UCLA
Prairie View A&M
No. 18 UCLA Men's Basketball to Host Prairie View A&M
December 16, 2024 | Men's Basketball
LOS ANGELES – Ranked No. 18 in this week's AP and USA Today Coaches polls, UCLA (9-1) will host Prairie View A&M (1-9) in Pauley Pavilion on Tuesday, Dec. 18 (at 6:30 p.m., PT). The Bruins have won eight consecutive games, most recently overcoming a double-digit deficit in the second half against Arizona on Saturday afternoon and winning by a 57-54 margin (game was played in Phoenix, Ariz.). Tuesday's game in Pauley Pavilion will be televised by Big Ten Network, with Kevin Kugler and Don MacLean providing the courtside call.
GAME INFORMATION
Venue: Pauley Pavilion presented by Wescom
Capacity: 13,800
Tipoff Time: 6:35 p.m. (PT)
TV Network: Big Ten Network
TV Talent: Kevin Kugler (play-by-play), Don MacLean (analyst)
Radio (UCLA Audio Network): AM 570
Radio Talent: Josh Lewin (play-by-play), Tracy Murray (analyst)
SIRIUS XM: Ch. 372 and on the SXM App
UCLA'S TICKET INFORMATION (HOME GAMES)
Single-game tickets for UCLA's 10 remaining home games are on sale. In addition to this Tuesday night's contest, fans can secure tickets to each of the Bruins' remaining home conference games in UCLA's historic, inaugural year in the Big Ten. The Bruins will return to Big Ten action after the New Year. UCLA will host Michigan on the evening of Tuesday, Jan. 7. Game time is set for 7 p.m. (PT). This will mark Michigan's first meeting against UCLA in Pauley Pavilion since a sold-out contest on Dec. 10, 2016.
Additional home matchups in Big Ten play will include Iowa (Friday, Jan. 17), Wisconsin (Tuesday, Jan. 21), Oregon (Thursday, Jan. 30), Michigan State (Tuesday, Feb. 4), Penn State (Saturday, Feb. 8), Minnesota (Tuesday, Feb. 18), Ohio State (Sunday, Feb. 23) and USC (Saturday, March 8) in the season finale for both schools.
Complete ticket information about UCLA men's basketball is available here. Direct links to single-game ticket purchases can be viewed here. Fans can call (310) 206-5991 or email tickets@athletics.ucla.edu for more information. In addition, be sure to check out all of the game themes and upcoming promotions for the Bruins' 2024-25 season.
PARKING AT UCLA
Fans are encouraged to purchase parking for UCLA's home games in advance with the Bruin ePermit Portal. The university's ePermit Portal allows basketball fans to purchase and manage a parking permit in advance of a sporting event at UCLA. Fans can also use "Parkmobile" to pay for parking using a smartphone. Individuals can create an account with Parkmobile by downloading and installing the mobile app or by visiting this Parkmobile website. Details regarding Parkmobile can be accessed here. Visitor parking rates at UCLA can be viewed here.
CATCHING UP ON THE BRUINS
– No. 18-ranked UCLA has opened with a 9-1 record for the first time since the 2021-22 basketball season.
– This marks the 106th basketball season at UCLA and the sixth year with head coach Mick Cronin at the helm.
– The Bruins have won eight consecutive games, the program's longest win streak since 2022-23 (was 12 games).
– Through games played on Sunday, Dec. 15, UCLA ranked No. 1 in the nation in scoring defense (55.0 ppg).
– Junior forward Tyler Bilodeau leads the Bruins in scoring (13.7 ppg) and rebounding (5.6 rpg).
– The Bruins have forced an average of 18.6 turnovers per game through 10 contests (ranks No. 2, nationally).
– UCLA forced 22 turnovers by Arizona in the Bruins' 57-54 win in Phoenix, Ariz., on Saturday afternoon.
– UCLA has limited the opposition to 60 points or fewer in seven of 10 games this season.
– Kobe Johnson (22 steals, 2.2 spg) ranks No. 4 among all players in the Big Ten Conference in steals per game.
– UCLA's program added nine incoming players this season – six transfer students and three freshmen.
– As head coach, Mick Cronin has led UCLA to an 124-54 record, now in his sixth season with the Bruins.
THIS MONTH
– The Bruins have three games remaining this month, starting with Tuesday night's contest against Prairie View A&M.
– UCLA has gone 3-0 in the series against Prairie View A&M, with the last meeting taking place on Dec. 14, 2013.
– Coming up on Saturday, UCLA plays against North Carolina at Madison Square Garden in New York City.
– The Bruins last faced North Carolina in the Sweet 16 of the 2022 NCAA Tournament in Philadelphia (UNC won, 73-66).
– Next week, the Bruins close their non-conference schedule versus Gonzaga in Inglewood at the new Intuit Dome.
– UCLA has not played at a neutral site in Los Angeles since the 2012 Pac-10 Tournament, hosted at Staples Center.
MOST RECENTLY, FOR UCLA
The Bruins have won eight consecutive games, including a 73-71 win at No. 12 Oregon on Dec. 8 and Saturday's 57-54 victory against Arizona (played at Footprint Center in Phoenix). UCLA erased a 13-point deficit with just under 11 minutes to play versus Arizona, closing the game with a 21-5 scoring run (the Bruins were down 49-36, with 10:45 to play). In the win at Oregon on Sunday, Dec. 8, Dylan Andrews made a game-winning 3-pointer with 0.4 seconds to play. UCLA had led the game against the Ducks, 67-58, with under four minutes remaining before Oregon secured a 71-70 advantage with 10 seconds to play. Tyler Bilodeau and Eric Dailey Jr. have averaged 12.0 and 11.0 points in the last two games, respectively.
BEATING THE BUZZER
In a win over UC Riverside last season (Nov. 30, 2023), Dylan Andrews drove to the hoop and made a driving bank shot just inside the paint with 3.2 seconds to play, lifting UCLA to a 66-65 win. During UCLA's 2020-21 season (Feb. 20, 2021), then-freshman Jaylen Clark made the second of two free throws, after being fouled on a put-back attempt, to snap a 79-79 tie with 1.4 seconds left against Arizona State in Pauley Pavilion (UCLA won, 80-79).
UNDER 60 POINTS
UCLA has gone 59-3 since the start of the 2019-20 season when limiting the opposition to fewer than 60 points (all under head coach Mick Cronin). This season, the Bruins have gone 7-0 when holding the opponent to fewer than 60 points scored. The Bruins rank No. 1 in the nation in scoring defense, surrendering an average of 55.0 points per game (No. 2 in the nation was Drake, at 55.2 ppg). UCLA limited Boston University to 40 points (71-40 score on Nov. 11), the first time since Jan. 19, 2020, in which the Bruins held an opposing team to 40 points or fewer (UCLA defeated California, 50-40, in Pauley Pavilion). Since the start of the 1994-95 season, the Bruins have limited the opposition to 40 or fewer points in 12 games.
TALENTED TYLER
Junior Tyler Bilodeau has averaged team highs in scoring (13.7 ppg) and rebounding (5.6 rpg), through 10 contests. He has shot 47.9 percent overall and 34.5 percent from 3-point distance (10-for-29). Most recently, Bilodeau totaled a team-high 17 points in UCLA's 57-54 win over Arizona in a non-conference game on Saturday. He has scored in double figures in seven games, including a 23-point and 15-rebound effort in a loss to New Mexico on Nov. 8. In UCLA's win over Idaho State (Nov. 20), Bilodeau shot 4-for-4 from 3-point range. He became UCLA's first player to shoot 100% from 3-point range, with a minimum of four attempts, since Nov. 17, 2021, when Tyger Campbell was a perfect 4-for-4 in a win over North Florida.
NATIONAL NUMBERS
Through games played on Sunday, Dec. 15, the Bruins ranked No. 1 in the nation in scoring defense (55.0 ppg), No. 2 in turnovers forced per game (18.6) and No. 3 in turnover margin (7.6). IUCLA also ranks No. 12 in scoring margin (20.6 ppg), No. 15 in 3-point field goal percentage defense (27.3%) and No. 17 in field goal percentage defense (38.1%). UCLA has averaged 9.6 steals per game (No. 31 in the nation), as guards Kobe Johnson (2.2 spg) and Skyy Clark (1.9 spg) rank among the Big Ten Conference's top eight leaders in that category.
ON THE DEFENSIVE END
Arizona's 54 points scored on Saturday were the fewest by the Wildcats' program in any game since Feb. 8, 2020, when UCLA secured a 65-52 win over Arizona at McKale Center in Tucson, Ariz. The 54 points scored on Saturday by Arizona were the fewest in a game by the Wildcats in head coach Tommy Lloyd's career in Tucson (now in his fourth season). Arizona was held to its fewest made field goals (19) in nine games this season (19-for-42, 45.2%). UCLA has limited the opposition to 19 made field goals or fewer in six of 10 games (Boston University and Southern Utah were held to 14 made shots).
SKYY'S THE LIMIT
Junior guard Skyy Clark has committed just four turnovers in the team's last six games (spanning nearly 150 minutes for Clark). Clark enters UCLA's game on Tuesday having totaled 23 assists (second on the team) and 10 turnovers. He scored a season-best 15 points in the 57-54 win over Arizona on Saturday in Phoenix, connecting on 3-of-7 shots from 3-point range. Clark corralled an offensive rebound off a missed 3-point attempt by Dylan Andrews and was fouled with 6.1 seconds left in the game. He made both ensuing free throw attempts to put the Bruins ahead, 57-54.
ROAD VICTORY IN EUGENE
The Bruins' 73-71 win at No. 12-ranked Oregon on Sunday, Dec. 8, marking the program's first road win over a top-20 ranked opponent since No. 16 UCLA won at No. 20 Maryland, 87-60, on Dec. 14, 2022. Prior to the win in 2022, UCLA won at No. 18 Colorado, 70-63, on Feb. 22, 2020 (during a stretch of the year where the Bruins won 11 of 13 contests). The Bruins have not played a road game at a top-10 ranked opponent since losing to No. 7 Arizona, 76-66, at the McKale Center in Tucson, Ariz., on Feb. 3, 2022 (the Bruins were ranked No. 3 in the nation, heading into that game).
FORCING TURNOVERS
UCLA's 30 forced turnovers in the 88-43 win over Southern Utah (Tuesday, Nov. 26) marked the highest single-game total registered by the Bruins since the 1999-2000 season. Previously, the Bruins forced 32 turnovers in a season-opening 76-57 win against Fairfield University in Pauley Pavilion (Fairfield had 32 turnovers, and UCLA committed 22). Since the 1975-76 season, when UCLA began to consistently record turnover stats, the Bruins have forced at least 30 turnovers in six games, spanning a stretch of nearly 1,585 total games. UCLA forced 30 or more turnovers in three other games during the 1990s and in one home victory against Stanford during the 1974-75 season.
UNDER PRESSURE
The Bruins have gone 32-20 since the start of the 2019-20 season (under head coach Mick Cronin) in games that were decided by five points or fewer (and in any game that advanced into overtime, regardless of final score margin). The Bruins' last two wins have been by a combined five points – a 73-71 victory at Oregon on Dec. 8, and a 57-54 triumph against Arizona on Dec. 14. During UCLA's 2020-21 season (which culminated in a Final Four appearance), the Bruins went 12-4 in any game decided by five points or fewer, or that advanced into overtime.
NOTES ON PAULEY PAVILION
The Bruins have gone 7-0 in Pauley Pavilion this season, now in their 59th campaign playing in the longtime UCLA basketball venue. Pauley Pavilion opened for the 1965-66 season. The first game in Pauley Pavilion took place on Dec. 3, 1965, as No. 1 UCLA defeated Ohio State, 92-66. UCLA spent 47 seasons in Pauley Pavilion before the venue was closed for an 18-month renovation (closed in March of 2011). UCLA hosted 18 home games during the 2011-12 season at the Los Angeles Sports Arena (14 games) near downtown L.A. and at the Honda Center in Anaheim (four games) before returning to Pauley Pavilion in Nov. 2012. This marks the 13th year in the "new" configuration of Pauley Pavilion.
Last year, CSUN snapped UCLA's 29-home-game winning streak with a 76-72 win over the Bruins (Dec. 19, 2023). Prior to that game, UCLA had not lost at home since an overtime setback (84-81) to Oregon on Jan. 13, 2022. UCLA's 29-game home streak had been the longest active streak in the country. Since taking over as UCLA's head coach prior to the 2019-20 season, Mick Cronin has guided the Bruins to a 71-13 record in 84 home games (84.5% win percentage).
MULTIPLE SCORING THREATS
The Bruins' 2024-25 roster has nine players who have each scored at least 20 points in one collegiate game. Skyy Clark totaled 36 points in Louisville's final game last season (ACC Tournament, against eventual Final Four competitor N.C. State). Dylan Andrews registered a career-high 31 points in the Bruins' win against Oregon State at the Pac-12 Tournament last season (March 13, 2024). Dominick Harris totaled a career-high 31 points last season for LMU in a non-conference win against Central Arkansas. The six other players on that list include Sebastian Mack (27 points), Lazar Stefanovic (26 points), Tyler Bilodeau (26 points), William Kyle III (26 points), Kobe Johnson (21 points) and Eric Dailey Jr. (20 points).
TRACK AND FIELD, AND BASKETBALL
William Kyle III, a 6-foot-9 forward from Bellevue, Neb., grew up excelling on the track. Introduced to basketball and track and field at an early age, Kyle III most especially enjoyed competing as a young high jump athlete (also ran the 400m and 800m). Kyle III recalls that he competed in the youth national competition as a fourth grader and placed sixth overall in high jump that year. Going into the seventh grade, he finished eighth in high jump (nationals) and around 23rd place in the 800m. Kyle III, who spent his first two years of college at South Dakota State, gravitated more toward basketball in the summer of 2020 while attending Bellevue West High School (COVID-19 pandemic had ended his sophomore high school season).
TOP DEFENDER
Senior guard Kobe Johnson has totaled 178 steals in 101 games (67 starts), now in his fourth collegiate season. He enters this Tuesday night's game with a team-leading 22 steals (teammate Skyy Clark has totaled 19). Johnson had six steals in a home victory over Cal State Fullerton (Nov. 22), marking the third time in his career he's logged six steals in a game. Johnson, from Milwaukee, Wis., earned Pac-12 All-Defensive Team honors the past two seasons at USC. Over the previous two seasons (64 games), Johnson averaged 10.0 points, 4.8 rebounds, 2.9 assists and 2.2 steals per contest while at USC.
MINUTES DISTRIBUTION
While it's early in the season – through 10 contests – no players on UCLA's roster have averaged more than 27 minutes per game, as junior Tyler Bilodeau leads the team in minutes per game (26.8 mpg). Since UCLA began recording the minutes stat in 1978-79, the Bruins have always had at least one player average 30.0 or more minutes per game (by the end of the year). During the 2019-20 season, then-freshman guard Tyger Campbell finished the year as the Bruins' leader in minutes per game, at exactly 30.0 mpg. This year's team has nine players who have averaged at least 10.0 minutes per contest.
DOUBLED UP
UCLA had twice as many shot attempts (80 to 40) as Southern Utah in an 88-43 win in Pauley Pavilion on Tuesday, Nov. 26. That marked the second game since the start of the 1970-71 season in which the Bruins accomplished that feat, having at least twice as many shots attempts than the opposing team (spanning over 1,725 contests). Previously, UCLA outshot Oregon State in Corvallis, 81 to 40 (shot attempts), in a 65-63 loss on Jan. 7, 1999. In this season's home victory over Southern Utah, the Bruins shot 38-for-80 (47.5%) while Southern Utah made just 14 of 40 shot attempts (35.0%).
ADDITIONAL NOTES ON COACH CRONIN
– Head coach Mick Cronin has guided the program to an overall mark of 124-54, now in his sixth season at UCLA.
– In 2021, 2022 and 2023, Coach Cronin led UCLA to a 9-3 record in three NCAA Tournament appearances.
– Coach Cronin's teams at UCLA led the Pac-12 in scoring defense in 2021-22, 2022-23 and 2023-24.
– Coach Cronin earned Pac-12 Coach of the Year honors in 2020 (his first year at UCLA) and 2023 (his fourth year).
– Coach Cronin has led his teams to at least 20 wins in 14 of 21 total seasons as a college head coach.
– Coach Cronin's teams have averaged 25.0 victories per season over the last 14 years (2010-11 through 2023-24).
– Coach Cronin has twice led his teams to 31 victories (2022-23 at UCLA, and in 2017-18 at Cincinnati).
MISCELLANEOUS NOTES ON UCLA
– Since the start of the 2020-21 season, the Bruins went 56-23 in Pac-12 play (logging a 70.9 win percentage). UCLA went 10-10 in Pac-12 play in 2023-24 after having won the league title (18-2 record) during the 2022-23 season.
– The Bruins' roster includes four players who have logged at least one point-rebound double-double and one player (Dylan Andrews, last February) who has logged at least one point-assist double-double.
– Sophomore Aday Mara (7-foot-3) is the Bruins' tallest basketball player since the late Mike Lanier (7-foot-7, 310 pounds) competed as a reserve center for UCLA in 1991-92 and 1992-93.
CONSECUTIVE THREE-POINTERS
UCLA has made at least one 3-pointer in each of its last 40 games. The Bruins went 0-for-6 from long range in a 78-58 win against Long Island University early last 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.
ROAD WARRIORS
Since the start of the 2021-22 season, UCLA has compiled a 36-24 record in 60 games played away from home. Over the past two seasons, UCLA went 21-16 in games played away from home (14-6 in 2022-23, 7-10 in 2023-24). Earlier this month, the Bruins notched a 73-71 win at No. 12 Oregon on Sunday, Dec. 8. That marked UCLA's first win on the road against a top-20-ranked program since an 87-60 win at No. 20-ranked Maryland on Dec. 14, 2022.
