As the time ticks down to the opening tip of the 2011-12 NCAA basketball season, the preseason AP poll is busy trying to figure out who is the best in the land without watching any of them play a single game yet. The UCLA Bruins are one of these teams, coming in at No. 17 heading into the season.
North Carolina and Kentucky are the consensus No. 1 and No. 2 in the nation in both the AP and USA Today polls, with the Tar Heels getting a staggering amount of first place votes in both. In fact, the top seven schools mirror each other in both of the polls, with Ohio State, Connecticut, Syracuse, Duke, and Vanderbilt rounding out the top seven.
As for the Bruins, they're the second highest West Coast school in the AP poll, right behind the No. 16 Arizona Wildcats. They're joined by Gonzaga (No. 23) and the Cal Golden Bears (No. 24) as the only West Coast schools in the preseason poll.
For more on UCLA basketball, check out Bruins Nation.