For the second straight year, UCLA was picked to finish second in the Pac-12 preseason behind Arizona.
The gap between them, though, was a little larger. A few months before winning the conference, the Bruins finished just one point behind the Wildcats in the poll, and actually edged them with 16 first-place votes to 15. This year, Arizona took 21 first-place votes to UCLA’s one.
The media have correctly selected the winner 12 times in 21 tries.
Colorado also received a first-place vote. USC was picked to finish 11th in its first season under head coach Andy Enfield.
The full Pac-12 preseason poll:
1. Arizona (21) — 273
2. UCLA (1) — 212
3. Colorado (1) — 211
4. Oregon — 196
5. California — 194
6. Stanford — 166
7. Arizona State — 159
8. Washington — 121
9. Utah — 68
10. Oregon State — 67
11. USC — 63
12. Washington State — 39