Bracketology 2020: Virginia, DePaul and Washington among week’s losers

PAC-12

1. Washington

It was about as bad a week as you can imagine for the Huskies. It started with a close loss to a Stanford team that has eyes on sneaking into the NCAA Tournament in open defiance of preseason projections.

That was nothing.

The rest of the week featured an overtime loss to Cal—considered by most metrics to be the league’s worst team—and the news that transfer point guard Quade Green was ruled academically ineligible for the remainder of the season.

Not only do the Huskies have to worry about adding two losses that they really didn’t want to their resume, but now they have to play the rest of the year without a key cog in their engine. With teams like Stanford, USC, and Oregon State making a push up the Pac-12 ladder, Washington could be in serious trouble.

2. Arizona

The Wildcats will be happy to leave the Pacific Northwest after a supremely disappointing week up in Oregon country. This Arizona team, which once graced the national Top 10, looked like they had regained their form as they pushed to pull off a mild upset over the Ducks in Eugene.

But Payton Pritchard and Oregon kept the Cats at arm’s length, prevailing over Arizona by a single point in overtime. It was a missed opportunity for Arizona to grab a massive road win early in league play, but the loss directly damage their NCAA Tournament seeding.

For that, look instead to Arizona’s surprise loss to Oregon State at Gill Coliseum. That result pushed the Wildcats to 2-5 in their last seven games. And though the losses to Baylor, Gonzaga, and Oregon can all be overlooked, defeats to St. John’s and now Oregon State are concerning.

3. Utah

The Utes have had a strange kind of up-and-down season, with more downs than ups of late.

After beating Kentucky back on December 18, the Utes have lost three of four, beating only Oregon State during that stretch. Bear in mind, though, that they have faced three difficult opponents in those losses. San Diego State absolutely ran through the Utes, while Larry Krystkowiak’s team was much more competitive against Oregon.

Unfortunately, they backslid again on Sunday, losing to Pac-12 traveling partners Colorado by a grotesque 91-52 scoreline. It was the third loss of 20 or more points for Utah this season and a wasted chance to grab an important road win in the race for an at-large bid.