by DSH contributor Eric Sloat
Opening week of conference play had some of everything; a couple of blowouts, Arizona destroying Washington State, 60-25, and UCLA clubbing its cross-town rival, USC, 107-73, an upset, with Washington getting a valuable win on the road, taking Arizona State down, 76-65, and a last second victory for Oregon over Utah, in overtime, 70-68. Arizona and Colorado sit atop the standings at 2-0, Oregon State and Washington State, at the bottom, at 0-2. UCLA and California are at 1-0. Oregon, Arizona State, Washington, and Utah, are all 1-1, and USC and Stanford are both 0-1.
Player of the Week: The initial award goes to Colorado Guard, Askia Booker. The Buffaloes went 2-0, and Booker led them with 40 points, going 11-26 from the field, and 16-18 from the free throw line. He also had 5 steals.
Put your O's up: Mike Moser plays tough D against Colorado's Spencer Dinwiddle in the Ducks' 100-91 loss to the Buffs Sunday at the Coors Events Center (Isiah Downing, USA Today Sports Images).
The Top 5
1. Arizona 15-0 (2-0) The Wildcats swept the Washington schools. Not much to take from the demolition of WSU. But the Wildcats did not present themselves as an invincible #1 in their victory over the Huskies. Arizona’s defense is very effective and they get in transition and finish. But in half court sets they were anything but crisp, and managed only (24-57) 42.1% from the field.
2. Colorado 13-2 (2-0) Off of their sweep at home over Oregon and Oregon State, the Buffaloes slide up to the second position. The Buff’s have been a strong player in the conference since their arrival, and have built up a tremendous home court advantage. Their offense isn’t flashy, but its effective, their defense is consistent.
3. Oregon 13-1 (1-1). The Ducks won a thriller in Utah. But were run over by the Buffaloes in Boulder. The Ducks had moments against the Buffaloes when things were going well, both offensively and defensively. But too many times, on both ends of the court, the Ducks were sloppy.
4. UCLA 12-2 (1-0) Steve Alford and the Bruins welcomed the Trojans and their new coach, Andy Enfield, with a beat down, 107-73. The Bruins did it by shooting a scorching 57.7 from the field, and were led in scoring by guards, Kyle Anderson and Jordan Addams, with 23 and 21 points, respectively.
5. California 10-4 (1-0) The Bears got a two for one beating the Cardinal, a win over their rival, and on the road as well. The scoring came from the back court, with Justin Cobbs and Tyrone Wallace, putting up 18 and 20 points, respectively. Forward, Richard Solomon cleaned off the boards, grabbing 13 rebounds.
My Picks
Week 1 7-3
Jan.8
Colorado @ WSU
Utah @ Washington
Jan.9
Arizona @ UCLA
ASU @ USC
Stanford @ OSU
Cal @ Oregon
Jan.11
Cal @ OSU
Jan.12
Colorado @ Washington
Utah @ WSU
UCLA @ ASU
USC @ Arizona
Stanford @ Oregon
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