The conference of champions will duke it out in Las Vegas. The Pac-12 is an underrated tournament where any of the top four seeds have a chance at winning. The tournament will be missing crowd favorite Arizona, who is enduring their own self imposed postseason ban. But with eleven teams and Bill Walton on the call, weird things are bound to happen in Vegas.
Bracket: https://twitter.com/roccomiller8/status/1368772986954608641?s=20
Schedule:
WEDNESDAY FIRST-ROUND GAMES
No. 10 Washington vs. No. 7 Utah, 4 p.m., Pac-12 Networks. Betting line: Utah favored by 7.5 points.
No. 9 Washington State vs. No. 8 Arizona State, 1 p.m., Pac-12 Networks. Betting line: Pick ‘em.
No. 11 Cal vs. No. 6 Stanford, 7 p.m., Pac-12 Networks. Betting line: Stanford favored by 6.5 points
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THURSDAY’S QUARTERFINAL GAMES
No. 1 Oregon vs. winner of Washington State-Arizona State, 11:30 a.m., Pac-12 Networks
No. 4 UCLA vs. No. 5 Oregon State, 2:30 p.m., Pac-12 Networks
No. 2 USC vs. winner of Washington-Utah, 5:30 p.m., Pac-12 Networks
No. 3 Colorado vs. Stanford-Cal winner, 8:30 p.m., ESPN
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FRIDAY’S SEMIFINAL GAMES
Oregon, Washington State, Arizona State survivor vs. UCLA-Oregon State winner, 5:30 p.m., Pac-12 Networks
USC, Washington, Utah survivor vs. Colorado, Cal, Stanford survivor, 8:30 p.m., ESPN
SATURDAY’S CHAMPIONSHIP GAME, 7:30 p.m., ESPN
Favorites:
Oregon: The 2021 season might have been Dana Altman best coaching job since the teams final four run in 2017. The Ducks replaced All American Payton Pritchard with an array of transfers. The Ducks star center was lost for injury six games into the season. The Ducks had two different Covid pauses over the course of the conference season. Despite all that, the Ducks were the regular season conference champions. The Ducks are led by senior guard Chris Duarte who leads the Ducks with 17.6 points per game. Oregon ranks 16th in offensive efficiency and they rank 22nd nationally in three point percentage. Oregon’s athleticism and length give opposing teams fits, and their notorious full court press forces timely turnovers. The Ducks have a team that has the talent to make deep into the second weekend of the tournament.
USC:
Andy Enfield was named the Pac-12 coach of the year for leading the Trojans to a 21-6 record and a projected top seed in the NCAA tournament. USC was led by future top NBA pick Evan Mobley, who swept conference player of the year honors on Tuesday. The freshmen has been arguably the most dominant player in all of college basketball excelling on both ends of the court. USC is ranked in the top 30 in both offensive and defensive efficiency. Evan’s brother Isaiah mans the opposite forward spot, and the two Mobley towers present this non-penetrable force at the rim, pushing USC to rank 2nd nationally in two point field goal percentage. USC surrounds the Mobleys with young talented guards Tahj Eddy and Ethan Anderson. In addition, 6’8 Drew Peterson can stretch the floor with his elite shooting. USC has been one of the better stories in college basketball, and they are must watch T.V. with Mobley on the floor.
Teams to Watch:
Colorado: The Buffalos finished third in the conference lead by a veteran laden team. Colorado ranked first nationally in free throw percentage and dominated at home. Colorado quietly ranks in the top 26 in both offensive and defensive efficiency. The question is can they win away from Boulder? The Buffalos have one of America’s best kept secrets in senior Mckinnley Wright. Colorado is projected to be an 8th seed in the NCAA tournament, and they should be invited to the NCAA tourney for the first time since 2016.
UCLA: Mick Cronin’s fighting Bruins are an interesting team to watch. Despite losing their top scorer Chris Smith to injury, and top rim protector Jaelan Hill to a personal absence, the Bruins have grinded their way to a likely NCAA tournament bid. The Bruins were a last second Tahj Eddy game winning three pointer from being a top two seed in the conference tournament. Mick Cronin’s gritty defense attituide makes the Bruins a tough out. UCLA has an array of depth and their pieces take turns taking games over. A combination Jaime Jaquez, Cody Riley, Jules Bernard, or Johhnny Juzang can go off an any given night. Juzang, who missed the Oregon and USC game due to injury should be available for Thursday’s matchup against Oregon State. The season has been ugly, but don’t count the Bruins out.
Arizona State:
The Sun Devils have been one of the more disappointing teams in the country. Bobby Hurley’s squad never caught it a break when came to abiding with Covid protocols. It never seemed like all of ASU’s starters were available at the same time. Simply, ASU’s lineups never built comardery. With that said, ASU has the talent to win this tournament if they somehow can pull it together.
Players to Watch:
Evan Mobley: The conference’s freshmen of the year and defensive player of the year has been the anchor for the Trojans this season. Mobley has drawn comparisions to Anothony Davis and is guaranteed to be a top three pick in this year’s draft.
Remy Martin: Preseason All American going into this season. Martin will look to end is historic college career on a high note.
Chris Duarte: Duarte was named The Associated Press’s PAC-12 player of the year. The senior leads Oregon on both ends of the floor. Duarte is an elite shot maker and is the igniter for the Oregon offense.
McKinley Wright IV : The Colorado senior guard has scored over 1200 career points. Wright is elite on creating space and finding himself an open shot. Colorado may need Wright to make a clutch late to help them secure their first Pac-12 tournament title.
Johnny Juzang: Juzang comes into the tournament with a banged up ankle. But if he is ready to go, he should put on a show. Juzang has put on a scoring clinics on the road averaging 17 points in games away from Pauley Pavilion.
Prediction:
Colorado is one of the best field good stories in college basketball, but they have not gotten much love. The tournament is really a toss up, but Colorado is the most consistent team in the conference. Buffalo excels at the free throw line, they have multiple shot makers, and they don’t turn the ball over. The Buffalos also have the size to match with USC and the athleticism to play with Oregon. I will take Colorado to cut down the nets in Vegas.
