College Basketball Conference Preview #27 - Pac 12 Conference
Washington will rely on several newcomers to help them defend their Pac12 Regular Season Title this season. Freshmen forwards Jayden McDaniels and Isaiah Stewart were two of the top recruits in the country and will lead the Huskies attack. Transfer Quade Green (Kentucky) will be eligible in December so sophomore guard Elijah Hardy will have to man the point guard slot until then. Washington will also rely on two freshmen who redshirted last season in center Bryan Penn-Johnson and forward Nate Roberts. The Huskies will be tough to beat once the NCAA Tournament arrives. Colorado Head Coach Tad Boyle may have his best team yet. The Buffaloes return the majority of last year’s team and will be led by their dynamic backcourt of senior Shane Gatling and junior McKinley Wright IV. The frontcourt will be led by junior Tyler Bey, sophomore Evan Battey, and junior D’Shawn Schwartz. The CU Events Center will be the place to be this winter as this Colorado team will be something special to watch. Arizona will look to bounce back from a down season in 2018-19. The Wildcats welcome a pair of top recruits who will comprise their backcourt this season in Nico Mannion and Josh Green. Arizona will also rely on several transfers in guard Max Hazzard (UC Irvine), guard Jemarl Baker Jr. (Kentucky), Jordan Brown (Nevada), and Stone Gettings (Cornell). The Wildcats return frontcourt players Chase Jeter and Ira Lee as well. Arizona should make it back to the NCAA Tournament this season but will that be enough for Wildcat fans. Oregon will rely on several transfers again this season. The Ducks welcome forward Shakur Juiston (UNLV) and guard Anthony Mathis (New Mexico) to team with senior stalwart Payton Pritchard. Oregon also signed several freshmen including center N’Faly Dante and forward C.J. Walker. The Ducks are a dark horse in the Pac 12 and nationally as well. This team will most likely mesh in February or March and will be a tough out come Tournament time. Oregon State returns several starters from last season’s team and will be looking to make the NCAA Tournament this season for the first time since 2015-16. The Beavers will be led by senior forward Tres Trinkle, senior forward Kylor Kelley, and junior guard Ethan Thompson. Thompson will get assistance in the backcourt from freshman Jarod Lucas and junior Sean Miller-Moore. Transfer forward Payton Dastrup (BYU) and junior Alfred Hollins will help in the frontcourt. Oregon State has enough talent to win the Pac 12 Title this season if all of the pieces come together. Utah has eight freshmen and three sophomores on the roster this season. The Utes will need key returnees Both Gach, Timmy Allen, and Riley Battin to have strong seasons this year for them to finish in the upper half of the Pac 12 Standings. Forward Branden Carlson and guard Jaxon Brenchley both return after serving two-year church missions. The backcourt will get some help from freshman Rylan Jones and transfer Alfonso Plummer. The Utes will be hard to beat on a nightly basis but could take a step back this season.
USC Head Coach Andy Enfield may be on the hot seat this season. The Trojans welcome top recruits every season but never do any damage in the NCAA Tournament. USC is loaded in the frontcourt this season with freshmen forwards Isaiah Mobley and Onyeka Okongwu along with senior forward Nick Rakocevic. The backcourt will be a work in progress with sophomores Elijah Weaver and Chuck O’Bannon leading the charge. They will get help from a pair of transfers in Daniel Utomi (Akron) and Quinton Adlesh (Columbia). Can the Trojans advance to the Sweet 16 or further this season? Only time will tell. UCLA welcomes new Head Coach Mick Cronin after being turned down by several other top Head Coaches. Cronin has his work cut out for him but has several talented players returning. The backcourt will be strong with freshman Tyger Campbell and sophomore David Singleton. Freshman Shareef O’Neal and sophomore Cody Riley will lead the frontcourt. The Bruins will also rely on wings Chris Smith and Alex Olesinski. What will year one of the Mick Cronin era bring for the Bruins? Hopefully it brings an NCAA Tournament bid. Anything beyond that will be icing on the cake. Arizona State will lean on junior guard Remy Martin a lot this season. The Sun Devils also welcome back three solid frontcourt players in sophomore Taeshon Cherry, junior Romello White, and junior Kimani Lawrence. Martin will get assistance in the backcourt from senior Rob Edwards and freshman Jaelen House. Head Coach Bobby Hurley’s ASU teams improve each season. It will be tough but I expect them to challenge for the Pac 12 Title again this season. Stanford will be led by their backcourt this season. The backcourt will consist of freshman Tyrell Terry, junior Daejon Davis, and junior Isaac White. The Cardinal will be inexperienced in the frontcourt and will rely on junior Oscar Da Silva, sophomore Jaiden Delaire, and junior Kodye Pugh. It may be a tough season for Head Coach Jerod Haase who is still seeking his first NCAA Tournament bid at Stanford. Washington State welcomes new Head Coach Kyle Smith who has several returnees back in his first season in Pullman. The Cougars most intriguing player this season is sophomore forward CJ Elleby. The Cougars also return junior guard Marvin Cannon, junior forward Darin Henson, and senior forward Jeff Pollard. Can the Cougars finish in the middle of the Pac 12 in Kyle Smith’s first season? That will be the goal. California welcomes new Head Coach Mark Fox. Fox has his work cut out for him after the Golden Bears went 8-23 last season. California will be led by senior guard Paris Austin, sophomore guard Matt Bradley, and sophomore forward Andre Kelly. The Golden Bears will also lean on freshman forward D.J. Thorpe and graduate transfer Kareem South (Texas A&M-Corpus Christi). California should be able to grind out 2 or 3 Conference wins again this season.
Be on the lookout for my College Sports Radio Show that will launch in the next severmonths along with a daily/weekly blog on College Basketball, College Lacrosse, College Football, and US Soccer. Please follow me on Twitter as well - @SteveHiegel - Thanks.