Tag: Pac-12 Conference

Trojans Wire picks Stanford over USC in Pac-12 Conference women’s predictions

@TrojansWire has Stanford over USC in Pac-12 tournament final.

The Pac-12 Conference women’s basketball tournament is set to begin on Wednesday with the top four seeds not having to play until Thursday.

The UCLA Bruins enter as a 3-seed with the 2-seed USC Trojans, 1-seed Stanford Cardinal, and the 4-seed Oregon State Beavers.

There are a number of ways this tournament can go, especially with the toughness the Pa-12 has shown this year on the women’s side.

Matt Zemek, the site editor of Trojans Wire, gave his picks for the tournament round by round and game by game. He has Stanford winning the tournament over USC in the final.

Will UCLA have a tougher matchup than USC in Pac-12 women’s tournament?

Utah against UCLA or Arizona/Washington against USC? Either way it will be difficult.

The Pac-12 Conference women’s basketball tournament is set to begin on Wednesday. The UCLA Bruins enter as a 3-seed and are likely on a crash course for a UCLA-USC Part 3.

The first games are on Wednesday and all of Stanford, USC, UCLA, and Oregon State have the day off as they watch to see who they play.

We did a Q&A with Trojans Wire site editor Matt Zemek, and he answered the following question: USC and UCLA both have to win a quarterfinal before meeting in the semifinals. Which team has a tougher game on Thursday, and does it matter if it’s Arizona or Washington facing USC?

Utah is a better team than Arizona or Washington, but Utah is struggling and doesn’t play great away from home. USC will have a very tough time against the U of A or Washington, and it doesn’t matter which team faces the Trojans. Arizona and Washington play tough defense and are very tricky opponents to face. They are also both on the NCAA Tournament bubble and will be desperate for a win. Utah doesn’t have a whole lot at stake in this tournament. The Utes might want to rest and regroup for March Madness.
There are seven teams projected in the latest ESPN bracketology with a few right on the outside, so things could get very interesting for USC and UCLA. If they both win, they face off on Friday night in the semifinal round.
Moreover, both Arizona and Washington are fighting for a spot while Utah has it locked up. Here’s what Zemek said when asked about the matchup for USC:
Both Arizona and Washington will be desperate to beat USC. If the U of A or UW play the Trojans, they will be playing for an NCAA Tournament at-large berth, at least for the possibility of making the tournament. That is powerful motivation. In terms of the matchup, I think Washington might be harder for USC. The Trojans just did play Arizona in double overtime and faced Arizona a second time earlier in February. USC will know what’s coming from Arizona. Washington might be harder to game-plan against. It won’t be easy, regardless of whether the Cats or Huskies win, but I think Washington might be the harder matchup.

UCLA women’s basketball finishes at seven in AP Poll

UCLA women’s team is No. 7 in latest AP top 25 ahead of the Pac-12 tournament.

It has been a phenomenal season for the UCLA women’s basketball team. Now, the Bruins finish their season with a high rank in the AP Poll.

Sitting comfortably at seventh, ahead of LSU and just behind Texas, the Bruins ended the regular season with a win over Arizona 61-41.

Though there is still a Pac-12 tournament to be played before the final seeds are set for March Madness, by finishing the season strong and have a chance to continue to rise in the ranks. In a good position to secure a #2 seed in the Big Dance, the Bruins have the momentum to compete with the best that women’s college basketball has to offer.

Are the Bruins the best team in the country? No. But UCLA does have a good argument for one of the most complete teams in the country.

With contributions from the front and backcourt, in addition to top-notch coaching, the Bruins look to be a tough out in the tournament for opposing teams.

USC-UCLA Part 3 could take place Friday in Pac-12 tournament

UCLA-USC Part 3 could be coming soon to Las Vegas.

The Pac-12 Conference women’s basketball tournament kicks off on Wednesday. Both the USC Trojans and UCLA Bruins are possibly going to face each other for the third time, this time everything is on the line.

The question is, do fans want a USC-UCLA Part 3? Trojans Wire side editor Matt Zemek gave his answer:

I think that USC fans want the Bruins and would love an all-Los Angeles semifinal on Friday. It would be a huge game. The winner might get a No. 1 seed in the Women’s NCAA Tournament. That would be great theater, and USC would like its chances versus the Bruins.

And, here are my thoughts on a Part 3:

I think UCLA fans want part 3. Sure, an easier matchup is always the hope. Then again, adding another signature win would help their chances of landing a 1-seed in the field of 68. LA showdown part 3 will be fantastic.

UCLA won the first matchup on December 30 as Londynn Jones had 21 points and seven rebounds. USC won two weeks later with JuJu Watkins dropping a 32-point, 10-rebound double-double.

USC versus UCLA for a chance at the Pac-12 title game in Las Vegas on Friday night? What more could you ask for?

Pac-12 Conference women’s basketball tournament seeding

Here are the seeds for the Pac-12 tourney.

The Pac-12 Conference women’s basketball tournament begins on Wednesday, March, 6, in Las Vegas.

The UCLA Bruins are a 3-seed in the bracket and are on a crash course to potentially face the 2-seed USC Trojans in the semifinal round.

The Stanford Cardinal are the top seed and the favorites, which is no surprise, and there are six teams likely projected to make the Big Dance.

The tournament begins on March 6 with four different games and the top-four teams play on Thursday with the finale on Saturday afternoon at MGM Grand Arena in Las Vegas.

Here are the 12 seeds from top to bottom for the Pac-12 tournament.

UCLA women’s a 3-seed in Pac-12 Conference Tournament

UCLA is a 3-seed.

The UCLA Bruins women’s basketball team ended the regular season with a 20-point win against Arizona on the road on Saturday night.

Cori Close’s team has all sorts of momentum and is trending in the right direction as the calendar recently turned to March.

The Bruins moved up to No. 8 last week in the polls and were a 2-seed in the latest ESPN bracketology and only improved with a few wins, including one over Colorado.

The Pac-12 Conference women’s basketball tournament bracket is set and the Bruins are a 3-seed. The top two seeds are Stanford and USC.

Here is the bracket for the Pac-12 Conference women’s tournament beginning on Wednesday, March 6:

The first games are on Wednesday, March 6, and UCLA will play the winner of Utah and Arizona State on Thursday. If everything goes as planned, the Bruins will face USC on Friday in a tough matchup.

How Oregon would stack up against former Pac-12 teams heading into the 2024 season

A look at how the Oregon Ducks would stack up against former Pac-12 teams in 2024 if the conference had not disolved.

Sometimes we can’t help but live in the past.

While the past several weeks and months have been spent looking forward and trying to project what life will be like for the Oregon Ducks going forward in the Big Ten Conference, it has crossed our mind how things would look in the Pac-12 in 2024 had the conference not been virtually dissolved.

Who would be the favorites to win the conference? Which teams would be considered sleepers early on, with a chance to make some noise? Are there any teams who would have zero chance to do anything yet again?

We looked at the win totals in the Big Ten going into the spring to help give an outlook of what to expect, so let’s take a look at the win totals for teams formerly of the Pac-12 and see where everyone would land.

Here are the latest odds from FanDuel Sportsbook:

[gambcom-standard rankid=“3012″ ]

Stanford clinches final Pac-12 Conference women’s title

Stanford clinches Pac-12 title once again.

The Pac-12 Conference women’s basketball regular season is concluding this weekend. On Thursday night, the Stanford Cardinal got a victory over Oregon State in a tough top-15 showdown.

As a result, Stanford clinched the top spot in the Pac-12 and won the final conference title berth with Oregon State and Washington State set to be the only two programs next season.

The Cardinal are 14-3 with one game remaining, and both the Los Angeles schools (UCLA and USC) are 12-5 with one game left.

All 12 teams play on Saturday. USC plays Arizona State on the road and UCLA plays Arizona on the road as both teams fight for the No. 2 seed in the conference.

Colorado, Utah, and Oregon State are all tied for 4th with identical 11-6 marks in the conference.

All of the top six teams (all of which are projected to be in the NCAA Tournament) are favored for Saturday’s matchups. So, barring an upset, this looks to be the way things end for the Pac-12 standings.

Pac-12 bubble watch: Lots of teams on outside looking in

The Pac-12 could have just two teams in the NCAA Tournament.

The NCAA Tournament could very well just have two Pac-12 Conference teams. That would be a big disappointment for the conference, but there is a path to that becoming a reality.

As of now, Washington State and Arizona, both in the top 25, are essential locks to be in the field. Apart from that, there are more questions than answers.

Jordan Mendoza of USA Today recently gave a Pac-12 bubble watch update with some teams on the outside looking in with the final stretch here:

In the Bracketology prediction, Colorado, Utah and Oregon all sit on the outside looking in, and its all thanks to each team not finding enough consistent play to warrant a tournament berth. Since Jan. 24, the teams are a combined 11-14, and playing just below average ball won’t cut it in what has been a mostly lackluster conference.

Mendoza has Colorado as a First Four Out team and Utah as a Next Four Out, so they need some help if they want to find a way into the Big Dance.

Social media reacts to UCLA women’s team blowing out Utah

Social media reacts to UCLA’s massive win over Utah.

It is the UCLA women’s basketball teams’s world, and we are just living in it.

In a top-20 showdown between #12 UCLA and #18 Utah, the Bruins made a statement in their 82-52 blowout victory. Now ranked fifth in the Pac-12 standings, with a record of 21-5 overall, the Bruins only trail the top-seeded Stanford Cardinals by two and a half games.

Though the standings are tight, with top-15 teams in the nation standing in the Bruins’ way of the top seed, their win over Utah put them in the mix for a high seed in the Pac-12 tournament. Understandably, UCLA fans were excited.

Here is what they had to say on social media.