Pac 12 College Basketball Power Rankings: Week 6
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Six teams in the conference seem to be on track for an NCAA berth at this point. As for the other six, there’s still plenty of season to go. But right now, the line between the haves and the have-nots seems to be rather clear.
12. Washington State (4-5) Last week: 12th
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12. Washington State (4-5) Last week: 12th
James Snook-USA TODAY Sports
The only conference team under .500 is pretty much a lock for this spot.
11. Colorado (6-3) Last week: 10th
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11. Colorado (6-3) Last week: 10th
Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports
It's hard to put this team any higher after leading by 11 and then losing to Colorado State on Wednesday. They also needed a second-half surge to beat Northern Colorado. This is not even close to an NCAA tourney-caliber team at this point. The Buffs can’t seem to believe it either.
10. USC (6-3) Last week: 11th
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10. USC (6-3) Last week: 11th
Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
Their only game this week was a loss to Army at home in overtime. Army’s schedule so far is more than a little on the not-impressive side, so what does that make the Trojans? It makes them 10th this week.
9. Stanford (5-2) Last week: 6th
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9. Stanford (5-2) Last week: 6th
Bob Stanton-USA TODAY Sports
Stanford had to dig deep to beat Denver 49-43. The Cardinal hadn’t played in two weeks, so there’s a built-in excuse. But Denver is really not very good, ranking 293rd in points and 350th in rebounds. And the Cardinal struggled. That is not a good sign.
8. Arizona State (6-3) Last week: 7th
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8. Arizona State (6-3) Last week: 7th
Allan Henry-USA TODAY Sports
The Sun Devils beat Pepperdine 81-74 this week. The Waves are decent, but not great. The same applies to the Sun Devils.
7. Oregon State (6-2) Last week: 9th
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7. Oregon State (6-2) Last week: 9th
Godofredo Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports
Oregon State beat Mississippi State at home for their first win over a Power-Five conference opponent this season. That's three straight wins for the Beavs, but the Bulldogs now haven’t won a road game in 19 straight tries.
6. Oregon (6-3) Last week: 8th
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6. Oregon (6-3) Last week: 8th
Dennis Wierzbicki-USA TODAY Sports
Did anything else happen in the Oregon sports world this week? I think there was some football awards ceremony, but I can’t put my finger on it. The Duck hoopers also beat Illinois and are now 6-3. The basketball team has as many losses as the football team has had in two years. The Illini had only lost to ranked Miami and Villanova before this, and this game was at a “neutral court” in Chicago. The Ducks are finally looking decent.
5. UCLA (8-3) Last week: 5th
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5. UCLA (8-3) Last week: 5th
Richard Mackson-USA TODAY Sports
The Bruins needed a solid second-half push to beat UC-Riverside 77-66 and then didn’t threaten No. 9 Gonzaga in losing 87-74. UCLA is a serious middle-of-the-road team right now. They haven’t impressed but haven’t really disappointed, with all of their losses coming to quality tournament teams (Oklahoma, North Carolina, ‘Zags). Next up is No. 1 Kentucky on Dec. 20. That won’t be pretty.
4. Cal (8-1) Last week: 4th
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4. Cal (8-1) Last week: 4th
Lance Iversen-USA TODAY Sports
This is the best start by the Bears in more than a decade. First, they outmuscled a Wyoming club that held Colorado to 33 points not long ago and won 45-42. Then they trailed Princeton (3-8) by nine at the break but outscored the Tigers by 19 in the second half to win by 10. I understand that Princeton runs the often confounding “Princeton Offense,” but you do realize that Princeton is now 3-8, right?
3. No. 16 Washington (8-0) Last week: 3rd
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3. No. 16 Washington (8-0) Last week: 3rd
Joe Nicholson-USA TODAY Sports
The Huskies trailed for most of their only game this week and were down 10 to Eastern Washington with about 11 minutes to play. Instead of folding and dropping behind Cal in these rankings, UW came back, took the lead for good with about 1:15 to play and won by four. The surprising Eagles dropped to 8-2, and the Huskies are off to their best start in almost a decade.
2. No. 14 Utah (7-2) Last week: 2nd
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2. No. 14 Utah (7-2) Last week: 2nd
John Rieger-USA TODAY Sports
In an officially neutral court game against No. 10 Kansas in Kansas City, the Utes at one point trailed by 21, then came all the way back to take the lead 55-53 before losing in the final minute, 63-60. Utah also side-stepped a solid BYU team 65-61 this week. Don’t forget this is all happening days after becoming the first team to beat No. 11 Wichita State in the regular season in nearly two years. The Utes are for real.
1. No. 3 Arizona (10-0) Last week: 1st
Casey Sapio-USA TODAY Sports
1. No. 3 Arizona (10-0) Last week: 1st
Casey Sapio-USA TODAY Sports
Arizona destroyed Michigan on 80-53 on Saturday, but it's not like that’s a big deal anymore, considering who else the Wolverines have lost to recently. But the ‘Cats stayed focused all the way against a clearly inferior team, and that’s a big deal. Sean Miller is not a coasting kind of coach. UA also beat Utah Valley 87-56 this week. You can make a decent argument that Utah Valley played the ‘Cats tougher than Michigan did.
Alex Drude is a Pac-12 writer for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on Twitter @Alex_Drude. “Like” him on Facebook and add him to your network on Google+.
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