SI Pac-12 Basketball Power Rankings: Wildcats, Trojans Improve

It's early season tournament time in college basketball, as many Pac-12 teams look to sharpen themselves before conference play begins. Here's Sports Illustrated's newest batch of power rankings.

It's now tournament time in college basketball, and while we get the privilege of stuffing our faces over the Thanksgiving holiday, teams across the country look to stuff the box score with hopefully impressive performances. 

As for the Pac-12, noteworthy performances continue from the No. 2 UCLA Bruins, who have yet another strong task at hand on Tuesday when they take on the No. 1 Gonzaga Bulldogs. 

With conference play set to begin in December, teams across the Pac-12 look to sharpen their swords in tournaments such as the Maui Invitational and Battle 4 Atlantis. 

We'll know a lot more about these teams following this weekend. Yet for now, here's Sports Illustrated's Pac-12 power rankings for this week:

SI PAC-12 MEN’S BASKETBALL POWER RANKINGS

1. UCLA Bruins (5-0), 60 points (5 first-place votes)

2. Arizona Wildcats (5-0), 53

3. USC Trojans (4-0), 50

4. Oregon Ducks (3-1), 46

5. Washington State Cougars (5-0), 41

6. Colorado Buffaloes (5-1), 31

7. Utah Utes (5-0), 29

8. Arizona State Sun Devils (2-2), 23

9 (Tie). Oregon State Beavers (1-4), 19

9 (Tie). Washington Huskies (3-2), 19

11. Stanford Cardinal (3-2), 14

12. Cal Golden Bears (2-3), 5

How Publishers Voted: 

DONNIE DRUIN, ALL SUN DEVILS

1. UCLA; 2. USC; 3. Arizona; 4. Oregon; 5. Washington State; 6. Colorado; 7. Utah; 8. Arizona State; 9. Oregon State; 10. Stanford; 11. Washington; 12. Cal

Comment: We're still figuring out what works and what doesn't for each team, so not many changes in the power rankings. I didn't want to penalize Oregon too much for losing a tough game to BYU. UCLA still looks like one of the best teams in the country, while the bottom half of the conference still leaves a lot to be desired. Specifically to Arizona State, we should learn more this week at the Battle 4 Atlantis tournament.

JEFF FARAUDO, CAL SPORTS REPORT

1. UCLA; 2. USC; 3. Arizona; 4. Oregon; 5. Washington State; 6. Colorado; 7. Utah; 8. Arizona State; 9. Washington; 10. Stanford; 11. Arizona State; 12. Cal

Comment: Even if it loses Tuesday night against Gonzaga, UCLA appears to be the Pac-12’s best. USC is still waiting to be tested. Arizona showed a lot in an 18-point win over Michigan. Oregon? Played one good team so far and lost to BYU by 32.

DYLAN REUBENKING, DUCKS DIGEST

1. UCLA; 2. Arizona; 3. USC; 4. Oregon; 5. Washington State; 6. Utah; 7. Arizona State; 8. Colorado; 9. Washington; 10. Stanford; 11. Oregon State; 12. Cal

Comment: Oregon suffered one of its most humiliating losses in the Dana Altman era, getting blown out by 32 points against BYU. The Ducks bounced back with a win over Division 2 sweetheart Chaminade, but they face a couple of big tests before heading home from the Maui Invitational, taking on Saint Mary's and then either Wisconsin or Houston. Arizona's big win over No. 4 Michigan proved that Tommy Lloyd's team isn't to be slept on in the Pac-12, while the whole country should be snoozing on 1-4 Oregon State, which is off to its worst start since 2008-09.

SAM CONNON, ALL BRUINS

1. UCLA; 2. Arizona; 3. USC; 4. Oregon; 5. Washington State; 6. Utah; 7. Arizona State; 8. Colorado; 9. Washington; 10. Stanford; 11. Oregon State; 12. Cal

Comment: UCLA may have struggled in spurts as of late, but that hasn’t stopped it from winning. The real test – for both the Bruins and perhaps the ceiling of the Pac-12 as a whole – comes Tuesday night against Gonzaga. Arizona’s victory over Michigan was a much-needed quality win for the conference, especially with Oregon having an embarrassing off night a week ago against BYU.

DAN RALEY, HUSKY MAVEN

1. UCLA; 2. Arizona; 3. Oregon; 4. Washington State; 5. USC; 6. Colorado; 7. Oregon State; 8. Washington; 9. Arizona State; 10. Utah; 11. Stanford; 12. Cal

Comment: This may be short-lived, but I just saw the UW play its best basketball game since Isaiah Stewart used to play without a bloody face. That was a pandemic ago. Maybe there's a little hope for one of the school's major sports yet.