Drew VonScio gives his Pac-12 power rankings heading into week 5 of the 2023-2024 season.
Matchup of the Week: Wisconsin vs Arizona (Dec. 9 – 3:15 p.m.)
Sneaky Good Matchups of the Week: UCLA vs Villanova (Dec. 9 – 7 p.m.) and Miami vs Colorado (Dec. 10 – 2 p.m.)
All games listed are EST.
1.Arizona Wildcats
Last Week’s Ranking: 1
Record: 7-0 (0-0)
Last Week: W vs Colgate (82-55)
Next Week: vs Wisconsin (Dec. 9 – 3:15 p.m.)
Quality Wins: Duke, Michigan State, Colgate
Bad Losses: N/A
Another power ranking, another week of Arizona at the top of the Pac-12. The Wildcats are the best of the best in this conference, and made quick work of a team like Colgate that has March Madness potential. The first half against the Raiders was much closer than the second half, where Arizona posted 47 points and shot 50% from the field. Having 27 points off the bench shows just how deep this team really is, especially with four players posting 10+ points. Oumar Ballo had a double-double for Arizona who will square off against a strong Wisconsin group on Saturday.
2. Colorado Buffaloes
Last Week’s Ranking: 2
Record: 6-2 (0-0)
Last Week: L vs Colorado State (88-83), W vs Pepperdine (91-66)
Next Week: vs Miami (Dec. 10 – 2 p.m.) – NABC Brooklyn Showcase
Quality Wins: N/A
Bad Losses: N/A
Colorado’s lack of three-point shooting in the first half against Colorado State ultimately created the grave, but shooting 69% from the field in the second half certainly gave them a glimmer of hope. KJ Simpson posted a whopping 30 points while Cody Williams added 21 for the Buffaloes. Colorado carried that strong shooting into the first half against Pepperdine with a 62.5% clip, but then pumped the brakes a little bit in the second half. Tristan da Silva went for 22 points, and Williams once again dropped 21. The Buffaloes have legit talent, but they will get a run for their money against the Hurricanes.
3. USC Trojans
Last Week’s Ranking: 3
Record: 5-3 (0-0)
Last Week: W vs Eastern Washington (106-78), L vs Gonzaga (89-76)
Next Week: vs Long Beach State (Dec. 10 – 4 p.m)
Quality Wins: Kansas State
Bad Losses: UC Irvine
Boogie Ellis is making his case for Pac-12 Player of the Year after back-to-back 28-point performances against Eastern Washington and Gonzaga. Against the Eagles it was his shooting from deep that told the story where he went 8-10, and he stepped up inside the perimeter against the Bulldogs. A lack of real scoring depth behind him hurt USC against Gonzaga along with conceding 26 points from players not in the Bulldogs starting lineup. If Isaiah Collier can continue to step up behind Ellis and consistency shows from Kobe Johnson and DJ Rodman, USC has a chance to leap over Colorado.
4. UCLA Bruins
Last Week’s Ranking: 4
Record: 5-2 (0-0)
Last Week: W vs UC Riverside (66-65)
Next Week: at Villanova (Dec. 9 – 7 p.m.)
Quality Wins: N/A
Bad Losses: N/A
UCLA survived a scare against UC Riverside even with having only two players score more than 10 points. The Bruins shooting stayed pretty consistent throughout all 40 minutes, but they could not find ways to contribute more after forcing a turnover. UCLA posted just 17 points after it forced 16 turnovers. Had it not been for poor free throw shooting from the Highlanders in the first half and a lack of production of the paint, this game could have been completely different. Mick Cronin’s group will really have to step it up and show that this last game was not who they really are.
5. Washington State Cougars
Last Week’s Ranking: 6
Record: 6-1 (0-0)
Last Week: W vs Eastern Washington (82-72), W vs Portland State (71-61)
Next Week: vs UC Riverside (Dec. 6 – 10 p.m.), vs Grambling State (Dec. 10 – 8 p.m.)
Quality Wins: N/A
Bad Losses: N/A
Outside of Arizona, there’s not a team that is hotter than Washington State right now as the Cougars have won four in a row. Washington State has taken care of business against every team except Mississippi State who is a top 25 team in the country right now. This group continues to shot over 50% from the field and average 39 rebounds per game. The trio of Myles Rice, Issac Jones, and Andrej Jakimovski continue to pace the Cougars who are starting to turn some heads in the college basketball world. The tests will get tougher soon, and we will get to see exactly what this team is made of this year.
6. Oregon Ducks
Last Week’s Ranking: 5
Record: 5-2 (0-0)
Last Week: W vs Michigan (86-83 OT)
Next Week: vs UTEP (Dec. 9 – 9 p.m.)
Quality Wins: Michigan
Bad Losses: N/A
It took more than 40 minutes to decide a winner between the Ducks and Wolverines and despite allowing Dug McDaniel to score 33 points, Oregon found a way to hang on. Brennan Rigsby led Oregon with 19 points as the Ducks shot over 50% from the field and 62.5% from behind the arc. Defensive issues continue to plague Oregon as it has allowed 80+ points in its last three games. It’s a game of adjustments, and the Ducks need to find ways to limit scoring chances for opponents before heading into conference play.
7. Utah Utes
Last Week’s Ranking: 7
Record: 5-2 (0-0)
Last Week: W at Saint Mary’s (78-71), W vs Hawaii (79-66)
Next Week: vs Southern Utah (Dec. 5 – 9 p.m.), vs BYU (Dec. 9 – 7 p.m.)
Quality Wins: Saint Mary’s
Bad Losses: N/A
Utah had to battle in all four halves of basketball this week against Saint Mary’s and Hawaii. Cole Bajema really stepped up for the Utes in the pair of contests, averaging 12 this week. The bench really provided a spark in the win over Hawaii as it produced 31 points. As a team, the Utes are still one of the best rebounding groups in the Pac-12 with just under 40 per game. The combination of the rebounds and 6.7 steals per game shows this group has potential, and a big matchup Saturday against BYU will be a chance to show the conference that this team can fight.
8. Washington Huskies
Last Week’s Ranking: 8
Record: 4-3 (0-0)
Last Week: W vs UC San Diego (83-56), L vs Colorado State (86-81)
Next Week: vs Montana State (Dec. 5 – 11 p.m.), vs Gonzaga (Dec. 9 – 11 p.m.)
Quality Wins: Xavier
Bad Losses: N/A
Washington came out strong after its week off against UC San Diego where it put up 83 points, but the shooting from behind the arc was very questionable. The Huskies benefitted from have four players score 14+ points as Keion Brooks Jr recorded a double-double (18 points and 12 rebounds). Brooks continues to be the stalwart of this Washington offense and stepped it up more with a 20-point effort against Colorado State. Moses Wood provided a spark with 21 against the Rams, but he will need to be more consistent to have a sustainable impact on the Huskies.
9. Arizona State Sun Devils
Last Week’s Ranking: 10
Record: 5-2 (0-0)
Last Week: W vs Sam Houston State (78-61), W vs San Francisco (72-61)
Next Week: vs SMU (Dec. 6 – 10 p.m.), vs San Diego (Dec. 9 – 10:30 p.m.)
Quality Wins: N/A
Bad Losses: N/A
Arizona State added two wins to its name last week. Even though the opponents might not be the strongest, it’s still two wins that this group can use to build upon. Jose Perez scored 24 points against Sam Houston State while Frankie Collins paced the Sun Devils with 21 against San Francisco. Arizona State likes to place fast-paced basketball as it scored 50 points on the fast break between its two wins this week. The free throw shooting was poor against Sam Houston State at just 42.1%, but foul shots are something that many coaches would describe as an easy fix.
10. Stanford Cardinal
Last Week’s Ranking: 9
Record: 4-4 (0-0)
Last Week: W vs San Diego (88-64)
Next Week: N/A
Quality Wins: N/A
Bad Losses: Santa Clara, UNI
After having an awful week, Stanford responded with a 40-minute performance against San Diego. Brandon Angel and Michael Jones led the way for the Cardinal with 25 and 19 points, respectfully. San Diego did not go down without a fight though, as it shot 40% from the field and produced 29 points off the bench. The Cardinal got just under half of their points in the paint, showing they might continue to try and work the ball down low. Things still aren’t exactly well for Stanford, but this win over San Diego is a step in the right direction.
11. Oregon State Beavers
Last Week’s Ranking: 11
Record: 4-3 (0-0)
Last Week: W vs UC Davis (71-59)
Next Week: vs Cal Poly (Dec. 4 – 10 p.m.), vs Utah Valley (Dec. 9 – 5 p.m.)
Quality Wins: N/A
Bad Losses: N/A
Oregon State started off slow against UC Davis with just 27 points in the first half, but it came back strong in the second half with 44. The Beavers got a surprise as Chol Marial led the group with 18 points, a season high for the senior center. One area that Oregon State really needs to clean it up is turnovers as UC Davis forced 22 of them. Fortunately for the Beavers, only 14 points were scored off them. If this group wants any sort of success this season, it has to take better care of the basketball going forward.
12. California Golden Bears
Last Week’s Ranking: 12
Record: 3-5 (0-0)
Last Week: W vs Santa Clara (84-69)
Next Week: at Butler (Dec. 9 – 12 p.m.)
Quality Wins: Santa Clara
Bad Losses: N/A
Credit is due to California this week after an upset over Santa Clara. The Golden Bears had two players, Jalen Cone and Jaylon Tyson, go over 20 points. Tyson recorded a double-double with 11 rebounds to add as well. It was a strong shooting performance for Cal as the team missed just one free throw all game and shot 48.4% from the field. The Golden Bears also took really good care of the basketball as it only turned the ball over seven times through 40 minutes. While this young Cal team still has lots of room to grow, this was certainly a statement game from Mark Madsen’s players.