Pac-12 Basketball: Why league in 2020-21 hasn’t been as bad as you think

UCLA Bruins and USC Trojans

Another coach in year two in the PAC-12 is Mick Cronin. It didn’t take long for him to resurrect the UCLA program that Bill Walton loves so much. He’s phenomenal, well both of them are. Under Cronin, the Bruins play a tough, rugged, and hard-hitting brand of basketball.

They have five players averaging over ten points a game. The sixth is averaging 9.9 points a game. To go along with that, they have five guys averaging over five rebounds a game. The Bruins do it on both ends of the court with many guys in their rotation. Tyger Campbell is a pit-bull and the Kentucky transfer, Johnny Juzang, is a shot-maker.

Cronin’s squad has taken care of the PAC-12, but that’s about it. Their non-conference consists of losses to the quality teams they’ve played. They lost to San Diego State to start the season, as well as falling to Ohio State. UCLA will be a tough out, but they don’t give you that best team in the conference feel.

A few miles over, Andy Enfield and the Trojans are having success too. USC is 13-3 on the season and is in prime position to make the tournament. Their non-conference is quite similar to UCLA, but they did knock off BYU. They fell to Connecticut, in an essential road game at the Mohegan Sun at the wire. There is no such thing as moral victories to the committee, but they do pass the eye test.

The Trojans are led by the Mobley brothers. Evan Mobley will most likely be a top 3 NBA Draft pick next season, and rightfully so. He is averaging 16 points and just about nine rebounds a game. You shouldn’t sleep on his brother either, as he is becoming a more consistent player in his sophomore campaign.

I know they played different positions, but this team is reminiscent of the O.J. Mayo team. That team wound up losing to Michael Beasley and Kansas State in the first round, but when you have an elite player, there’s much more buzz and opportunity to make a run.