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Pac-12 Hoops


glduck

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Oregon gets by with almost no bench scoring (3 points last night) by having our most well-balanced starting five since the Aaron Brooks Elite 8 club. Everyone has been back healthy now for a few weeks and it’s really clicking.

OSU is no joke, though, and the game Sunday will be tough. Is this Tinkle’s best coaching job since coming to the Pac-12? I know they made the tourney a few years back, but I think the media picked OSU for 12th this year? And they’ve clinched a winning overall and conference record. Plus, they’ve had our number in recent seasons. We’ll have to earn this one.

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15 minutes ago, glduck said:

Oregon gets by with almost no bench scoring

This is great, except for a multi-day tournament (like in Vegas) when player exhaustion forces significant use of the bench.  Several Pac-12 teams have significant scoring (and defense) with depth of seven, eight or nine players, which allows the starters to stay fresh.

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I don’t disagree with any of that. You won’t hear me calling UO any kind of definitive favorite in Vegas, even if they do get the 1 seed. Not much separation at the top of this conference.

Our comeback last night was sparked by Chandler Lawson coming off the bench and giving UCLA fits at the top of our press. Our scoring mostly comes from 5 guys, but since you mentioned defense, our bench does contribute.

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Assuming the Ducks win at Corvallis they will have earned the #1 seed.  The winner of USC/UCLA will have the #2 seed.  CU, if they beat ASU tonight, will be the #3 seed.

I would bet the final will be between the Ducks and the Buffs.  UCLA is well-coached, but doesn't have all of the pieces needed.  USC, while very talented, when the going gets rough, isn't well coached.

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So here we are.  A better Pac-12 than in recent years, with four teams with a realistic chance to take the conference tourney and even be more than one-and-done in the Big Dance.  Vegas says USC is favored in the Pac-12 Tourney, while the sports writers seem to lean toward the Ducks or the Buffs.  Friday and Saturday should be very interesting.

A few thoughts:  UCLA has a lot to worry about with the opener against Tinkle; an "upset" wouldn't be surprising.  Colorado appears to have the easiest start, against either woeful Cal or imploding Stanford.  Utah, the likely USC opponent, seared the Trojans a little over a week ago with Plummer's three-pointers, so that could be one very interesting re-match.  Oregon is clicking right now as they often do late in the season, while either of their likely opponents (ASU and WSU) stumble and struggle.

Duck/Buffalo finale,  Late night fireworks.

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