UCLA
Denver
UCLA to Face Denver on Sunday Afternoon
December 03, 2019 | Men's Basketball
LOS ANGELES – UCLA (6-3) returns to action against Denver (4-5) on Sunday, Dec. 8. The Bruins have gone 10-1 in the all-time series against Denver, but these two programs have not faced each other since the 1975-76 season. After having played their first nine games during a 26-day stretch this season, the Bruins have just four games remaining in the month of December. Following Sunday's afternoon game against Denver, UCLA will play at Notre Dame on Saturday, Dec. 14.
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GAME INFORMATION
Venue: Pauley Pavilion presented by Wescom
Venue Capacity: 13,800
Tipoff Time: 2:05 p.m. (PT)
Television: Pac-12 Network
TV Talent: Ted Robinson (play-by-play), Don MacLean (analyst)
Radio (UCLA Sports Network): AM 1150
Radio Talent: Josh Lewin (play-by-play), Tracy Murray (analyst)
XM Channel: Ch. 373
SIRIUSXM Internet Channel: Ch. 373
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ABOUT THE PIONEERS
Denver has gone 4-5 this season, most recently having defeated Jackson State on Tuesday night, 67-58. The Pioneers have two players who have averaged in double-figure scoring – senior Ade Murkey (12.2 ppg) and sophomore Jase Townsend (11.8 ppg). Townsend has averaged a team-leading 5.3 rebounds per game.
FOOD DRIVE & SUNDAY'S PROMOTIONS
Fans are encouraged to bring non-perishable, non-expired food items to this Sunday's game against Denver. The food drive helps to support the Community Programs Office Food Closet at UCLA (here is a list of suggested items). The CPO Food Closet assists students who are experiencing hunger and could be struggling to attain food due to financial hardships. Gorilla Marketing, a proud sponsor of UCLA Athletics, will provide any fan who donates food to the CPO with one voucher, good for two free tickets to UCLA's upcoming game against Cal State Fullerton (Dec. 28) or for the women's basketball game against Arizona State on Jan. 3.
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Fans at Sunday's game can enjoy $3 nachos and items from three different food trucks (Tropic Truck, Go Fusion N Grill, and Epic Tacos) along the South concourse. There will also be free Under Armour / The Den t-shirts for the first 400 UCLA students in attendance. After the game, all kids under high school age are invited to shoot a free throw on Nell & John Wooden Court. Tickets are still available, starting at just $15, by clicking here or visiting the Pauley box office on Sunday.
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DOWN THE ROAD
The Bruins will conclude a home-and-home series with Notre Dame on Saturday, Dec. 14, marking the 50th all-time meeting. UCLA has gone 29-20 against the Fighting Irish. The Bruins defeated Notre Dame last season, 65-62, on Dec. 8 in Pauley Pavilion, as Kris Wilkes made a 3-point basket with 0.7 seconds to play.
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NOTES ON THE BRUINS
- UCLA has four players who have averaged at least 10 points per game, led by sophomore Jalen Hill (12.3 ppg).
- The Bruins went 1-2 last week at the Maui Jim Maui Invitational before defeating San Jose State, 93-64, on Sunday.
- Through four games last week, Cody Riley averaged a team-leading 11.0 points per game, shooting 51.4 percent.
- UCLA has had 11 players, including freshmen, establish new career highs in points scored this season.
- The Bruins ranked second in the Pac-12 (through Wednesday, Dec. 4) in rebounding margin (+8.3 rpg).
- Chris Smith ranked first among all Pac-12 players in free throw percentage (28 for 30, 93.3 percent), through Wednesday, Dec. 4.
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TALENTED FRESHMAN
Freshman Jaime Jaquez Jr. scored a season-high 18 points on Sunday in the win against San Jose State. He registered his first career double-double against Chaminade (Nov. 26), totaling 17 points and 12 rebounds in that victory. After having scored 10 points through the Bruins' first six games (1.7 ppg), Jaquez Jr. has averaged 14.0 points and 7.7 rebounds in the team's last three contests. In addition, Jaquez Jr. has shot 69.2 percent from the field in those three games.
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3-POINT SHOOTING
Sophomore David Singleton ranked fourth in the Pac-12 (through Wednesday, Dec. 4) in 3-point field goal percentage (52.6), having made 10 of 19 attempts from 3-point distance. Singleton opened the season having made just two of seven attempts from long range but has nailed eight of his last 12 3-point attempts. He sank a career-high five 3-pointers (on six attempts) in the team's victory over Chaminade (Nov. 26), finishing that game with a career-high 15 points.
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UCLA'S CAREER LIST
While he's only a sophomore, David Singleton has put himself within striking distance of UCLA's career top 10 list in 3-point field goal percentage. UCLA's official career list has a minimum of 100 attempts (to qualify, and Singleton has made 45 of 94 career attempts). Pooh Richardson ranks No. 1 on the school's career 3-point percentage list (46.4 percent), while Singleton has made 47.9 percent of his career 3-point attempts.
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BENCH PRODUCTION
UCLA has consistently been playing 11 players over the past few games, and the team has averaged 22.4 points per game off the bench. In fact, UCLA's reserves have outscored the opposition's bench in six of nine games this season. The Bruins have had five different players enter the game off the bench and score at least 10 points – Prince Ali, Jules Bernard, Jaime Jaquez Jr., David Singleton and Chris Smith. Bernard has scored 20 points and 16 points off the bench this season.
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EYE OF THE TYGER
Tyger Campbell, a redshirt freshman point guard, has averaged 7.8 points, 4.0 assists and 2.0 rebounds through nine games. The 5-foot-11 guard from Cedar Rapids, Iowa, has shot 44.4 percent from the field and 40.0 percent from 3-point range (8-for-20). He recorded 15 points and five assists in his first collegiate game, versus Long Beach State on Nov. 6. Campbell also scored in double figures (15 points) in the Bruins' 71-54 win against UNLV on Nov. 15.
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GLANCING AT THE ROSTER
UCLA's roster features 15 student-athletes, including 13 players who were on the team last season. The Bruins have returned eight of 11 players who competed in the bulk of the team's games last season. That returning nucleus includes fifth-year seniors Prince Ali and Alex Olesinski, junior Chris Smith and sophomores Jalen Hill, Cody Riley, Jules Bernard, Kenneth Nwuba and David Singleton. The Bruins return redshirt freshmen Tyger Campbell and Shareef O'Neal and have added incoming freshmen Jaime Jaquez Jr. (Camarillo, Calif.) and Jake Kyman (Aliso Viejo, Calif.), a pair of 6-foot-6 guards.
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FRONTCOURT FORCE
Redshirt sophomore Jalen Hill has averaged 12.3 points and a team-leading 7.8 rebounds per game. The 6-foot-10 forward/center ranked No. 6 among Pac-12 players in total rebounds per game (7.8) and was first in offensive rebounds per game (3.4), through games played Wednesday, Dec. 4. Hill has scored in double figures in four games, has tallied three double-doubles and has recorded at least three blocked shots in three games. He ranks first on UCLA's team with 13 blocks.
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STRONG PROGRESSION
Redshirt sophomore Cody Riley has averaged 10.6 points and 5.3 rebounds per game this season. As a redshirt freshman one year ago, he averaged 5.5 points and 4.1 rebounds per game. Riley's overall shooting percentage has improved from 47.4 percent one year ago to 53.2 percent this season. The 6-foot-9 forward who grew up in Kansas City, Kan., has scored in double figures in five games this season (including four of the Bruins' last five contests).
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AT THE FREE THROW LINE
The Bruins have shot 70.6 percent from the free throw line through nine games, a noticeable improvement from last season, when the team made just 63.3 percent of its total free throws. UCLA has shot 77.0 percent or better in three of nine games this season. Last year, UCLA shot a season-high 76.2 percent (16/21) in a win against Presbyterian on Nov. 19, 2018. Through games played Monday, Dec. 2, UCLA ranked fourth in the Pac-12 in free throw percentage (70.6 percent).
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FIFTH-YEAR SENIORS
Redshirt seniors Prince Ali (10.6 ppg, 3.3 rpg) and Alex Olesinski (1.4 ppg, 2.1 rpg) are UCLA's most veteran and experienced players. Ali has played in 97 career games (56 starts) and has scored in double figures in 40 career contests. Olesinski has played in 82 career games (two starts). Both of these student-athletes have fulfilled their undergraduate degree requirements. Olesinski is currently enrolled in a graduate program within UCLA's department of education.
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TWO INCOMING FRESHMEN
Jaime Jaquez Jr. (pronounced HY-may HA-kez) scored a season-high 18 points last Sunday evening against San Jose State (Dec. 1) after having scored 17 points in a win over Chaminade on Tuesday, Nov. 26. The 6-foot-6 guard/forward from Camarillo, Calif., has played in all nine games (5.8 ppg, 3.4 rpg). Jake Kyman has played in UCLA's last five games. He connected on his first two 3-point attempts in his collegiate debut against Hofstra, on Thursday, Nov. 21.
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NEWS AND NOTES
- Senior Prince Ali, UCLA's top returning scorer from last season's team, enters this Sunday's game having scored 758 career points (7.8 ppg in 97 career contests). He currently leads UCLA's team in most career points scored. Junior Chris Smith ranks second in that category, having scored 447 career points through 75 career games.
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- The Bruins have returned 47.6% of their scoring production from last season. UCLA lost its top three scorers from last season's roster (Kris Wilkes 17.4 ppg, Jaylen Hands 14.2 ppg, Moses Brown 9.7 ppg), as all three student-athletes chose to pursue a professional career. UCLA has returned 56.6% of its rebounding production from one year ago.
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- UCLA outscored San Jose State by 29 points (93-64) on Sunday, Dec. 1. The Bruins recorded their largest margin of victory since early last season, when UCLA downed Saint Francis U by 37 points in Pauley Pavilion (95-58) on Nov. 16, 2018. UCLA's 93 points were the most in a game since defeating USC in overtime last season, 93-88 (Feb. 28, 2019).
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- UCLA forced 20 turnovers in last Sunday's win against San Jose State. That marked the first time since March 1, 2017, in which the Bruins had forced 20 or more turnovers by their opponent. UCLA defeated Washington, 98-66, as the Huskies committed 20 turnovers. Lonzo Ball had four steals in the Bruins' 32-point win against Washington.
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- Former UCLA center Moses Brown, who was a freshman with the team last season, has become the 95th former UCLA player to have played in the NBA. Brown, a 7-foot-1 center from New York City, made his NBA debut with the Portland Trail Blazers on Tuesday, Nov. 12. He tallied three rebounds in four minutes of action in a game versus Sacramento.
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- UCLA limited Chaminade to 23.3 percent shooting from the field in the Bruins' second game of the Maui Jim Maui Invitational (Tuesday, Nov. 26). That marked the first time UCLA had limited an opponent to 25 percent (or lower) since Dec. 3, 2014, when the Bruins held Cal State Fullerton to just 13-of-54 shooting in a game in Pauley Pavilion (24.1 percent).
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- Jules Bernard, a sophomore from Los Angeles, scored 20 points off the bench in UCLA's 77-61 victory against UC Santa Barbara (Nov. 10). He tied his career high (points) in that game, having also logged 20 points off the bench in the Bruins' 90-83 victory at home against Oregon last season (Feb. 23, 2019), in what was UCLA's second-to-last home contest.
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- The largest single-game point total of any current UCLA player belongs to sophomore Jalen Hill, who had a career-best 24 points in a loss to Hofstra (Nov. 21, 2019) in Pauley Pavilion. The largest single-game rebound total of any returning Bruin also belongs to Hill, who tallied 20 boards in a win against Presbyterian last season (Nov. 19, 2018).
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- Sophomore David Singleton finished his freshman campaign (2018-19) ranking No. 6 on the school's single-season list for highest 3-point percentage (46.7%). He made 35 of 75 shots from 3-point range, logging the second-highest percentage of any player in the Pac-12 (behind California's Matt Bradley, who shot 47.2%, making 50 of 106 attempts).
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- UCLA limited Chaminade University (located in Honolulu, Hawai'i) to 48 points on Tuesday, Nov. 26. That marked the fewest points allowed by any UCLA team since Nov. 29, 2015, when the Bruins defeated Cal State Northridge, 77-45, in Pauley Pavilion presented by Wescom.
