went for 30 points and 13 rebounds on 14-of-17 shooting. Against San Diego State, both Kerr Kriisa and Courtney Ramey went for 21 points, with Ramey going 5-of-5 from three.
2) UCLA Bruins
Last week’s ranking: 2 (-)
Record: 5-2
Last Week: Pepperdine (W) 100-53, Bellarmine (W) 81-60
Next Week: @ Stanford (Dec. 1 – 10:30 p.m.), Oregon (Dec. 4 – 5 p.m.)
Best Wins: Pepperdine, Long Beach State, Norfolk State
Worst Losses: N/A
After coming off of two losses against Illinois and Baylor, UCLA routed a frisky Pepperdine team by dropping 100 points on them. All 5 starters scored in double digits, led by Amari Bailey with 19 points. Against Bellarmine, Jaime Jaquez went for 27 points on 13-of-17 shooting. Tyger Campbell notched a double-double with 10 points and 10 assists.
3) Arizona State Sun Devils
Last week’s ranking: 5 (+2)
Record: 6-1
Last Week: Grambling State (W) 80-49, Alcorn State (W) 76-54
Next Week: @ Colorado (Dec. 1 – 8:30 p.m.), Stanford (Dec. 4 – 7 p.m.)
Best Wins: Michigan, VCU, Tarleton State
Worst Losses: Texas Southern
In a conference that has lost a lot of bye games, Arizona State has only suffered defeat once. They have added two solid wins as well. They may have been projected low preseason, but they are playing some of the better basketball in the conference. They are doing it by committee, with four players scoring in double figures in both games last week. The defense has been impressive for the Sun Devils, and that will be their calling card if they want to surprise in Pac-12 basketball conference play. They have two good chances to prove they are above the middle of the pack this week.
4) Oregon Ducks
Last week’s ranking: 3 (-1)
Record: 3-4
Last Week: #20 UConn (L) 59-83, #12 Michigan State (L) 70-74, Villanova (W) 74-67
Next Week: Washington State (Dec. 1 – 10:30 p.m.), @ #21 UCLA (Dec. 4 – 5:00 p.m.)
Best Wins: Villanova, Montana State, Florida A&M
Worst Losses: UC Irvine
This may not have been the start the Ducks imagined, but they were at least able to get one win in the Phil Knight Invitational. They desperately need perimeter shooting to help alleviate some pressure on offense. The defense has also not been great. Will Richardson has been a bright spot on this team, including 28 points against Michigan State. After coming off of injury, freshman Kel’el Ware seems to be rounding into form.
5) USC Trojans
Last week’s ranking: 4 (-1)
Record: 4-3
Last Week: BYU (W) 82-76, #22 Tennessee (L) 66-73, Wisconsin (L) 59-64
Next Week: @ California (Nov. 30 – 10 p.m.), Oregon State (Dec. 4 – 7 p.m.)
Best Wins: BYU, Vermont, Mount St. Mary’s
Worst Losses: Florida Gulf Coast
The ESPN Events tournament did not treat USC the best. They were able to get a win against BYU, fueled by 27 points from Boogie Ellis. However, they then lost to Tennessee in OT and Wisconsin in their last game. Both were close, and USC is putting itself in positions to win. They will need to learn how to close out games. With Pac-12 basketball play starting this week, USC got the best draw in playing the widely considered two worst teams in the conference, an opportunity for them to get right.
6) Utah Utes
Last week’s ranking: 9 (+3)
Record: 5-2
Last week: Mississippi State (L) 49-52, St. Thomas (W) 95-66
Next week: #4 Arizona (Dec. 1 – 8:30 p.m.), @ Washington State (Dec. 4 – 4 p.m.)
Best Wins: Georgia Tech, St. Thomas (MN), Cal St. Bakersfield
Worst Losses: Sam Houston State
Utah almost pulled off the upset against Mississippi State, losing by 3. They have been solid on the defensive end, having the 6th best defensive eFG% in the country. This is another team that shares the ball well on offense, having a multitude of guys that can be the scorer on a given night.
7) Washington Huskies
Last week’s ranking: 8 (+1)
Record: 5-1
Last week: Fresno State (W) 62-57, Saint Mary’s (W) 68-64, Seattle (W) 77-66
Next week: @ Oregon State (Dec. 1 – 10 p.m.), Colorado (Dec. 4 – 3 p.m.)
Best wins: Saint Mary’s, Fresno State, Seattle
Worst Losses: Cal Baptist
Washington bounced back from their loss against Cap Baptist with wins against Fresno State and Saint Mary’s. Keion Brooks led the way against Fresno State with 16 points, 5 rebounds, 3 blocks, and 2 steals. He followed that up with a 14-point, 11-rebound, 2-block, and 2-steal game against Saint Mary’s.
8) Colorado Buffaloes
Last week’s ranking: 6 (-2)
Record: 4-3
Last Week: Yale (W) 65-62
Next Week: Arizona State (Dec. 1 – 8:30 p.m.), @ Washington (Dec. 4 – 3 p.m.)
Best Wins: Tennessee, Texas A&M, Yale
Worst Losses: Grambling State, UMass
The streak continues as Colorado was able to take down Yale. Not a winning streak, but Colorado has alternated between a win and a loss for every game so far this season. Tristan da Silva led the way for Colorado against Yale with 20 points and 6 rebounds.
9) Washington State Cougars
Last week’s ranking: 10 (+1)
Record: 3-2
Last week: Detroit Mercy (W) 96-54
Next week: @ Oregon (Dec. 1 – 10:30 p.m.), Utah (Dec. 4 – 4 p.m.)
Best wins: Texas State, Detroit Mercy, Eastern Washington
Worst Losses: Prairie View A&M
Washington State pummeled Detroit Mercy, led by 22 points from Jabe Mullins and a 17-point, 6-rebound, 7-assist game from Justin Powell. They will get two good tests this week facing both Oregon and Utah, and we should learn more about them this week.
10) Stanford Cardinal
Last week’s ranking: 7 (-3)
Record: 3-4
Last week: Ole Miss (L) 68-72, Florida State (W) 70-60, Memphis (L) 48-56
Next week: #21 UCLA (Dec. 1 – 10:30 p.m.), @ Arizona State (Dec. 4 – 7 p.m.)
Best wins: Florida State, Cal Poly, Pacific
Worst Losses: N/A
Stanford has played solid defense, but they have not been able to capitalize on offense. They knocked off Florida State in the ESPN Events Invitational, but lost to Ole Miss and Memphis. They only scored 22 points in the first half against Mississippi. They are shooting 28.3% from deep.
11) Oregon State Beavers
Last week’s ranking: 11 (-)
Record: 3-4
Last week: #8 Duke (L) 51-54, Florida (L) 68-81, Portland State (L) 71-83
Next week: Washington (Dec. 1 – 10 p.m.), USC (Dec. 4 – 7 p.m.)
Best wins: Tulsa, Florida A&M, Bushnell
Worst Losses: Portland State (x2)
Oregon State went home the big losers in the Phil Knight Legacy tournament, although they almost flipped the tourney on its head with a close loss against Duke in the first round. They are a team that seems like they can compete, but also can not win games. This was their second loss to Portland State in just over a week.
12) California Golden Bears
Last week’s ranking: 12 (-)
Record: 0-7
Last week: TCU (L) 48-59, Clemson (L) 59-67
Next week: USC (Nov. 30 – 10 p.m.), @ #4 Arizona (Dec. 4 – 5 p.m.)
Best wins: N/A
Worst losses: UC San Diego, Southern
California has not picked up a win yet, and now that they are getting into Pac-12 basketball play, there are only a couple more buy games left. They cannot take care of the ball at all, and when they don’t turn it over, they have not shot the ball well at all. They have been ok on defense, but the offense is not there at all to help them win.