The 1971–72 UCLA Bruins men's basketball team won the National Collegiate Championship on March 25, 1972, in the

Los Angeles Sports Arena The Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena was a multi-purpose arena at Exposition Park, in the University Park neighborhood of Los Angeles. It was located next to the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum and just south of the campus of the University of ...

with an 81–76 victory over

Florida State Florida State University (FSU or Florida State) is a Public university, public research university in Tallahassee, Florida, United States. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida and a preeminent university in the s ...

. It was the sixth consecutive championship (and eighth in nine years) under

John Wooden John Robert Wooden (October 14, 1910 – June 4, 2010) was an American basketball coach and player. Nicknamed "the Wizard of Westwood", he won ten National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament, nati ...

, in his 25th year as head coach at UCLA. This was the final year that the national championship game was played on Saturday. The 1971–72 Bruins had an undefeated record of 30–0, winning by an average margin of over thirty points. They won all 26 games in the regular season (fourteen in

Pac-8 The Pac-12 Conference is a collegiate athletic conference in the Western United States. It participates at the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I level for all sports, and its football teams compete in the Football Bowl ...

play), then four in the NCAA tournament. This was the 45th consecutive victory in a winning streak that reached 88 games, an NCAA record.

Season summary

Sophomore

Bill Walton William Theodore Walton III (November 5, 1952 – May 27, 2024) was an American basketball player and television Sports commentator, sportscaster. He played college basketball, collegiately for the UCLA Bruins men's basketball, UCLA Bruins an ...

lived up to his advance billing, leading the Bruins to a 30–0 record and the National Championship while averaging a double-double (21.1 PPG, 15.5 RPG). Greg Lee and

Henry Bibby Charles Henry Bibby (born November 24, 1949) is an American former professional basketball player who played for the New York Knicks, New Orleans Jazz, Philadelphia 76ers, and San Diego Clippers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He ...

formed a solid back court, and forwards

Keith Wilkes Jamaal Abdul-Lateef (born Jackson Keith Wilkes; May 2, 1953), better known as Jamaal Wilkes, is an American former basketball player who was a small forward in the National Basketball Association (NBA). A three-time NBA All-Star, he won four NBA ...

and

Larry Farmer Larry Farmer may refer to: *Larry Farmer (basketball) Larry Farmer (born January 31, 1951) is an American basketball coach and former player. Farmer served as the head basketball coach at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) from 19 ...

were double-digit scorers. Walton's backup,

Swen Nater Swen Erick Nater (born January 14, 1950) is a Dutch former professional basketball player. He played primarily in the American Basketball Association (ABA) and National Basketball Association (NBA), and is the only player to have led both the NBA ...

, could have been a star at other schools and went on to a lengthy pro career.

Starting lineup

Roster

Schedule

, - !colspan=9 style=, Regular Season , - !colspan=12 style="background:#;", NCAA Tournament :

Notes

* The team opened the season as the No. 1 team in both the AP and UPI polls * Prior to joining the varsity team, Lee (17.9 ppg), Wilkes (20.0 ppg), and Walton (18.1, 68.6 per cent) were members of the 20–0 Frosh team * Bruins won the Bruin Classic in Pauley Pavilion * Bill Walton and Henry Bibby were named to the 1972 Consensus All-America first team

Awards and honors

* Bill Walton,

USBWA College Player of the Year The Oscar Robertson Trophy is given out annually to the most outstanding NCAA Division I men's basketball player by the U.S. Basketball Writers Association (USBWA), first presented in 1959. It is one of the oldest national player of the year awar ...

* Bill Walton,

Naismith College Player of the Year The Naismith College Player of the Year is "the most prestigious national award presented annually to the men's and women's college basketball players of the year," as chosen by the Atlanta Tipoff Club's Board of Selectors. It is named in honor o ...

* Bill Walton,

Adolph Rupp Trophy The Adolph F. Rupp Trophy was an annual college basketball award given to the top player in men's NCAA Division I competition. It was awarded between 1972 and 2015. The recipient of the award was selected by an independent panel consisting of nat ...

Team players drafted into the NBA

* Henry Bibby, New York * Bill Walton, San Antonio (ABA)

References

External links

*
1971–72 UCLA Bruins
at Sports-Reference.com {{DEFAULTSORT:1971-72 UCLA Bruins men's basketball team

Ucla Bruins The UCLA Bruins are the athletic teams that represent the University of California, Los Angeles. The Bruin men's and women's teams participate in NCAA Division I as part of the Big Ten Conference and the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation (MPSF ...

UCLA Bruins men's basketball seasons NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament championship seasons NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament Final Four seasons

Ucla The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Its academic roots were established in 1881 as a normal school then known as the southern branch of the C ...

UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Its academic roots were established in 1881 as a normal school then known as the southern branch of the C ...