After an unusual trajectory to the start of his college career, UCLA’s Dylan Andrews is moving elsewhere to finish it.
The junior point guard entered the transfer portal on Wednesday, ending a herky-jerky career as a Bruin in which he rose from a rarely used freshman to a star during the second half of his sophomore season before taking a considerable step back as a junior.
In his final season at UCLA, Andrews never recaptured the form he showed late in his sophomore season, when he averaged 17.1 points over his final 14 games and played at an all-conference level.
Andrews’ production dipped across the board this season, his averages of 6.9 points and 3.4 assists to go with a career-low 37.9% shooting from the field serving as a limiting factor for the Bruins. His play bottomed out with a scoreless, five-turnover performance during UCLA’s season-ending loss to Tennessee in the second round of the NCAA tournament.
Among those the Bruins are believed to be pursuing as a replacement is former New Mexico point guard Donovan Dent, the Mountain West Conference player of the year who is seeking a new home through the transfer portal for his final college season.
In an interesting twist, UCLA coach Mick Cronin had suggested that his New Mexico counterpart, Richard Pitino, recruit the 6-foot-2 Dent out of Corona Centennial High because Cronin had already picked Andrews to be his next point guard.
“Dylan had committed to us,” Cronin said in November, “and I told Richard — not that he needed me to tell him, his staff was on this — that this guy is going to be tremendous; we already had Dylan Andrews coming in in the same class. I saw Donny play a million times whether it was AAU or with Centennial.”
Showing his ability to be a playmaking force, Dent led New Mexico with 17 points and eight assists during a 72-64 victory over UCLA in November. He averaged 20.4 points and 6.5 assists while shooting 49% and making 40.9% of his three-pointers.
UCLA will retain guard Skyy Clark, who told The Times that he intended to return next season after a strong finish to his first year as a Bruin. Clark, who averaged 8.5 points and made 39.7% of his three-pointers, can handle the ball but might be best utilized as a shooting guard.
In addition to Clark, UCLA’s roster currently includes guards Trent Perry, Sebastian Mack, Eric Freeny and Dominick Harris, though there could be departures from among that group. Andrews became the third UCLA player to enter the transfer portal, joining center William Kyle III and forward Devin Williams.
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