SAN FRANCISCO--The ARIZONA Wildcats are picked to finish first in the 2012-13 Pac-12 Conference men’s basketball race, according to a poll of media members who cover Pac-12 men’s basketball.
Arizona, led by senior All-Conference forward Solomon Hill (12.9 ppg/7.7 rpg), tallied 15 first-place votes and just narrowly edges out UCLA. The Bruins, guided by redshirt-junior forward David Wear (10.2 ppg/6.3 rpg), earned 16 first-place votes and is tabbed for second. CALIFORNIA rounds out the top three, while earning three first-place votes.
Reigning NIT champion STANFORD is slotted fourth in the poll, while reigning Pac-12 regular season champion WASHINGTON was ranked fifth. COLORADO, the defending Pac-12 Tournament champion, is picked sixth.
The second half of the poll is led by OREGON, with OREGON STATE grabbing the eighth spot. USC and WASHINGTON STATE were voted ninth and tenth place respectively. The poll was rounded out by ARIZONA STATE in 11th and UTAH in 12th.
Media have correctly picked the Conference winner 12 times in 20 tries. Arizona has correctly been selected in seven of the previous 11 times it has been slated to capture the league crown.
The 2012-13 season gets underway for the Pac-12 with six games on Friday, November 9. Five of those games will be aired on the Pac-12 Networks, with one game televised by Fox Sports Net.
THE 2012-13 PAC-12 MEN’S BASKETBALL MEDIA POLL
Team Pts.
1. Arizona (15) 403
2. UCLA (16) 402
3. California (3) 325
4. Stanford 296
5. Washington (2) 278
6. Colorado 262
7. Oregon 217
8. Oregon State 166
9. USC 163
10. Washington State 111
11. Arizona State 107
12. Utah 78
First place votes in parentheses
PREVIOUS PAC-12 MEN'S BASKETBALL POLL
Year Predicted Winner Actual Finish Actual Winner Predicted Finish
2012-13 UCLA
2011-12 UCLA 5th (tied) Washington 4th
2010-11 Washington 3rd Arizona 2nd
2009-10 California 1st California 1st
2008-09 UCLA 2nd Washington 5th
2007-08 UCLA 1st UCLA 1st
2006-07 UCLA 1st UCLA 1st
2005-06 Arizona 4th (tied) UCLA 3rd
2004-05 Arizona 1st Arizona 1st
2003-04 Arizona 3rd Stanford 2nd
2002-03 Arizona 1st Arizona 1st
2001-02 UCLA 6th Oregon 6th
2000-01 Arizona 2nd Stanford 2nd
1999-00 Arizona 1st (tied) Arizona/Stanford 1st/3rd
1998-99 Stanford 1st Stanford 1st
1997-98 Arizona 1st Arizona 1st
1996-97 UCLA 1st UCLA 1st
1995-96 UCLA 1st UCLA 1st
1994-95 UCLA 1st UCLA 1st
1993-94 California 2nd (tied) Arizona 3rd
1992-93 Arizona 1st Arizona 1st
*1991-92 Arizona 3rd UCLA 2nd
*1990-91 Arizona 1st Arizona 1st
*1989-90 Arizona 1st (tied) Arizona/Oregon State 1st/3rd
* - The Pac-12 polls were decided in a vote among league coaches (1990-92).
