LOS ANGELES – UCLA (11-7, 2-3) returns to action on Wednesday evening at Oregon State (11-5, 2-3). The Bruins' game will be nationally televised on ESPNU with tipoff at Gill Coliseum slated for 8:05 p.m. (PT). UCLA and Oregon State have split each of their last six meetings.
GAME INFORMATION
Venue: Gill Coliseum (9,604)
Tipoff Time: 8:05 p.m. (PT)
Television: ESPNU
TV Talent: Roy Philpott (play-by-play), Adrian Branch (analyst)
Radio: AM 570
Radio Talent: Bill Roth (play-by-play), Darrick Martin (analyst)
SIRIUS/XM Channels: Ch. 84/Ch. 84
ABOUT THE BRUINS
- The Bruins have gone 11-7 this season, recording wins over three teams ranked in the top-25 poll -- No. 1 Kentucky (Dec. 3), at No. 20 Gonzaga (Dec. 12) and No. 7 Arizona (Jan. 7) ... UCLA has won two of its last three conference games after opening its Pac-12 schedule with two consecutive road losses at Washington and Washington State.
- UCLA's five starters are averaging at least 10.0 points per game ... junior guard Bryce Alford leads the team and ranks fourth in the Pac-12 with 16.9 points per game (through Monday, Jan. 18) ... Alford has scored at least 20 points in six games this season, while junior guard Isaac Hamilton has logged at least 20 points in five contests.
- UCLA is the only Pac-12 team to have at least two scorers in the conference's top 10 (Bryce Alford and Isaac Hamilton) ... in addition, the Bruins are the only program with at least two players who rank in the Pac-12's top 10 leaders in rebounding (Tony Parker is third with 10.1 rpg, and Thomas Welsh is seventh with 8.6 rpg).
- Junior guard Isaac Hamilton has scored in double figures in each of the Bruins' last 14 games ... Hamilton has averaged 18.5 points per game in that 14-game stretch after having logged just 8.0 points per game in the team's first four contests this season ... Hamilton scored a season-high 27 points in the team's loss at Washington State (Jan. 3).
UCLA VERSUS OREGON STATE
- UCLA split a pair of regular-season games against Oregon State last season, with each team securing a win on its home court ... the Bruins have posted a 92-36 all-time record against OSU ... the two teams have split the last six meetings ... prior to a loss at Oregon State on Jan. 19, 2011, UCLA had recorded 13 straight wins against the Beavers.
- Under the direction of second-year head coach Wayne Tinkle, Oregon State has posted an 11-5 record this season (including a 2-3 mark in Pac-12 action) ... senior guard Gary Payton II leads Oregon State in scoring (17.3 ppg), rebounding (8.3 rpg) and assists (5.1 apg) and is first in the Pac-12 in steals per game (2.4).
MOST RECENTLY …
- Tony Parker totaled a season-high 27 points and grabbed 12 rebounds as UCLA dropped an 89-75 decision to USC in Pauley Pavilion on Jan. 13 ... Parker was one of four UCLA players to score in double figures, as the Bruins saw their six-game winning streak against USC come to a halt ... UCLA absorbed its second loss to USC in the last 12 meetings.
- Prior to last Wednesday's loss against USC, the Bruins had evened their Pac-12 record with back-to-back home victories over No. 7 Arizona (87-84) and Arizona State (81-74) ... junior guard Bryce Alford earned Pac-12 Player of the Week honors after having registered 21.5 points and 5.0 assists in the two wins.
- In the Bruins' 87-84 win over Arizona, Alford helped thwart a tenacious Wildcats' rally in the closing moments ... his 3-pointer with 1.8 seconds left in the second half snapped an 84-84 tie and lifted UCLA to victory ... two days later, Alford nailed a 3-pointer with 24 seconds remaining to extend UCLA's lead over Arizona State from 77-74 to 80-74.
HAMILTON STAYS HOT
- Junior guard Isaac Hamilton was tied for seventh in the Pac-12 in scoring (16.2 ppg), through Monday, Jan. 18 ... in addition, Hamilton ranks second among all Pac-12 players in field goals made (112) ... he has shot 47.9 percent from the field (112-for-234).
- Hamilton has scored in double figures in each of the team's last 14 games, totaling at least 20 points in five games this season ... he had a 27-point game at Washington State (Jan. 3) and a 26-point effort versus ASU (Jan. 9).
- Earlier this season, Hamilton had a streak of five straight games with at least eight field goals made, the longest such streak by any UCLA player since 1991, when Tracy Murray did that in six consecutive games.
PARKER AND WELSH
- Tony Parker has registered a team-leading nine double-doubles, the third-highest total in the Pac-12 (through Jan. 18) ... Parker currently ranks third in the Pac-12 in rebounds per game (10.1).
- Parker, the only senior on UCLA's roster, stands just 14 rebounds shy of breaking into the school's all-time top 25 rebounds list (has 613) ... former UCLA standout Tracy Murray currently ranks 25th (with 627 rebounds).
- Thomas Welsh grabbed a season-high 16 rebounds in the Bruins' 81-74 win over Arizona State on Jan. 9 ... Welsh had 14 rebounds in the second half (UCLA was outrebounded in the first half by a 23-12 margin).
- After having averaged 3.8 points and 3.8 rebounds per game as a freshman, Welsh has registered 12.9 points and 8.6 rebounds per contest this season ... his 59.0 field goal percentage ranks third in the Pac-12.
- Welsh has totaled seven double-doubles this season, tied for the sixth-highest total in the Pac-12 (through Jan. 18) ... he scored a team-leading 21 points and had 11 rebounds in UCLA's win over No. 1 Kentucky on Dec. 3, 2015.
CHALLENGING SLATE
Among Pac-12 teams, UCLA's non-conference schedule was rated the most challenging by KenPom.com. Overall, the Bruins have played five games against teams ranked in the top 20 of the AP poll – No. 1 Kentucky (W, 87-77, Dec. 3), and No. 5 Kansas in the Maui Invitational (L, 92-73, Nov. 24), at No. 20 Gonzaga (W, 71-66, Dec. 12), versus North Carolina in Brooklyn (L, 89-76, Dec. 19), and No. 7 Arizona (W, 87-84, Jan. 7). Through Friday, Jan. 15 games, 10 of the 12 Pac-12 programs had RPI figures between No. 1-75 (including UCLA, at No. 66).
WHAT'S DOWN THE ROAD
Following this Wednesday's game at Oregon State, the Bruins will play at Oregon on Saturday, Jan. 23. Last season, the Bruins went 1-1 in a pair of regular-season meetings against Oregon, with each team winning its game at home. The Bruins absorbed an 82-64 loss to the Ducks in Eugene, Ore. (Jan. 24, 2015) before responding in Pauley Pavilion, just three weeks later, with a 72-63 victory (Feb. 14, 2015). UCLA has recorded an 86-32 all-time record against Oregon, with victories in three of the last four meetings. The Bruins last won at Oregon on Jan. 30, 2014 (70-68).
AT THE STRIPE
Junior guard Bryce Alford leads all Pac-12 players in free throw percentage (86.5 pct), through Monday, Jan. 18. Alford entered the season having shot 82.4 percent from the free throw line and has converted a Pac-12-leading 86.5 percent of his free throws this season (77-for-89). In fact, Alford currently ranks sixth on UCLA's all-time free throw percentage list, just behind Jordan Adams (fourth place) and Reggie Miller (fifth place). Alford's current single-season percentage (86.5) is the highest by any UCLA player since 2009, when Darren Collison concluded his senior year shooting 89.7 from the line.
YEAR THREE
Steve Alford is currently in his third season as UCLA's head coach and his 25th year as a college basketball head coach. In his third year at UCLA, Alford has led the Bruins to a 61-30 overall record. After guiding the Bruins to the Pac-12 Tournament title and a Sweet 16 appearance in 2014, Alford helped UCLA engineer a second consecutive trip to the Sweet 16 last March. He has led his teams to at least 22 wins in each of the last eight years, including at least 28 wins in three of the previous four seasons (107-36 record over the previous four years).