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When talking about college basketball in the 1970s, one program managed to field arguably one of the best squads in NCAA men's hoops history: UCLA. In 1972, the Bruins were the undisputed (and frankly, almost unbeatable) kings of college basketball, eventually winning the national title.
What was the UCLA basketball record in 1972?
That Bruins squad, led by NBA legends Bill Walton and Jamaal Wilkes, went undefeated for the entire season, 30-0. They won every game in the regular season (26) and swept the NCAA tournament the rest of the way, culminating in their eighth championship.
But perhaps the greatest thing about that team is that they were right in the middle of the most legendary winning streak in American team sports. The victory that helped them clinch the national championship against Florida State was the 45th straight game in their iconic 88-game streak—a record that still stands today.
UCLA was demolishing anyone that year
It's one thing to go unbeaten for an entire season. But the 1972 UCLA Bruins men's basketball team was doing more than just winning games; they were dismantling teams along the way.
The team defeated opponents by an average of over 30 points a game. The most points that any team ever scored against them was 83 points, and they still won that game by 17 (against Washington).
The Bruins were regularly scoring in the hundreds.
The Bruins' iconic leader: Bill Walton
Not to take anything from Jamaal Wilkes (who was the team's second-best scorer), all the major individual accolades were deserved by one player: Bill Walton.
Walton won USBWA College Player of the Year, Naismith College Player of the Year, and the Adolph Rupp Trophy. He averaged a massive double-double of 21.1 points and 15.5 rebounds per game on an extremely efficient 64% FG shooting. He scored 633 points that season.
