# 1973–74 UCLA Bruins men's basketball team

The 1973–74 UCLA Bruins men's basketball team would be Bill Walton's final year with the school. During the season, the Bruins' 88 game winning streak would end. The defeat was a 71–70 loss to the University of Notre Dame Fighting Irish. Coincidentally, the Bruins' last loss was to Notre Dame and Austin Carr in 1971 by a score of 89–82.
In the postseason, UCLA's record streak of seven consecutive national titles was broken. North Carolina State defeated the Bruins 80–77 in double overtime in the Final Four.

## Pre-season

The team was ranked as the No. 1 team in the nation by both AP and UPI polls.

## Schedule

| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | Site city, state |
| Regular Season ||||||
| November 30, 1973* | No. 1 | Arkansas | W 101–79 | 1–0 | Pauley Pavilion Los Angeles, CA |
| December 1, 1973* | No. 1 | No. 4 Maryland | W 65–64 | 2–0 | Pauley Pavilion Los Angeles, CA |
| December 8, 1973* | No. 1 | SMU | W 77–60 | 3–0 | Pauley Pavilion Los Angeles, CA |
| December 15, 1973* ABC | No. 1 | vs. No. 2 North Carolina State | W 84–66 | 4–0 | St. Louis Arena St. Louis, MO |
| December 21, 1973* | No. 1 | Ohio | W 110–63 | 5–0 | Pauley Pavilion Los Angeles, CA |
| December 22, 1973* | No. 1 | St. Bonaventure | W 111–59 | 6–0 | Pauley Pavilion Los Angeles, CA |
| December 28, 1973* | No. 1 | Wyoming Bruin Classic | W 86–58 | 7–0 | Pauley Pavilion Los Angeles, CA |
| December 29, 1973* | No. 1 | Michigan Bruin Classic | W 90–70 | 8–0 | Pauley Pavilion Los Angeles, CA |
| January 5, 1974 | No. 1 | at Washington | W 100–48 | 9–0 (1–0) | Hec Edmundson Pavilion Seattle, WA |
| January 7, 1974 | No. 1 | at Washington State | W 55–45 | 10–0 (2–0) | Performing Arts Colliseum Pullman, WA |
| January 11, 1974 | No. 1 | California | W 92–56 | 11–0 (3–0) | Pauley Pavilion Los Angeles, CA |
| January 12, 1974 | No. 1 | Stanford | W 66–52 | 12–0 (4–0) | Pauley Pavilion Los Angeles, CA |
| January 17, 1974* | No. 1 | vs. Iowa | W 68–44 | 13–0 | Chicago Stadium Chicago, IL |
| January 19, 1974* TVS | No. 1 | at Notre Dame | L 70–71 | 13–1 | Athletic & Convocation Center Notre Dame, IN |
| January 25, 1974* | No. 2 | Santa Clara | W 96–54 | 14–1 | Pauley Pavilion Los Angeles, CA |
| January 26, 1974* | No. 1 | Notre Dame | W 94–75 | 15–1 | Pauley Pavilion Los Angeles, CA |
| February 2, 1974 | No. 1 | No. 11 USC | W 65–54 | 16–1 (5–0) | Pauley Pavilion Los Angeles, CA |
| February 8, 1974 | No. 1 | Oregon | W 84–66 | 17–1 (6–0) | Pauley Pavilion Los Angeles, CA |
| February 9, 1974 | No. 1 | Oregon State | W 80–75 | 18–1 (7–0) | Pauley Pavilion Los Angeles, CA |
| February 15, 1974 | No. 1 | at Oregon State | L 57–61 | 18–2 (7–1) | Gill Coliseum Corvallis, OR |
| February 16, 1974 | No. 1 | at Oregon | L 51–56 | 18–3 (7–2) | McArthur Court Eugene, OR |
| February 22, 1974 | No. 3 | Washington State | W 93–68 | 19–3 (8–2) | Pauley Pavilion Los Angeles, CA |
| February 23, 1974 | No. 3 | Washington | W 99–65 | 20–3 (9–2) | Pauley Pavilion Los Angeles, CA |
| March 1, 1974 | No. 3 | at California | W 83–60 | 21–3 (10–2) | Harmon Gym Berkeley, CA |
| March 2, 1974 | No. 3 | at Stanford | W 62–60 | 22–3 (11–2) | Maples Pavilion Stanford, CA |
| March 9, 1974 | No. 3 | at No. 7 USC | W 82–52 | 23–3 (12–2) | Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena Los Angeles, CA |
| NCAA Tournament ||||||
| March 14, 1974* | No. 2 | vs. No. 20 Dayton Regional semifinal | W 111–100 $^{3OT}$ | 24–3 | McKale Center Tucson, AZ |
| March 16, 1974* | No. 2 | vs. San Francisco Regional Final | W 83–60 | 25–3 | McKale Center Tucson, AZ |
| March 23, 1974* NBC | No. 2 | vs. No. 1 North Carolina State National semifinal | L 77–80 $^{2OT}$ | 25–4 | Greensboro Coliseum Greensboro, NC |
| March 25, 1974* | No. 2 | vs. No. 6 Kansas Consolation Game | W 78–61 | 26–4 | Greensboro Coliseum Greensboro, NC |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Pacific Time. ||||||
Source

## Rankings

Ranking movements Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking :
| | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week |
| Poll | Pre | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | Final |
| AP | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| Coaches | Not released | Not released | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | Not released | Not released |

## Awards and honors

* Bill Walton, USBWA College Player of the Year
* Bill Walton, Naismith College Player of the Year
* Bill Walton, Adolph Rupp Trophy

## Team players drafted into the NBA

| Round | Pick | Player | NBA Team |
| 1 | 1 | Bill Walton | Portland Trail Blazers |
| 1 | 11 | Keith Wilkes | Golden State Warriors |
| 7 | 115 | Greg Lee | Atlanta Hawks |
| 7 | 117 | Tommy Curtis | Buffalo Braves |