Preseason AP Poll: UCLA Men's Basketball Debuts Inside Top 10

The preseason hype may not match the top-two spot from 2021, but the Bruins are the highest-ranked team in the Pac-12.

The Bruins may not be held up as a national championship favorite this fall, but they still earned their fair share of respect heading into the season.

The AP released its preseason top 25 rankings on Monday, and UCLA men's basketball earned 1,093 points, which was good for No. 8 in the country. That does not approach the No. 2 preseason ranking they owned heading into the 2021-2022 campaign coming off a miracle March Madness run, but it is just the second time the Bruins made the preseason top 10 since 2009.

The Bruins have now made the preseason top 25 in of each of the past three seasons under coach Mick Cronin, as well as six of of the last seven overall.

UCLA was a mainstay in the top 10 through the end of January a year ago, and even though they were unable to creep back in late in the season, they did end the campaign ranked No. 11 following a runner-up finish in the Pac-12 tournament.

The team that knocked UCLA out in the Sweet 16 of the 2022 NCAA tournament, North Carolina, was the runaway favorite at No. 1. The Tar Heels picked up 47 of the 62 first-place votes thanks to its roster loaded with returning talent, including veterans Armando Bacot and Caleb Love.

The team that knocked UCLA out in the Final Four of the 2021 NCAA tournament, Gonzaga, came in at No. 2 with 12 first-place votes, thanks in large part to the return of big man Drew Timme. Houston and Kentucky also earned top votes, with the two most recent national champions – Baylor and Kansas – rounding out the top-five in a dead tie.

Two other Pac-12 teams joined the Bruins in the top 25 – Arizona and Oregon. The Wildcats came in at No. 17, while the Ducks entered the fray at No. 21. USC was the conference's lone representative in the receiving votes section, earning three points.

The full AP poll is as follows, complete with first-place votes:

1. North Carolina (47 first-place votes)
2. Gonzaga (12)
3. Houston (1)
4. Kentucky (2)
T5. Baylor
T5. Kansas
7. Duke
8. UCLA
9. Creighton
10. Arkansas
11. Tennessee
12. Texas
13. Indiana
14. TCU
15. Auburn
16. Villanova
17. Arizona
18. Virginia
19. San Diego State
20. Alabama
21. Oregon
22. Michigan
23. Illinois
24. Dayton
25. Texas Tech

Others receiving votes: Texas A&M 112, UConn 101, Miami (FL) 66, Purdue 56, Saint Louis 36, Michigan State 35, Florida State 32, Xavier 29, Wyoming 25, Ohio State 23, Iowa 13, Rutgers 4, Florida 3, USC 3, Virginia Tech 1, Memphis 1, Toledo 1, Notre Dame 1, UAB 1

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