Women's basketball power rankings
Published: Thursday, February 28, 2013
Updated: Thursday, February 28, 2013 02:02
1. No. 4 Stanford
(26-2, 15-1 Pac-12)
The Cardinal haven’t lost since Jan. 13, and every win has been by 11 points or more. In other words, they’re dominating. Stanford is led by Chiney Ogwumike, who is the leading scorer and rebounder in the Pac-12 with 22.7 points and 12.7 rebounds a game.
2. No. 6 California
(25-2, 15-1 Pac-12)
The Golden Bears haven’t lost since Jan. 8, but have had a ton of close calls, which is why they are in second place. This past weekend, the Golden Bears almost lost to Oregon State, but escaped with a two-point victory.
3. No. 17 UCLA
(21-6, 12-4 Pac-12)
The Bruins are a great basketball team, but weren’t able to beat Stanford or California this season. However, UCLA is undefeated against the rest of the Pac-12 and currently has a stranglehold on third place.
4. No. 19 Colorado
(22-5, 11-5 Pac-12)
Currently on a seven-game winning streak, the Buffaloes ended last week with a statement win over Washington. Colorado will head to Corvallis this Sunday to play the Beavers in what will be each team’s regular season finale.
5. Utah (16-11, 7-9 Pac-12)
After opening up conference play with the most difficult schedule in the league, Utah has finally hit its stride. The Utes have won five of their last six games and are rapidly ascending the standings.
6. Washington
(19-8, 11-5 Pac-12)
Washington has been playing poorly as of late. The Huskies barely held off OSU, and followed that sloppy victory with back-to-back losses to Colorado and Utah. Their season does not get any easier, either. UW concludes the season by facing off against Stanford and Cal.
7. Arizona State
(13-15, 5-11 Pac-12)
The Sun Devils ended a seven-game losing streak by defeating in-state rival Arizona in double overtime, 81-77. Five days later, the two teams played again. The Sun Devils took that one as well, 59-58.
8. Washington State
(10-17, 6-10 Pac-12)
Somehow lowly Oregon has had the Cougars’ number. For the second time this season, Washington State lost to Oregon, and then lost to Colorado and Utah in succession. This team has been up and down all year.
9. Arizona (12-15, 4-12 Pac-12)
The Wildcats were on the other end of those Arizona State victories, which had to have hurt. Arizona has one more winnable game against USC, before closing the season against UCLA. Regardless, this team has already won more conference games than last year.
10. USC (8-19, 5-11 Pac-12)
Ever since a four-game winning streak opened up conference play, it’s been downhill for the Trojans, who have lost 11 of 12 games. Just a year ago, USC was the third-best team in the league.
11. Oregon St. (9-19, 3-13 Pac-12)
The Beavers have been frustrating to watch this year. In the past 10 games, OSU has found ways to lose all of them. Five of those losses were by five points or less. This past weekend, Oregon State once again squandered a chance to win, by failing to put away California.
12. Oregon (4-24, 2-12 Pac-12)
Outside of Washington State, the Ducks haven’t beaten anyone in the Pac-12. Their defense gives up 76.6 points a game. In comparison, the second-worst defense in the conference gives up just 66.4, so it’s been a long season for Oregon. If they could just play the Cougars every game, it might be a different story.
Mitch Mahoney, sports reporter
is a member of the 
