Each week the Pac-12 microsite will run down our weekly superlatives, which typically will include a Team, Player and Newcomer of the Week, along with our weekly Power Rankings.
Team of the Week: Oregon
A Big Conference Win on Senior Day Had the Knight Arena Crowd Rushing the Court (Andy Nelson, AP Photo)
Road wins are great. In conference play, you go out on the road and you beat anybody in conference, even if it’s the worst team, that qualifies as an accomplishment. Home wins tend to get swept under the rug from time to time. But, if, like the Ducks, you make a habit of taking care of most of your business at home AND sneak in a home win over a national top 10 team, you are very much in the mix for an NCAA Tournament bid. Oregon checked both of those boxes this week, turning in a workmanlike win over Colorado on Wednesday night and then backing that up with a prime-time performance on Sunday in taking care of Utah at Matthew Knight Arena. Dana Altman got good back-to-back performances this week from all eight guys in his normal rotation, and with a home sweep, the Ducks are in good position to earn an NCAA Tournament bid – provided, that is, that they can got out on the road over the final two weeks of the year and at least dig out a win.
(Also receiving votes: Arizona)
Player of the Week: Andrew Andrews, Junior, Washington
What does it matter that your team has lost seven in a row and that a once-promising season has turned into a dumpster fire? You’ve got a road game against your intrastate rival. If nothing else, that’s certainly something to play for. And play Andrew Andrews did, going off for a career-high 35 points on 18 field goal attempts, including six made threes and a perfect 7-of-7 from the line. He added four assists for good measure as part of a terrific offensive performance from the Huskies.
(Also receiving votes: Dillon Brooks, Oregon)
Newcomer of the Week: Dillon Brooks, Freshman, Oregon