As the Pac-12 schedule rolls in, there’s never been a better time to look at the current landscape of the conference and throw together some rankings.
1. Oregon (17-1) – The Ducks, currently ranked as the No. 5 team in the nation, sit at No. 1 in the Pac-12 rankings. They are lead by junior Sabrina Ionescu, who averages 19.9 points per game. Oregon is undefeated in conference play thus far, holding a perfect 6-0.
2. Stanford (16-1) – Another unbeaten team in conference play, the Cardinal also has a perfect home record at 9-0. It is led by Australian senior Alanna Smith, who averages 21 points per game and is fresh off of a 34-point, 15-rebound effort against Washington State.
3. Utah (16-1) – Utah has had a solid start to conference play, with a 5-1 record. Its lone loss came at the hands of Arizona State. Led by senior Megan Huff, who averages 19.6 points and 9.4 rebounds per game, the Utes are almost set to begin a tough three-game stretch wherein they’ll play the top three teams on this list in a matter of a week.
RELATED: Arizona women’s basketball loses to No. 5 Oregon 93-60
4. Oregon State (15-3) – While the Beavers don’t have one player blowing up the stat sheet, they do have a solid core of redshirt sophomore Destiny Slocum and juniors Mikayla Pivec and Kat Tudor. The trio are averaging 15.2, 15.0 and 12.3 points per game, respectively. They sit at 5-1 in the Pac-12 and 11-2 at home.
5. Arizona State (13-5) – Currently 4-3 in conference play, the Sun Devils recently lost to both Stanford and Oregon, but only by margins of seven and six points. However, they upset Oregon State in double overtime. Their leading scorer, senior Kianna Ibis, is averaging 14.7 points per game.
6. Arizona (13-5) – The Wildcats are coming off the aforementioned stretch that Utah is about to begin, a stretch where they suffered three tough losses by an average of 28.3 points per game. Led by redshirt sophomore Aari McDonald, who is averaging 24.9 points per game, the ‘Cats are 3-4 in conference play.
7. California (12-5) – Ranked in the top 25 at one point this season, Cal has struggled in conference play, with a record of 3-3. The leading scorer and Phoenix native senior Kristine Anigwe, is averaging 22.7 points per game with the next highest scorer, senior Asha Thomas, averaging 10.7.
8. UCLA (9-9) – The Bruins looked as though they could be a promising team when Pac-12 play started, knocking off USC and Cal and then narrowly losing to Stanford. Since then it’s been downhill, with three straight losses afterwards, the most recent being a five-point loss to USC. Their leading scorer is sophomore Michaela Onyenwere, who is averaging 16.9 points per game.
RELATED: Arizona women’s basketball suffers tough road loss to No.10 Oregon State
9. Washington State (7-11) – With a record of 2-5 in conference play, the Cougars are just 1-6 on the season when they hit the road. Their leading scorer is redshirt junior Borislava Hristova, who averages 21.3 points per game, with a season high of 38 points against Washington in the conference opener.
10. USC (11-6) – The Trojans just got their first win in conference play by beating UCLA. They are lead by sisters Minyon and Mariya Moore, who are averaging 14.6 and 12.7 points, respectively.
11. Colorado (10-7) – The lone team yet to win in the Pac-12, the Buffs sit at 0-6 in the conference. They have gotten most of their wins at home, where they are 8-3. CU has four players averaging double-digit points, including senior Kennedy Leonard, who sits at 14.1 points per game.
12. Washington (8-11) – The Huskies have had a hard time in conference play (1-6), with their lone win coming against Colorado. UW has only one player averaging more than 10 points per game, and it’s junior Amber Melgoza, who averages 18.7.
