With Washington falling apart over the weekend, there is a new favorite to win the Pacific 10 Conference.
Arizona men’s basketball is now the team that looks like everyone thought Washington would at this point.
The Wildcats are on a five-game winning streak, the longest streak in the Miller era, and are the lone ranked team representing the Pac-10 conference, as Washington fell out of the rankings after getting swept over the weekend. Barring a complete collapse, the Pac-10 title should go through Tucson.
But with a few weeks left to play, here is a quick look at how the Pac-10 is taking shape.
Player of the Week
Oregon forward Joevan Catron was named Pac-10 Player of the Week after leading the Ducks to a sweep over Washington and Washington State. The senior averaged 18 points and 9 rebounds over the weekend. Arizona’s point guard Momo Jones was nominated for the award and probably would have won the award had he not won the previous week. Jones scored a career high 27 points in a triple OT win against California.
Sixth man of the week
Though Jones got most of the attention for Wildcats, Kevin Parrom is just as deserving of some praise. Parrom scored a career high 25 points and knocked down multiple 3-pointers to give Jones a chance to hit the clutch shots down the stretch.
Arizona with another 20-win season
With the win against California on Saturday, Arizona became the first Pac-10 team to hit the 20-win mark. The Wildcats have won 20 games in 22 of the last 24 seasons.
Sean Miller for national coach of the year?
Sean Miller is hands down the Pac-10 coach of year at this point.
Miller has already bounced back from a tournament-less first season at Arizona as his team sits at 20-4 with seven conference games remaining. With the Wildcats ranked No. 16 in the coaches poll, Miller can work his way into the national coach of the year discussion with a few more wins, if he already hasn’t.
Washington in trouble
Washington is amidst a shocking three-game losing streak and is on the verge of playing themselves out of the Pac-10 title race. Although the Huskies initially didn’t seemed fazed by the season ending knee injury to guard Abdul Gaddy and the off-court issues of an unnamed player, which resulted in no charges, it’s fair to question whether everything is taking its toll on the team. When a team that has been picked to win the conference is swept by two bottom-of-the-pack teams, there is something wrong. If the Huskies lose again before facing Arizona on Feb. 19, they can say goodbye to their conference title hopes.
Surprise of the week
Ugly court and all the Oregon Ducks are one of the surprise teams this Pac-10 season under first year head coach Dana Altman. Although the Ducks sit in seventh in the conference, they’re fresh off a sweep of the Washington schools and have won four of the last five games. The Ducks currently sit one game ahead of Southern California.
