Pac-12 Basketball

BR Video

Jay-Z's nephew Nahziah Carter is balling out for the Washington Huskies.

The junior guard from Rochester, New York, is producing highlight-worthy dunks night after night.

Bleacher Report is the go-to destination for basketball fans everywhere. B/R's College Basketball coverage delivers must-see on-court analysis and highlights on a daily basis. Connect to the CBB stories, teams, athletes and highlights that make the game more than a game.

Download the free Bleacher Report app to catch all the moments that matter in one place. Get the app to get the game.

Sabrina Ionescu is an amateur athlete in title only. 

The senior point guard led the No. 1 Oregon Ducks to a 93-86 victory over Team USA in their exhibition Saturday night at Matthew Knight Arena in Eugene, Oregon. Ionescu led all scorers with 30 points, 20 of which came in the third quarter.  

It marked the first time a collegiate team had beaten Team USA in 20 years. 

The matchup's significance wasn't lost on Ionescu, who told OregonLive.com's James Crepea ahead of the game: "I'm 100 percent going to be starstruck especially when Sue Bird, Diana Taurasi come out on the floor. I'm going to be excited that I can share the same floor with them."

If Ionescu was intimidated, it didn't show:

Ionescu has already drawn heady comparisons. "She reminds me a lot of Sue Bird," WNBA 2014 No. 1 overall pick Chiney Ogwumike told Bleacher Report's Mirin Fader earlier this year. "Excellent feel for the game, plays her own tempo, and as a passer she has the That's So Raven ability to see the future."

Ionescu has been part of USA Basketball in the past. But before she tries to become a true staple both in the WNBA and internationally, she has intentions of leading the Ducks to the program's first national title.

The top team in the country officially tips off its 2019-20 campaign Monday against Northeastern.

The Utah Utes set a Division I men's basketball record for the largest margin of victory in a game featuring two D-I opponents, per the official NCAA March Madness Twitter account:

Utah beat visiting Mississippi Valley State 143-49, led by Timmy Allen's 26 points. Nine Utes scored in double figures, and Both Gach and Rylan Jones each had triple-doubles. 

Per the Elias Sports Bureau (h/t ESPN Stats & Info), Gach and Jones' efforts marked the first time in 20 years a Division I team had two players record triple-doubles in the same game.

Utah closed the first half on a 27-5 run to take a 70-20 halftime lead. A 33-9 run over the first eight minutes of the second half was capped by an Alfonso Plummer three-pointer.

Utah shot 63.3 percent from the field and 50.0 percent from three-point range. The Utes also grabbed 68 rebounds versus the Delta Devils' 28 and dished 41 assists to Mississippi Valley State's 10.

The 0-2 Delta Devils shot just 26.2 percent from the field, but Michael Green fared well with 20 points on 10-of-23 shooting.

The Utes moved to 2-0 after beating Nevada 79-74 in their opener. The team is looking to improve upon last season's 17-14 mark.

The Delta Devils have seen better days, winning the Southwestern Athletic Conference five times, most recently in 2012. The program has fallen on hard times recently, however, going 6-26 last year and starting this season with a 110-74 loss to Iowa State.

The team is led by first-year head coach Lindsey Hunter, who played 17 NBA seasons and won championships in 2002 and 2004 with the Los Angeles Lakers and Detroit Pistons, respectively.

The NCAA has granted a waiver for Washington guard Quade Green, making him immediately eligible for the 2019-20 season. 

Green is expected to start at point guard this season for the Huskies. Green transferred after playing nine games in his sophomore season at Kentucky after failing to earn a significant role. He averaged 9.3 points and 2.7 assists in 34 games during his freshman year.

Washington is expected to compete for a Pac-12 championship this season after landing 5-star freshmen forwards Jaden McDaniels and Isaiah Stewart. Green will solidify a point guard position that looked like a weak spot for the Huskies had the NCAA not granted his waiver. Regardless of the NCAA ruling, Green would have been eligible in December—one full year after his transfer.

Green excels in pick-and-roll situations and transition, which should make him a stellar fit with Washington's athletic wings. McDaniels and Stewart are both strong leapers who should be the beneficiaries of easy buckets in the open court.

Washington coach Mike Hopkins originally recruited Green when he was an assistant coach at Syracuse. The Huskies use a defense similar to the 'Cuse zone, so Green's relative lack of size (6'0") should not be much of an issue defensively. 

Oregon center N'Faly Dante has been ruled ineligible to start the 2019-20 season due to the NCAA missing his clearance date.

According to Shams Charania of The Athletic and Stadium, Dante said he plans to reenroll at Oregon on Dec. 14:

The 6'11" Dante is rated as a 5-star prospect by 247Sports, and he ranks as the No. 14 overall player and No. 4 center in the 2020 recruiting class.

The 17-year-old Dante is a Mali native who later moved to the United States and played his high school basketball at Sunrise Christian Academy in Bel Aire, Kansas. After averaging 16.5 points per game and shooting 85.2 percent from the field en route to being named Nike EYBL MVP over the summer, Dante reclassified from the 2020 class to 2019.

In August, Dante announced his decision to reclassify and commit to Oregon in a letter for The Players' Tribune despite offers from other top schools such as Kentucky, Kansas and Michigan State.

Dante was viewed as the top candidate to replace Bol Bol, who entered the NBA draft after appearing in just nine games during his one season with the Ducks. Bol was selected in the second round of the 2019 NBA draft by the Miami Heat and then traded to the Denver Nuggets.

Per 247Sports, Dante is part of an Oregon recruiting class that ranks fourth in the nation. Along with Dante, the Ducks landed 5-star forward C.J. Walker and a trio of 4-star prospects in Addison Patterson, Chandler Lawson and Isaac Johnson.

After reaching the Sweet 16 last season, the Ducks have a chance to make another deep NCAA tournament run this season if their young players live up to their potential.

If Dante is granted eligibility Dec. 14, he will only miss the first seven games of the season and will be available to head coach Dana Altman for a key non-conference road game against the Michigan Wolverines on Dec. 14.

Until Dante gains clearance, look for Walker, Lawson and returnees Miles Norris and Francis Okoro to receive the bulk of the playing time in the frontcourt.

Former Arizona assistant men's basketball coach Emanuel "Book" Richardson admitted to undercover federal agents that he sent $40,000 to a "high school coach" of ex-Arizona guard Rawle Alkins to alter his high-school transcript, therefore making him eligible to play for the Wildcats in the 2016-17 season. 

Pat Forde, Pete Thamel and Dan Wetzel of Yahoo Sports broke the news about the Wildcats, who are the subject of an FBI probe and NCAA investigation amid allegations that players were paid to attend and play for Arizona.

Alkins played two seasons in Tuscon before entering the 2018 NBA draft. He was not selected but signed a two-way contract with the Chicago Bulls.

Per Forde, Thamel and Wetzel, information on how Richardson procured the money is not clear in the 1,500-word conversation transcript. The ex-coach did, however, reference financially supporting recruits.

"So, again, is it something different each year?" Richardson said. "It is. Like I said, $40,000 to do that was totally extreme. If I had the chance to do it all over again, I would not do it. I'd try to barter something. I'd give blood. I'd give semen, something."

Richardson is currently serving a three-month sentence at the federal correctional institute in Otisville, New York on a federal funds bribery charge unrelated to the events outlined the transcript, per Yahoo Sports.

Moving forward, the question now is whether Arizona will face punishment given the significant allegations against the men's hoops program. Yahoo Sports provided more insight:

"Academic fraud and payments to a player’s family are potential Level I infractions, the most serious on the NCAA’s scale of violations. Court testimony and evidence already implicated Arizona in numerous other potential violations, with the future of the program and the college coaching career of Sean Miller hanging in the balance as the NCAA follows up in the wake of the federal investigation. Miller has maintained he had no knowledge of or involvement in any potential violations within his program."

Arizona will open its season against Division II Chico State on Nov. 1.

UCLA received a massive boost to its 2020 recruiting class Tuesday with a commitment from 5-star point guard Daishen Nix.

Evan Daniels of 247Sports reported the playmaker's choice of the Bruins.

Nix is listed as the No. 14 overall recruit in next year's class and the top point guard in the group, according to 247Sports' composite rankings. He's also rated as the best prospect from Nevada.

The Trinity International School standout has developed into one of the nation's most well-rounded prospects over the past couple years. He's a multidimensional scorer who can also create off the dribble for teammates and sports a 6'5'', 205-pound frame that's helped accelerate his defensive growth.

Trinity International head coach Greg Lockridge told Sam Gordon of the Las Vegas Review-Journal the guard's rise has come as no surprise.

"I told everyone that would listen that he's the best point guard in the country. But he doesn't know it yet and hasn't developed into it yet," Lockridge said in April. "As time went on, he started to see it himself. Now his chest is out, his confidence is sky high and he's starting to come into his own."

Nix isn't a polished product yet—few at this stage of his development are—but all the tools are there for him to become a star at the collegiate level and beyond in the coming years.

Although there's little doubt the guard will be an instant impact player for the Bruins, exactly where he fits in the team's rotation won't become clear until the 2020-21 college basketball season gets a little closer and the depth chart for head coach Mick Cronin becomes more settled.

If he lives up to the hype at UCLA, it could become a one-and-done collegiate career for Nix as he could quickly turn his focus toward the NBA.

The Oregon Ducks added a significant presence to their future frontcourt Tuesday when center N'Faly Dante joined their 2019 recruiting class.

Dante, a native of Mali, announced his decision in a first-person essay addressed to his mother for the Players' Tribune.

"Oregon has a program that reflects a lot of the values you taught me when I was growing up," he wrote.

Dante checks in at 6'11" and 230 pounds and is a 5-star prospect, per 247Sports' composite rankings. He was the No. 12 overall player, No. 3 center and No. 1 player from the state of Kansas in the class of 2020.

Ben Roberts of the Lexington Herald-Dealer noted in April that the big man—who measured in with a 7'5½" wingspan and 9'5" standing reach during the Nike Hoop Summit in Portland, Oregon—was considering reclassifying to the 2019 class during his recruitment.

According to 247Sports' Matt Prehm, Dante will indeed reclassify, joining Oregon in 2019 rather than 2020.

Dante's length immediately stands out, and he uses that wingspan to protect the rim on the defensive side and control the boards on both ends. Even if he still needs to develop some as an offensive threat, he has the potential to be an elite rim protector and conference Defensive Player of the Year candidate as soon as his freshman season.

Jerry Meyer of 247Sports noted he has to add strength to battle with some of the bigs he will eventually face in the NBA, but at least one year in a high-level college program will help him do just that while expanding his offensive arsenal.

He should be able to finish at the rim over many collegiate defenders with his size alone, and adding touch will help him project to the next level.

If he develops into a complete player and maximizes his ability as a defensive force, Dante can help Oregon compete for a conference title and potential deep tournament run even as a freshman.

This is an important recruiting victory for head coach Dana Altman, who continues rolling in the Pacific Northwest. He led the Ducks to the Sweet 16 in 2013 and 2019, Elite Eight in 2016 and Final Four in 2017 and gets an elite big man to work with after Bol Bol missed much of his only collegiate season with injury.

Dante is talented enough to maintain the Ducks' recent success and perhaps even build on it, even if he just stays for one season.

Brandon Williams won't take the court in the 2019-20 for the Arizona Wildcats, as Stadium's Jeff Goodman reported Wednesday that the sophomore guard will miss the entire upcoming basketball season after undergoing knee surgery.

"Brandon Williams ... was set to take a big jump this year—even with Josh Green and Nico Mannion coming in," Goodman added. "This is a big blow to Arizona and its hopes to compete for a Pac-12 title this season." 

Williams averaged 11.4 points, 3.4 assists and 2.8 rebounds across 26 games (21 starts) for the Wildcats last season.

However, Williams struggled with right knee pain toward the end of January and missed six games in February because of it.

When discussing the situation in February, head coach Sean Miller said on his radio show (h/t Tucson.com) he wasn't sure if the injury was related to Williams' congenital issue in his right knee.

Bruce Pascoe of the Arizona Daily Star wrote about Williams' knee woes dating back to high school:

"After starting to experience pain with the knee before his junior season in 2016-17, Williams had surgery in January 2017 to correct a congenital issue in which bone beneath the cartilage of a joint dies due to lack of blood flow. The issue, known as osteochondritis dissecans, sometimes results in bone and cartilage breaking free and causing pain or restricted motion.

"Williams rehabbed the knee for over 10 months, then finished his high school senior season without issue but has twice run into trouble with the knee this season: On Jan. 14 he bruised it in practice and was limited against Baylor the next day, Miller said, while he then experienced issues after the UA’s game at UCLA on Jan. 26."

The Athletic's Sam Vecenie reported Wednesday the "question is long-term as much as short-term" as this marks the second time in four years Williams will miss a full season.

The Wildcats have freshmen Green and Mannion coming in to help with depth at guard, as Goodman mentioned, but Williams was the team's second-leading scorer last season behind Brandon Randolph, who declared for the 2019 NBA draft. 

An NCAA Division I committee put the University of Utah men's basketball program on probation for two years and handed down other penalties after the team self-reported recruiting violations in April 2018, per Steve Bartle of 247Sports. 

Bartle reported the committee's findings:

"The committee found that an associate head coach coordinated with a local community college's men's basketball head coach to get a high school prospect to the university's campus for a visit, that would be paid for by the community college. While the prospect was in the area, he also visited the Utah campus, according to the committee. Since the community college paid for the prospect's visit to the university, the visit was classified as an official visit and caused the university to exceed the number of allowable official visits."

Utah has also incurred a self-imposed $5,000 fine, a few minor recruiting restrictions and a one-year show-cause order for the associate head coach.

The associate head coach in question is Tommy Connor, per Kurt Kragthorpe of the Salt Lake Tribune.

Head coach Larry Krystkowiak provided the following statement, per Bartle:

"While they were inadvertent and unintentional mistakes on our part, and there was never an intent to circumvent any rules, we accept that they were violations and, as the head coach, I am accountable for them. I have always been a strong proponent of protecting the integrity of college basketball and that will not change."

Per Kragthorpe, "the violations stemmed from what a school news release labeled 'a misreading of the NCAA calendar' in the spring of 2018, when Utah’s four full-time coaches (including DeMarlo Slocum, now on UNLV’s staff) visited an out-of-state prospect at his school during a recruiting quiet period."

Kragthorpe also reported that Utah revoked a 2015 "coach-in-waiting" agreement with Connor to eventually succeed Krystkowiak.

"You can't run from the fact that there were NCAA violations committed here," Utah athletic director Mark Harlan told Kragthorpe. "But again, there's a big difference between inadvertent mistakes and perhaps some of the other things we've seen in the country."

The NCAA seemed to acknowledge those sentiments when the NCAA committee revoked a two-game suspension initially handed down, per Emily James of NCAA.org.

After the panel conducted a hearing, "the committee determined the violations were unintentional, limited and not indicative of systemic problems," per James.

The Utes have made the NCAA tournament twice in eight years under Krystkowiak, notably amassing a 53-18 record over the 2014-15 and 2015-16 seasons. The Utes made the Sweet 16 in the former year.

Utah has earned 11-7 records in Pac-12 play over the past three years and made the NIT twice.