Despite missing its leading scorer, No. 7 seed UCLA advanced to the second round of the NCAA tournament on Friday.
UCLA star Tyler Bilodeau was ruled out with a knee sprain shortly before the Bruins’ first-round game against No. 10 UCF, despite a UCLA spokesperson telling reporters earlier he would play. He was previously listed as questionable to play on the team’s injury report.
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The Bruins defeated the Knights 75-71, with Eric Dailey Jr. leading the scoring with 20 points. They will face the winner of No. 2 UConn and No. 15 Furman in the second round.
Bilodeau sustained the injury in a game against Michigan State last week during UCLA’s Big Ten Tournament run. An MRI later revealed a mild sprain, enough to knock him out for their next game against eventual conference tournament champion Purdue. He was expected to be available for the NCAA tournament, but that didn’t come to pass.
Bilodeau was an All-Big Ten third-team selection this season and paced the Bruins with 17.6 points per game, plus 5.6 rebounds and 1.1 assists per game. He was the most efficient 3-point shooter in the conference among players with at least 2.0 attempts per game, making 46.4% from deep.
