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LAS VEGAS — Phew! A wild first day of action at the Pac-12 Tournament sets up what should be another intriguing day in round two at the MGM Grand Arena in Las Vegas.
Perhaps the most surprising result of the night was when 12th seeded USC upset 5th seeded Arizona State 67-64. The Trojans, led by freshman Elijah Stewart with a season-high 27 points, erased a 15-point second half deficit to defeat the Sun Devils and advance to a rivalry matchup with the fourth seeded UCLA Bruins.
11th seeded Washington nearly pulled off an upset of its own, leading sixth seeded Stanford by five with just a few minutes remaining in the game. However the Cardinal rallied and guard Chasson Randle sank a 3-pointer with 2.4 seconds left to avoid the upset, 71-69. Stanford earned a rematch with 3rd seeded Utah.
Askia Booker overcame a slow start and scored a game-high 20 points to lead Colorado past Oregon State 78-71. The Buffaloes are set to take on 2nd seeded Oregon.
In the lone blowout game, Cal easily handed Washington State 84-59. Cal's reward is a matchup with first seeded Arizona.
With the schedule set, KSL.com's Josh Furlong and Robert Jackson and Scout.com's Doug Kimmel give us their picks for today's games:
Cal may be on the rise, but there is no stopping Arizona at this point. JACKSON
Arizona has beaten Cal by 23 and 39 points this season. 'Nuff said. KIMMEL
March may be the month of Cinderella's, but that ain't happening... All Wildcats. #4 UCLA vs. #12 USC : 2:30PM PT Pac-12 Networks FURLONG
It may be a rivalry game, but UCLA has the upper hand here. JACKSON
Trojans riding high after their huge comeback win. Momentum carries them to W. KIMMEL
Bruins win in a snoozer. Find something better to do during these hours. #2 Oregon vs. #10 Colorado : 6:00PM PT Pac-12 Networks FURLONG
Booker is key to Colorado's push, but Oregon is surging now and will come out on top behind Joseph Young. JACKSON
Colorado got a great matchup vs. Oregon State in round 1, but their tourney run ends here against an athletic Ducks squad KIMMEL
Game of the day, should be fun to watch. Young vs. Booker will prove why Young is worthy of Pac-12 Player of the Year #Quack #3 Utah vs. #6 Stanford: 8:30PM PT ESPN FURLONG
Chasson Randle has potential to lift Stanford over Utah, but the Utes aren't losing this game after their disappointing loss to Washington. JACKSON
The Utes loss to Washington serves as a wake up call - the ice bucket over the head type. Utes look like a team on a mission. KIMMEL
Lot of critics, naysayers and "Debbie Downers" surrounding Coach K's Utes. Expect them to be silenced as Utes beat Stanford with ease.
