Estimated read time: 4-5 minutes
The Best of the West rankings examine the top teams across the Mountain and Pacific Times Zones. They will be published in this space each Wednesday through the conclusion of the regular season.
With the stretch run approaching, the Hotline feels fairly confident in declaring Arizona the best team in the West and the Mountain West the best conference.
But we are absolutely certain that Utah is the No. 1 state in the region.
Brigham Young, Utah and Utah State are tracking for NCAA Tournament bids with a 45-12 combined record, lofty NET rankings and a paucity of bad losses.
The Beehive State has far better basketball than California (relative to the number of major college teams) and rates above Arizona, Colorado and Washington, as well.
Whether that hierarchy holds through February is one of many subplots worth watching as teams prepare for conference tournaments and Selection Sunday.
To the Best of the West rankings …
1. Arizona (14-4/5-2 Pac-12)
Last week: 1
Results: beat USC 82-67 and UCLA 77-71
NET ranking: No. 3
Next up: at Oregon State (Thursday)
Comment: Beware the look-ahead loss, in which the Wildcats cast their gaze to the showdown in Eugene on Saturday and stumble in Corvallis. The likelihood of a loss to the lowly Beavers is south of 50 percent but well north of zero.
2. Colorado State (15-3/3-2 MW)
Last week: 3
Results: beat UNLV 78-75
NET ranking: No. 26
Next up: at Nevada (Wednesday)
Comment: The loss to Saint Mary's is now a Quadrant I defeat while Creighton's success in the Big East makes CSU's early-season victory look even better.
3. Brigham Young (14-5/2-4 Big 12)
Last week: 2
Results: lost at Texas Tech 85-78, lost to Houston 75-68
NET ranking: No. 5
Next up: vs. Texas (Saturday)
Comment: Life in the Big 12: Back-to-back losses, followed by a visit from the Longhorns and then a rugged trip next week to West Virginia and Oklahoma.
4. San Diego State (16-4/5-2 MW)
Last week: 5
Results: lost at Boise State 67-66, beat Wyoming 81-65
NET ranking: No. 20
Next up: vs. UNLV (Saturday)
Comment: The Aztecs moved up after a loss because it was a Quadrant I result and, well, nobody else had a stronger claim on the spot.
5. New Mexico (16-3/4-2 MW)
Last week: 6
Results: won at Air Force 85-66
NET ranking: No. 22
Next up: at San Jose State (Wednesday)
Comment: The Spartans are a tough out on their home floor while the Lobos have been less than elite on the road. The Upset Alert is flashing.
6. Utah (14-5/5-3 Pac-12)
Last week: 11
Results: beat Oregon State 74-47 and Oregon 80-77
NET ranking: No. 24
Next up: at Washington State (Wednesday)
Comment: ESPN's current Bracketology projections have the seventh-seeded Utes facing Northwestern in the opening round of the NCAAs. If that plays out, we would expect Utah to score more than a touchdown.
7. Oregon (13-5/5-2 Pac-12)
Last week: 4
Results: lost at Colorado 86-70 and Utah 80-77
NET ranking: No. 56
Next up: vs. Arizona State (Thursday)
Comment: The Sun Devils have won two in a row at Oregon. Just sayin'.
8. Gonzaga (13-5/4-1 WCC)
Last week: 7
Results: won at Pepperdine 86-61 and San Diego 105-63
NET ranking: No. 29
Next up: vs. San Francisco (Thursday)
Comment: Speaking of ESPN's Bracketology … In the projections published Tuesday, the Zags were the first team left out of the field.
9. Colorado (14-5/5-3)
Last week: Not ranked
Results: beat Oregon 86-70 and Oregon State 90-57
NET ranking: No. 35
Next up: at Washington (Wednesday)
Comment: Two issues to watch with the Buffaloes: They have yet to record a Quad I win, and half of their victories are of the Quad IV variety. They have trouble on both ends of the pipeline.
10. Utah State (17-2/5-1 MW)
Last week: 9
Results: beat Fresno State 83-62
NET ranking: No. 27
Next up: at Boise State (Saturday)
Comment: The Aggies' NET translates to a No. 7 seed in the NCAAs. We're a tad skeptical given the nuts and bolts of their resume, although the forecast is clearly improving.
11. Boise State (14-5/5-1 MW)
Last week: Not ranked
Results: beat SDSU 67-66, won at Fresno State 72-68
NET ranking: No. 53
Next up: vs. Utah State (Saturday)
Comment: Welcome, Broncos, to the BOTW rankings. Your position is well earned after wins over Nevada, Colorado State, SDSU, Saint Mary's and San Francisco.
12. Saint Mary's (14-6/5-0 WCC)
Last week: Not ranked
Results: beat San Francisco 77-60
NET ranking: No. 23
Next up: vs. Pacific (Thursday)
Comment: The WCC is drunk. (That's it. That's our only comment.)
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Jon Wilner has been covering college sports for decades and is an AP Top 25 football and basketball voter as well as a Heisman Trophy voter. He was named Beat Writer of the Year in 2013 by the Football Writers Association of America for his coverage of the Pac-12, won first place for feature writing in 2016 in the Associated Press Sports Editors writing contest and is a five-time APSE honoree. You can follow him on Twitter @WilnerHotline or send an email at jwilner@bayareanewsgroup.com.
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