UCLA basketball coach Ben Howland said it clearly Saturday, after the Bruins stomped Notre Dame, announcing his team’s progress over the past two weekends.
“We’re playing right now how we were ranked going into the season,” he said. “A top-five team in the country.”
The win over Notre Dame punctuated a stretch of dominant play from UCLA (19-4, 8-2) in the past two weeks. The Bruins had already cruised past three solid Pac-10 teams ““ California, Stanford and USC ““ before the nationally televised, 26-point victory against the Fighting Irish.
Now UCLA faces a big question.
Will their recent play earn the Bruins a top seed in the NCAA tournament?
Howland’s teams used a No. 1 or No. 2 seed to reach the Final Four in each of the past three seasons. But the Bruins’ current resume may not impress the NCAA selection committee so much, and with only eight games remaining in the season, the team is running out of time.
The selection committee considers myriad factors, but also gauges teams with a specific formula, the Ratings Percentage Index. UCLA boasted an excellent rating in each of the past three seasons. The Bruins finished No. 4 in 2008, No. 2 in 2007 and No. 9 in 2006.
UCLA sits at No. 27 in the most recent RPI.
That relatively poor ranking reflects the Bruins’ schedule strength and lack of significant victories. The Bruins have played no teams in the top 20 of the RPI, and they fell in important matchups with Arizona State and Washington.
Luck hasn’t helped UCLA’s strength of schedule rating, either. The Bruins missed an opportunity to play Duke ““ the top-ranked team in the RPI ““ after a loss to Michigan in the 2K Sports Classic. Notre Dame and Texas, two of the Bruins’ non-conference opponents, have fallen drastically in polls. And the Bruins also played two especially weak opponents, Prairie View A&M and Loyola Marymount, rated No. 304 and No. 323 in the RPI respectively.
Based purely on the RPI, the Bruins would receive a No. 6 seed if the tournament began today. But the committee considers many other factors and the final 10 games of the season are emphasized more than early season results.
If UCLA maintains its stellar play ““ and survives rematches with Washington and Arizona State ““ it could conceivably earn a higher seed. A Sports Illustrated projection published Monday places the Bruins as a No. 3 seed.
Still, it looks like the Bruins will have a much tougher route this March. Seedings are always unpredictable, but in the past three years the Bruins knew for certain they could play their first and second round games close to home.
This year there will be no NCAA tournament games played in California. The Bruins can only hope to play their first-round games in Boise, Idaho or Portland, Ore., the closest possible destinations.
For the regional final the Bruins could be in Phoenix, Boston, Memphis or Indianapolis, and, because of a lower seed, their path to that point may be more challenging.
ALL ABOUT ABOYA: The Pac-10 Conference named UCLA forward Alfred Aboya Pac-10 Player of the Week on Monday. This is first time Aboya has earned that honor, and only one other Bruin has been awarded it this season, point guard Darren Collison.
Aboya finished with 14 points and 12 rebounds against USC last Wednesday and 19 points and seven rebounds against Notre Dame Saturday. The Bruins won both games.
BUMPS AND BRUISES: A UCLA spokesman announced several slight injuries after the Bruins beat Notre Dame Saturday. Freshman forward Drew Gordon left the game with a back spasm. Freshman guard Malcolm Lee injured his left ankle. Junior forward Nikola Dragovic had flu-like symptoms. There was no update on those injuries available Monday, because players were given the day off.