Tag: UCLA Bruins basketball

Preview: UCLA looks to remain unbeaten against SEC foe on Sunday

Another game for UCLA.

The 3-0 UCLA Bruins women’s basketball team will look to stay undefeated at home on Sunday against Arkansas. The Razorbacks have started the season 3-1 but have yet to play anyone of the Bruins’ caliber.

Arkansas lost their season opener at home against Fairfield University 81-67, after the loss they’ve handled East Texas A&M, University of Arkansas Little Rock and University Texas-Arlington before heading to Brentwood to face the #5 ranked Bruins. 

The Razorbacks have relied heavily on senior guard Izzy Higginbottom, who’s found the bottom of net plenty this year, averaging 23.5 points per game with over four rebounds and four assists. Sophomore guard Kiki Smith is averaging over 14 points per game, ranking second behind Higginbottom for Arkansas. 

It’s uncertain if junior guard Kiki Rice will make her season debut on Sunday, but it’s been business as usual for the Bruins even without their veteran guard who’s made 73 starts over the last two seasons. 

UCLA began the 2024-2025 season with a close call in France, defeating Louisville 66-59 overcoming a third quarter deficit before collecting two comfortable wins over Colgate and Pepperdine at Pauley Pavilion. Junior center Lauren Betts deserves a lot of credit, as she’s posted a dominant 22 points, 11 rebounds and 2.67 blocks per game to start the year. 

Sunday’s meeting will just be the third in history between the two schools, with each school having earned a win. The most recent matchup came last December, where the Bruins earned an 81-66 win with Betts posting a double-double for UCLA. Tip-off is set for 4:30p.m. with the game broadcasting on the Big Ten Network.

Cori Close speaks of accountability after UCLA’s 81-63 win over Colgate

Cori Close chimes in on early season play.

The #5 ranked UCLA Bruins comfortably handled business in their home opener Sunday afternoon with a 81-63 win over Colgate University with junior center Lauren Betts leading the way with a 31-point game, missing just three shots from the field.

It wasn’t only Betts on Sunday, with Finnish freshman guard Elina Aarnisalo, scoring 19 points in just her second-ever collegiate game. Aarnisalo shot 8-10 from the field and 2-4 from three but she did more than just score the ball on Sunday, getting two steals, five rebounds and six assists. The freshman did turn the ball over six times in the win but her impact with the absence of Kiki Rice and Charlisse Leger-Walker. 

UCLA dominated the paint throughout Sunday’s game, with the Bruins outrebounding Colgate 37-28 and had 46 points in the paint compared to the Raiders’ 10. Even with the win, UCLA head coach Cori Close wasn’t satisfied entirely in the postgame press conference.

“We can do better with our urgency, we can do better with our consistency on the defensive end, we can do better in our hustle plays. There’s more in us,” Close said. “That’s going to be my point of accountability for our program and I’ll teach through the rest. I know there’s a lot of people out there doing things for the first time but we got some work to do.”

As a team, UCLA shot 57.6% while connecting on 7 of their 17 three point attempts while forcing 17 turnovers from the Raiders. Junior guard Londynn Jones and junior forward Timea Gardiner joined Betts and Aarnisalo with double-digit scoring, with the fifth member of the Bruins’ starting lineup, freshman forward Kendall Dudley going scoreless in 22 minutes before fouling out. 

“There needs to be a balance of what I call the healthy tension, of stern accountability and just consistent teaching,” Close said. “There’s just things we need more reps and we need to know more.”

UCLA has another showing at Pauley Pavilion on Tuesday against Pepperdine University, with tip-off set for 11:30 a.m. 

Mick Cronin speaks on ‘push’ for statues to honor Bill Walton, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar

Cronin wants some statues.

UCLA men’s basketball head coach Mick Cronin voiced the desire to commemorate Bruins’ basketball legends Bill Walton and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar with statues around Pauley Pavilion according to Ben Bolch of the Los Angeles Times. 

“Behind the scenes there’s a lot of push from their teammates and I’m right with them. What you find at state schools, it’s unbelievably hard to get a wall painted, let alone a statue built.”

Currently, the only statue at Pauley Pavilion is one of the legendary John Wooden, who was honored with the 8-foot bronze statue in 2012, two years after Wooden passed away in 2012. 

Wooden joined the Bruins as their head coach for the 1948-1949 season after signing to a three-year deal worth $6,000. Wooden remained in the position until 1975, by the time he retired he was 10-time National Champion and a record of 620-147 with the Bruins while establishing UCLA as an elite program over his tenure. 

Abdul-Jabbar, a Bruins’ Hall of Famer in his own right, had a near-flawless UCLA career, starting his career with a 56-point debut. Adbul-Jabbar, known then as Lew Alcindor, won three national championships in three seasons with the Bruins while also earning three national Player of the Year awards before collecting the first-ever Naismith College Player of the Year award before heading to the NBA. Alcindor had his No. 33 retired by UCLA in 1990, one of ten Bruins basketball players to receive the honor. 

Walton didn’t lose a single game in his first two seasons with the Bruins, with UCLA having consecutive unbeaten seasons that resulted in national titles. Walton won the Naismith award three straight years along with three national Player of the Year awards. Walton had his No. 32 retired along with Abdul-Jabbar’s in 1990.

Photos from UCLA’s win over Boston University

Through the lens from Monday night.

The UCLA Bruins men’s basketball team dropped out of the top 25 polls following a Friday night loss to New Mexico. 

However, the Bruins turned around and easily handled Boston University on Monday night in Westwood, winning the game 71-40. 

UCLA once again used a flurry of players, and Lazar Stefanovic and Eric Dailey Jr. led the way with 13 apiece as Sebastian Mack chipped in 12 off the bench.

UCLA now moves to 2-1 with a game coming up against Lehigh and a favorable schedule for the next couple of weeks.

Here are some photos from UCLA’s win over Boston on Monday.

UCLA responds with 31-point blowout win over Boston University

UCLA responds with a win.

The UCLA Bruins men’s basketball team lost to New Mexico on Friday in Nevada. As a result, the Bruins dropped out of the top 25 in the USA TODAY Coaches Poll and the AP Poll.

However, the Bruins responded in a big way with a 71-40 win over Boston University at Pauley Pavilion on Monday night.

Lazar Stefanovic and Eric Dailey Jr., an Oklahoma State transfer, led the way with 13 points each. Sebastian Mack added 12 off the bench and 11 players saw the court for UCLA.

UCLA scored 39 first-half points and the defense held Boston University to just 18 second-half points.

UCLA’s loss to New Mexico was a bit frustrating, although the Lobos are a better team than many might have expected this year.

UCLA next faces Lehigh on Friday to begin a string of winnable games. They face Idaho State, Cal State Fullerton, and Southern Utah before facing Washington and Oregon.

UCLA falls far in AP top 25 poll after the opening week

No Bruins in this one, either.

The UCLA Bruins men’s basketball team began the year with a blowout win over Rider and then a tough neutral floor road loss against New Mexico. 

However, the Bruins are now out of both the USA Today Coaches Poll and the Associated Press poll.

On Monday, the AP poll came out, and UCLA wasn’t just out of the top 25, but they weren’t even in the “Others Receiving Votes” category.

Here is the entire poll.

Rank Team REC PTS TREND
1 Kansas (44) 2-0 1525 –
2 Alabama (6) 2-0 1439 –
3 UConn (7) 2-0 1398 –
4 Gonzaga (3) 2-0 1371 +2
5 Auburn (2) 2-0 1315 +6
6 Duke 2-0 1222 +1
7 Iowa State 1-0 1206 -2
8 Houston 1-1 1070 -4
9 Arizona 2-0 1004 +1
10 North Carolina 1-1 992 -1
11 Tennessee 2-0 930 +1
12 Baylor 1-1 806 -4
13 Purdue 2-0 795 +1
14 Creighton 2-0 752 +1
15 Marquette 2-0 603 +3
16 Indiana 2-0 600 +1
17 Cincinnati 2-0 454 +3
18 Arkansas 1-1 357 -2
19 Kentucky 2-0 353 +4
20 Florida 2-0 332 +1
21 Ohio State 1-0 273 +5
22 St. John’s 2-0 178 +4
23 Texas A&M 1-1 169 -10
24 Rutgers 1-0 157 +1
25 Ole Miss 2-0 147 -1

Others receiving votes:

Illinois 144, Texas Tech 102, Wake Forest 84, Xavier 78, Texas 51, Michigan St. 41, BYU 26, Kansas St 24, UCF 20, Mississippi St. 15, New Mexico 15, Oregon 14, North Florida 14, Miami 14, Clemson 13, VCU 12, Memphis 8, Wisconsin 6, Grand Canyon 6, Providence 4, Maryland 3, Austin Peay 2, Arizona St 2, South Dakota St. 1, Michigan 1, Columbia 1, Dayton 1.

UCLA not being in the top 25 isn’t surprising, but them being left out of the others receiving votes category is a bit of a shock.

UCLA faces Boston University on Monday night and then Lehigh.

UCLA drops out of USA Today Coaches Poll

The Bruins drop out.

The UCLA Bruins fell to New Mexico on Friday in a tough game in Henderson, Nevada.

In the season opener, they ran over Rider in a blowout win at Pauley Pavilion. However, after entering the year as No. 22, the Bruins have now dropped out of the USA Today Coaches Poll top 25 after the first full week.

Here is the full poll.

Ranking Team Record Points
1 Kansas 2-0 759 (21)
2 Alabama 2-0 724 (4)
3 UConn 2-0 702 (3)
4 Auburn 2-0 660 (2)
5 Gonzaga 2-0 651 (1)
6 Duke 2-0 608
7 Iowa State 1-0 576
8 Arizona 2-0 516
9 Tennessee 2-0 502
10 Houston 1-1 488
11 North Carolina 1-1 456
12 Purdue 2-0 437
13 Creighton 2-0 385
14 Baylor 1-1 328
15 Marquette 2-0 308
16 Indiana 2-0 234
17 Cincinnati 2-0 230
18 Kentucky 2-0 182
19 Florida 2-0 179
20 Illinois 2-0 151
21 Arkansas 1-1 150
22 Ohio State 1-0 148
23 Texas A&M 1-1 99
24 Rutgers 1-0 84
25 St. John’s 2-0 79

UCLA did land in the “Others Receiving Votes” section, which includes the following:

Texas Tech 75; Ole Miss 60; Texas 54; Xavier 38; Oregon 37; Michigan State 29; BYU 29; UCLA 18; UCF 17; Wake Forest 12; Saint Mary’s 12; Kansas State 9; Clemson 9; New Mexico 8; Dayton 8; North Florida 7; Maryland 5; Providence 4; Mississippi State 4; Nevada 2; San Francisco 1; Grand Canyon 1.

UCLA faces Boston University on Monday night at home as they try and get back into the rankings.

UCLA basketball loses to New Mexico in Nevada

A tough loss for UCLA.

The UCLA Bruins men’s basketball team began the year with a blowout victory over Rider in Westwood. On Friday night, the Bruins had a tough test against the New Mexico Lobos in Henderson, Nevada.

Unfortunately, New Mexico came out on top against UCLA. The Lobos had a 41-30 lead at halftime and UCLA couldn’t muster up enough in the second half. New Mexico ended up winning the game, 72-64.

It was a poor effort from UCLA, with the exception of Oregon State transfer Tyler Bilodeau, who led the way again. This time, he had 23 points with 15 rebounds and a pair of steals as he was the only UCLA player to register double figures in points.

Donovan Dent and Nelly Junio Joseph, two returning players for New Mexico, combined for 33 points in a strong effort.

It’s a tough loss for UCLA, although not a bad loss by any means with New Mexico expected to be a strong team. The Bruins next play against Boston University at home on Monday night.

UCLA-New Mexico a game to watch in opening weekend

UCLA-New Mexico should be a good one.

The UCLA Bruins men’s basketball team had no issues in the opening night win over Rider at home.

However, Friday’s game against the New Mexico Lobos in Henderson could be a tough test.

College basketball insider Jon Rothstein picked five games to watch for the weekend, and one of them was UCLA taking on New Mexico in Las Vegas.

“How much better are the Bruins than last season’s team that finished 16-17? We’ll have a pretty good idea after this neutral site clash in Las Vegas. Keep a close eye on how UCLA’s depth affects New Mexico point guard Donovan Dent over the course of 40 minutes. Tip off for this game is at 11 p.m. ET on CBS Sports Network.”

The others on his list were North Carolina-Kansas, Tennessee-Louisville, Arkansas-Baylor, and Auburn-Houston. However, all eyes will be focused on Mick Cronin’s team as they face the Lobos in a tough game.

UCLA lands at No. 20 in College Sports Wire rankings

Bruins ranked in these predictions.

The 2024-2025 college basketball season has officially kicked off. On Monday, there were some big upsets, with North Florida beating South Carolina as one of them.

Gonzaga blew out Baylor in a strong showing by the future Pac-12 school.

The UCLA Bruins did what they were supposed to and took care of Rider in Westwood with no issues.

Andy Patton of College Sports Wire dropped his top-25 rankings on the opening day of the 2024-2025 college basketball season.

In those rankings, he had the UCLA Bruins at No. 20.

“Mick Cronin’s UCLA squad was a massive disappointment last season, but a retooled roster comprised of key returners Sebastian Mack and Dylan Andrews, along with transfer portal additions Tyler Bilodeau (Oregon State) Kobe Johnson (USC) and Skyy Clark (Louisville), should have this team at or near the top of the Big Ten standings.”

Fellow Big Ten schools Oregon (No. 21) and Indiana (No. 24) are right behind UCLA.

The Bruins began with an easy win over Rider in Westwood on Monday night, and they follow things up with a tough showdown against New Mexico in Las Vegas on Friday.