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ASU Basketball: 2019 Pac-12 Week 1 Power Rankings

By Trevor Booth

LAS VEGAS, NV - MARCH 09: A basketball is shown in a ball rack before a semifinal game of the Pac-12 basketball tournament between the UCLA Bruins and the Arizona Wildcats at T-Mobile Arena on March 9, 2018 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Wildcats won 78-67 in overtime. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
LAS VEGAS, NV - MARCH 09: A basketball is shown in a ball rack before a semifinal game of the Pac-12 basketball tournament between the UCLA Bruins and the Arizona Wildcats at T-Mobile Arena on March 9, 2018 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Wildcats won 78-67 in overtime. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images) /
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DAYTON, OH – MARCH 13: Kris Wilkes #13 of the UCLA Bruins reacts against the St. Bonaventure Bonnies during the second half of the First Four game in the 2018 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament at UD Arena on March 13, 2018 in Dayton, Ohio. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images)
DAYTON, OH – MARCH 13: Kris Wilkes #13 of the UCLA Bruins reacts against the St. Bonaventure Bonnies during the second half of the First Four game in the 2018 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament at UD Arena on March 13, 2018 in Dayton, Ohio. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images) /

2. No. 21 UCLA Bruins

Last season, UCLA put together the program’s 51st 20-win season in and finished third in the Pac-12. The Bruins were unable to translate their success in the regular season to March and were bounced in the NCAA Tournament First Four by St. Bonaventure

UCLA will try to build on the success it had last season without the help of Aaron Holiday and Thomas Welsh, who both heard their names called in the 2018 NBA Draft.

Fortunately for the Bruins, they bolster a roster filled with a ton of talent, which should be able to fill the gaps created by the departures of Holiday and Welsh.

With a number of key players returning, the team has received no shortage of national attention this offseason. The Associated Press Poll lists the Bruins at No. 21 while the coaches poll has them at No. 20.

Sophomores Kris Wilkes and Jaylen Hands both played significant minutes last season in Westwood, but with a year under their belts, the duo appear primed to accomplish more.

Wilkes averaged 13.7 points and 4.9 rebounds per game as a freshman, enough to earn himself a spot on the Naismith Award watch list, the award given to the top player in college basketball.

Hands was the fourth leading scorer on the team at 9.9 points per game. A versatile guard, he added four rebounds and 2.6 assists per game to complement his scoring output.

UCLA will face its first true test in the Continental Tire Las Vegas Invitational during Thanksgiving weekend, where the Bruins are slated to face No. 10 Michigan State in the first round. Depending on those results, they will either see No. 8 North Carolina or Texas in the second game.

– Wilkinson 

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