A struggling UCLA squad visited Tempe and escaped with a narrow 61-59 win back on Jan 25. Since then the Bruins have gone 9-2, including a 22-point comeback win at Oregon, and have jumped into the AP’s top-25.
The team they beat to start the ascension, Arizona State, defeated Colorado in round one of the Pac-12 Tournament in Las Vegas to set up a fascinating rematch.
“You know, they were a team that knew they were better than they were and they were just not hitting shots that they would normally hit,” ASU head coach Charli Turner Thorne said of UCLA.