With two weeks remaining in the regular season, there are six teams in contention for the top-four seeds in the Pac-12 tournament and a handful hoping for at-large berths into the NCAAs.
But when it comes to postseason award winners, which are selected by the Pac-12 coaches, we have significant clarity.
The frontrunners are as follows …
Player of the Year: Arizona G Caleb Love
The leading scorer and chief playmaker on the conference’s best team would have our support if votes were due today (and if we had a vote). Love is averaging 21.4 points in conference games and has played well in big moments with 55 points in two games against Washington State and 36 at Oregon.
Coach of the Year: Washington State’s Kyle Smith
The Cougars were whacked by attrition last spring and picked 10th in the Pac-12 preseason media poll. Currently, they are one game out of first place and on the right side of the NCAA Tournament bubble — all with limited NIL resources. Smith is a leading candidate for national Coach of the Year honors, not to mention a fat new contract
Freshman of the Year: Washington State G Myles Rice
If Rice’s candidacy were merely based on his court leadership and stellar production (15.4 points and 3.7 assists), he would have a strong case. Add his personal story — he missed the 2022-23 season because of cancer (Hodgkin’s lymphoma) — and the evidence is overwhelming.
Defensive Player of the Year: Arizona State G Frankie Collins
The disruptive dynamo leads the Pac-12 and is sixth in the country in steals per game (2.8). If Collins holds that pace through the remainder of the season, it would be the fourth-highest season average in the Pac-12 this century.
The Hotline will publish our selections for the postseason awards and all-conference teams after the regular season (but before the Pac-12 tournament).
To the power ratings …
1. Arizona (21-6/12-4)
Last week: 1Results: lost to WSU 77-74, beat Washington 91-75NET ranking: No. 3Next up: at Arizona State (Wednesday)Comment: If you’re curious about recent results in this series, know that Arizona has won three in a row in Tempe (by two, 12 and nine points) and blasted ASU by 45 points two weeks ago in McKale Center. Unless the Wildcats contribute heavily to their own demise, they should claim yet another victory over their in-state rival.
2. Washington State (21-7/12-5)
Last week: 2Results: won at Arizona 77-74, lost at ASU 73-61NET ranking: No. 36Next up: vs. USC (Thursday)Comment: Life is so much easier as an upstart, but that existence ended the moment WSU won in Tucson last week. How will the Cougars perform as a frontrunner within the conference and on the brink of reaching the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2008? We’re skeptical. In fact, the Hotline envisions a USC victory Thursday night.
3. Oregon (18-9/10-6)
Last week: 3Results: won at Stanford 78-65, lost at Cal 69-64NET ranking: No. 64Next up: vs. Oregon State (Wednesday)Comment: The Ducks performed with appropriate focus and energy in their pre-Arizona matchup last month, easily dispatching ASU in Matthew Knight Arena. The Beavers pose a more serious threat to Oregon before Dana Altman and Co. head to the desert later this week.
4. Colorado (18-9/9-7)
Last week: 5Results: beat Utah 89-65NET ranking: No. 35Next up: vs. Cal (Wednesday)Comment: In the race for the fourth seed in the Pac-12 tournament (and an opening-round bye), the Buffaloes possess an easier finishing schedule than UCLA. In fact, it’s significantly easier.
5. UCLA (14-13/9-7)
Last week: 4Results: lost to USC 62-56NET ranking: No. 112Next up: at Washington (Thursday)Comment: It wasn’t long ago that the Bruins were riding a five-game winning streak as they prepared for a three-game home stand. Who figured they would lose two of the three, along with every ounce of their hard-earned momentum.
6. Cal (13-15/9-8)
Last week: 7Results: beat OSU 81-73 and Oregon 69-64NET ranking: No. 115Next up: at Colorado (Wednesday)Comment: Not on our Pac-12 bingo card for the 2023-24 season: The Bears playing a meaningful game on the 28th day of February.
7. Utah (16-11/7-9)
Last week: 6Results: lost at Colorado 89-65NET ranking: No. 53Next up: vs. Stanford (Thursday)Comment: Will a team that has lost six of its past eight beat a team that has lost six of its past seven? The edge goes to the home team on Thursday night, but not by much: Stanford won in the Huntsman Center last season.
8. Arizona State (14-14/8-9)
Last week: 9Results: lost to Washington 84-82 (OT), beat WSU 73-61NET ranking: No. 126Next up: vs. Arizona (Wednesday)Comment: The Sun Devils’ only path to victory over Arizona is a low-scoring affair featuring an awful perimeter shooting performance by the visitors — something like 6-of-27 from 3-point range. If ASU needs 75 points to win, it has no chance.
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9. Washington (15-13/7-10)
Last week: 10Results: won at ASU 84-82 (OT), lost at Arizona 91-75NET ranking: No. 69Next up: vs. UCLA (Thursday)Comment: UW’s season, an entirely predictable exercise in mediocrity, looks even worse when compared to what’s happening on the other side of the state.
10. Stanford (12-15/7-10)
Last week: 8Results: lost to Oregon 75-68 and OSU 85-73NET ranking: No. 116Next up: at Utah (Thursday)Comment: Stanford’s season, an entirely predictable exercise in mediocrity, looks even worse when compared to what’s happening on the other side of the Bay.
11. USC (11-16/5-11)
Last week: 11Results: won at UCLA 62-56NET ranking: No. 103Next up: at Washington State (Thursday)Comment: The Trojans have a clear path to the No. 11 seed in Las Vegas, which means UCLA must finish in sixth place to produce a delicious rubber match in the opening round.
12. Oregon State (12-16/4-13)
Last week: 12Results: lost at Cal 81-73, won at Stanford 85-73NET ranking: No. 167Next up: at Oregon (Wednesday)Comment: Jordan Pope belongs on the short list of good players on bad teams — and we’re talking nationally, not simply within the conference or the region. He’s terrific; his team is not.
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