NCAA Basketball: Way-too-early top-25 power rankings for 2021-22 season

The amazing Final Four run and near upset of the Gonzaga Bulldogs have the Bruins as the flavor of the early preseason rankings, with some having them up there at No. 1 or 2. And it’s hard to blame them, as UCLA could potentially bring back everyone who made the run in the first place, plus add a couple of key pieces.

The biggest name in all of this will be Johnny Juzang, a former Kentucky player who transferred and ended up leading the team in scoring in the regular season (16.0 ppg), before upping it to nearly 25 ppg in the NCAA Tournament. His NBA Draft stock has risen greatly and he could go pro.

Even so, the Bruins do have a five-star wing commit of their own in Peyton Watson that could fill Juzang’s shoes. They also may be getting back Chris Smith, who led the team in scoring in the previous season but was out for the second half of this year due to an injury.

What we know for sure is that the other four starters, who each averaged in double figures (Jaime Jaquez, Tyger Campbell, Cody Riley, and Jules Bernard) all are coming back, along with key bench contributors David Singleton and Jake Kyman. Although Jalen Hill has elected to retire from basketball, bigs Kenneth Nwuba and Mac Etienne provide solid frontcourt depth.

It’s important to remember that this team was an 11 seed that nearly missed out on the NCAA Tournament, but their run could and should provide confidence that they’ll continue playing at a high level. And with head coach Mick Cronin having nearly everyone back, look for the defense to be even better against Pac-12 opponents, giving them a real chance to win the league.