Pac-12 Men’s Basketball Power Rankings: Week 5
By Brian Spaen
Here are the premiere power rankings for Autzen Zoo for everyone’s favorite collegiate winter/spring sport. We’ll start off on week five of the college basketball season with the obvious pick of Arizona at the top.
1. Arizona (5-0)
They’re the only team ranked currently in the AP top 25 poll. We’ll see if it’s deserved later this month when they have a road game against Clemson and a top-10 matchup with Florida.
Nov 29, 2012; Eugene, OR, USA; Oregon Ducks forward Arsalan Kazemi (14) dunks the ball against the Texas-San Antonio Roadrunners at Matthew Knight Arena. Mandatory Credit: Scott Olmos-USA TODAY Sports
2. Oregon (7-1)
Arsalan Kazemi just adds to the depth of the frontcourt and has quickly come from off the bench and has turned into a dominant starter. The Ducks are one of the only two Pac-12 teams to defeat a ranked opponent.
3. Colorado (6-1)
The win against Baylor still looks good, but there are signs of caution after having to finish off Texas Southern in double overtime and taking their first loss of the season at Wyoming.
4. Arizona State (6-1)
Jonathan Gilling has been quite an early story so far making 17 three-pointers, 2nd most in the conference, and he’s just a sophomore.
5. California (6-1)
Allen Crabbe is the only player to average over 20 points a game in the Pac-12, and things have been looking great after winning the DirecTV Classic until getting hammered by Wisconsin 81-56 this past Sunday.
6. Oregon State (4-2)
That was a gutsy outing against Kansas, rallying multiple times but coming up short in the end losing 84-78. The Beavers are strong at grabbing the boards on the offensive end, but they cannot continue to give up this many points if they want to contend in the Pac-12.
7. Utah (5-2)
They’re impressive statistically compared to other teams in the conference…due to their schedule being weak. The loss at Southern Methodist in excusable, but against Sacramento State earlier this season isn’t.
8. Stanford (6-3)
Similar to the football team, this could be one of the toughest defenses in the conference. Their team defends the perimeter the best in the Pac-12 and Josh Huestis has the second-most blocks.
Bottom four:
9. UCLA (5-3)
10. Washington (4-3)
11. Washington State (5-3)
12. USC (3-4)
Brian Spaen is the lead editor for Autzen Zoo. See his banter with other FanSided writers and love for his favorite west coast professional teams by following him on Twitter.