On Wednesday, they did it again.

The easy question: Where has this been all year?

The better question: How long can this last?

CU (18-12) has put together two of its best performances of the season in the past two games — a 67-57 win over Oregon State and Wednesday’s 55-41 win over Utah in the first round of the Pac-12 tournament.

Next up is Cal, which frustrated the Buffs twice this season. It’s going to take a whale of an inspired effort Thursday. This is a game the Buffs can win, however.

Yes, Cal beat the Buffs by 13 and 21 points this season. In both games, however, CU showed it can run with the Golden Bears.

On Jan. 12 in Boulder, CU had a 12-point lead with 12:43 to play and still led by four with 7:10 to go. The Buffs never scored again, as Cal closed the game on a 17-0 run.

Then, on Feb. 25 in Berkeley, CU started ice cold and got behind 14-2 in the early going. The Buffs never recovered, but played well from that point.

“We know we can defend and play with them,” CU assistant Jonas Chatterton said on KKZN AM-760 after Wednesday’s game. “We’ve got to limit our mental mistakes.”

CU can do that by being as focused as it has been during the past two games.

A few notes on Wednesday’s win:

• In the last 12 minutes, Utah’s Taryn Wicijowski scored just four points, all on free throws. She finished with 18 points. Chatterton credited junior forward Meagan Malcolm-Peck with the defensive effort. “Meagan Malcolm-Peck did an outstanding job down the stretch taking (Wicijowski) away,” he said.
• CU has posted back-to-back 18-win seasons for the first time since going 24-8 in 2002-03 and 22-8 in 2003-04.
• CU is 15-0 when holding opponents under 60 points this season.
• Brittany Wilson scored 21 points and Chucky Jeffery 20. It was the first time CU had two 20-point scorers since Jeffery and Brittany Spears on Dec. 8, 2010, against Colorado State.

No. 8 Washington (16-12, 8-10) vs. No. 9 Oregon (15-15, 7-11): This one’s tough to pick because they played each other so close this season. In two match-ups, they split the series and their point differential was just two, 158-156. Oregon won by 2 in Eugene and Washington won by 4 in Seattle. I think Oregon can neutralize Washington star Regina Rogers, plus the Ducks are better at the free-throw line, which will be huge if this is another close game. Pick: Oregon 78, Washington 76.

No. 9 UCLA (14-15, 9-9) vs. No. 12 Arizona (14-16, 3-15): They split during the regular season, and both teams are limping to the finish. UCLA is 2-5 in its last seven (including a win against the Cats) and Arizona is 1-12 in its last 13. I give the edge to the Bruins, who have better overall talent. Plus, the Bruins are motivated to finish strong and at least get into the WNIT after starting the year ranked No. 22 in the country. Pick: UCLA 67, Arizona 59.

No. 7 Utah (15-14, 8-10) vs. No. 10 Colorado (17-12, 6-12): Another matchup of teams that split during the regular season. Their point differential was even closer than that of Oregon-Washington, with CU outscoring the Utes 114-113 in the two games. Utah point guard Janita Badon is out with an injury, but the three Utes that hurt CU the most (Michelle Plouffe, Iwalani Rodrigues and Taryn Wicijowski) will play. Something tells me the Buffs are inspired and hungry, though. Pick: Colorado 59, Utah 55.

No. 6 Oregon State (18-11, 9-9) vs. No. 11 Washington State (11-19, 5-13): Just like all the other first-round matchups, the Beavers and Cougars split their season series, winning on each other’s home court. Washington State, however, has suffered a bunch of injuries and went 2-13 in its last 15 games. In the 10-year history of the Pac-10 tournament, Washington State went 0-10. I don’t see the Cougars getting a win this time, either. Pick: Oregon State 64, Washington State 52.

Chances are, however, Seabrook will get at least one more game in Boulder.

At 17-12, the Buffaloes ought to feel pretty comfortable with their chances at reaching the WNIT. A spot in the NCAA Tournament is out of the question, unless the Buffs can pull off a miraculous run and win the Pac-12 Tournament this week.

Even if CU loses in the first round of the Pac-12 tourney, expect them to get into the WNIT, which requires teams finish .500 or better. At worst, the Buffs will finish four games above .500. If they get into the WNIT, line up for tickets for a first-round game. The WNIT is known to award home games to teams with good attendance. In CU’s last two WNIT trips, including last year, the Buffs played almost exclusively at home because of impressive attendance.

If there’s any doubt about CU’s chances at the WNIT, consider:

- In 2010, the first year of the expanded, 64-team WNIT, there were 54 teams in the six major conferences (ACC, Big 12, Big East, Big Ten, Pac-10 and SEC) that finished at least .500. Of those 54, 32 went to the NCAA Tournament, 20 went to the WNIT and two others (Boston College and USC) declined WNIT bids after being snubbed by the NCAA tourney.

- In 2011, 52 teams from the six major conferences were .500 or better. Of those, 34 went to the NCAA Tournament and 17 went to the WNIT. LSU, snubbed by the NCAA, declined a WNIT bid, with coach Van Chancellor saying, “LSU is not an NIT program, this is an NCAA program, and that’s what we’re going to be. We’re not going to the NIT.”

So, in two years of the expanded WNIT format, all 106 teams eligible got to the postseason or at least received a bid. Don’t expect CU to decline a bid if it gets one.

This season, there are currently 53 teams from the six majors that are sitting at .500 or better, with UCLA (14-15) holding out hope of getting there as well. If history holds up, all 53 (or 54) figure to be headed to the postseason once again. That bodes well for Colorado.

Keep in mind, however, that this is a team that went 18-16 a year ago, lost its all-time leading scorer (and one of its best all-around players ever) to graduation, has had to rely on three freshmen for big chunks of this season and is playing in a brand-new conference where it knew virtually nothing about any of the other 11 opponents. Hindsight is always 20/20, but it probably wasn’t fair to expect this team to finish in the top half of the Pac-12.

Right now, the Buffs are 10th in the conference, which is about where they were predicted to finish. That spot should be a little higher, as the Buffs let a few games get away from them. But, I don’t think it should be considered a disappointment if CU finishes in the 8-10 range in the standings.

This is a results-oriented business and while the wins aren’t showing up as frequently as they want, the Buffs are getting positive results. When it’s all said and done, however, what I’ll take from this season is that the Buffs are still headed in the right direction. Watching Linda Lappe and her staff during games and in a few practices this season, they know what they’re doing and they’re going to get this team to improve.

The freshmen have played well at times and will only get better. Chucky Jeffery  has had a good season at point guard and may have learned more than anyone this season. We can’t forget this is her first experience being the team’s leader. She’ll be better next year.

Bottom line, I think this team has improved in a lot of ways this season and will continue to get better — including in the win column — as they  move forward.

Media members picked the Buffs to finish 12th.

With CU just about an hour away from tipping off against Utah in its first Pac-12 game, here’s my predicted order of finish for the conference:

1. Stanford

2. Cal

3. USC

4. Colorado

5. UCLA

6. Utah

7. Arizona St.

8. Arizona

9. Washington St.

10. Oregon St.

11. Washington

12. Oregon

Maybe I’m biased because I see them all the time, but I like what I see from this Buffs squad. I also don’t like what I see out of the rest of the league. USC and UCLA have both lost significant players to ACL tears. Cal has had a great season, but that’s a team CU beat a year ago in the WNIT. Other than Stanford, I’m not sure there’s a team in the Pac-12 CU can’t beat.

It’s unfortunate for this year’s team, however, that Roberson won’t play. Although she’s only had a few college practices, by all accounts her game is similar to that of her brother, CU sophomore Andre Roberson. Andre has an unbelievable nose for the ball when it comes to rebounding, and he’s a developing scorer.

The CU women’s team has done a nice job with rebounding this season without Arielle, but she’ll be missed when Pac-12 play  hits and the Buffs run up against bigger and better teams.

That’s right, out of nearly 350 Division I schools, the Buffs are in some rare air right now.

Still, with a not-so-sparking schedule, CU isn’t quite knocking on the door of the Top 25 rankings.

But, considering where they sit right now, let’s see how they rank among the undefeated teams. This is purely  my opinion, but here’s how I’d rank the 15 unbeatens (with my AP Top 25 rank in parenthesis).

1. Baylor (1)
2. Connecticut (2)
3. Maryland (6)
4. Kentucky (10)
5. Rutgers (13)
6. Ohio State (14)
7. Green Bay (17)
8. Texas Tech (18)
9. Delaware (22)
10. Vanderbilt (23)
11. Colorado
12. Oklahoma State
13. UTEP
14. Stephen F. Austin
15. Wofford

Of the 15, the top 10 are no-brainers. They’re among the best 25 teams in the country. As for the other 5, let’s take a closer look:

COLORADO (7-0): The Buffs survived a scare from Idaho — a team they should have decked by at least 20 — on Sunday, but overall they’ve been dominant this season. Unfortunately, they’ve played just one BCS school: a mediocre/bad Wisconsin squad. Best win – 58-48 vs. Wisconsin.

OKLAHOMA STATE (4-0): The plane crash that took the lives of the Cowgirls’ head coach and assistant caused a pair of games to be postponed. Of the games they have played, OSU has looked good, winning them all by 11 or more. Like CU, their best win came against a bottom-rung Big Ten squad. Best win – 83-72 at Indiana.

UTEP (7-0): The Miners have blown out most teams, but needed overtime to defeated New Mexico State. That was their only road game to date. Thirteen days later, they played New Mexico State again, this time at home, and won 63-27. Best win – 80-49 vs. Denver (5-2).

STEPHEN F. AUSTIN (7-0): Great start, but the Lumberjacks have had a few close calls, including a 59-57 win at home against Wiley College. Yes, Wiley College. Best win – 68-58 at Louisiana-Monroe.

WOFFORD (6-0): It’s the best start in school history, but the Terriers haven’t defeated anyone of note. Best win – 58-50 at Gardner-Webb.

Also, for what it’s worth, as of Sunday night, RealTimeRPI.com ranked the Buffaloes 143rd in the country, with their strength of schedule at 327 (out of 342). Of course, this same web site has Delaware as the No. 1 team in the country and has Hofstra at No. 9 — two spots ahead of undefeated and perennial power Connecticut.

Yet, here’s how good the rest of the country is: While filling out my Associated Press Top 25 poll on Sunday, the Buffs weren’t even on my radar — and not just in the top 25, but among the top 35 or 40.

That’s not to say the Buffs can’t be a Top 25 team this season. But to get there, they’ve got some work to do.

So why, at 5-0, did I not even consider the Buffs?

Mainly because of their schedule. CU hasn’t beaten anybody worth talking about. Combined, their opponents are 9-21 this season. Northern Arizona (4-3) is the only Buffs opponent with a winning record. Wisconsin is the only team from a BCS conference the Buffs will play in their 11-game non-conference schedule. While Saturday’s 58-48 win was nice, Wisconsin is still one of the bottom feeders in the Big Ten, sitting at 2-5.

There are a bunch of teams that, like CU, are undefeated, but, unlike CU, have good, resume-building wins. Delaware is one of those teams. I ranked the Fightin Blue Hens 25th. They’ve knocked off then-No. 12 Penn State, a good Villanova team on the road and a good St. Bonaventure team on the road.

Delaware is just one example. Wisconsin-Green Bay, Ohio State, Texas Tech, Vanderbilt, Nebraska and Princeton also have unbeaten records with quality wins. Even Michigan, at 7-0, has a more impressive resume than CU right now, and I didn’t even consider the Wolverines for a top-25 spot this week.

Bottom line for CU: Keep winning. The Buffs’ schedule won’t impress anyone. In fact, it’s possible that CU’s two dates with Stanford will be their only games against ranked opponents.

As long as the Buffs keep winning, though, they’ll get their reward. Maybe it won’t come in a top-25 ranking, but it could come in the form of an NCAA Tournament bid.

My top 25 ballot for this week:

1. Baylor

2. Connecticut

3. Texas A&M

4. Notre Dame

5. Stanford

6. Maryland

7. Miami, FL

8. Louisville

9. Tennessee

10. Duke

11. Purdue

12. Kentucky

13. North Carolina

14. Rutgers

15. Penn State

16. Georgetown

17. Georgia

18. Oklahoma

19. Green Bay

20. Gonzaga

21. DePaul

22. Texas

23. Ohio State

24. Texas Tech

25. Delaware

Fortunately for CU, the entire non-conference schedule is full of teams they should beat. Before Pac-12 conference play begins on Dec. 31, the Buffs will have 11 non-conference games under their belts. They SHOULD be 11-0, but I’ve got to figure they’ll have a letdown or two. So, at worst they should be 9-2 going into conference play.

Once conference play starts, the competition level will rise. By then, hopefully the Buffs have worked out the kinks, improved their game and developed the confidence they need to make a run at the top half of the standings. If they can finish in the top five in the Pac-12, an NCAA Tournament bid could come their way.

1. Baylor
2. Connecticut
3. Stanford
4. Texas A&M
5. Notre Dame
6. Tennessee
7. Maryland
8. Duke
9. Georgia
10. Miami, FL
11. Louisville
12. Oklahoma
13. Purdue
14. Kentucky
15. North Carolina
16. Rutgers
17. Penn State
18. Virginia
19. Gonzaga
20. Green Bay
21. LSU
22. Georgetown
23. DePaul
24. Texas
25. Georgia Tech