The Pac-12 has a bunch of teams on the NCAA Tournament bubble heading into its conference tournament. So while it will be interesting to see which team is crowned champion, it’s going to be just as interesting to watch the early-round games as several teams aim to improve their stock and solidify their chance at earning a March Madness berth.
The Arizona Wildcats won the regular season conference crown and will be the favorites to double up with the Pac-12 conference tournament crown. The USC Trojans and UCLA Bruins have looked solid in conference play and will likely be the chief competition.
The Pac-12 was a topsy-turvy league during the regular season and it wouldn’t be a surprise at all to see some of the lower seeds muck up the tournament with some upsets early on.
Pac-12 Tournament Schedule
Don't miss the hardwood action from the T-Mobile Arena from Wednesday, March 7, 2018 through Sunday, March 10 on PAC-12 Network and FS1. We'll have NCAA odds at BookMaker.eu available for this and every game of the Pac-12 Tournament.
First Round - Wednesday, March 7th
No. 8 Colorado vs. No. 9 Arizona State, 12 p.m.
No. 5 Stanford vs. No. 12 California, 2:30 p.m.
No. 7 Washington vs. No. 10 Oregon State, 6 p.m.
No. 6 Oregon vs. No. 11 Washington State, 8:30 p.m.
Quarterfinals - Thursday, March 8th
No. 1 Arizona vs. TBD, 12 p.m.
No. 4 UCLA vs.TBD, 2:30 p.m.
No. 2 USC vs. TBD, 6 p.m.
No. 3 Utah vs. TBD, 8:30 p.m.
Semifinals - Friday, March 9th
TBD at 6 p.m.
TBD at 8:30 p.m.
Championship - Saturday, March 10th
TBD at 7 p.m.
Odds Analysis
Arizona went 14-4 in conference play and after a turbulent couple of weeks, seems like it will head into the tournament with star players Allonzo Trier and DeAndre Ayton as well as coach Sean Miller all available. If anything changes with any of those players, the Wildcats’ chances of winning will decrease.
Arizona is listed as the +233 favorite, followed by USC at +385 and UCLA at +520. Some of the lower seeds could be intriguing choices since the conference has been hard to peg this year.
Bubble Watch
USC finished second in the Pac-12 standings but is currently only projected for a No. 11 seed by ESPN, so a one-and-done in the tournament would put its berth in jeopardy. The Trojans get a first-round bye and a win or two would be a big help to secure a spot in March Madness.
UCLA is also listed as a No. 11 seed, making a surge up into contention with a nice showing in Pac-12 action. The Bruins could also use a win to claim a spot. Arizona State is in line for a similar seeding. The Sun Devils went undefeated in non-conference play but finished only ninth in the Pac-12.
The rest of the teams in the Pac-12 are unlikely to make it unless they win the conference tournament.
Free NCAA ATS Picks
Arizona is the best team in the tournament, but a second-round matchup against Arizona State and then a semifinal matchup with UCLA before even making the finals wouldn’t be an easy draw. The Wildcats are a good team but not dominant this season and will fall before the championship game.
That opens up the door for the rest of the Pac-12 candidates. The other half of the bracket could be a mess as well, with Washington a lower seed that could make a nice run. The favorites could be out of this before the championship game. Look for UCLA to be the last team standing, knocking off the Huskies for the Pac-12 Conference Tournament title to secure an automatic berth into March Madness.
NCAA Odds: UCLA 78, Washington 71 in the finals of the Pac-12 Conference Tournament
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