UCLA
Texas A&M
No. 14 UCLA Prepares for Texas A&M on Sunday
November 26, 2016 | Men's Basketball
ANAHEIM, Calif. โ No. 14/13 UCLA (6-0) takes on Texas A&M (4-1) in the championship contest of the 2016 Wooden Legacy this Sunday evening at the Honda Center in Anaheim. Game time is 5:30 p.m. (PT). UCLA's game will be nationally televised on ESPN, with Doug Sherman and Sean Farnham calling the action and Jeff Goodman serving as the sideline reporter.
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GAME INFORMATION
Venue: Honda Center (Anaheim, Calif.)
Game Time: 5:30 p.m. (PT)
Television: ESPN
TV Talent: Doug Sherman (play-by-play), Sean Farnham (analyst), Jeff Goodman (sideline)
Radio: AM 1150
Radio Talent: John Ramey (play-by-play), Tracy Murray (analyst)
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ON DECK FOR UCLA
Ranked No. 14 in the AP poll and No. 13 in the USA Today Coaches poll, UCLA seeks its first championship in the current format of the Wooden Legacy when it faces Texas A&M on Sunday. The Bruins look to capture their first in-season outright tournament title since Nov. 2007, when UCLA won the CBE Classic championship in Kansas, City, Mo. (Sprint Center). UCLA won the Maui Invitational in Nov. 2006 and the Great Alaska Shootout in Nov. 1991. The Bruins have been victorious in all four games in the all-time series against Texas A&M.
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ABOUT THE MATCHUP
UCLA has twice defeated Texas A&M at the Honda Center โ at the Wooden Classic doubleheader on Dec. 9, 2006 (65-62) and in the NCAA Tournament's second round on March 22, 2008 (51-49). In addition, the Bruins have compiled a 17-5 all-time record in games at the Honda Center, including a perfect 4-0 mark in the venue during the 2011-12 season (while Pauley Pavilion was unavailable due to renovation). UCLA last played in the Honda Center on Dec. 1, 2012, facing San Diego State in the Wooden Classic.
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HIGH-OCTANE OFFENSE
UCLA averaged 100.7 points in its first six games, the first time since Dec. 1990 in which the Bruins had averaged that many points through a six-game span. From Nov. 26-Dec. 19, 1990, UCLA averaged 110.0 points per game, buoyed by a 149-98 win over Loyola Marymount before defeating Saint Mary's, 123-93, three days later. With TJ Leaf scoring a team-high 17.8 points per game, this season's squad currently has six players averaging in double figures.
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FACTS & FIGURES
With its 119-80 win over Pacific in the season opener (Nov. 11), UCLA recorded its highest single-game point total since defeating Cal State Fullerton, 120-91, on Dec. 13, 1997. Also, UCLA has scored at least 40 points in its first 10 halves this season and has reached the 40-point mark in 11 of 12 total halves. The Bruins had a season-best 63 points in the first half against Pacific (Nov. 11).
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FRIDAY IN REVIEW
Bryce Alford scored 18 points and Lonzo Ball finished with 13 points and seven assists to lead UCLA past Nebraska, 82-71, in a semifinal game of the Wooden Legacy on Friday. Five UCLA players scored in double figures. The Bruins led at halftime, 38-25 and saw their lead reduced to 58-56 by the 9:26 mark. Alford tallied 10 of the Bruins' final 19 points with under seven minutes to play. The Bruins earned their sixth consecutive win and have opened the year 6-0 for first time since winning eight straight games to begin the 2013-14 season (Steve Alford's first year at UCLA).
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THURSDAY VERSUS PORTLAND
Freshman Lonzo Ball recorded his third double-double in five games on Thursday, all of the point-assist variety, as he totaled a team-leading 18 points and 11 assists. Ball enters this Sunday evening's contest wtih a Pac-12-leading assists per game average (9.0). He has also recorded a remarkable 4.5 assist-turnover ratio early in his collegiate career. Six UCLA players scored in double figures against Portland, as Thomas Welsh (16 points, 10 rebounds) had his third double-double of the year. The Bruins led 45-37 at halftime and used an early 11-0 run in the second half.
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SCORING BALANCE
Seven UCLA players scored in double figures in the season opener against Pacific (Nov. 11). In addition, six Bruins scored in double figures against San Diego (Nov. 17), Long Beach State (Nov. 20) and Portland (Nov. 24). Prior to this season, UCLA had not seen seven of its players score in double figures in the same game since Dec. 19, 1998 (UCLA def. CSUN, 114-97). UCLA's previous games with at least six double-figure scorers took place in wins over Montana State (Nov. 14, 2014 โ Pauley Pavilion) and against Stanford in overtime (March 4, 2000 โ Maples Pavilion, at Stanford).
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HAVIN' A BALL
Lonzo Ball has been named to the 50-person watch list for both the Naismith Trophy (presented by the Atlanta Tipoff Club) and the John R. Wooden Award. Averaging 16.0 points, 5.3 rebounds and 9.0 assists per game, Ball has shot 61.1 percent from the field and 50.0 percent from 3-point range (14/28). In the season opener (Nov. 11), he had 19 points, 11 assists and eight rebounds. Ball has recorded 11 assists in three games, just one assist shy of the school's single-game freshman record โ Pooh Richardson had 12 in a double-overtime win at Washington State (Jan. 11, 1986).
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VETERAN GUARDS
Seniors Bryce Alford and Isaac Hamilton opened the year as two of the Pac-12 Conference's most veteran players. Alford now ranks No. 21 on UCLA's all-time scoring list (1,470 points), having averaged 13.2 points per game in 111 career contests. He entered the season as the only returning player in a Power 5 conference to have averaged at least 16.0 points, 5.0 assists and 3.0 rebounds per game last year. Hamilton started this season as the Pac-12's top returning scorer from one year ago (16.8 ppg last year) and has totaled 1,019 career points in 74 games at UCLA.
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