Men's Basketball AP Poll: UCLA Slips Amid COVID Shutdown
The Bruins, without seeing the court, were forced to take another step backwards.
UCLA men's basketball (8-1) went from No. 4 to No. 5 in the latest edition of the AP Poll on Monday. The Bruins did not receive a single first-place vote and totaled 1,294 points. The USA Today Coaches Poll, meanwhile, actually had UCLA move up from No. 4 to No. 3.
The Bruins did not play a game this week and will not play against this upcoming week as a result of a COVID-19 shutdown within the program. They were scheduled to play North Carolina, who was right on the cusp of breaking into the top 25 last week before getting blown out by Kentucky in the replacement game.
The last time UCLA played was Dec.11 versus Marquette, winning 67-56 in what will end up being their only game in a four-week span.
As a result of their hiatus, UCLA got leapfrogged by Gonzaga, the only team to beat them so far this season. Baylor stayed put at No. 1 after three straight weeks of the top team falling off.
Around the Pac-12, Arizona moved from No. 8 to No. 6, while USC moved up from No. 10 to No. 8. As a result, the Conference of Champions boasts more top-eight teams than any other league in the country, although no other team in the Pac-12 even received votes outside those three.
Assuming the COVID-19 break isn’t extended any further, UCLA’s next game will be against Arizona at Pauley Pavilion on Dec. 30. The matchup between two top-six rivals will mark the third time the Bruins have played a top-10 team so far this season, and they are 1-1 in such contests.
The full AP poll is as follows, complete with records and first-place votes:
1. Baylor, 10-0 (60 first-place votes)
2. Duke, 10-1
3. Purdue, 10-1
4. Gonzaga, 9-2
5. UCLA, 9-1
6. Arizona, 11-0
7. Kansas, 9-1
8. USC, 12-0
9. Iowa State, 11-0
10. Alabama, 9-2
11. Michigan State, 9-2
12. Auburn, 10-1
13. Houston, 10-2
14. Ohio State, 8-2
15. Seton Hall, 9-2
16. Texas, 8-2
17. LSU, 11-0
18. Xavier, 11-1
19. Tennessee, 8-2
20. Kentucky, 8-2
21. Colorado State, 10-0
22. Providence, 11-1
23. Villanova, 7-4
24. Wisconsin, 9-2
25. Texas Tech, 8-2
Others receiving votes: Oklahoma 65, West Virginia 57, Connecticut 55, Illinois 49, Loyola Chicago 42, Arkansas 9, Michigan 9, BYU 8, North Carolina 7, San Francisco 6, Wake Forest 5, Oklahoma State 4, Virginia Tech 4, Iowa 3, Minnesota 3, Creighton 2, Memphis 1
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