The Best of the West offers fans a candid assessment of the top teams in the western third of the country — a collection that includes the Mountain West and the former Pac-12 schools now scattered across the ACC, Big 12, Big Ten and West Coast Conference. The rankings will be published on the Hotline each Monday through the remainder of the regular season. 1.
UCLA (10-2/2-0 Big Ten) Last week : 1 Results: lost to North Carolina 76-74 NET ranking: 20 Next up: vs. Gonzaga (Saturday) Comment: The Bruins flopped against North Carolina in much the same fashion that Arizona flopped against UCLA a week earlier. Up 16 points with 13 minutes left, they crashed and burned and left Madison Square Garden with a two-point loss that won’t be forgotten — at least for a week.
2. Gonzaga (9-3) Last week: 2 Results: beat Nicholls State 102-72 and Bucknell 86-65 NET ranking: 5 Next up: vs. UCLA Comment: The upcoming showdown with the Bruins (at the Intuit Dome) offers a final chance for the Zags to polish their resume — and grab a third Quadrant I win — before West Coast Conference play begins.
3. San Diego State (8-2/1-0 Mountain West) Last week: 3 Results: beat Cal 71-50 NET ranking: 43 Next up: vs. Utah State (Saturday) Comment: The Aztecs spent 24 hours getting to San Jose for the neutral-site matchup after multiple flight cancellations forced part of the team to drive to the Bay Area.
But the defense traveled, as SDSU held the Bears to 25.5 percent shooting. 4.
Arizona State (9-2.