There are a lot of different ways to illustrate how improbable it is that Washington State is alone atop the Pac-12 standings just seven days away from March, the best of which is probably tied to the fact that this is a program that A) hasn't won a conference championship since 1941, B) was picked 10th in the preseason Pac-12 poll, and C) closed as a 13.5-point underdog Thursday night at Arizona.
None of this was supposed to happen.
But it's happening.
Believe it or not, against all odds and common sense, Washington State is suddenly alone atop the Pac-12 standings following its 77-74 victory over Arizona inside the McKale Center. The Cougars are now 21-6 overall and 12-4 in the Pac-12 with just four regular-season games remaining. They've jumped from No. 16 to No. 11 in Friday morning's updated CBS Sports Top 25 And 1 daily college basketball rankings, which caused Duke, Alabama, Auburn and Dayton to be pushed down one spot each, no fault of their own.
"This is big," said Washington State's Jaylen Wells, who converted a 4-point play in the final minute and scored 27 points to lead the Cougars to the upset. "There's a lot of moments we could've folded -- but we stayed poised, kept fighting back. I think it's a big win for us. ... People [were] saying, 'Oh, you've got to play Arizona.' No, they've got to play us."
Touché, Jaylen Wells. Touché.
Next up for Washington State is Saturday's game at Arizona State, which lost at home late Thursday to Washington and dropped to 13-14. For what it's worth, KenPom.com is now projecting Washington State and Arizona to finish as Pac-12 co-champs with 15-5 league records. If it goes down that way, Kyle Smith will be responsible for bringing WSU's program its first conference title in more than eight decades.
Top 25 And 1 rankings
Rk | Teams | Chg | Rcrd | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  | Zach Edey finished with 25 points and seven rebounds in Thursday's 96-88 win over Rutgers. The Boilermakers' next game is Sunday at Michigan. | -- | 1-0 |
| 2 |  | UConn missed 13 of the 16 3-pointers it attempted in Tuesday's 85-66 loss at Creighton. The Huskies' next game is Saturday against Villanova. UConn missed 13 of the 16 3-pointers it attempted in Tuesday's 85-66 loss at Creighton. The Huskies' next game is Saturday against Villanova. | -- | 1-0 |
| 3 |  | Jamal Shead finished with 26 points and six assists in Monday's 73-65 win over Iowa State. The Cougars' next game is Saturday at Baylor. | -- | 1-0 |
| 4 |  | Dalton Knecht finished with 17 points and 10 rebounds in Tuesday's 72-67 The Vols' next game is Saturday against Texas A&M. | 1 | 1-0 |
| 5 |  | Tamin Lipsey was 1 of 8 from the field in Monday's 73-65 loss at Houston. The Cyclones' next game is Saturday against West Virginia. | 1 | 1-0 |
| 6 |  | Kam Jones finished with 34 points and two steals in Wednesday's 105-71 win over DePaul. The Golden Eagles' next game is Sunday against Xavier. | 1 | 1-0 |
| 7 |  | Armando Bacot finished with 25 points and 12 rebounds in Saturday's 96-81 win over Virginia Tech. The Tar Heels' next game is Saturday at Virginia. | 1 | 1-0 |
| 8 |  | Steven Ashworth finished with 20 points and seven rebounds in Tuesday's 85-66 win over UConn. The Bluejays' next game is Sunday at St. John's. | 1 | 1-0 |
| 9 |  | Hunter Dickinson finished with 20 points and 16 rebounds in Saturday's 67-57 win at Oklahoma. The Jayhawks' next game is Saturday against Texas. | 1 | 1-0 |
| 10 |  | Baylor missed 15 of the 20 3-pointers it attempted in Tuesday's 78-71 loss at BYU. The Bears' next game is Saturday against Houston. | 1 | 0-1 |
| 11 |  | Jaylen Wells finished with 27 points and three rebounds in Thursday's 77-74 win at Arizona. The Cougars' next game is Saturday at Arizona State. | 5 | 1-0 |
| 12 |  | Kylan Boswell was 2 of 8 from the field in Thursday's 77-74 loss to Washington State. The Wildcats' next game is Saturday against Washington. | 8 | 1-0 |
| 13 |  | Jeremy Roach finished with 16 points and three assists in Wednesday's 84-55 win at Miami. The Blue Devils' next game is Saturday at Wake Forest. | 1 | 1-0 |
| 14 |  | Grant Nelson finished with 22 points and eight rebounds in Wednesday's 98-93 win over Florida. The Crimson Tide's next game is Saturday at Kentucky. | 1 | 1-0 |
| 15 |  | Auburn shot 30.9% from the field in Saturday's 70-59 loss to Kentucky. The Tigers' next game is Saturday at Georgia. | 1 | 1-0 |
| 16 |  | Kobe Elvis was 2 of 11 from the field in Wednesday's 71-67 loss at George Mason. The Flyers' next game is Tuesday against Davidson. | 1 | 1-0 |
| 17 |  | Great Osobor finished with 17 points and seven assists in Tuesday's 68-63 win over San Diego State. The Aggies' next game is Tuesday at Fresno State. | -- | 1-0 |
| 18 |  | Micah Parrish was 1 of 7 from the field in Tuesday's 68-63 loss at Utah State. The Aztecs' next game is Saturday at Fresno State. | -- | 1-0 |
| 19 |  | Coleman Hawkins was 3 of 11 from the field in Wednesday's 90-89 loss at Penn State. The Illini's next game is Saturday against Iowa. | -- | 1-0 |
| 20 |  | Nique Clifford was 1 of 9 from the field in Wednesday's 68-66 loss at New Mexico. The Rams' next game is Saturday at UNLV. | -- | 1-0 |
| 21 |  | Aly Khalifa finished with 14 points and seven assists in Tuesday's 78-71 win over Baylor. The Cougars' next game is Saturday at Kansas State. | -- | 1-0 |
| 22 |  | South Carolina missed 14 of the 20 3-pointers it attempted in Saturday's 64-63 loss to LSU. The Gamecocks' next game is Saturday at Ole Miss. | -- | 0-1 |
| 23 |  | Florida allowed the Crimson Tide to grab 21 offensive rebounds in Wednesday's 98-93 loss at Alabama. The Gators' next game is Saturday against Vanderbilt. | -- | 1-0 |
| 24 |  | Tyler Wahl finished with 18 points and six rebounds in Tuesday's 74-70 win over Maryland. The Badgers' next game is Tuesday at Indiana. | -- | 1-0 |
| 25 |  | Mitchell Saxen finished with 20 points and 13 rebounds in Tuesday's 70-66 win over San Francisco. The Gaels' next game is Saturday against San Diego. | -- | 1-0 |
| 26 |  | Pop Isaacs finished with 19 points and six rebounds in Tuesday's 82-81 win over TCU. The Red Raiders' next game is Saturday at UCF. | -- | 1-0 |
