Bruins' Latest Loss Proves Crucial for Big Ten Tournament Seeding

The UCLA Bruins suffered a back-breaking loss on Tuesday night to the Minnesota Golden Gophers that not only weakened their NCAA Tournament resume but likely knocked them out of contention for a valuable spot in the Big Ten Tournament.

Feb 18, 2025; Los Angeles, California, USA; UCLA Bruins guard Sebastian Mack (12) shoots against Minnesota Golden Gophers guard Lu'Cye Patterson (25) and forward Frank Mitchell (00) during the second half at Pauley Pavilion presented by Wescom. Mandatory Credit: Robert Hanashiro-Imagn Images | Robert Hanashiro-Imagn Images

The UCLA Bruins (19-8, 10-6) made their goal for a Big Ten tournament championship much tougher with Tuesday's upset loss to the Minnesota Golden Gophers (14-12, 6-9) on Tuesday night at Pauley Pavilion. They will have to go on quite a stretch in their final four regular season games to avoid an extra game.

The loss is extremely significant for this team due to the fact that it likely knocks them out of a chance to earn a top-4 seed in the upcoming Big Ten Tournament, which is a major accomplishment and an advantage for the postseason.

Due to conference realignment and the addition of four new Big Ten teams, only 15 of the 18 teams will qualify for the conference tournament. Another stipulation was that the top four teams in the standings would receive a double-bye in that same tournament.

That means the Bruins would have been able to skip the first two rounds, only have to play a quarterfinal, semifinal, and championship game to win the tournament and secure a spot in the NCAA Tournament. Instead, they will likely be playing that extra game, just missing a top-4 seeding.

UCLA is looking up at the No. 13 Purdue Boilermakers (19-8, 11-5) and No. 20 Maryland Terrapins (10-6, 10-5) for that fourth and final double-bye spot. With just four games remaining on the schedule, the Bruins will likely need to win three of their final four contests while receiving help from other teams.

The good news for the Bruins is that they will still be a team in the upper half of Big Ten teams when all is said and done. Even if an extra tournament game is required, they will play one of the lower-seeded teams that has struggled to succeed in conference play this season.

Sunday afternoon will feature another opportunity for the Bruins to try and climb back in the standings, but without multiple losses from the other teams ahead of them, it will be nearly impossible. UCLA will face the Ohio State Buckeyes (15-11, 7-8) at Pauley Pavilion.

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