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For several reasons:
(1) OSU came into the game 213 in the NET. That is the worst of all Power 6 conference teams with the exception of one team(Washington). OSU is now NET 180 after beating us. Just a horrible loss. Sure, just about every team comes out flat and takes a loss to a bad or average team. The problem with that is the Pac-12 is divided into about 4 tiers. You have the Top USC, UCLA, Oregon, & Colorado....Next is Stanford, Arizona....then Washington St, ASU, Utah...then you have the bottom...Cal, OSU, Washington. Not one of the other 3 top teams will lose too one of the bottom 3. Maybe UCLA could because they have trouble defensively which is surprising under Cronin. But still unlikely. I equate that loss like 1 1/2 games.
(2) The Pac-12 title is pretty much over. All the equity USC had built up with the Arizona sweep on the road is pretty much gone. With the loss at home to Colorado and with the games remaining I have a hard time seeing a path to the title. Unless you think they will split with UCLA, win the rest of their home games including beating ASU & Arizona again & Oregon(Altman owns Enfield if the talent is somewhat equal which looks like that this year). Then you have the road games @Stanford, @ Colorado, @Utah,& @ WSU. All winnable but not likely. Colorado has already played the toughest part of their schedule so they will probably not lose many more the rest of the way and UCLA is still undefeated. Let me not forget the make-up game at home game against Stanford. That game is not a given. So a lot of road blocks the rest of the way.
(3) Since the end the 1st half of the ASU game this team has played poorly in over 2 1/2 games(could have lost both), played average against a decent WSU team who is well coached, and took care of an over-matched Washington team. This is not a recipe for a conference championship. And we have not lost 3 successive games yet. If you are wondering what I'm talking about. The 7 prior years under AE we have lost 3 successive games sometime during the year. Sometimes more than once in a season.
(4) The last reason the game last night was so important was I'm pretty sure USC will lose tomorrow. Not that I think Stanford is better but everything lines up well for them. Stanford is coming off two poor performances. Has got a chance to come back home and regroup and prepare for our game. Meanwhile, we have extended road trip and quite frankly are regressing to some poor basketball that we have seen in previous years.
Hope I'm wrong about tomorrow because I really thought this team might be the best team in the Pac-12 and had a chance for high seed. Hard to feel that way now with the way this team has been playing.
Hope I jinxed Colorado. Go Huskies.
(1) OSU came into the game 213 in the NET. That is the worst of all Power 6 conference teams with the exception of one team(Washington). OSU is now NET 180 after beating us. Just a horrible loss. Sure, just about every team comes out flat and takes a loss to a bad or average team. The problem with that is the Pac-12 is divided into about 4 tiers. You have the Top USC, UCLA, Oregon, & Colorado....Next is Stanford, Arizona....then Washington St, ASU, Utah...then you have the bottom...Cal, OSU, Washington. Not one of the other 3 top teams will lose too one of the bottom 3. Maybe UCLA could because they have trouble defensively which is surprising under Cronin. But still unlikely. I equate that loss like 1 1/2 games.
(2) The Pac-12 title is pretty much over. All the equity USC had built up with the Arizona sweep on the road is pretty much gone. With the loss at home to Colorado and with the games remaining I have a hard time seeing a path to the title. Unless you think they will split with UCLA, win the rest of their home games including beating ASU & Arizona again & Oregon(Altman owns Enfield if the talent is somewhat equal which looks like that this year). Then you have the road games @Stanford, @ Colorado, @Utah,& @ WSU. All winnable but not likely. Colorado has already played the toughest part of their schedule so they will probably not lose many more the rest of the way and UCLA is still undefeated. Let me not forget the make-up game at home game against Stanford. That game is not a given. So a lot of road blocks the rest of the way.
(3) Since the end the 1st half of the ASU game this team has played poorly in over 2 1/2 games(could have lost both), played average against a decent WSU team who is well coached, and took care of an over-matched Washington team. This is not a recipe for a conference championship. And we have not lost 3 successive games yet. If you are wondering what I'm talking about. The 7 prior years under AE we have lost 3 successive games sometime during the year. Sometimes more than once in a season.
(4) The last reason the game last night was so important was I'm pretty sure USC will lose tomorrow. Not that I think Stanford is better but everything lines up well for them. Stanford is coming off two poor performances. Has got a chance to come back home and regroup and prepare for our game. Meanwhile, we have extended road trip and quite frankly are regressing to some poor basketball that we have seen in previous years.
Hope I'm wrong about tomorrow because I really thought this team might be the best team in the Pac-12 and had a chance for high seed. Hard to feel that way now with the way this team has been playing.
Hope I jinxed Colorado. Go Huskies.
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