Pac-12 Tournament Matchups Are Set; Utah Is No. 9 Seed
Mar 8, 2020, 5:58 PM | Updated: 6:53 pm
LAS VEGAS, Nev. – The Pac-12 Conference announced the bracket for the upcoming tournament at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Utes beat Colorado Buffaloes 74-72 in overtime on Saturday and will be the No. 9 seed. They will face the No. 8 seed Oregon State Beavers in the first round on Wednesday, March 11th.
RELATED STORIES
The Oregon Ducks claimed the outright Pac-12 regular season title and will be the No. 1 seed in the Pac-12 tournament. The UCLA Bruins lost the opportunity for a share of the regular season title when they lost to USC on Saturday. They will be the No. 2 seed.
In the Pac-12 Tournament, the first four seeds have a bye in the first round.
2020 Pac-12 Tournament Bracket
The bracket for the 2020 #Pac12Hoops Tournament at @TMobileArena is set, with regular-season outright and defending tourney champion @OregonMBB earning the No. 1 seed!
Details: https://t.co/oG279G9wmJ…
Tix: https://t.co/smMjhuENXd pic.twitter.com/5SbYfWiOEh— Pac-12 Conference (@pac12) March 8, 2020
Seeds
- Oregon
- UCLA
- Arizona State
- USC
- Arizona
- Colorado
- Stanford
- Oregon State
- Utah
- California
- Washington State
- Washington
Schedule
*Game times in MT.
First Round – Wednesday, March 11th, 2020
No. 8 Oregon State vs. No. 9 Utah, 1 p.m. on Pac-12 Network
It will be the first time that Utah and Oregon State will meet in the Pac-12 Tournament. Both teams won once in the regular season on their home floor. Utah beat the Beavers in Salt Lake City, 81-69 on January 2. Oregon State knocked off the Utes 70-51 in Corvallis on February 13.
No. 5 Arizona vs. No. 12 Washington, 3:30 p.m. on Pac-12 Network
The Wildcats and Huskies will play each other in the Pac-12 Tournament for the first time since the conference expanded from 10 teams to 12. This season, Arizona won the first meeting on January 30, 75-72 in Seattle. Washington beat the Wildcats in Tuscon on March 7, 69-63.
No. 7 Stanford vs. No. 10 California, 7 p.m. on Pac-12 Network
Since 2011, Stanford and Cal have played each other the Pac-12 Tournament twice. In the 2012 quarterfinals, Cal beat Stanford 77-71 while the Cardinal knocked off the Golden Bears 76-58 in the first round of the 2018 tournament. During the season, Stanford beat Cal in Palo Alto, 68-52 on January 2. Cal picked up a 52-52 win over the Cardinal in Berkeley on January 26.
No. 6 Colorado vs. No. 11 Washington State, 9:30 p.m. on Pac-12 Network
It will be the third time since 2011 that the Buffaloes and Cougars have faced off in the Pac-12 Tournament. Back in 2016, Colorado picked up an 80-56 win in the first round and also won the first round matchup in 2017, 73-63.
Colorado won the only meeting in the regular season against Washington State with a 78-56 win at home on January 23.
Quarterfinals – Thursday, March 12th, 2020
No. 1 Oregon vs. No. 8 Oregon State or No. 9 Utah, 1 p.m. on Pac-12 Network
Oregon and Utah have a long history of facing each other in the Pac-12 Tournament. They have squared off five times since becoming conference foes in 2011. The Ducks beat the Utes 64-45 in the 2013 semifinals. Oregon also beat Utah in the semifinals of the 2015 tournament by three points. The two teams played in the championship game in 2016 with Oregon picking up an 88-57 win. In the quarterfinal round in 2018, Oregon was victorious against Utah, 68-66 and finally, the two played in the 2019 quarterfinals with Oregon picking up a 66-54 victory. The Ducks swept the Utes in the regular season in 2020 with a 69-64 win in Salt Lake City on January 4 and an 80-62 win in Eugene on February 16.
The Ducks have faced their rival in the Pac-12 Tournament once since the conference expanded from 10 teams to 12. That was in the first round in 2014 with Oregon getting the 14-point win. This season, both teams picked up a win. The Beavers won the February 8 matchup at home, 63-53 while the Ducks gathered the win on February 27, 69-54 in Eugene.
No. 4 USC vs. No. 5 Arizona or No. 12 Washington, 3:30 p.m. on Pac-12 Network
If USC plays Arizona in the quarterfinals, it will be the third meeting in the conference tournament since 2011. Arizona beat the Trojans 75-61 in the 2018 championship game while USC knocked off the Wildcats 78-65 in the first round of the 2019 tournament. During the regular season, Arizona beat USC at home 85-80 on February 6 with USC returning the favor with a 57-48 win in Los Angeles on February 27.
If USC plays Washington in the second round, it will be the third meeting against the Huskies since 2011. USC beat Washington in the first round of the 2017 tournament, 78-73. Washington knocked off the Trojans 78-75 in the quarterfinals last year. This season, Washington picked up a 72-40 win at home on January 5 over the Trojans while USC beat the Huskies in LA 62-56 on February 13.
No. 2 UCLA vs. No. 7 Stanford or No. 10 California, 7 p.m. on Pac-12 Network
If UCLA plays Stanford in the quarterfinals, it will be the fourth time since 2011. UCLA beat Stanford 84-59 in the 2014 semifinals. They also knocked off the Cardinal in the 2018 quarterfinals, 88-77 and in the first round last season, 79-72. Stanford won the only meeting against UCLA this season with a 74-59 victory in Los Angeles on January 15.
If the Bruins face California in the Pac-12 tournament quarterfinals, it will be the first time since the conference expansion. The Bruins won the only regular season meeting against California at home, 50-40 on January 19.
No. 3 Arizona State vs. No. 6 Colorado or No. 11 Washington State, 9:30 p.m. on FS1
If Arizona State plays Colorado in the quarterfinals, it will be the second time since 2011 that the Sun Devils and Buffs have played in the conference tournament. Colorado beat Arizona State 97-85 in the first round of the 2018 tournament. The Buffaloes won the only meeting in the regular season with a 68-61 victory in Tempe on January 16.
If the Sun Devils face Washington State in the quarterfinals, it will be the first time since the conference expanded in 2011 that they will play each other in the Pac-12 Tournament. Washington State won the first regular season meeting in Pullman with a 67-65 win on January 29. Arizona State beat the Cougars in Tempe 83-74 on March 7.
Semifinals – Friday, March 13th, 2020
No. 1 Oregon or No. 8 Oregon State or No. 9 Utah vs. No. 4 USC or No. 5 Arizona or No. 12 Washington, 7 p.m. on Pac-12 Network
No. 2 UCLA or No. 7 Stanford or No. 10 California vs. No. 3 Arizona State or No. 6 Colorado or No. 11 Washington State, 9:30 p.m. on FS1
Championship – Saturday, March 14, 2020
The Pac-12 Championship Game will be played on Saturday, March 14, 2020 at 8:30 p.m. on FS1.
The Crimson Corner podcast is the one-stop for all things University of Utah Athletics hosted by Utah insider Trevor Allen. Ute fans will find interviews with current players, coaches, and staff alongside expert analysis of every game, story and angle coming out of the University of Utah.
You can download and listen to the podcast, here.
