LOS ANGELES – The Bruins (20-10, 12-7) will close their regular-season schedule at USC (18-12, 7-12) this Saturday evening. Game time at USC’s Galen Center is 6 p.m. (PT). The Bruins’ game at USC will be nationally televised on FS1. UCLA has won seven of its last nine games against USC, including an 81-62 win over the Trojans at Pauley Pavilion last week (Tuesday, Feb. 24). Next week, UCLA will travel to Chicago for the Big Ten Tournament (tournament dates are March 10-15, at Chicago’s United Center).
GAME INFORMATION
Venue: Galen Center
Capacity: 10,258
Tipoff Time: 6:05 p.m. (PT)
Broadcast Network: FS1
Broadcast Talent: Trent Rush (play-by-play), Miles Simon (analyst)
Radio (UCLA Audio Network): AM 790 (KABC)
Radio Talent: Josh Lewin (play-by-play), Tracy Murray (analyst)
Sirius XM Channels: SiriusXM 387 and SiriusXM App
Live Stats: ucla.statbroadcast.com (link here)
MOST RECENTLY, AS A TEAM
• The Bruins have won three of their last four games heading into Saturday night’s showdown at USC.
• UCLA has won 20 games for the fifth time in seven seasons under head coach Mick Cronin.
• The Bruins are looking to finish with a 13-7 record in Big Ten play for the second consecutive season.
• The Bruins went 17-1 at home this season while compiling a 3-9 record in road and neutral-site games.
• UCLA has posted a 5-3 record through eight games in the months of February and March (4-3 in Feb., 1-0 in March).
• Through games played Friday, UCLA ranked No. 2 in the Big Ten in 3-point percentage (37.8%, behind Purdue).
• Through games played Friday, the Bruins ranked No. 4 in the conference in 3-point percentage defense (31.3%).
• UCLA’s assist-turnover ratio (1.76-to-1) as a team ranked No. 4 in the Big Ten, through Friday, March 6.
INDIVIDUAL ACCOMPLISHMENTS
• Tyler Bilodeau has scored in double figures in 25 of 28 games played, including nine games with 20 or more points.
• Donovan Dent has registered 10 or more assists in eight games (and in five of the Bruins’ last nine contests).
• Dent ranked No. 4 in the nation (third in the Big Ten) in assists per game (7.5) through Thursday, March 5.
• Through Friday, March 6, Tyler Bilodeau led all Big Ten players in 3-point percentage (45.3%, 58-for-128).
• Donovan Dent has totaled 127 assists and 22 turnovers (5.8-to-1 ratio) through the Bruins’ last 15 games.
• Trent Perry has averaged 15.0 points and shot 45.3 percent from the field in UCLA’s last 15 contests.
• Eric Dailey Jr. (11.0 ppg, 5.4 rpg) has scored 10 or more points in 14 of UCLA’s last 19 games.
• Five Bruins have averaged at least 11 points per game this season, led by senior Tyler Bilodeau (18.0 ppg).
THANKS FOR THE ASSIST
• Donovan Dent ranks No. 3 in the conference and No. 4, nationally, with 7.5 assists per game (through Thursday).
• Over the last four games, Dent has totaled 46 assists and two turnovers, while averaging 12.8 points per game.
• Dent tallied 10 or more assists in three straight games (Jan. 31-Feb. 7) midway through Big Ten play.
• Dent’s 15 assists against Illinois and Minnesota stand one shy of Earl Watson’s record (16, on March 18, 2000).
• Dent currently ranks No. 5 (with 218 assists) on UCLA’s single-season assists record list.
UCLA VERSUS USC
The Bruins will close their regular-season schedule at USC on Saturday night (March 7), marking the second meeting between these two schools in the past two weeks. UCLA secured an 81-62 win over USC at Pauley Pavilion on Tuesday, Feb. 24. The Bruins have gone 150-116 in the all-time series against their crosstown rival, having won seven of the last nine games. UCLA has won its last two contests against USC at Galen Center, having tallied a record of 10-9 record at the Trojans’ home venue (Galen Center, which opened prior to the 2006-07 season). Under seventh-year UCLA head coach Mick Cronin, the Bruins have gone 7-7 against USC with a record of 2-4 at Galen Center.
TUESDAY VERSUS NEBRASKA
Trent Perry scored a team-best 20 points to lead UCLA past No. 9 Nebraska, 72-52, in the Bruins’ final home contest of the season on Tuesday night at Pauley Pavilion. UCLA reached the 20-win plateau after having made 10 of 29 attempts from 3-point range. The Bruins led from start to finish, handing Nebraska its first double-digit loss of the season. Eric Dailey Jr. (14 points) made 6 of 9 shots and had eight rebounds. UCLA led the Cornhuskers at halftime, 37-24, and never saw its second-half cushion fall to any fewer than 10 points (at 57-47 with 6:49 left in the contest). The win pushed UCLA’s final home record this season to 17-1. The Bruins have gone 32-3 at home over the past two seasons (91.4 win percentage).
VERSUS RANKED FOES
UCLA has gone 3-5 against top-25 ranked opponents this season (as ranked in the AP poll), including a trio of home victories over top-10 teams. UCLA defeated No. 4 Purdue on Tuesday, Jan. 20, before recording a 95-94 overtime win against No. 10 Illinois on Saturday, Feb. 21, and logging the 20-point win at home last Tuesday over No. 9 Nebraska. This marks the first season in which UCLA’s team has tallied three or more wins at home against top-10 ranked teams. UCLA’s 72-52 win over No. 9 Nebraska marked the Bruins’ first 20-point win over a top-10 program since taking down No. 10-ranked Arizona in the final home contest of the 2010-11 season (Feb. 26, 2011).
ASSISTS PER GAME
Through 29 games, senior Donovan Dent has averaged 13.2 points and 7.5 assists per game. Dent, a 6-foot-2 guard from Riverside, Calif., could be on track to join a rare group of UCLA guards who averaged at least 10 points and six assists per game over the course of a full season. In fact, Dent could become UCLA’s first player to average 10 points and seven or more assists in one season since then-freshman Lonzo Ball registered 14.6 points and 7.6 assists per game in 2016-17. Ball helped guide UCLA to a 31-5 overall record that season and a finish in the NCAA Tournament’s Sweet 16.
FACTS AND FIGURES
• Tyler Bilodeau enters the weekend ranking No. 11 in scoring in the Big Ten Conference (18.0 ppg).
• Bilodeau has scored in double figures in 25 of 28 games played, totaling 20 points or more in nine games.
• Bilodeau has totaled 951 points in two seasons at UCLA, averaging 15.6 points in 61 games in the Bruins’ uniform.
• Skyy Clark reached the 1,000 career point benchmark during UCLA’s game at Minnesota last weekend.
• Eric Dailey stands five points shy of eclipsing the 1,000 career point milestone (has scored 995 career points).
• UCLA has posted a 16-3 record when leading at halftime and has gone 17-1 when building a lead of 10 or more points.
• UCLA ranked No. 2 in the Big Ten among all 18 teams, in 3-point shooting percentage through Friday (37.8%).
• The Bruins have not shot 37.0% or better (from three) since the 2020-21 season (37.2 percent from three, that year).
• The Bruins are currently shooting 76.6 percent at the free throw stripe, ranking sixth in the Big Ten.
• The school single-season record for best free throw percentage is 75.6 percent, back in the 1978-79 season.
GLANCING AT THE METRICS
UCLA has gone 20-10 overall with a 12-7 record in Big Ten play, currently in seventh place in the 18-team league standings. Through Thursday, March 5, the Bruins had registered a record of 10-10 against Quad 1 and Quad 2 opponents, while posting a perfect record of 10-0 against Quad 3 and Quad 4 teams. UCLA has played seven games against teams currently ranked among the top 12 in college basketball’s NET rankings, most recently securing a 72-52 win over Nebraska (ranked No. 12). The Bruins have gone 3-4 against those programs ranked in the top 12 in the latest NET rankings.
LEADING SCORER
Senior forward Tyler Bilodeau ranked No. 11 in scoring among all Big Ten players (18.0 ppg) and No. 5 in shooting percentage (51.2%), through Friday, March 6. The 6-foot-9 product from Kennewick, Wash., has scored at least 15 points this season in 19 of the Bruins’ 30 games (did not play in two games). Through Friday evening, he continued to lead the Big Ten in 3-point shooting percentage, having made 58 of 128 long-range attempts (45.3%).
SOPHOMORE JUMP
Sophomore Trent Perry scored a career-best 30 points in UCLA’s 71-60 win at Penn State on Jan. 14. Perry was perfect at the free throw line (12-for-12). Entering this Saturday’s game, he has averaged 12.5 points and 3.0 rebounds per game (29 contest) while shooting 43.3 percent from the field and 40.3 percent from 3-point range. Perry has scored at least 10 points in 19 games for UCLA this season, logging 76 assists and 38 turnovers for an assist-turnover ratio of 2-to-1. Over the Bruins’ last 15 contests, Perry has averaged 15.0 points and 3.7 rebounds (shooting 45.0 percent from 3-point distance).
RUNNING THE POINT
Senior Donovan Dent has averaged 13.2 points, 7.5 assists and 2.7 rebounds through 29 games. Dent, a 6-foot-2 guard from nearby Riverside, Calif., transferred from New Mexico to UCLA in the offseason. He has recorded seven point-assist double-doubles this season (totaling 14 in his career). Since assists were routinely tracked, starting in 1978-79, Dent has become the first UCLA player with three consecutive point-assist double-doubles (UCLA’s games versus Indiana, Rutgers and Washington). He ranks No. 3 in the Big Ten in assists per game (7.5) and was fourth, nationally, through Thursday.
NOTES ON PAULEY PAVILION
This marked UCLA’s 60th season playing inside Pauley Pavilion and the 14th season since the arena underwent a major renovation. The Bruins went 17-1 at home this season and 15-2 last year (32-3 record through two seasons). The first game in Pauley Pavilion took place on Dec. 3, 1965, as No. 1-ranked UCLA defeated Ohio State, 92-66. UCLA spent 47 seasons in the historic arena before the venue was closed for an 18-month renovation (closed in March of 2011 and under construction until November 2012). UCLA hosted 18 home games in 2011-12 at the Los Angeles Sports Arena (14 games) near downtown L.A. and at the Honda Center in Anaheim (four games) before returning home in November of 2012. Since taking over as UCLA’s head coach prior to the 2019-20 campaign, Mick Cronin has guided UCLA to a 96-16 home record (logging a win percentage of 85.7 in 112 games).
MISCELLANEOUS NOTES ON UCLA
• This marks the first basketball season since 2016-17 (Bryce Alford, Isaac Hamilton and TJ Leaf) in which UCLA’s team has had at least three players with a 30-point contest. The Bruins have four players this season who have scored at least 30 points or more in one game (Tyler Bilodeau, Skyy Clark, Donovan Dent and Trent Perry).
• UCLA has gone 7-1 when shooting at least 50 percent from the field this season. The Bruins’ season-high 62.7 shooting percentage in a win at home against Presbyterian was the program’s best single-game mark since Dec. 10, 2016 (UCLA shot 62.7% in an 102-84 win at home against Michigan, shooting 39-for-58 overall).
• Senior guard Donovan Dent has averaged 7.5 assists per game in 29 contests this season. Since assists were routinely recorded at UCLA, starting in 1973-74, only three student-athletes have logged at least 7.0 assists per game in one season (Pooh Richardson, twice, as well as Lonzo Ball in 2016-17 and Larry Drew II in 2012-13).
• The Bruins’ 15-man roster this season includes eight student-athletes who are from the Southern California region. All 15 student-athletes are from the United States. Looking at the eight local players, five are from Los Angeles County and three are from Riverside County (Donovan Dent, Eric Freeny and Anthony Peoples Jr. all went to Corona Centennial HS).
• Since the start of the 2020-21 season, the Bruins have gone 81-37 in conference play (logging a 68.6 win percentage). UCLA went 13-7 in Big Ten action last season, tied for fourth place in the 18-team league standings.
CONSECUTIVE THREE-POINTERS
UCLA has made at least one 3-pointer in each of its last 94 games. The Bruins went 0-for-6 from long range in a 78-58 win against Long Island University early in the 2023-24 season in Pauley Pavilion (on Nov. 15, 2023). That game snapped a streak of 792 consecutive contests with at least one made 3-pointer by UCLA. That 3-point streak began after the Bruins finished 0-for-14 from 3-point distance in a home loss to No. 2 Stanford (78-63) on Feb. 3, 2000. The Bruins’ single-game 3-point record stands at 19 made 3-pointers (going 19-for-31) in an 104-89 win at Colorado on Jan. 12, 2017.
