The UCLA Bruins have made their way back after a couple of down years to take home the Pac-12 regular-season title and they would like to have the conference tournament to match it, but first they will have to go through Arizona as the two face off at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas for the Pac-12 Conference Tournament.

The Bruins won two games over the Wildcats this season and finished 7-2 on the year down the stretch to end up in first place over Arizona, California and Oregon. UCLA went 24-8 on the season and have helped bring back the Bruin program to prominence behind freshman star Shabazz Muhammad, who was the co-Pac-12 freshman of the year.

"These guys never quit. They never gave up," coach Ben Howland said. "They never stopped believing in themselves and each other and really found a way to battle back."

UCLA wasn't good enough to even make the NIT tournament last season and now is in excellent position for a high seed in the NCAA tournament. Last year Arizona defeated the Bruins in the Pac-12 tournament and now UCLA will have a chance to return the favor. The Wildcats dropped their next game to Colorado, who went on to win the title, but Arizona defeated the Buffaloes on Thursday to put that behind them.

The Bruins had a first round bye in the Pac-12 tournament this season and had two great games against the Wildcats earlier in the year, with Muhammad, Nick Johnson and Mark Lyons all scoring double-digits in the wins.

UCLA went 13-5 in the Pac-12 this season and finished 26th in the nation in points with over 75 per game and seventh in assists. The team shot over 45 percent from the field this season and ranked 81st in rebounds per game. The team greatly improved from last season and a big reason was the addition of Muhammad, who leads the team with nearly 20 points per game.

Arizona is the 18th ranked team in the country and is ahead of UCLA, but they will be the underdog on Friday. The Wildcats are ranked 45th in the league in points scored and are 102nd in rebounding. The team made 45 percent from the field and ranked 115th in assists per game.

CHECK here for the official Watch ESPN feed or for the Pac-12 Official Website.