UCLA Basketball: New Analytics Assessment Loves 2024-25 Bruins

Here's hoping it's on to something.

Mar 14, 2024; Las Vegas, NV, USA; UCLA Bruins guard Dylan Andrews (2) dribbles the ball. / Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

Following a bummer of a 2023-24 run that saw them finish with a paltry 16-17 record, UCLA Bruins head coach Mick Cronin has pivoted mightily when it comes to his team-building strategy, largely forgoing international prospects ahead of this forthcoming 2024-25 season. The NCAA transfer portal has been his preferred mode of adding talent.

The Bruins have added ex-Louisville guard Skyy Clark, former USC Trojans small forward Kobe Johnson, ex-Oklahoma State power forward Eric Dailey Jr., former Oregon State forward Tyler Bilodeau, ex-South Dakota State big man William Kyle III, and former sharpshooting LMU forward Dominick Harris.

Now, UCLA is widely expected to bounce back from its lone sub-.500 season in Mick Cronin's Bruins history in a big way. The Bruins have been ranked as the eighth-best team in the nation next season, per the Bart Torvik T-Rankings, writes Mike Regalado of 247Sports.

The T-Rank's analytics team crunches a variety of stats to make these deductions, projecting how incumbent players and transfer players will perform in tandem, while unpacking a team's adjusted offensive efficiency and adjusted defensive efficiency. The Bruins' anticipated record is 24-7 (15-5 in the Big 10). That would be quite the improvement, indeed.

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