University of California, Los Angeles, Athletics
UCLA
Maryland
No. 16 UCLA Prepares to Play at No. 20 Maryland on Wednesday
December 12, 2022 | Men's Basketball
LOS ANGELES – No. 16 UCLA (8-2) returns to action at No. 20 Maryland (8-2) this Wednesday evening at the XFINITY Center in College Park, Md. The Bruins have won their last five games, including an 87-64 victory against Denver on Saturday afternoon in Pauley Pavilion. This Wednesday night's game at Maryland will be nationally televised on FS1, while the Bruins' radio broadcast will be available on AM 1150.
GAME INFORMATION
Venue: XFINITY Center (College Park, Md.)
Tipoff Time: 6 p.m. (PT) / 9 p.m. (ET)
Television: FS1
TV Talent: Jason Benetti (play-by-play), Bill Raftery (analyst)
Radio Broadcast (UCLA Sports Network): AM 1150
Radio Talent: Josh Lewin (play-by-play), Tracy Murray (analyst)
SIRIUS XM, SIRIUS XM App Channels: Ch. 83, Ch. 83
KEY NOTES ABOUT UCLA
– UCLA heads to the East Coast for a pair of games this week against No. 20 Maryland (on Wednesday) and No. 13 Kentucky (on Saturday in New York). The Bruins have won their last five consecutive games, heading into Wednesday's showdown against the Terrapins in College Park, Md. Most recently, UCLA defeated Denver (87-64) in Pauley Pavilion on Saturday afternoon to improve to 8-2 overall and to 7-0 in home games this season.
– The Bruins concluded last season on the East Coast with a "Sweet 16" game against North Carolina in Philadelphia, at Wells Fargo Arena (UNC won, 73-66). UCLA has not played along the East Coast during the regular season since taking on North Carolina in Brooklyn at the CBS Sports Classic on Dec. 19, 2015. North Carolina won that game, 89-76. UCLA last played in the Maryland/DC/Virginia region on Feb. 8, 2003 (UCLA won at Georgetown, 71-70, in Washington, D.C.).
– The Bruins entered the week ranking No. 2 in the Pac-12 in scoring (81.3 ppg), behind Arizona (91.2). UCLA ranks No. 3 in the Pac-12 in scoring defense (63.3 ppg allowed), behind Utah and Arizona State. The Bruins rank first in the Pac-12 in scoring margin (18.0 ppg) and first in turnover margin (+7.4 per game, ranks No. 6 in the nation). UCLA is tied for the league lead in steals per game with Colorado (8.4 spg) and ranks second in the Pac-12 in field goal percentage (49.9%).
– UCLA has limited the opposition to 63.3 points per game, which ranked No. 59 nationally, through Sunday, Dec. 11. In four season under head coach Mick Cronin, the Bruins' program has gone 55-2 when limiting the opposition to 65 points or fewer. This season, UCLA has gone 6-0 when holding the opponent to 65 points or fewer. Two of UCLA's returning players (senior Jaime Jaquez Jr. and junior Jaylen Clark) were named to the five-person Pac-12 All-Defensive Team last season.
– Freshmen guards Amari Bailey and Dylan Andrews have earned Pac-12 Freshman of the Week honors the past three weeks – Bailey on Nov. 28 and Dec. 5, Andrews most recently on Dec. 12. Andrews totaled season highs (11 points, six assists) in the Bruins' only game last week (an 87-64 against Denver). Bailey was honored as the Pac-12's top freshman the previous two weeks. He has averaged 13.6 points and 4.4 rebounds in the past five games (shooting 54.9 percent).
– The Bruins ranked No. 7, nationally, in the Pomeroy College Basketball Ratings (KenPom.com), through games played Sunday, Dec. 11. UCLA has compiled the No. 7-ranked offensive efficiency and are No. 24 in the defensive efficiency category. UCLA entered the week as the No. 16-ranked team in the Associated Press (AP) poll and No. 14 in the USA Today Sports Coaches poll. UCLA has been ranked in each of the last 25 AP polls (since the start of the 2021-22 season).
WHO IS BACK FOR THE BRUINS?
UCLA's program has returned five of the main 11 contributors from last year. UCLA went 27-8 overall last season, advancing to the NCAA Tournament's Sweet 16. Key players back include seniors Tyger Campbell, Jaime Jaquez Jr., Kenneth Nwuba and David Singleton and junior Jaylen Clark. Each of those student-athletes played in at least 20 games in 2021-22. All five competed in the 2021 NCAA Tournament (the "First Four" to the Final Four). UCLA also has returned one pair of redshirt freshmen in Mac Etienne and Will McClendon, who both missed last season with knee injuries (torn ACL).
– Jaime Jaquez Jr. has scored at least 20 points in three games this season (and in 12 career games). Jaquez Jr. has shot 57.8 percent from the field, which ranks No. 9 among all scorers in the Pac-12.
BALANCED SCORING
Five UCLA players have averaged at least nine points per game this season. Jaime Jaquez Jr. ranks No. 4 in the Pac-12 in scoring (team-leading 17.4 points per game), through Sunday, Dec. 11. Jaylen Clark (15.1 ppg, 6.1 rpg) leads the team in rebounding, while Tyger Campbell (13.2 ppg, 4.8 apg) ranks No. 6 in the Pac-12 in assists. Rounding out UCLA's top five scorers are Amari Bailey (10.9 ppg, 3.8 rpg) and David Singleton (9.9 rpg, 46.8% from 3-point range). UCLA's Jaquez Jr. (57.8%), Adem Bona (64.9%), Clark (62.1%) and Bailey (51.1%) have all shot at least 50 percent.
– Seven Bruins have scored at least 10 points in a game this season. Jaime Jaquez Jr. has scored at least 10 points in every game. Jaquez Jr., Campbell and Clark have scored at least 20 points in a game this season.
– Senior David Singleton ranks third on UCLA's all-time 3-point percentage list (44.2%), through 137 career games. Through Sunday, Dec. 11, Singleton ranked No. 3 in the league in 3-point shooting percentage (46.8%).
ASSISTS AND TURNOVERS
The Bruins have compiled an assist-turnover ratio of 1.65-to-1, through 10 games. That ratio ranked No. 4 nationally, through games played on Sunday, Dec. 11. UCLA's Tyger Campbell has registered 48 assists and 20 turnovers, while David Singleton has committed just five turnovers through 270 minutes (averaging 27.0 minutes per game). Freshman guard Dylan Andrews has 15 assists and just three turnovers in limited action off the bench (12.4 mpg). More than five weeks into the season, UCLA ranks first among all Pac-12 programs in assist-turnover ratio (1.65).
JAQUEZ JR. AND CAMPBELL
Seniors Tyger Campbell and Jaime Jaquez Jr. have been named to the 50-person watch list for this season's John R. Wooden Award, which annually honors the nation's top men's and women's college basketball players. The UCLA men's basketball program has seen past standout players Marques Johnson (1977) and Ed O'Bannon (1995) win the Wooden Award. In fact, Marques Johnson won the Wooden Award in 1977, in the award's first-ever season.
– Last season, Campbell secured first-team All-Pac-12 acclaim for the second consecutive year. He became the first UCLA player to earn first-team all-conference honors in back-to-back years since Arron Afflalo (2006 and 2007). This season, he has averaged 13.2 points, 2.2 rebounds and a team-best 4.8 assists in 10 games.
– Jaquez Jr. was inserted into UCLA's starting lineup during the Maui Invitational (freshman year, in Nov. 2019) and has been a mainstay in the lineup since that week. He has played in 107 career games at UCLA, having averaged 30.8 minutes per contest. He has logged career averages of 12.3 points and 5.5 rebounds per game.
– Jaquez Jr. (1,317 points) and Campbell (1,114 points) have both crossed the 1,000-career point threshold (Jaquez Jr. accomplished the feat last season, and Campbell reached that milestone in the second game of this season). Jaquez Jr. currently ranks No. 35 on the all-time list and Campbell ranks No. 53.
– Campbell has become one of eight UCLA players to have logged at least 1,000 career points and 500 assists in the Bruins' uniform (of note, the assist stat has been tracked at UCLA since the start of the 1973-74 season). Campbell currently ranks No. 8 on the Bruins' career assists list (517 total assists).
HIGH-LEVEL FRESHMAN
Freshman guard Amari Bailey has averaged 10.9 points, 3.8 rebounds and 2.7 assists through his first 10 college games. Over UCLA's last five games, Bailey has registered 13.6 points, 4,4 rebounds and 3.6 assists while shooting 54.9 percent from the field (and 41.7 percent from 3-point range). He scored 19 points three weeks ago in a win over Pepperdine (Nov. 23) and tied his season-high with a 19-point and six-rebound effort at Stanford on Thursday, Dec. 1. Bailey scored 15 of his 19 points against Stanford in the first half, helping the Bruins secure a 50-29 cushion at halftime at Maples Pavilion.
WELCOME TO WESTWOOD
UCLA has added six freshmen to the roster with guards Dylan Andrews, Amari Bailey, Abramo Canka and Jack Seidler and forwards Adem Bona and Evan Manjikian. Bailey (6-foot-5 guard) and Bona (6-foot-10 forward) were both honored as McDonald's All-America selections in the spring of 2022. Bailey was recently listed as a preseason honorable mention All-Pac-12 Conference selection (along with junior Jaylen Clark). Andrews (6-foot-2 guard) spent his first three years of high school at nearby Windward School (Los Angeles) before excelling as a senior at Compass Prep in Arizona. Bona averaged 15.5 points and 10.5 rebounds per game last season as a senior at Prolific Prep (Napa, Calif.).
– Including redshirt freshmen Mac Etienne (6-foot-10, forward) and Will McClendon (6-foot-3, guard), the Bruins have eight total freshmen on this season's roster (six true freshmen, two redshirt freshmen).
THREE-POINT STREAK
UCLA has made at least one 3-pointer played in its last 763 games. That 3-point streak began after the Bruins went 0-for-14 from 3-point territory in a 78-63 loss at No. 2-ranked Stanford on Feb. 3, 2000 (Maples Pavilion). UCLA has made at least three 3-pointers in 307 of 315 games since the start of the 2013-14 season. The Bruins made a school single-game-record 19 three-pointers, on 31 attempts, in a 104-89 win at Colorado on Jan. 12, 2017. UCLA's previous 3-point record was set earlier that season, as the Bruins made 18 of 30 attempts in the regular-season opener against Pacific (Nov. 11, 2016). UCLA has made 17 or more 3-point field goals in four games (19 once, 18 once and 17 twice).
COLLEGE BASKETBALL'S POSITIONAL AWARDS
UCLA has four student-athletes who have been named to the position-by-position award watch lists, as announced in October by tne Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. Senior Tyger Campbell is among 20 candidates for the Bob Cousy Award (point guard of the year), as Campbell was one of five finalists last season. Freshman Amari Bailey has been named to the 20-person watch list for the Jerry West Award (shooting guard of the year). Senior Jaime Jaquez Jr. has been listed to the 20-person watch list for this year's Julius Erving Award (small forward of the year). Jaquez Jr. was one of five finalists for that award last season. Freshman Adem Bona is among 20 candidates for the Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Award (center of the year). Those lists will be reduced to five finalists in February 2023.
JAYLEN THE SPARK PLUG
Junior Jaylen Clark has been a go-to contributor for the Bruins this season. He has averaged 15.1 points and a team-best 6.1 rebounds per game (nine contests). Clark also totaled a Pac-12-leading 21 steals, along with 16 assists. This isn't the first time Clark has filled up the stat sheet, both on offense and defense. He had a five-game stretch as a sophomore (Feb. 2022), averaging 14.8 points, 6.4 rebounds, 1.6 assists and 2.4 steals (UCLA went 4-1 in those five contests).
HISTORY & TRADITION
The 2022-23 school year marks the 104th season in which UCLA has fielded a men's basketball team (first season was 1919-20). In addition, this is the 57th season in which the Bruins have called Pauley Pavilion their home. The arena opened at the start of the 1965-66 season, and UCLA spent the next 46 seasons playing home games in Pauley Pavilion. The arena was closed for an 18-month renovation during the 2011-12 school year, re-opening in Nov. 2012. In all, the Bruins have won a nation-leading 11 NCAA Championships and have advanced to the NCAA Final Four 19 times.
HOME GAMES, PAC-12 CONTESTS
– The Bruins went 14-1 at home last season, winning their final eight games in Pauley Pavilion. UCLA will enter next weeks' game versus UC Davis having won their last 15 home contests. Last season, the Bruins' only loss at home was an 84-81 overtime setback against Oregon (the night of Thursday, Jan. 13). Since taking over as UCLA's head coach (fall of 2019), Mick Cronin has led the Bruins to a 45-6 record in all games played in Pauley Pavilion.
– With the COVID-19 pandemic prompting teams to close their arenas to fans, none of UCLA's home games in 2020-21 were played in front of a crowd. Likewise, three of UCLA's games in January of 2022 were played before no fans (arena was limited to players' family members only). Including a seven-game home win streak to close the 2019-20 home schedule, UCLA has won its last 26 home contests with fans in Pauley Pavilion presented by Wescom.
– Since the start of the 2020-21 season, UCLA has compiled a 30-11 mark in the Pac-12 (13-6 in 2020-21, and 15-5 last season). The Bruins have won 25 of their last 27 home games in Pac-12 action (the Bruins lost to USC in March of 2021 and to Oregon in overtime last season on Jan. 13, 2022). The Bruins won their final seven home Pac-12 games in 2019-20, during Coach Cronin's first season as UCLA's head coach.
THE BRUINS WHEN ...
Since the start of the 2017-18 season, the Bruins have gone 86-17 when leading at halftime (through 174 games). During that span, UCLA has gone 25-41 when trailing at halftime (3-2 when tied at the break). UCLA's largest halftime deficit overcome in that stretch has been 16 points – UCLA trailed at home against Oregon, 44-28, on Feb. 23, 2019, and outscored the Ducks in the second half (62-39) to win, 90-83. When the Bruins have built a 10-point lead (or larger) at any point in the game, UCLA has gone 90-12. When trailing by 10 or more points in a game, UCLA has gone 17-42.
LIMITING THE TURNOVERS
Through games played on Sunday, Dec. 11, the Bruins ranked No. 10 (nationally) in fewest turnovers per game (10.2). UCLA has committed nine or fewer turnovers in seven of 10 games this year. Last season, UCLA concluded the year ranked No. 2 in fewest turnovers per game (8.9), while Wisconsin ranked No. 1 in that category (8.7). UCLA committed one turnover in the 75-68 win over USC last season (March 5, 2022), the fewest turnovers by a Pac-12 team in one game (on record). UCLA has recorded assist and turnover stats since the start of the 1973-74 season.
