Pac-12 WBB power ratings: UCLA on top ahead of USC showdown while Arizona, Cal soar

None of the Pac-12’s five ranked teams faced each other in the first full weekend of conference play, but that changes this week with three showdowns on the schedule.

The marquee matchup comes Sunday with the second rivalry meeting between No. 2 UCLA and No. 9 USC. The Bruins won the first collision by seven points before a sellout crowd at Pauley Pavilion on Dec. 30.

The other matchups of ranked teams this week involve No. 8 Stanford, which will be tested — at altitude — by No. 19 Utah and No. 5 Colorado.

Additionally, Arizona and Cal look to carry momentum on the road, and there’s a second rivalry game Sunday with Washington State looking for revenge in Seattle.

All in all, there are 10 games on Friday and Sunday.

To the power ratings …

(NET rankings through Monday)

1. UCLA (14-0/3-0)

Last week: 1Results: beat Oregon 75-49 and Oregon State 65-54Next up: at USC (Sunday)NET ranking: No. 5Comment: Fifth-year guard Charisma Osborne filled up the box score against OSU with 15 points, eight rebounds, four  assists and three steals. She’s auditioning for the WNBA Draft, where she could slip into the bottom of the first round. Londynn Jones had 21 points (with five 3-pointers) in the first meeting against USC.

2. Stanford (14-1/3-0)

Last week: 2Results: beat WSU 74-65 and Washington 71-59Next up: at Utah (Friday)NET ranking: No. 3Comment: Stanford lost by six points in Salt Lake City in its 2023 regular-season finale, allowing the Utes to share the Pac-12 title with the Cardinal. Forward Cameron Brink has been honored as Pac-12 Player of the Week three times this season and is widely projected as a top-three pick in the WNBA Draft.

3. Colorado (13-1/3-0)

Last week: 3Results: beat Arizona 75-74 and Arizona State 81-68Next up: vs. Cal (Friday)NET ranking: No. 19Comment: The Buffaloes are on a seven-game winning streak but can’t afford to look ahead to the duel with Stanford on Sunday, not with the sizzling Bears coming to town. Colorado is 3-0 in conference play for the first time since 1996-97. “I knew this program was capable of being a winning program, that’s one of the reasons I transferred here (from Washington),” Quay Miller said.

4. USC (12-1/2-1)

Last week: 4Results: beat Oregon State 56-54 and Oregon 68-54Next up: vs. UCLA (Sunday)NET ranking: No. 13Comment: The Pac-12 has yet to rename the Freshman of the Week after JuJu Watkins but might make the switch by the end of this season. She won the award for the eighth time in nine weeks, tying a record set by Cal’s Kristine Anigwe in 2016. (The Trojans were idle the only week Watkins did not win.) The 6-foot-2 phenom remains second nationally in scoring (26.1 points per game) behind Iowa star Caitlin Clark (31.3).

5. Utah (11-4/1-2)

Last week: 5Results: beat ASU 58-41, lost to Arizona 71-70 (OT)Next up: vs. Stanford (Friday)NET ranking: No. 7Comment: The Utes not only are without Gianna Kneepkens due to a season-ending injury suffered Dec. 2 but have been without Isabel Palmer since mid-November. That’s a big hit at guard, as evidenced by Utah’s 16-of-60 shooting from 3-point range last week. “We’re still a little bit clunky,” coach Lynne Roberts said. “When we get Issy back and shooting, I think that will be a lot smoother.”

6. Arizona (10-5/2-1)

Last week: 9Results: lost to Colorado 75-74, beat Utah 71-70 (OT)Next up: at Oregon State (Friday)NET ranking: No. 43Comment: The Wildcats rose three spots in the Hotline power ratings after a hard-earned home split against two ranked opponents. What’s more, they are now projected by ESPN to make the NCAA Tournament (as the last team into the field). Kailyn Gilbert produced a 22-point, 12-rebound double-double against Utah after scoring 19 points against Colorado.

7. California (12-3/2-1)

Last week: 10Results: beat Washington 70-57 and WSU 73-72 (OT)Next up: at Colorado (Friday)NET ranking: No. 47Comment: Cal also climbed three spots in the power ratings and into the NCAAs (in ESPN’s projections) coming off the Bears’ first sweep of the Washington schools in four years. As we anticipated, Ioanna Krimili’s return from injury is a needle-mover for Cal. The graduate transfer from San Francisco averaged 21 points last week, going a combined 8-of-15 from 3-point range.

8. Oregon State (12-2/1-2)

Last week: 8Results: lost to USC 56-54 and UCLA 65-54Next up: vs. Arizona (Friday)NET ranking: No. 21Comment: The Beavers are dangerous when they play at their pace, as they did against USC and, to some degree, against the Bruins. Despite their first two losses of the season, they maintained a high NET ranking and are projected by ESPN as a No. 6 seed in the NCAAs. Donovyn Hunter is one of several Pac-12 freshmen cast to the background as USC’s Watkins dominates the spotlight.

9. Washington (11-3/1-2)

Last week: 6Results: lost to Cal 70-57 and Stanford 71-59Next up: vs. Washington State (Sunday)NET ranking: No. 31Comment: The Washington schools dropped three spots in the power ratings ahead of their second rivalry meeting. The Huskies won the first, 60-55, on Dec. 10 in Pullman, thus earning a slim edge here. But they were not as competitive against the Bay Area schools last week as the Cougars. ESPN’s Bracketology projects WSU as a No. 9 seed in the NCAAs and Washington as one of the first four teams out of the field.

10. Washington State (11-5/0-3)

Last week: 7Results: lost to Stanford 74-65 and Cal 73-72 (OT)Next up: at Washington (Sunday)NET ranking: No. 22Comment: Charlisse Leger-Walker’s scoring soared last week as the senior guard put up a combined 42 points on 14-of-29 shooting. She also had nine rebounds and four assists against Stanford — all good signs for the Cougars going forward. The absence of guard Johanna Teder due to chronic injury is clearly impacting WSU. Also, Astera Tuhina sat out both games last week.

11. Oregon (9-7/0-3)

Last week: 12Results: lost to UCLA 75-49 and USC 68-54Next up: vs. ASU (Friday)NET ranking: No. 91Comment: The Ducks performed better than Oregon and ASU last week, trailing by a point at USC early in the fourth quarter. They earned a one-place rise in the power ratings headed into what figures to be an urgent battle against the Sun Devils. Oregon should be able to exploit its size advantage with 6-8 Phillipina Kyei and 6-7 Kennedy Basham.

12. Arizona State (8-7/0-3)

Last week: 11Results: lost to Utah 58-41 and Colorado 81-68Next up: at Oregon (Friday)NET ranking: No. 133Comment: Jalyn Brown’s 35 points against Colorado, and cutting a 25-point halftime deficit to as little as 10, were encouraging signs. Brown and Tyi Skinner, who’s out this season with an injury, should be a productive duo in 2024-25. The Oregon game is important for ASU, which went 1-17 in conference play last season and doesn’t get another shot at the Ducks.

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