While things aren’t nearly as nutty in Pac-10 women’s basketball as they are on the men’s side, sorting through the conference at this point in the season is still far from easy.

What we know: Stanford is at the top of the heap, the Los Angeles schools have surprised and Washington State is in the basement.

Beyond that? Good luck.

Nevertheless, we are going to try. Here is your first edition of The State Press’ Pac-10 Women’s Basketball Power Rankings.

1. Stanford (15-1, 5-0 Pac-10)

This is a shocker, right?

Stanford isn’t only the best team—by far—in the Pac-10, but the No. 2 Cardinal has continued to live up to its reputation as one of the nation’s premier teams, with its only loss coming to No. 1 Connecticut in December.

While the Cardinal was supposed to be led by the reigning Pac-10 Player of the Year in senior center Jayne Appel, and she has done her part by averaging 12.8 points and 9.4 rebounds per game, it has been sophomore
forward Nnemkadi Ogwumike who has had a breakout season.

The former No. 1 high-school recruit leads the conference in scoring (19.3 points per game) and ranks second in rebounding (10 per game) while also leading the nation in field goal percentage (64 percent).

And if not for Ogwumike, everyone would be talking about junior forward and Valley product Kayla Pedersen, who is also nearly averaging a double-double, with 17.1 points per game and 8.9 rebounds per game.

It would be a gigantic upset if any of Stanford’s remaining Pac-10 foes take down the mighty Cardinal. This team is expected to earn another No. 1 seed for the NCAA Tournament, and it will be a disappointment if it doesn’t advance to its third straight Final Four.

2. USC (10-6, 4-1 Pac-10)

USC has always seemed to have oodles of talent in recent years, but the Women of Troy have had problems staying healthy or translating that talent to wins.

Enter former Los Angeles Sparks coach Michael Cooper, who has made an immediate impact in his first year with the Women of Troy. The only blemish on USC’s conference record right now comes courtesy of Stanford, and it has already beaten ASU and California, which have been the other conference juggernauts.

Sophomore guard Ashley Corral has made a smooth transition from reserve player to one of the top perimeter players in the league, as she leads the conference in assists (five per game) while also scoring 16.5 points and sinking over two 3-pointers a game.

As a team, the Women of Troy are the best in the conference in 3-point field goal percentage (37.8 percent), led by senior guard Heather Oliver, who has connected on 50 percent of her shots from behind the arc this season.

3. UCLA (10-6, 3-2 Pac-10)

Second-year coach Nikki Caldwell clearly has the Bruins heading in the right direction.

UCLA has gotten a huge boost of offense from a pair of newcomers in sophomore guard Jasmine Dixon, who transferred from Rutgers, and freshman forward Markel Walker. Dixon, who was not eligible to play until after the fall quarter, has averaged 12.7 points and 7.9 rebounds in her eight games in a Bruin uniform, while Walker averages 11.9 points and 8.1 rebounds per game.

The Bruins have also gotten it done on the defensive end of the floor, as they allow just 55.2 points per game, which ranks second in the conference.

UCLA is also the only Pac-10 team that has threatened Stanford so far, as it lost a close 65-61 contest at Pauley Pavilion earlier this month.

4. ASU (11-6, 3-3 Pac-10)

This is where things get a little hairy, as the teams ranked fourth through eighth on this list have had up-and-down starts to their conference seasons.

The Sun Devils, who have seven new players in the rotation, were in uncharted waters at the beginning of the month when they lost three straight — at home against USC and UCLA and then on the road at Washington — to open to conference season. That marked the first time since the 2005-06 season that ASU lost to a Pac-10 team other than Stanford or Cal in the regular season.

But since the 0-3 start, ASU has responded with three straight wins and looks revitalized on both ends of the floor. The Sun Devils held Oregon 19 points below its season average in a 73-68 win last Thursday and then put the defensive clamp down again in a 56-47 win against Oregon State.

Senior guard Danielle Orsillo has averaged 18.6 points over her last three contests while really filling out her offensive game, while junior forward Becca Tobin has continued to be one of the Pac-10’s best shot blockers (1.47 per game).

We’ll find out a lot about the Sun Devils in the next two weeks, as they will travel to Tucson to face rival UA this weekend before heading to the Bay Area to clash with Stanford and Cal.

5. California (8-8, 2-3 Pac-10)

This may seem a bit high for the Golden Bears, who like ASU are going through a transition season after graduating two marquee posts in Ashley Walker and Devanei Hampton and started the conference season 0-3.

But Cal has responded with the two straight wins against UW and Washington State, and it’s hard to envision the Golden Bears slipping too far in the standings with coach Joanne Boyle at the helm.

Senior guard Alexis Gray-Lawson, who ranks seventh in the conference in scoring (15.9 points per game), is one of the most aggressive guards in the league and the veteran leader of one of the a Golden Bears squad that has seven freshmen on the roster.

6. UA (9-7, 3-3 Pac-10)

The Wildcats are another team that has so far shown immense improvement in Niya Butts’ second season in Tucson. UA needs just one more conference victory to match its total from last season.

While those around the Pac-10 know all about junior forward Ify Ibekwe’s ability to dominate on the inside, she continues to fly a bit under the radar when it comes to national attention. Still, she has continued to churn out double-doubles, ranking third in the nation in rebounding (11.9 per game) in addition to scoring 13.7 points per game.

Guard Davellyn Whyte has also burst onto the scene and is the early frontrunner for the Pac-10 Freshman of the Year award. She ranks second in the conference in scoring (17.7 points per game) and racked up a school-record 39 points in the Wildcats’ 119-112 win over UO last Saturday.

7. Oregon (12-5, 3-2 Pac-10)

Things were quite peachy for the Ducks a week ago. They were off to their best start since the 1998-99 season, had a perfect 3-0 conference record and led the nation in scoring (87 points per game).

Then they traveled to the desert to face ASU and UA.

First, UO was held 19 points below its season average in a 73-68 loss to ASU. Two days later, the Ducks were beaten at their own game in 119-112 shootout loss to UA.

First-year coach Paul Westhead, who won a WNBA title when he was at the helm of the Mercury in 2007, clearly knows how to orchestrate the “run-and-gun” offense. And senior guard Taylor Lilley is one of the most lethal shooters in the conference, connecting on over three 3-pointers and scoring 16.4 points per game.

But if the Ducks want to hang in the Pac-10, they will need to improve on the other end of the floor, as it ranks last in the conference in scoring defense by allowing 73.6 points per game.

8. Washington (8-8, 3-3 Pac-10)

On paper, it looks like the Huskies might be getting the short end of the stick here, as they are ranked lower than two teams they have beaten in ASU and UA.

But with so many teams jumbled in the middle of the standings right now, how each squad is playing at the moment tends to be the deciding factor in determining where the chips fall.

And the Huskies have lost back-to-back games by double digits.

UW has had problems putting the ball in the basket this season, ranking last in the Pac-10 in scoring offense (61.1 points per game). Senior guard Sami Whitcomb is the only Husky averaging in double figures (13.4 points per game).

Nonetheless, the Huskies are definitely much better than they were a year ago and have already surpassed their overall win total from last season. Don’t be surprised to see them pull a few more upsets in the Pac-10 season.

9. Oregon State (9-6, 1-4 Pac-10)

Since starting the Pac-10 season with a win over WSU, the Beavers have faltered, losing four straight games.

Junior guard Talisa Rhea is one of the most prolific scorers in the conference (16.8 points per game), but she often lacks help from her teammates, as OSU ranks ninth in the Pac-10 in scoring offense (61.2 points per game).

Things won’t get any easier for the Beavers, as they host Stanford and Cal this weekend and then travel to Los Angeles to take on USC and UCLA.

10. Washington State (5-12, 0-6 Pac-10)

A Cougar team in the cellar of the Pac-10?
Wow, this looks familiar.

Though most of WSU’s conference games have been competitive — four of the six have been decided by less than 10 points — the Cougars just haven’t been able to get over the hump and notch that first Pac-10 victory.

On the bright side, freshman KiKi Moore has made an immediate impact on defense by leading the conference in steals (3.06 per game), while both Moore and sophomore guard April Cook each average 13.5 points per game.

Reach the reporter at gina.mizell@asu.edu