Las Vegas is all about the odds, baby.
You never want to back a heavy favorite and get a miniature payout.
Why not go for broke?
Here we provide the odds for what could be some impressive individual performances in the Pac-12 Tournament:
Chances that Nico Mannion regains his shooting stroke: 25%
Mannion, Arizona’s much-ballyhooed freshman guard, has struggled greatly from the field the last month, finishing with a shooting percentage over 45% just twice since the calendar flipped to February. Can Mannion flip a switch in short order? That could be the story of the postseason for the Wildcats. If Mannion plays like he has against Oregon in two one-point overtime losses — 9 for 17 for 20 points on Jan. 9 and 5 of 10 for 13 points with eight assists in on Feb. 22 — then Arizona has a chance to make some noise. If he plays the way he did against USC on Feb. 27 in a 57-48 loss — 3-of-14 shooting, 1 for 7 from deep — the Cats are in serious trouble.
Chances that UCLA’s Tyger Campbell drops 10 dimes: 35%
The starless Bruins have had to find some interesting ways to generate offense, but putting the ball in the hands of Campbell seems to have worked. One of the best assist men in the Pac-12, Campbell has soared of late as the Bruins have. In their just-broken seven-game conference winning streak, snapped by USC on Saturday, Campbell averaged more than seven assists per game, including games of 11 assists at Colorado and 14 against Arizona State. The Bruins don’t always know where their scoring is going to come from, but usually Campbell is involved.
Chances that Colorado’s Tyler Bey averages 10 boards: 40%
Perhaps we should have seen this coming last year, when Bey exploded for 9.9 rebounds per game, an improvement of 4.8 over his freshman season. The 6-foot-7 guard saw his rebounding numbers dip a bit this year to 9.1 per game, but he’s been in double figures a dozen times, including five times in the last nine games. In a five-game stretch beginning Feb. 6, Bey had games of 10, 12, eight, 15 and 11 boards. Someone get this guy some Windex.
Chances that Washington State’s Issac Bonton has five turnovers: 60%
Since his return from a three-game layoff because of a hip injury, Wazzu’s Bonton has been an absolute machine. A turnover machine, that is. Bonton had seven giveaways in a Feb. 28 matchup with rival Washington, but that did not prevent the Cougars from pulling out a much-needed 78-74 win. The next two games? Eight gaffes in a 19-point loss at Arizona and 11, a season-high, in a regular season-ending loss at Arizona State on Saturday.
Chances that Oregon State’s Kylor Kelley has five blocks in a game: 43%
Kelley has been an eraser for the Beavers, racking up 3.5 blocks per game. He started the season on a good note, blocking four CSUN shots in the opening game. He’d go on to have seven blocks in three different games, six blocks in two and five blocks in three. Can Kelley be the typical immovable object in Las Vegas? The Beavers are going to need him to be.
Chances that Oregon’s Payton Pritchard averages three 3-pointers per game: 33%
Pritchard, the best player on the league’s best team, has become arguably the most well-rounded contributor in the Pac-12. Pritchard averages better than 20 points, five assists and four rebounds per game, but it is his distance shooting that makes the Ducks a favorite to win the tournament and to make some noise in March Madness. Pritchard leads the league with 2.8 3-pointers made per game, on a sparkling 42% shooting. It’d be one thing if he was just high volume. He’s high volume and efficient, a deadly combo for a dead-eye shooter.
Chances that Arizona State’s Remy Martin averages 20 points per contest: 35%
Martin has been one of the most consistent scorers in the league, topping 20 points 18 times this season, including seven straight games at one point. He’s also had some absolute stinkers — six points on 2-of-14 shooting in a March 5 loss to Washington, zero points on 0-for-7 shooting in a 40(!)-point loss to Saint Mary’s back in December. But when he’s on, he’s on, and he should rise to the occasion in Sin City.
Chances that Utah’s Timmy Allen gets to the free-throw line 10 times in one game: 15%
Allen has made his living at the free-throw line, where he averages 6.9 attempts and 5.0 makes per game. He’s hit double-figures in attempts six times this year, including three times in conference play and a 9-for-12 performance — to go along with 25 points — in a 69-66 win over Kentucky on Dec. 18. Pitted against the Oregon State Beavers in the first round Wednesday, he’ll have to play more like he did in their first matchup (13 of 15 from the line, 25 points in a 12-point win on Jan. 2) than the second (36 minutes, six points, 0 for 1 from the free-throw line in a 19-point loss on Feb. 13.
Chances that USC’s Onyeka Okongwu shoots better than 60% from the field: 60%
The USC forward is averaging 16.2 for the season, which would be impressive enough, but he’s scoring with terrific efficiency, as well. Okongwu is shooting a league-best 62% from the field and he has as many games over 70% shooting as he does under 50% (eight). Simply put, don’t let him near the rim.
Chances that Washington’s Isaiah Stewart snags double-figure rebounds in one game: 40%
The fantastic freshman is third in the Pac-12 at 8.7 rebounds per game, and he’s been a double-double threat every time he steps on the floor. He has 14 double-digit rebound games, a little under half his games played, and he’s regularly pounded good teams on the boards. Against Oregon, albeit in a close loss, he had a season-high 19 rebounds.
Chances that Cal’s Matt Bradley shoots 90% from the free-throw line: 90%
There must be something in the Bay Area water, as both Bradley and Stanford’s Tyrell Terry are nails from the free-throw line. Can Bradley, who is shooting 86.6% from the stripe, stay true once more? Eighteen times this season, Bradley has shot 100% from the line. Topping 90 should be a piece of cake.
Chances that Stanford’s Daejon Davis averages three steals per game: 40%
Davis has been a pickpocket ever since he opened the season with five steals against Montana back on Nov. 6. Davis hasn’t hit that mark since that game, but he has hit three steals six other times. He’ll have a tough go of it against a Cal team that is relatively stingy, committing the fifth-fewest turnovers in the league.
