Just three weeks into full Pac-12 women’s basketball play, some important questions are already answered.
— Stanford will not go undefeated.
— Four of the five teams ranked nationally through non-conference play have now lost to an unranked (at the time) Pac-12 team, making a case for the conference’s depth.
— The Pac-12 is now likely to have at least six NCAA Tournament qualifiers and could get more. The latest ESPN bracketology puts eight Pac-12 teams into the NCAA field.
As a reminder with the current three-way tie for first, it hasn’t been that long since Stanford wasn’t the Pac-12 champion. From 2015-20, Oregon State and Oregon each won three conference titles with 2016 being shared between OSU and Arizona State.
So while it would be surprising if the Cardinal doesn’t regroup from its first Pac-12 loss in two years to win a third straight regular-season title, it wouldn’t be out of line with recent history, including half the conference reaching the Final Four since 2013.
Here are the Hotline’s 11th power ratings of the season, including updated NET rankings.
1. Stanford (17-2/5-1 Pac-12)Last week: 1Results: beat UCLA 72-59, lost to USC 55-46Next up: vs. Utah (Friday)NET ranking (through Monday): No. 4Comment: Before losing Sunday to the Trojans, Stanford won by four over Cal and led UCLA by two after three quarters (pulling away in the fourth). The Cardinal is shooting 22.7 percent (20-of-88) on 3-pointers over its last four games, a sign of deeper problems than one Pac-12 defeat, which dropped Stanford two spots, to No. 4, in the AP poll.
2. Utah (15-1/5-1)Last week: 4Results: beat Arizona 80-79Next up: at Stanford (Friday)NET ranking: No. 7Comment: The Utes are 2-0 against ranked opponents (Arizona and Oklahoma), their first such multiple wins since 2005-06. They are back to a school-best No. 8 in the AP poll after dropping two places following a loss to Colorado on Jan. 6. Friday’s game against Stanford is a rematch of the 2022 Pac-12 Tournament final. Utah is 1-30 all-time vs. Stanford, with the win in January 2019.
3. UCLA (15-3/4-2)Last week: 3Results: lost to Stanford 72-59, beat Cal 87-70Next up: at Washington (Friday)NET ranking: No. 30Comment: The Bruins’ 29-13 fourth-quarter domination over Cal reversed what happened against Stanford, which had a 21-10 edge in the fourth. Freshman Kiki Rice had her first career double-double (15 points and 12 rebounds) vs. Cal and was two rebounds shy of a triple-double coming off a two-point game (1-of-6 FG) against Stanford. UCLA is down one spot to No. 9 in the AP poll.
4. Colorado (14-3/5-1)Last week: 6Results: beat Arizona 72-65Next up: at Cal (Friday)NET ranking: No. 21Comment: The Buffs are the big climbers in the Hotline rankings, up two spots, and also into the AP poll (No. 24) for the first time this season coming off consecutive wins over ranked opponents (Utah and Arizona). Colorado’s only previous wins over top-15 teams in consecutive games were in 1981-82. Frida Formann averaged 21.5 points in the two upsets.
5. Arizona (14-4/4-3)Last week: 2Results: lost to Colorado 72-65, lost to Utah 80-79Next up: at Arizona State (Sunday)NET ranking: No. 26Comment: Arizona’s one-week run in the No. 2 spot ended with a three-level drop after road losses to the Mountain schools (both Utah and CU played only one game last weekend) by a combined eight points. That’s more indicative of conference strength than anything fatal for the Wildcats, who fell five spots to No. 19 in the AP poll.
6. Oregon (13-5/4-3)Last week: 5Results: beat Washington 64-58, lost to Washington State 85-84 (OT)Next up: at Oregon State (Friday)NET ranking: No. 12Comment: Like Arizona, Oregon wasn’t far off from a 2-0 weekend and would have been but for a clock error negating a 3-pointer at the close of regulation vs. Washington State. The Ducks are down two spots to No. 23 in the AP poll and one place in the Hotline rankings. Oregon’s Chance Gray is the Pac-12 Freshman of the Week for the first time, an award teammate Grace VanSlooten has won three times.
7. USC (13-4/3-3)Last week: 9Results: beat Cal 63-43, beat Stanford 55-46Next up: at Washington State (Friday)NET ranking: No. 37Comment: The Trojans are No. 6 nationally in scoring defense (51.6 ppg) and have held nine opponents under 50, including Stanford in their streak-busting upset Sunday. Stanford had won 14 straight over USC and 39 in a row over Pac-12 competition. Destiny Littleton is the Pac-12 Player of the Week, an award that teammate Rayah Marshall won two weeks before. USC is up two places in the Hotline rankings and now projected into the NCAA field by ESPN.
8. Washington State (13-4/3-3)Last week: 8Results: beat Oregon State 63-56, beat Oregon 85-84 (OT)Next up: vs. USC (Friday)NET ranking: No. 42Comment: The Cougars were teetering with star Charlisse Leger-Walker gone for two games to her native New Zealand (family issue). But with her back, they now are on a three-game winning streak and projected as an NCAA qualifier by ESPN. Jessica Clark providing bench help like against Oregon is a necessity going forward.
9. Oregon State (10-8/2-5)Last week: 7Results: lost to Washington State 63-56, lost to Washington 79-67Next up: vs. Oregon (Friday)NET ranking: No. 62Comment: Timea Gardiner’s college debut went largely unnoticed because of the Beavers’ losses and uproarious outcomes elsewhere, but the high school All-American averaged 9.5 points and will be a factor over the rest of the season. Fellow freshman 6-foot-4 Raegan Beers probably should be starting, and the 6-foot-3 Gardiner might get there, too.
10. Washington (10-6/2-4)Last week: 11Results: lost to Oregon 64-58, beat Oregon State 79-67Next up: vs. UCLA (Friday)NET ranking: No. 81Comment: The Huskies had another one of their infrequent offensive outbursts Sunday with three double-figure scorers and their highest output since scoring 82 points against Washington State on Dec. 11. They move up one place in the Hotline ratings. Junior Lauren Schwartz surpassed 1,000 career points.
11. California (10-7/1-5)Last week: 10Results: lost to USC 63-43, lost to UCLA 87-70Next up: vs. Colorado (Friday)NET ranking: No. 78Comment: The Bears kept it close for three quarters vs. UCLA, but overall it was a lost weekend in Los Angeles given the final margins. Cal had a 23-14 first-quarter lead vs. the Bruins but lost ground each subsequent quarter and was outscored 29-13 in the fourth. Against USC, the Bears trailed 33-14 at halftime and finished with one double-figure scorer, a preview of what was coming defensively for Stanford.
12. Arizona State (7-9/0-7)Last week: 12Results: forfeits to Utah and ColoradoNext up: vs. Arizona (Sunday)NET ranking: No. 121Comment: As of Tuesday, it appears ASU will return from an injury-caused double forfeit to play a home game against Arizona on Sunday. The Sun Devils found a way to split with their rivals in the last two seasons, but expect the Wildcats to come to Tempe hot after the forfeits played a role in their two losses last week. UA won the first meeting 84-66 on Dec. 29.
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