Pac-12 Power Rankings: Week Eight
Posted by Connor Pelton on January 3rd, 2012Here’s a look at the power rankings that Drew and I have compiled after the eighth week of Pac-12 games. Here we go!
1. Stanford, 12-2 (2-0): The Cardinal didn’t spare any hearts after beating the LA schools by a combined nine points this week. On Thursday night it was a grind-it-out, defensive thriller as Stanford stopped UCLA on their final possession for a 60-59 win. Then on Saturday, the Cardinal built a double-digit lead, only to see it be cut down to three with two minutes left. However, Stanford would hit its shots down the stretch to hang on for a 51-43 win. Up Next: 1.5 @ Oregon
2. California, 12-3 (2-0): The only difference between California and Stanford’s week was in their handling of UCLA. First, the Golden Bears needed to take care of USC. The Trojans certainly did make Cal fans nervous down the stretch, but in the end the Trojans had dug just too deep a hole to climb completely out of and fell, 53-49. Two days later it was the visiting Bruins who provided that same feeling, however, this time it was just for the first half. After only leading 40-39 at halftime, the Golden Bears outscored UCLA 45-30 in the final 20 minutes of play to send the Bruins back to LA with an 0-2 record. Up Next: 1,5 @ Oregon State
Sophomore guard Justin Cobbs is averaging 12.4 PPG and 4.6 APG. (AP Photo)
3. Arizona, 10-4 (1-0): It was rivalry week in the desert as the Wildcats and Arizona State met for another installment of the Territorial Cup. This one was all Wildcats however, as Arizona used an early 17-5 run to gain some separation. They never looked back after that, cruising to a 68-51 win. Forward Jesse Perry led the Wildcats with 16 points, while center Ruslan Pateev led the Devils with 12. Up Next: 1.5 vs. UCLA in Anaheim
4. Oregon, 10-4 (1-1): The most surprising result of the week came on Thursday in Spokane, where the Ducks defeated Washington State, 92-75. The Ducks shot a scorching hot 69% from the field in the win, which was good enough to move them up a spot from last week’s rankings despite their loss to Washington on Saturday. Up Next: 1.5 vs. Stanford
5. Oregon State, 10-4 (0-2): It’s hard to imagine the Beavers having a worse week than they did in Washington. The only problem is, the nightmare could very well continue over the next two weeks as the Beavers host the Bay Area schools and travel to Arizona. If they manage to pull out three wins from that stretch, the Big Dance is still in the picture. Up Next: 1.5 vs. California
6. Washington, 8-5 (2-0): The road back to respectability is a long and winding one after you drop games to Saint Louis, Nevada, and South Dakota State, but the Huskies are slowly coming back. After dismantling Oregon State in front of a distracted fan base on Thursday, the Dawgs came back two days later and did the same thing to rival Oregon. Up Next: 1.5 @ Colorado
7. Washington State, 9-5 (1-1): The week started off disastrously with an 18-point loss to Oregon, but the Cougars rebounded nicely two days later to defeat Oregon State by five. Wazzu has a sure-win against Utah on Thursday night, but the game on Saturday against Colorado will tell us just how good the Cougars are. Up Next: 1.5 @ Utah
8. Colorado, 9-4 (1-0): The Buffaloes went 2-0 this week against a pair of DII opponents. The first was a 92-34 victory over New Orleans on Wednesday, and the second was a 73-33 decision over Utah on Saturday. Up Next: 1.5 vs. Washington
9. UCLA, 7-7 (0-2): The Bruins knew going into the week that an 0-2 record would be the most likely result from their trip to the Bay Area, so that’s why they stay idle here at number nine. UCLA had a chance to defeat Stanford at the buzzer on Thursday, but a turnover negated that opportunity. Then on Saturday, the Bruins were able to hang with California for a half until the Bears heated up and the Bruins went ice-cold. Up Next: 1.5 vs. Arizona in Anaheim
10. Arizona State, 4-9 (0-1): With exception to the emergence of center Ruslan Pateev, nothing went right in the Devils’ 68-51 loss to rival Arizona on Saturday. The loss makes it four in a row for Herb Sendek’s club, however, three of those were decided by three points or less. Up Next: 1.5 @ USC
11. USC, 5-10 (0-2): The Trojans surprised me by hanging with both California and Stanford, using late runs to make the final result respectable. In the end however, two losses aren’t going to move you up. Up Next: 1.5 vs. USC
12. Utah, 3-10 (0-1): We knew it would be bad, but we didn’t know it would be THAT bad. 33 points?!? Luckily, the Pac-12 just announced that the Utes will be able to play six men at a time for the rest of the season. Up Next: 1.5 vs. Washington State
I'm from Portland. College basketball and football is life.
Washington beats both Oregon and Oregon St. yet both teams remained ranked in front of them?