Pac-12 Basketball Preview: Arizona the Clear Favorite

Conference play starts this week. Is UCLA really this bad? Washington the surprise of the conference so far

Pac-12 play in men's basketball begins Thursday, and everyone is chasing Arizona, which is ranked No. 4 in the country this week.

Here are our look at the conference

Player of the year rankings so far

1. KJ Simpson, Colorado

2. Branden Carlsen, Utah

3. Caleb Love, Arizona

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Coach of the year rankings so far

1. Tommy Lloyd, Arizona

2. Tad Boyle, Colorado

3. Craig Smith, Utah

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Freshman of the year rankings so far

1. Isaiah Collier, USC

2. Myles Rice, Washington State

3. Sebastian Mack, UCLA

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A look at the teams so far, in their predicted order of finish:

1. Arizona (9-2)

Coach: Tommy Lloyd, 3rd year

NET ranking: 2

Best win: Duke (road)

Worst Loss: Florida Atlantic (neutral)

Leading scorers: Caleb Love (16.5), Keshad Johnson (13.0)

Leading rebounder: Oumar Ball (8.1)

Top assist man: Kylan Boswell (4.4)

Scoring average: 92.5 (Pac-12 rank: 1st)

Three-point percentage: 36.6% (Pac-12 rank: 3rd)

Points allowed: 69.5 (Pac-12 rank: 6th)

Field-goal percentage defense: 41.0% (Pac-12 rank: 4th)

Comment: The only Pac-12 team ranked this week, and the Wildcats are No. 4

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2. Colorado (9-2)

Coach: Tad Boyle, 14th year

NET ranking: 33

Best win: Miami (neutral)

Worst Loss: Florida State (neutral)

Leading scorers: KJ Simpson (19.9), Tristan da Silva (15.7)

Leading rebounder: Eddie Lampkin (7.5)

Top assist man: KJ Simpson (4.5)

Scoring average: 86.2 (Pac-12 rank: 2nd)

Three-point percentage: 40.7% (Pac-12 rank: 1st)

Points allowed: 69.0 (Pac-12 rank: 4th)

Field-goal percentage defense: 42.0% (Pac-12 rank: 9th)

Comment: The one-two punch of Simpson and da Silva is formidable

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3. Washington (8-3)

Coach: Mike Hopkins, 7th year

NET ranking: 58

Best win: Gonzaga (home)

Worst Loss: San Diego State (neutral)

Leading scorers: Keion Brooks Jr. (20.1), Sahvir Wheeler (15.6)

Leading rebounder: Keion Brooks Jr. (7.6)

Top assist man: Sahvir Wheeler (7.1)

Scoring average: 83.0 (Pac-12 rank: 3rd)

Three-point percentage: 34.2% (Pac-12 rank: 8th)

Points allowed: 74.5 (Pac-12 rank: 10th)

Field-goal percentage defense: 41.2% (Pac-12 rank: 5th)

Comment: That win over Gonzaga makes you think the Huskies have something

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4. Utah (9-2)

Coach: Craig Smith, 3rd year

NET ranking: 25

Best win: BYU (road)

Worst Loss: St. John’s (neutral)

Leading scorers: Branden Carlson (16.8), Gabe Madsen (14.2)

Leading rebounder: Keba Keita (6.4)

Top assist man: Rollie Worster (6.2)

Scoring average: 80.6 (Pac-12 rank: 4th)

Three-point percentage: 38.0% (Pac-12 rank: 2nd)

Points allowed: 68.5 (Pac-12 rank: 3rd)

Field-goal percentage defense: 41.3% (Pac-12 rank: 7th)

Comment: Craig Smith has made amazing progress with this team, which was 4-16 in Pac-12 play two years ago in his first season.

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5. UCLA (5-6)

Coach: Mick Cronin, 5th year

NET ranking: 172

Best win: UC Riverside

Worst Loss: Cal State Northridge

Leading scorers: Sebastian Mack (15.2), Adem Bona (12.1)

Leading rebounder: Adem Bona (6.5)

Top assist man: Dylan Andrews (3.7)

Scoring average: 67.7 (Pac-12 rank: 11th)

Three-point percentage: 29.4% (Pac-12 rank: 10th)

Points allowed: 62.0 (Pac-12 rank: 1st)

Field-goal percentage defense: 38.7% (Pac-12 rank: 2nd)

Comment: Got to believe Cronin will improve this team, which has been horrible so far.

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6. USC (6-5)

Coach Andy Enfield, 11th year

NET ranking: 80

Best win: Kansas State (neutral)

Worst Loss: UC Irvine (home)

Leading scorers: Boogie Ellis (19.5), Isaiah Collier (16.1)

Leading rebounder: Kobe Johnson (5.6)

Top assist man: Isaiah Collier (4.3)

Scoring average: 78.5 (Pac-12 rank: 6th)

Three-point percentage: 34.9% (4th)

Points allowed: 73.1 (Pac-12 rank: 9th)

Field-goal percentage defense: 41.3% (Pac-12 rank: 8th)

Comment: Trojans usually rely on defense under Enfield, but they have been mediocre at that end.

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7. Washington State (9-2)

Coach: Kyle Smith, 5th year

NET ranking: 44

Best win: Boise State (neutral)

Worst Loss: Santa Clara (neutral)

Leading scorers: Isaac Jones (15.6), Myles Rice (15.5)

Leading rebounder: Isaac Jones (7.3)

Top assist man: Myles Rice (2.9)

Scoring average: 77.4 (Pac-12 rank: 8th)

Three-point percentage: 33.6% (Pac-12 rank: 9th)

Points allowed: 62.5 (Pac-12 rank: 2nd)

Field-goal percentage defense: 37.3% (Pac-12 rank: 1st)

Comment: If you’re looking for a sleeper in the Pac-12, the Cougars may be it

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8. Oregon (8-3)

Coach: Dan Altman, 14th year

NET ranking: 68

Best win: Georgia (neutral)

Worst Loss: Santa Clara (neutral)

Leading scorers: Jermaine Couisnard (13.1), Jackson Shelstad (13.0)

Leading rebounder: Kwame Evans Jr. (5.5)

Top assist man: Jackson Shelstad (3.0)

Scoring average: 79.0 (Pac-12 rank: 5th)

Three-point percentage: 34.3% (Pac-12 rank: 7th)

Points allowed: 70.9 (Pac-12 rank: 8th)

Field-goal percentage defense: 43.4% (11th)

Comment: Center N’Faly Dante could be back within a few weeks, but Nate Bittle may be gone for the season.

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9. Cal (4-7)

Coach: Mark Madsen, 1st year

NET ranking: 221

Best win: Santa Clara (Home)

Worst Loss: Montana State (home)

Leading scorers: Jaylon Tyson (19.4), Fardaws Aimaq (16.9)

Leading rebounder: Fardaws Aimaq (10.7)

Top assist man: Keonte Kennedy (4.5)

Scoring average: 76.0 (Pac-12 rank: 9th)

Three-point percentage: 34.7% (Pac-12 rank: 7th)

Points allowed: 75.9 (Pac-12 rank: 12th)

Field-goal percentage defense: 44.0% (Pac-12 rank: 12th)

Comment: The Bears can score under their new head coach, but the defense is lacking

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10. Stanford (5-5)

Coach: Jerod Haase, 8th year

NET ranking: 149

Best win: San Diego (home)

Worst Loss: Northern Iowa (neutral)

Leading scorers: Maxime Raynaud (14.6), Michael Jones (13.0)

Leading rebounder: Maxime Raynaud (9.1)

Top assist man: Jared Bynum (6.7)

Scoring average: 78.4 (Pac-12 rank: 7th)

Three-point percentage: 34.5% (Pac-12 rank: 6th)

Points allowed: 74.6 (Pac-12 rank: 11th)

Field-goal percentage defense: 42.9% (Pac-12 rank: 10th)

Comment: Will this be Haase’s final season as head coach?

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11. Oregon State (8-3)

Coach: Wayne Tinkle, 10th year

NET ranking: 196

Best win: Appalachian State (home)

Worst Loss: Pittsburgh (Neutral)

Leading scorers: Jordan Pope (16.9), Dexter Akanno (11.7)

Leading rebounder: Michael Rataj (6.5)

Top assist man: Jordan Pope (3.4)

Scoring average: 71.5 (Pac-12 rank: 10th)

Three-point percentage: 29.3% (Pac-12 rank: 11th)

Points allowed: 69.1 (Pac-12 rank: 5th)

Field-goal percentage defense: 40.1% (Pac-12 rank: 3rd)

Comment: Better than expected, but still not good enough to challenge

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12. Arizona State (6-5)

Coach: Bobby Hurley, 9th year

NET ranking: 144

Best win: SMU (home)

Worst Loss: San Diego (Home)

Leading scorers: Wayne McKinney III (14.6), Deuce Turner (13.0)

Leading rebounder: Steven Jamerson II (6.7)

Top assist man: Wayne McKinney III (3.0)

Scoring average: 66.9 (Pac-12 rank: 12th)

Three-point percentage: 29.0% (Pac-12 rank: 12th)

Points allowed: 69.5 (Pac-12 rank: 6th)

Field-goal percentage defense: 41.2% (Pac-12 rank: 6th)

Comment: Shooting woes will lead to some interesting courtside reactions by Hurley

Cover photo of Tommy Lloyd and Caleb Love by Mark J. Rebilas, USA TODAY Sports

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