Things to watch this week in Pac-12 Conference basketball:
GAME OF THE WEEK: Stanford at Colorado, Saturday. The Cardinal (8-3) are still near the top of the Pac-12, just a half-game behind UCLA at 4-1. Senior forward Oscar ds Silva has played well all season and was named the Pac-12 player of the week after averaging 19.8 points and 11 rebounds in three games last week. Colorado (9-3, 3-2) similarly is led by a senior having a solid season. Guard McKinley Wright IV leads the Buffaloes with 15.4 points and 5.0 assists per game while running their offense. Colorado beat No. 22 Oregon last week and knocked off Utah on Monday after having their game Saturday against Oregon State postponed.
LOOKING AHEAD: Oregon had to postpone its games against Arizona and Arizona State due COVID-19 issues. … UCLA has yet to lose in Pac-12 play (5-0) and has games against the Washington schools this week. The Bruins have won three straight since star guard Chris Smith was lost for the season with a torn ACL on Dec. 31. … Oregon State returns against the Arizona schools after having games against Utah and Colorado postponed by coronavirus issues last week. … Arizona guard Jemarl Baker will miss the rest of the season after breaking his wrist against UCLA last Saturday.
INSIDE THE NUMBERS: Oregon State’s Warith Alatishe leads the Pac-12 with 8.89 rebounds per game. … Cal leading scorer Matt Bradley has missed the past two games with an ankle injury and may not be ready to return this week.
PLAYER TO WATCH: Evan Mobley, USC. The freshman big man arrived at USC with plenty of hype and has lived up to it so far. The 7-foot forward leads the Trojans with 15.8 points and 8.8 points per game, with 30 blocked shots.
ON THE WOMEN’S SIDE: Two top-25 teams will face off when No. 10 Oregon plays at No. 11 Arizona on Thursday. The Wildcats are coming off a loss to Washington State, their second in three games after opening 7-0. … Top-ranked stanford (10-0, 7-0) plays at Utah on Thursday and Colorado on Saturday as the Cardinal look to remain undefeated. … Arizona State had to postpone its games against the Oregon schools due to COVID-19 issues.
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Compiled by AP Basketball Writer John Marshall in Phoenix.
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