After a 7-10 start overall and 2-2 in conference play, USC has decided to part ways with Kevin O’Neill, who is out as head coach. The interim head coach will be Bob Cantu, who has been an assistant at USC under five different head coaches since he came to Troy in 2001.
Well when you put up two-game averages of 23 points, 8.5 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1.5 blocks per contest, it should come as no surprise that C.J. Wilcox was named the Pac-12 Player of the Week.
After a thrilling upset of previously undefeated Arizona and a three-point victory over the Forks, the Oregon Ducks are now ranked 21st in the AP poll. It is the first time they have been ranked by the AP since December 2007.
Also back into the AP rankings is UCLA, which jumped in at No. 24. Ben Howland has things back on track after a slow start to the season, and as the Los Angeles Times puts it, Howland is a man of many faces.
A 1-3 start to conference play wasn’t how the Buffs imagined the Pac-12 season beginning, so the Colorado men’s basketball team held a players-only meeting to right the ship. Over on the gridiron, new football coach Mike MacIntyre has a four-point plan to rebuild CU.
It’s easy to see that the Runnin’ Utes are a much improved team over last year with the influx of talent and a season under Larry Krystkowiak’s belt. However, the Utes have gotten off to a rough start to conference play, dropping their first four. But despite that 0-4 Pac-12 start, Utah is determined not to quit.
With a combined double-double in the 80-70 victory over Oregon State, Grant Jerrett and Brandon Ashley have said hello to the Pac-12. From the women’s side from Sunday, Layana White led a three-point barrage in a 100-68 rout of Oregon. White scored 16 points and was a perfect 4-4 from beyond the arc.
A couple of rivalry games in women’s hoops tonight, starting with Washington State at Washington at 6:00 p.m. PT on the Pac-12 Networks. Here are the game notes from the Washington State athletic department.
Up next will be Oregon-Oregon State in Eugene, and with football season over, Lindsay Schnell writes that the Beavers’ freshmen could be the difference in the Civil War.
The new women’s basketball rankings probably have Golden Bears fans smarting a little bit, because Stanford is still ranked ahead of Cal in the newest AP poll (Stanford is No. 6, Cal is No. 7) after Cal beat Stanford Sunday afternoon (of course, Stanford beat Cal earlier in the week).
It’s never too early to talk football, right? After a very good 2012, the Sun Devils will have their hands full in 2013, having to play Wisconsin at home, Stanford on the road, USC at home and Notre Dame at Cowboys Stadium over a four-week stretch. Head coach Todd Graham doesn’t throw his arms up in the air, though; Graham sees the tough schedule as an opportunity.
We’ll end this roundup with a Q&A with Peter Wright, the men’s tennis head coach at Cal who is in his 20th season at his alma mater as the head man.