| Mode: | Basketball |
| Year: | 1967–68 |
| Team: | UCLA Bruins |
| Conference: | Athletic Association of Western Universities |
| Short Conf: | Pac-8 |
| Coachrank: | 2 |
| Aprank: | 2 |
| Record: | 29–1 |
| Conf Record: | 14–0 |
| Hc Year: | 20th |
| Champion: | NCAA tournament National champions Pac-8 champions |
| Bowl Result: | W 78-55 vs. North Carolina |
The 1967–68 UCLA Bruins men's basketball team won a second consecutive NCAA national championship, the fourth in five years under head coach John Wooden, with a win over North Carolina.[1]
UCLA's 47-game winning streak came to an end in January when they were beaten by Houston and All-American Elvin Hayes in the Astrodome 71–69; the game was known as the Game of the Century. The Bruins avenged the loss in a rematch with Houston in the NCAA Final Four, by beating the Cougars 101–69 to become the only team to win consecutive NCAA championships twice.
This team ushered in a new era of college hoops when it played and lost to Houston in a regular-season game at Houston Astrodome that was seen by a national television audience. The Bruins avenged the only loss in the Final Four, thrashing the Cougars behind Lew Alcindor's 19 points and 18 rebounds. "Big Lew" was even more dominant in the title game, with 34 points and 16 boards in a win over North Carolina. UCLA limited Houston's Elvin Hayes, who was averaging 37.7 points per game but was held to only 10. Bruins coach John Wooden credited his assistant, Jerry Norman, for devising the diamond-and-one defense that contained Hayes.[2] [3]
Lew Alcindor would suffer the first major injury of his athletic career. He suffered a scratched left cornea on January 12, 1968, in a game against the California Golden Bears. He got struck by Ted Henderson of Cal in a rebound battle.[4] He would miss the next two games against Stanford and Portland. This happened right before the game against the University of Houston.
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Regular Season|-!colspan=12 style="background:#;"| NCAA Tournament
See main article: 1967–68 NCAA University Division men's basketball rankings.
| Round | Pick | Player | NBA Team |
|---|---|---|---|
| 4 | 45 | Mike Lynn | Chicago Bulls |
| 4 | 49 | Edgar Lacey | San Francisco Warriors |
| 14 | 180 | Mike Warren | Seattle SuperSonics |