While the Pac-12 had two seasons to forget before this one, there is one thing that was undeniable about the conference over that time: it was no less competitive than usual. The conference lacked success in non-conference, which hurt them for the NCAA Tournament and meant quality win opportunities were few and far between, but in conference, it was often anyone’s game.
This year, that remains the case, but the conference is better. And after Saturday, all you have to do is look at the top of the standings to see that nothing has changed.
With Stanford beating Oregon 70-60, Colorado blowing out USC 78-57 in Los Angeles and Arizona handling Washington State 66-49 in Pullman, five teams have three losses to lead the way, with only wins separating them. Oregon has seven, Colorado and USC each have six, and Arizona and Stanford each have five, with the Cardinal snapping a three-game losing streak on Saturday.
Surprisingly, UCLA and Cal are just a game back in the loss column, along with Arizona State, a team that’s had some real ups and downs this season. UCLA and Cal will be dangerous down the stretch and, like 4-6 Washington State, could knock off a contender later on to influence the race. Utah and Oregon State have shown themselves to be capable; at one time, we had to think Oregon State had a shot at being an NCAA Tournament team.
Then there is Washington. The Huskies were among the preseason favorites, but stand 2-8 thanks to a number of close losses, including during their 1-7 stretch since point guard Quade Green was declared academically ineligible. That they have been close often means they might win a game or two later on that they would have lost during the first ten games.
That five games separate 12 teams tells you something, as well as some of the results. In a year where the Big East has very little separation among their ten teams and the Big Ten is the same with the top 12 (before a big drop-off to Northwestern and Nebraska), the Pac-12 is very similar. Now, though, the games mean a little more as regards the NCAA Tournament and even other postseason tournaments given that only Cal doesn’t have a winning overall record (one game below .500) at the moment.
The Pac-12 is having a much better year and should have better results come Selection Sunday as well. The conference was still fun to watch the past two years as the competitiveness didn’t drop, but now the teams are better.
Side Dishes
For more on many of Saturday’s games, please see the Saturday Notes.
In Cincinnati’s 64-62 win over Houston, Cougar guard DeJon Jarreau was ejected in the second half for a bizarre play. Jarreau lost control of the ball through some contact and dove on the floor for it, and as he went down, officials reviewing the play determined he bit Cincinnati guard Keith Williams’ leg after they also saw evidence of a bite on the leg. He was given a flagrant-2 and ejected.
Staying in the American Athletic Conference, Memphis will be without forward D.J. Jeffries for about 4-6 weeks due to a left knee injury. The freshman has started 12 games and averages 10.8 points and 4.3 rebounds per game for the Tigers, so this is not a small loss and the latest bit of adversity for the Tigers on the season.
Alabama has also had an injury setback, as Herbert Jones had surgery on his broken left wrist and will be out for an unknown period of time. The junior swingman had been coming alive before suffering the injury against LSU on Wednesday night.
Tonight’s Menu
It’s a light day of action, as is typical on Super Bowl Sunday, and all of the games should be over by the time the big game kicks off.
- An ACC game is among the first as Miami visits Pittsburgh (noon)
- There’s plenty of MAAC action on tap as Manhattan hosts Iona (noon), then Monmouth hosts Rider and Niagara hosts Quinnipiac at 1 p.m. and Canisius hosts Marist at 2 p.m. before the last game of the day, which is St. Peter’s hosting Siena at 4 p.m.
- One Big East game is on tap as St. John’s hosts Georgetown (1 p.m.)
- The Big Ten also has one game on tap, with Iowa hosting Illinois (1 p.m.)
- In a key game in the Summit League, Omaha hosts South Dakota (1 p.m.)
- Two key games in the Horizon League tip at 2 p.m.: league-leading Wright State at Green Bay and Northern Kentucky at Milwaukee.
- La Salle goes to Duquesne in an Atlantic 10 matchup (2 p.m.)
- In a Pac-12 game, UCLA hosts Utah (3 p.m.)
