BTD’s Pac-12 Basketball Power Rankings: 2/24

1. Arizona State Sun Devils (19-8, 10-4)

Bobby Hurley’s squad has won seven straight games and has lost just once since January 16th, which was an outlier road trip letdown at Washington State. The Sun Devils are scoring at a torrid pace, getting all-league level contributions from Alonzo Verge Jr. and simply coasting in Tempe.

2. Oregon Ducks (21-7, 10-5)

Due to Arizona’s poor free-throw shooting in crunch time, Oregon escaped Tucson with a key victory and avoided a complete sweep at the hands of the Grand Canyon State schools. The Ducks will end their regular season slate with a very manageable three-game home stand.

3. Colorado Buffaloes (21-7, 10-5)

Let’s not completely jump off the Colorado bandwagon just yet. The Buffs dropped games to Oregon and fell apart against UCLA, but it’s just been lapses of concentration from Tad Boyle’s group. They’ll wrap up their league slate on the road at California, Stanford and Utah.

4. UCLA Bruins (17-11, 10-5)

The Bruins have won seven of their last eight games overall and have proven they can win at home and on the road, yet they’re a bit too far gone to be realistically in the NCAA Tournament conversation right now. UCLA might be a team who could terrify opponents in the NIT though.

5. Arizona Wildcats (19-8, 9-5)

Arizona is currently sitting on that always scary #5 line in the Joe Lunardi’s Bracketology, which wasn’t helped by a heart-breaking defeat to Oregon. Since their shocking loss to Oregon State on January 12th, the Wildcats have dropped only three games, including two by a single point.

6. Utah Utes (15-12, 6-9)

The part where things begin to get murky in the Pac-12 is right through the thick of the conference picture. Utah took down USC on Sunday night to bury a strange streak of three defeats in which they look simply outmatched. The Utes have won just one true road game all-season long.

7. USC Trojans (19-9, 8-7)

In the month of February, the Trojans has amassed a 2-5 record, with their only victories coming over the likes of Washington and Washington State at home. USC showed how bad they needed a healthy Nick Rakocevic against the Utes to stay in the NCAA Tournament conversation.

8. Stanford Cardinal (18-9, 7-7)

Another team reeling from a steep downturn, Stanford had lost seven of it’s last eight games before going to The Evergreen State and coming home with a sweep. The Cardinal finish out in Palo Alto against Utah and Colorado and on the road at Oregon State and Oregon.

9. Washington State Cougars (14-14, 5-10)

The fact that Kyle Smith has picked up the pieces of the Cougars program to bring them to a .500 record and five wins in Pac-12 play is enough for the Cougars to hang their hat on for a season. They may have to settle for that with road trips to Washington, Arizona and Arizona State ahead.

10. California Golden Bears (11-16, 5-9)

Another Pac-12 embodying the losing streak strategy, California squandered five of their last six contests to secure their spot near the bottom of the conference. Sophomore guard Matt Bradley is playing lights out basketball, as he’s scored double-figures in 26 of his 27 games this year.

11. Oregon State Beavers (15-12, 5-10)

Losers of three straight against some of the Pac-12’s tougher teams in Colorado, Arizona and Arizona State, Oregon State is standing on shaky ground as they head into their second Civil War meeting with Oregon in Eugene. The Beavers have won three in a row against the Ducks.

12. Washington Huskies (13-15, 3-12)

Mike Hopkins and company snapped a nine-game losing skid with a runaway victory against California, but the same problems seem to still persist for the Huskies. Washington has struggled with finding usable depth to turn the tide in games and consistently making shots as a whole.