Pac-12 Power Rankings: Week Ten
Posted by Connor Pelton on January 18th, 2012Here’s a look at the power rankings that Drew and I have compiled after the tenth week of Pac-12 games. Here we go!
1. Stanford, 15-3 (5-1): Going into the week, most Cardinal fans would have said they expected a big win over Utah and a grind it out, nail biting victory against Colorado. Instead, the opposite happened. But the Cardinal still went 2-0, and they are still on top of our power rankings after ten weeks of basketball. While the Cardinal have already been on a road trip to face the Oregon schools, they will be tested even more this week when they visit Pullman and Seattle. Up Next: 1.19 @ Washington State
2. California, 15-4 (5-1): Unlike their rival from across the bay, the Golden Bears barely got past Colorado on Thursday. After a terrible first half of shooting, Cal found itself down seven heading into the locker rooms. But when the two teams came out to begin the second half, it was like they switched identities. The Golden Bears would outscore Colorado by 14 in the second half en route to an ugly 57-50 win. Cal wrapped up the week with a 36-point win over the Utes. Up Next: 1.19 @ Washington
California guard Allen Crabbe leads the Golden Bears with 15.7 PPG. (credit: Ben Margot)
3. Oregon, 13-5 (4-2): The Ducks are the talk of the conference after sweeping the Arizona schools on the road this week. Thursday night they got a closer than comfort nine-point win over Arizona State, but the real damage was done on Saturday. Oregon went into the McKale Center and dominated Arizona for 35 minutes, and despite a late flurry of points from the Wildcats, held on for a thrilling 59-57 win. Up Next: 1.19 vs. USC
4. Washington, 11-6 (4-1): Two less-than-mediocre in-state rivals filled Washington’s slate this week. On Tuesday night Washington hosted Seattle University, and the Redhawks hung around all night before eventually falling, 91-83. On Sunday it was Washington State who came calling for the first Apple Cup of the season. The Cougars gave it all they had, but in the end the mixture of Tony Wroten, Jr., Terrence Ross, and Darnell Gant was too much for Washington State. The final was 75-65, bringing the UW winning streak up to three. Up Next: 1.19 vs. California
5. Arizona, 12-6 (3-2): The Wildcats ended up splitting on the week, but it was in uninspiring fashion. First there was the near-brawl, overtime win against Oregon State, and then there was Saturday’s meltdown against the Ducks. The Wildcats need to win beat both Utah and Colorado this week to keep their small at-large hopes alive. Up Next: 1.19 @ Utah
6. Colorado, 11-6 (3-2): Definitely a letdown week for Colorado after starting conference play 3-0. On Thursday they were able to play California tough, but Stanford totally dismantled the Buffaloes with an 84-64 thrashing Saturday afternoon. Up Next: 1.19 vs. Arizona State
7. Oregon State, 11-7 (1-5): The Beavers suffered a disaster in the desert this week. After a tough and hard-fought loss against the Wildcats on Thursday night, the Beavers came out slow and sluggish against Arizona State two days later. The result was a ten point loss, dropping Oregon State to 11th in the conference standings. Up Next: 1.19 vs. UCLA
8. UCLA, 10-7 (3-2): The Bruins took advantage of their one and only game this week, knocking off cross-town rival USC, 66-47 on Sunday night. The Bruins have now won eight out of their last ten games. Up Next: 1.19 @ Oregon State
9. Washington State, 9-8 (1-4): The Cougars were able to hang with Washington for most of Sunday’s Apple Cup, but in the end Washington’s talent was just too much for the Cougars. The Cougs can get back into the conference race with a sweep over the Bay Area schools this week. Up Next: 1.19 @ Stanford
10. Arizona State, 6-11 (2-3): The Devils earned their second straight split this week by falling to Oregon but defeating Oregon State. Chanse Creekmur was the player of the week for ASU, averaging 14.5 PPG through the two games. Up Next: 1.19 @ Colorado
11. USC, 5-13 (0-5): We already mentioned the Trojans’ 19-point loss to UCLA, which raises the question; Will the Trojans win a Pac-12 game? Odds are yes, most likely against Oregon State, Utah, or Washington State, but you have to be wondering at this point. Up Next: 1.19 @ Oregon
12. Utah, 4-13 (1-4): The Utes gave Stanford everything they could handle Thursday night on The Farm, but the final result was a 68-65 loss. Saturday ended up being much worse for Utah as California jumped on them from the beginning, en route to an 81-45 loss. Up Next: 1.12 @ Stanford
I'm from Portland. College basketball and football is life.
