This past weekend’s road trip to Oregon presented the UCLA
men’s basketball team with a dual opportunity: solidify its
spot atop the Pac-10 standings, and leave an impression in the
minds of pollsters.
The Bruins succeeded on both counts with two road wins over
Oregon and Oregon State, moving up three spots to No. 14 in the
latest Associated Press poll released Monday. UCLA (17-4, 7-2
Pac-10) also maintained its one-game lead in the Pac-10 at the
midway point of league play. California, Stanford and Arizona are
all tied for second, one game behind UCLA.
Washington (16-4, 5-4) is the only other Pac-10 school ranked in
the top 25, checking in at No. 16.
The Huskies had been ranked in the top 10, but suffered close
losses to both Cal and Stanford and dropped in the poll.
Connecticut remained atop the poll for the second consecutive
week, followed by Duke and Memphis. The other teams in the top five
were not so lucky, as Florida and Texas were both upset in the past
week, and dropped out of the top five.
West Virginia, which had beaten the Bruins the previous week,
fell to unranked Marshall for the second consecutive year and
dropped two spots to No. 11. Indiana suffered the most precipitous
drop, plummeting nine spots to No. 22 after losses to Iowa and
Minnesota.
Michigan entered the top 25 for the first time all year after
beating two ranked teams in Michigan State and Wisconsin. UCLA
defeated the Wolverines, 68-61, on the road back on Dec. 17, 2005.
The win represents the Bruins’ only victory over a current
top 25 team.
The Bruins face a challenge this week to stay in the top 15 of
the poll, as they lost during both previous times ranked among the
top 15. In late December, the Bruins moved to No. 11, but lost to
Cal, and suffered the same fate two weeks later, when they moved
again to No. 11 and then lost to Washington.
This week, the Bruins host Arizona State and Arizona at
home.