Player of the Week
Johnny Juzang (UCLA)
Johnny Juzang has been putting on a clinic these past two weeks which once again earns him player of the week honors in the Pac-12. The Bruins went 2-0 in two conference games this week with Juzang leading the charge in both wins. In a 63-58 win against the Utah Utes on Thursday, he scored a game high 28 points and grabbed 3 rebounds. He followed this up with a 23-point, 6 rebound game against the Colorado Buffaloes in a 6-point win. With these weeks of production and UCLA’s success, the thought of Juzang becoming a lottery contender is not out of the question. This is Juzang’s third time taking player of the week honors in this blog.
Who’s Hot
Jabari Walker (Colorado)
Though Colorado went 0-2 in games this week, they were able to hold their own against two of the Pac-12’s best squads. Walker played an integral role in both games that the Buffaloes almost won. In a 61-58 loss against USC, Walker scored 13 points and grabbed 8 rebounds in 28 minutes of play. This was followed by a 71-65 loss to UCLA, where he played 30 minutes and scored 19 points along with snagging 7 rebounds. Losing is always disappointing but the Buffaloes can’t be mad with their performances, anchored by Jabari Walker.
USC Trojans
After some tough losses last week, the Trojans came out and won two inner-conference games to maintain a 16-2 record. A win against Colorado saw 9 out of the 10 active players for USC play 10+ minutes and four score in double figures. The following game against Utah saw another 8 out of 11 active players play 10+ minutes and their guards went crazy. Drew Peterson scored a game high 23 points while grabbing 7 rebounds and junior guard Boogie Ellis also had a great game, scoring 18 points and dishing out 4 assists. The Trojans showed some major depth this week which may play a factor come March.
Who’s Not
Alonzo Gaffney (Arizona State)
In a week that saw the Sun Devils go 1-1, Alonzo Gaffney was given minutes (24 minutes per game this week) with little to no production. In a slim win against Utah, Gaffney played 22 minutes and failed to record a point, grabbing a mere 3 rebounds and passing for 3 assists. In the following loss to Stanford, he played 26 minutes and only recorded 6 points and 5 rebounds. In what’s been a disappointing performance for Arizona State this year, they will need their upperclassmen to step up.
Utah Utes
The Utes have been featured on this portion of the blog way too many times but here comes another. A winless week for Utah saw them drop three inner-conference games, awful for their standings and conference win/loss ratio. This terrible week started off in a loss to Arizona State on Monday (another disappointing team in the Pac-12). No player scored over 15 points for the Utes and they didn’t see tons of production from any one player. Another loss came at the hands of the UCLA Bruins, 63-58. This loss was semi-respectable since the Bruins are one of the best teams in the Pac-12, but Utah still only saw two guys score in double figures. Finally, the week ended with a 79-67 loss to the USC Trojans. This was another game where the Utes only had two guys score in double figures and nothing seemed to get going. This season just seems like a wash for Utah.
Top 5 Best Shooting Teams in the Pac-12
Arizona Wildcats
The Wildcats have been a phenomenal shooting team so far in the season. When it comes to shooting from the field, they rank number one in the entire Pac-12, shooting an impressive 50.2%. This is nearly 3% higher than the next closest team. Arizona has also been pretty good at hitting shots from deep, making 34.4% of their threes as a team. Sophomore Benedict Mathurin has had a great year for the Wildcats while being insanely efficient, shooting 50% from the field and 37.1% from deep.
UCLA Bruins
When it comes to shooting, the Bruins are not far behind the Wildcats, ranking 1st in three-point percentage and 5th in field goal percentage in the Pac-12. UCLA has shot an impressive 36.2% from deep this year as a team. Johnny Juzang has often led the Bruins this year and he shoots 38.2% from three, a perfect situation of leading by example. UCLA also shoots 45.4% from the field as a team, definitely a good number to be at.
USC Trojans
It’s no surprise that the three best shooting teams are also the three best teams in the entire Pac-12. USC is consistent in their rankings both from the field and from deep, ranking 4th in three-point shooting percentage and 2nd in field goal percentage for the Pac-12. They’re 47.4% from the field is certainly in the upper-echelon of college basketball, not only the Pac-12. Their three point percentage is also an impressive 35.2% this year, showing their diversity as scorers.
Oregon Ducks
The Ducks rank in the top three for both field goal percentage and three-point percentage amongst the Pac-12 this season. They currently shoot 46.5% from the field and 35.2% from deep, amazing numbers for a team who’s had a down season. One fault in their shooting game is most definitely their free throw shooting, where they only shoot 64.5% as a team.
Stanford Cardinal
The Cardinals certainly don’t get as much credit as they should when it comes to shooting the rock. They’re field goal percentage isn’t the greatest as a team, sitting at 43.7% on the season, but they are tied for second in three-point percentage in the Pac-12, shooting 35.2% from deep. They have some efficient shooters on their squad and should be brought up more when it comes to the art form that is shooting.