March is here. Start the Dancing.

No. 7 seed UCLA men’s basketball (23-11, 13-7 Big Ten) will face No. 10 seed UCF (21-11, 9-9 Big 12) in the Round of 64 on Friday night at the Xfinity Mobile Arena in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The Bruins return to the NCAA Tournament for the second consecutive season as a No. 7 seed and will again travel across the country with a dominant No. 2 seed in UConn likely waiting in the second round. UCLA has not made it past the Sweet Sixteen since its First Four to Final Four run during the 2020-21 season, and this year could be the first the squad snaps its Round of 32 losing streak. The Daily Bruin Sports men’s basketball beat predicts how the Bruins will perform at this year’s iteration of the Big Dance.

Connor Dullinger
Sports editor
Prediction: Round of 32 loss to No. 2 seed UConn

I am conflicted.

Everything and everyone is telling me the Bruins are a dark horse.

They have four top-10 wins this season, three of them coming since Feb. 21.

UCLA upset No. 3 seed Michigan State – the No. 11 team in the AP Poll and a No. 3 seed in the NCAA Tournament – in the Big Ten tournament quarterfinals despite senior forward Tyler Bilodeau playing just 10 minutes.

And UCLA tied Purdue 62-62 with 3:41 remaining in the Big Ten semifinal bout despite Bilodeau sitting on the bench and senior guard Donovan Dent playing just 10 minutes. The Boilermakers went on to beat the top-seeded Wolverines in the Big Ten final.

There is no reason why UCLA can’t upset No. 2 seed UConn in the likely Round of 32 matchup. And I see UCLA more likely beating No. 3 seed Michigan State again if the Spartans make it to the Sweet Sixteen. And if the Bruins really do make it to the Elite Eight, it’s anyone’s game.

But I’m not convinced.

Not because UCLA does not have the momentum or the talent to do it. But because history has shown me otherwise.

Jalen Suggs’ half-court heave ended the Bruins’ championship hopes in the Final Four five seasons ago. Caleb Love’s second-half domination ended UCLA’s season four years prior. And Gonzaga’s Julian Strawther mimicked Suggs with another game-clinching shot from deep three years ago.

Many would argue that all three of those teams – maybe outside of the First Four to Final Four run – had the talent to go further than they actually did.

And I think this year is no different.

Kai Dizon
Daily Bruin senior staff
Prediction: Round of 64 loss to No. 10 seed UCF

I did not watch the Disney classics as a kid.

I was more than content with Pixar’s “Cars,” “Finding Nemo” and “Ratatouille.”

But it is March – the time of year when seemingly every sports fan’s favorite word is “Cinderella.”

Many are calling UCLA a Cinderella. At this point, I had no choice but to look it up.

How in the world is this a good thing?

I am not sure the Bruins will even get to Philadelphia in time via horse-drawn carriage. Plus, where is coach Mick Cronin even going to find a pumpkin in March?

Frankly, I am not sure I trust Bilodeau’s ability to play The Oregon Trail in reverse. I mean, what if junior forward/center Xavier Booker gets dysentery?

And the Bruins are going to the first round dressed for a ball? I know it is called the Big Dance, but UCLA knows it’s playing basketball, right?

Dent just suffered a calf strain, and I am not sure he will survive trying to change directions wearing glass slippers.

We will need to check with the NCAA, but UCLA better pray its fairy godmother still has some eligibility left.

I checked the bracket, and I don’t see any sign of Prince Charming – just Knights, Huskies, Blue Devils, Spartans and Jayhawks.

And I do not think they will be all that enticed by the size of the Bruins’ feat.

But the real kicker?

The magic runs out at midnight.

And the Bruins will lose three hours thanks to the change in time zones alone.

Sabrina Messiha
Daily Bruin senior staff
Prediction: Elite Eight loss to Duke

The semifinal finish in the Big Ten tournament was the Bruins’ least disappointing loss of the season.

It seemed like all hope was lost after Bilodeau exited the quarterfinal with a knee injury sustained in the first half, and Dent left the semifinal bout after playing just 10 minutes. And yet, UCLA pulled off a 15-2 comeback within the dying embers of its affair against Purdue to come within grasp of the tournament championship game.

With that energy carrying into March and a plethora of upsets under its sleeve, UCLA can jump over a few hurdles to play further into the tournament than expected.

However, UCLA’s travels will end in Washington, D.C.

In order to break into the Sweet Sixteen, UCLA will likely have to defeat No. 2 seed UConn. The Big Ten East tournament runner-up lost only five times during the regular season and – despite ranking seventh overall – have a stronger record than the fourth, fifth and sixth-ranked teams nationally.

The Huskies ranked as high as No. 2 in the AP Top 25 poll and spent most of the regular season within the top-six teams.

But with Bilodeau and Dent confirmed to play in the tournament, the Bruins look unstoppable.

If the top-scoring duo had not been injured during the Big Ten tournament semifinals, I think the Bruins could have gone all the way.

After it defeats UConn, UCLA will likely meet a familiar Big Ten rival in No. 3 seed Michigan State.

And based on recent events, that will be a piece of cake for the Bruins.

Grant Walters
Assistant Sports editor
Prediction: Elite Eight loss to No. 1 seed Duke

The Big Ten tournament trophy was destined for Westwood.

Had it not been for injuries to the Bruins’ two leading scorers – seniors guard Donovan Dent and forward Tyler Bilodeau – they would be Big Ten champions.

UCLA men’s basketball lost by just seven points to Purdue – the eventual tournament champion, who bullied No. 1 seed Michigan in the conference championship – and even tied the game 62-62 in the waning minutes with Dent and Bilodeau sidelined.

Dent, who has recorded 78 assists compared to just six turnovers across his last eight outings, and Bilodeau will return to the court for the NCAA Tournament.

And the tandem will carry this team to an Elite Eight berth alongside the budding stars that emerged at the Big Ten tournament while the senior duo watched from the bench.

The Bruins boast the talent to compete with anyone in the nation. They defeated three top-10 teams during the regular season. They boasted the No. 12 ranking in the preseason AP Top 25 poll.

And they are clicking at the right time.

UCLA has won four of its last five contests, including two postseason triumphs against No. 14 seed Rutgers and No. 3 seed Michigan State – a team that defeated UCLA 82-59 on Feb. 17.

Across that stretch, the Bruins played with a level of poise reminiscent of a championship-caliber team.

This is particularly true for Dent.

The New Mexico transfer struggled to find his groove to start the season, netting just two 3-pointers across his first 16 games in Westwood, but now has thrived as the squad’s primary orchestrator.

And the offensive capacity of the Bruins reached its full potential against the Spartans on Friday, when the Westwood bunch notched 88 points on 55.6% shooting from the field and 48.1% from beyond the arc.

A team can beat anyone with those numbers

And I don’t expect the Bruins to slow down.

Until they face the East region’s juggernaut – No. 1 seed Duke.

Badri Viswanathan
Daily Bruin reporter
Prediction: Final Four loss to No. 2 seed Houston

Cronin’s first chance at NCAA Tournament glory, helming UCLA, appeared to be futile.

The Bruins lost their last four games entering Selection Sunday and were relegated to a First Four spot.

Many viewed the 2021 Bruins as a Round of 64 exit and a footnote in NCAA Tournament history.

But that squad climbed from footnote to headline.

The 2020-21 team – headlined by future NBA guards Johnny Juzang and Jaime Jaquez Jr. – won five consecutive tournament games to move from First Four to Final Four.

But the Cronin experiment appeared to be on the verge of collapse during the 2026 campaign after a 23-point loss to Michigan State.

The seventh-year head coach ejected his own player, redshirt senior forward/center Steven Jamerson II – a practice virtually unheard of in today’s NCAA – and had a contentious postgame encounter with a reporter.

But in the month since, UCLA has gone 6-2 with three top-ten wins and earned a berth to the Big Ten tournament semifinals.

And Cronin’s crew now appears poised to become a March Madness headline once more.

Dent is arguably the nation’s best playmaker, with a near 13-to-1 assist-to-turnover ratio in his last eight games. And Bilodeau is the Bruins’ offensive foundation, averaging 17.6 points per game and is surrounded by players with scoring ability and defensive prowess such as sophomore guard Trent Perry, senior guard Skyy Clark and junior guard/forward Eric Dailey Jr.

UCLA will defeat juggernauts in No. 3 seed Michigan State and No. 1 seed Duke before falling to No. 2 seed Houston – the nation’s best-coached team – in the Final Four.