Men's Hoops Secures No. 4 Seed in NCAA Tournament
LOS ANGELES – The UCLA men's basketball team has secured a No. 4 seed in the 68-team NCAA Tournament field, as announced on Sunday when the complete 68-team bracket was revealed on CBS.
The Bruins (25-7) will take on No. 13-seed Akron (24-9) in a first-round contest on Thursday, March 17 at the Moda Center in Portland, Ore. The winner of that first-round matchup will advance to the second round and could face either No. 5-seed Saint Mary's, No. 12-seed Wyoming or No. 12-seed Indiana.
UCLA's Sunday Press Conference: Coach Cronin | Student-Athletes
UCLA's game this Thursday will begin at approximately 6:50 p.m. (PT) in Portland. The Bruins' contest will be televised by TBS, and the radio broadcast will be available on AM 570 (KLAC).
The Bruins will return to the NCAA Tournament for the second straight season. Last year, UCLA won five consecutive games (including a "First Four" contest) to advance to the NCAA Final Four for the 19th time in program history.
Most recently, UCLA lost to Arizona, 84-76, in the Pac-12 Tournament's championship contest on Saturday evening in Las Vegas. The Bruins have gone 25-7 this season and compiled a 15-5 record in the Pac-12 Conference (second place).
UCLA had a trio of players secure first-team All-Pac-12 acclaim last week. Tyger Cambpell earned first-team all-league honors for the second consecutive season, while Jaime Jaquez Jr. and Johnny Juzang were also recognized as first-team selections.
This will mark the second season in which head coach Mick Cronin has led the Bruins to the NCAA Tournament. Cronin, in his third year as The Michael Price Family UCLA Men's Head Basketball Coach, has now guided his teams to 11 consecutive NCAA Tournaments, including a string of nine straight appearances during his final nine seasons as Cincinnati (2011-19).
Cronin is one of just four active coaches in the nation to have led his teams to the last 11 NCAA Tournaments (includes this season) – he joins Mark Few (Gonzaga), Tom Izzo (Michigan State) and Bill Self (Kansas) in that category.
The Bruins will enter this season's NCAA Tournament having won eight of their past 10 contests. UCLA had advanced to the finals of the Pac-12 Tournament with wins against Washington State (quarterfinals, last Thursday) and USC (semifinals, last Friday).