NCAA Basketball: Auburn, Oregon, Purdue rise in latest top 25 power rankings
By Joey Loose
24. UCLA (6-1)
After dreadful results last season, Mick Cronin turned the page and has UCLA looking like a better team one month into this year. The Bruins joined the Big Ten in the offseason and certainly face a far different challenge in conference play. From what we’ve seen so far, the pieces in place are starting to come together, especially on the defensive end, especially since that tough loss to New Mexico. It’s all about if there’s enough offense here to make a run in the Big Ten.
UCLA’s only game last week came on Tuesday night against Southern Utah, with the Bruins winning 88-43 in their biggest blowout of the season. This performance was already the fifth time this season that UCLA had allowed 50 or fewer points in a game, albeit not against the toughest schedule in the world. Against the Thunderbirds, Lazar Stefanovic scored 19 points off the bench, finding his form much like last season.
In a week where a lot of teams lost or looked vulnerable, UCLA quietly took care of business and went up in most analytics. The Bruins haven’t faced the same type of challenges as other power conference teams, even ones at the top of their new league, but they’re winning and playing outstanding defense to this point. We’ll start learning a lot more in the weeks to come, including Big Ten contests against Washington and at Oregon in the days ahead.