The UCLA Basketball team returns to Pauley Pavilion this week for their first home conference series against Cal and Stanford, a place they have been very good at in the Steve Alford-era.
The UCLA Basketball (14-1, 1-1) team may have lost their first game of the season last week up in Eugene, Oregon, but they are still perfect at home this year.
This is something the Bruins will try to keep intact in conference play. If they do, it will be the second time they stay perfect at home in Alford’s tenure. The first occurring during the 2014-15 season.
With that in mind, it is conceivable to think that this year’s team, which is arguably the best Alford has assembled in his four years, can go undefeated at home.
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Here are the home records for UCLA in the last four years:
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2016-17: 8-0
2015-16: 11-6 (4-5 in conference)
2014-15: 16-1 (9-0)
2013-14: 16-2 (7-2)
Total: 51-9 (20-7)
Aside from last season’s abysmal production, which resulted in a losing home conference record, the Bruins have been solid at Pauley Pavilion.
This could lead to UCLA doing very well in Westwood this year and could once again be perfect at home. If that is the case, UCLA Basketball fans need to get out to Pauley Pavilion to view what should be an excellent Pac-12 season.
This year, the Bruins host (in order) Cal/Stanford, Arizona State/Arizona, Oregon/Oregon State, USC and Washington/Washington State. Aside from how difficulty it would be to navigate through the Pac-12, three of the conference’s top teams will take on the Bruins at home.
So not only will the Bruins have a battle in every series, those battles should be epic.
Cal poses the first threat on Thursday with their athletic squad, right before the Arizona’s come to town. The Bruins then get to enact their revenge on Oregon after the Ducks beat the Bruins last week on a last second shot.
Then there is the crosstown showdown which will have the Bruins looking for payback after losing to the Trojans three times last season. Then UCLA finishes with the Washington schools, which will be no walk in the park.
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Difficult, indeed. Impossible to stay perfect at home, not really. If UCLA stays focused, plays their game and the fans come out and give the Bruins a serious home court advantage, there could be a 9-0 conference record in UCLA’s future.