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Nostalgic for 2016? Or maybe at least the college basketball in 2016? Matt Norlander at CBSSports.com has you covered. He recaps the 46 top moments in college basketball from the year that was. It’s got everything from legends of the game who passed to Bill Murray to Grayson Allen tripping incidents.
Checking in at #29:
UCLA's 97-92 win at Kentucky amounts to one of the most surprising outcomes this season. John Calipari almost never loses a game at Rupp Arena. UCLA had been good to that point, but dropping 97 on a Wildcats team aspiring to be the best defensive group in the nation was alarming. Bruins freshman T.J. Leaf had his coming-out party. Lonzo Ball and De'Aaron Fox both showed why they should be top-10 picks come June. The win amounts to what I still think is the most impressive victory for any team so far in 2016-17. The win also put UCLA in the mix for 2017 title contender and solidified the program's return to national relevance.
Norlander also recapped the last-second loss in Eugene last night but doesn’t think Bruin fans should be worried.
The Bruins lost because they had some weird bounces not go their way. Oregon couldn't slow UCLA on the whole. The Bruins shot 44 percent from 3-point range and 53 percent from the field. Really, the teams were pretty even, it's just that Oregon made almost every play it had to in the final 180 seconds. UCLA was eked out. I wouldn't sweat it if I were a Bruins fan.
Norlander’s compadre Gary Parrish, who does a Top 25 (and 1) seemingly every day, only dropped the Bruins to #3 following UCLA’s first loss of the season.
But I didn't penalize the Bruins much. They only fell to third in the CBS Sports Top 25 (and one) while Oregon jumped to 20th
As we roll into winter quarter, six active or soon-to-be active Bruin teams are currently ranked in the Top 25.
This week in rankings:
— UCLA Athletics (@UCLAAthletics) December 28, 2016
#️⃣2️⃣ MVB
#️⃣2️⃣ MBB
#️⃣4️⃣ GYM
#️⃣5️⃣ WGLF
#️⃣ WBB
#️⃣2️⃣2️⃣ S&D #GoBruins pic.twitter.com/cCVa3uGNMt
And if you need to get pumped for the #2 men’s volleyball season beginning next week, how about a couple of plays from last year that made the SC Top 10.
Micah Ma'a leapt over benches and into Sports Centers Top 10 not once but twice last season #UCLAMVB2016 pic.twitter.com/61vclDl1Oe
— UCLA M. Volleyball (@UCLAMVB) December 29, 2016
Men’s basketball returns to action Friday night against Oregon State in Corvallis.
Steve Alford, whose UCLA team is 13-1, on playing at Oregon State on Friday: "That's a must win for us."
— Ben Bolch (@latbbolch) December 29, 2016
GO BRUINS.