On Saturday night, the UCLA men’s basketball team showed why it has become a lock for the NCAA tournament and its crosstown rival USC is all but out of contention.
Led by a dominant 25-point, seven-assist performance from star guard Donovan Dent, the Bruins dismantled the Trojans 89-68 at the home Galen Center, pushing both teams further down the paths they have been on the past two weeks. Dent’s 25 points tied for the second most he has scored in a game this season.
With the win, UCLA secured the No. 6 seed in the Big Ten tournament and a corresponding bye through the first two rounds.
A few weeks ago, both teams were sitting in the bubble. UCLA (21-10, 13-7) has been hot, pulling down wins against ranked opponents Illinois and Nebraska, while USC (18-13, 7-13 Big Ten) went on a seven-game slide, including big losses to the Huskers and Illini and two more to the Bruins.
Now, both teams will head to the Big Ten tournament with opposite momentum and very different stakes, though any number of wins for UCLA can’t hurt its seeding come Selection Sunday.
Early on, Saturday’s contest looked like it would be a much closer affair. USC, without top scorer Chad Baker-Mazara, who was dismissed earlier this week, tied the game up six times before UCLA took control with a 13-1 run midway through the first half.
Bruin forward Tyler Bilodeau was especially important during UCLA’s early game run, scoring all 16 of his points on 70% shooting from the field in the first half. He added eight rebounds.
The Bruins dominated inside and on the perimeter, outrebounding USC 37-26 and shooting a combined 53% from 3-point range. UCLA’s bread and butter on Saturday, though, were the many contested mid-range jump shots, which were made at an impressive clip, especially by Dent.
UCLA enjoyed strong fan support on the road, with the group Men of Westwood paying for buses that transported 1,000 fans to Galen Center.
The Bruins shot a dominant 58% from the field, well outdoing the solid 43% for the Trojans. Dent alone made 8-of-11 shots in the second half.
While the Bruins at points struggled to contain USC star freshman Alijah Arenas, who ended the night with 20 points, he wasn’t given much help as Ezra Ausar, Kam Woods and Jordan Marsh — some of the Trojans other top scoring options — got into foul trouble with at least three apiece and had to limit their aggressiveness. Arenas finished with three fouls, while Ausar fouled out, he was USC’s second-leading scorer with a 12-point, 11-rebound double-double.
Besides Bilodeau and Dent, Eric Dailey Jr. scored 19 points and grabbed eight rebounds, Eric Freeny scored 10 and Treny Perry added eight points and four assists. Guard Skyy Clark, who missed 10 conference games while recovering from a hamstring injury, struggled offensively, missing all five shots from the field.
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