UCLA
Colorado
No. 7 UCLA Set to Host Colorado This Saturday
January 13, 2023 | Men's Basketball
LOS ANGELES – The Bruins will take on Colorado in a Pac-12 contest this Saturday evening in Pauley Pavilion presented by Wescom. Game time is 5 p.m. (PT). UCLA's game against the Buffaloes will be nationally televised on FOX. Fans can listen to UCLA's radio broadcast on AM 570 in the greater Los Angeles area.
UCLA has won five of its last six meetings against Colorado, including both regular-season contests last season. The Bruins defeated Colorado, 73-61, in Pauley Pavilion on Dec. 1, 2021. UCLA has won its last three home contests against Colorado (in Jan. 2020, Jan. 2021 and Dec. 2021). The Bruins will enter this Saturday's game having won 12 consecutive contests and have compiled a perfect 10-0 mark in home games this season (averaging 79.7 points in 10 home contests)
GAME INFORMATION
Venue: Pauley Pavilion presented by Wescom
Tipoff Time: 5:03 p.m. (PT)
Television: FOX
TV Talent: Tim Brando (play-by-play), Jim Jackson (analyst)
Radio Broadcast (UCLA Sports Network): AM 570
Radio Talent: Josh Lewin (play-by-play), Tracy Murray (analyst)
SIRIUS XM, SIRIUS XM App Channels: Ch. 108 or 198, Ch. 960
TEAM RECORDS
UCLA: 15-2 overall, 6-0 Pac-12
Colorado: 11-7 overall, 3-4 Pac-12
THE BRUINS' BEST STARTS
This marks the second consecutive season in which UCLA has won 15 of its first 17 games. Last season's UCLA squad opened the regular season with 16 wins in 18 games, ultimately advancing to the NCAA Tournament's Sweet 16. The Bruins last opened a basketball season with 16 wins through 17 games in 2016-17 (starting that year 19-1, through 20 games).
LOW TURNOVERS
Led by point guard Tyger Campbell (13.5 ppg, 4.8 apg), UCLA has registered an assist-turnover ratio of 1.6-to-1, which ranks No. 10 in the nation (through Thursday, Jan. 12). The Bruins have committed fewer turnovers than their opponent in all 17 games this season. Through Thursday's contests, UCLA ranked No. 4 in the nation in turnover margin (+6.9 per game), the best turnover margin among any Pac-12 program (Arizona State was second in the Pac-12 at +1.7 per game).
KEY NOTES ABOUT UCLA
– UCLA has won 12 consecutive games since losing back-to-back games to No. 19 Illinois (79-70) and No. 5 Baylor (80-75) at T-Mobile Arena (Las Vegas). Over the last 12 contests, UCLA has four players who have averaged at least 10 points per game (Jaime Jaquez Jr., Jaylen Clark, Tyger Campbell and Amari Bailey). During the 12-game winning streak, Jaquez Jr. has averaged 17.1 points and 7.3 rebounds per game and has shot 54.1 percent from the field.
– The Bruins have limited the opposition to 57.3 points per game during the 12-game winning streak (holding the opposition to 28.6% from 3-point range). Looking at recent lengthy winning streaks, UCLA had one 10-game streak late during the 2016-17 season and opened the 2016-17 campaign with 13 consecutive wins (UCLA finished that season 31-5). The Bruins won 14 straight games in February and March of 2008 (culminating in a third consecutive Final Four appearance).
– Two weeks ago, the Bruins notched their first "road sweep" of Washington State and Washington since the 2016-17 season. UCLA has opened Pac-12 play with six straight wins (three home games, three road contests). Overall this season, the Bruins are 4-0 in true road games (Stanford, Maryland, Washington State and Washington) and 5-2 in seven games played away from home. Next week, the Bruins will play at Arizona State on Thursday and at Arizona on Saturday.
– Tyger Campbell scored a team-leading 17 points (and had seven assists), while Adem Bona totaled 15 points and eight rebounds in UCLA's 68-49 win over Utah on Thursday evening. The Bruins led at halftime, 31-22, and pushed their advantage to 18 points (46-28) with 12:00 to play in regulation. Jaime Jaquez Jr. flirted with a triple-double, totaling eight points, 12 rebounds and six assists in the win. Kenneth Nwuba totaled a career-best five blocks in 15 minutes off the bench.
– The Bruins ranked No. 3 in the Pomeroy College Basketball Ratings (KenPom.com), through games played on Thursday, Jan. 12. UCLA has compiled the No. 15-ranked offensive efficiency and are No. 4 in the defensive efficiency category (one of four schools to rank among the top 15 in both categories). Ranked No. 7 in the AP poll, and No. 6 in the USA Today Sports Coaches poll, UCLA has been ranked in each of the last 29 AP polls (since the start of the 2021-22 season).
THE "LOS BRUINS" PROMOTION
Season-ticket holders are invited to take photos on the court after Saturday's game. For those fans who are interested, please check in at the UCLA sales and service table, set up on the north concourse before the end of halftime to receive one wristband, granting access to the court after the game ends. UCLA will also have a halftime performance on Saturday by Mariachi de Uclatlán. In addition, UCLA will have a Latin Alumni Association recognition during Saturday's game.
UCLA'S ROSTER CONSTRUCTION
The Bruins returned five of their primary 11 contributors from last year's team. UCLA went 27-8 overall last season, advancing to the NCAA Tournament's Sweet 16. Key returners include seniors Tyger Campbell, Jaime Jaquez Jr., Kenneth Nwuba and David Singleton and junior Jaylen Clark. Each of those student-athletes played in at least 20 games in 2021-22. All five competed in the 2021 NCAA Tournament (the First Four to the Final Four). UCLA also has returned two redshirt freshmen in forward Mac Etienne and guard Will McClendon, who both missed last season with knee injuries (torn ACL).
ROAD WARRIORS
The Bruins have gone 5-2 in seven total road and neutral site contests, this season. In addition to a 74-49 double-digit win at Washington on New Year's Day (Sunday, Jan. 1), the Bruins also notched an 87-60 victory at Maryland on Dec. 14. Other substantial road wins, as of late, included a 67-56 win at Marquette in Dec. 2021 (UCLA led at halftime, 35-21) and at Oregon State in March of 2022 (UCLA won that game, 94-55). Playing at Stanford this season (Dec. 1, 2022), the Bruins raced to a 17-0 lead and won by an 80-66 margin. Against Maryland, UCLA led 39-11 with 3:30 to play before halftime.
– Last season, UCLA went 13-7 in road/neutral site games. Since the start of the Bruins' 2021-22 season, UCLA has compiled an 18-9 record in 27 games played away from home.
ELITE COMPANY
Senior Jaime Jaquez Jr. has been named as one of 25 top players in the nation to the midseason watch list for the Wooden Award. He entered the weekend ranking No. 4 in the Pac-12 in scoring (16.4 ppg). Jaquez Jr. ranks No. 28 on the Bruins' all-time scoring list and No. 25 on UCLA's all-time rebounds list (652 total rebounds). Only 10 former UCLA players currently rank among the top 25 in both career scoring and rebounding (Jaquez Jr. could soon become the 11th UCLA player in that notable stat category). Jaquez Jr. has averaged 12.5 points and 5.7 rebounds in 114 career games.
TOP POINT GUARD
Senior Tyger Campbell opened the season on the watch list for the Bob Cousy Point Guard of the Year Award, having been named one of five finalists for that award last season. He has averaged 13.5 points and 4.8 assists per game in all 17 contests for the Bruins this season. Campbell currently leads all Pac-12 players in assist-turnover ratio (2.79). He has become one of eight UCLA players to have logged at least 1,000 career points and 500 career assists in the Bruins' uniform (the assist stat has been regularly tracked at UCLA since the start of the 1973-74 season).
JAYLEN THE SPARK PLUG
Junior Jaylen Clark has been a key contributor for the Bruins this season. He has averaged 14.0 points and a 6.7 rebounds per game (16 contests). Clark will enter the weekend as the Pac-12 leader in steals (42, 2.63 spg). In addition, the 6-foot-5 guard has totaled 29 assists and 14 made 3-pointers. Last season, Clark had a five-game stretch as a sophomore (Feb. 2022) where he had averaged 14.8 points, 6.4 rebounds, 1.6 assists and 2.4 steals (UCLA went 4-1 in those five contests).
PRECISION FROM 3-POINT RANGE
Fifth-year senior guard David Singleton has averaged a career-best 10.4 points per game (17 contests). He ranks second among all Pac-12 players in 3-point shooting percentage (47.4%), having connected on 37 of his 78 long-range attempts. In addition, Singleton's career 3-point percentage (44.5%) currently ranks No. 3 among all UCLA players in program history. Singleton ranked No. 2 in the Pac-12 last season in 3-point shooting percentage (45.1%) and as a true freshman in 2018-19 (46.7%). He has now made at least 37 attempts from 3-point distance in each of his five seasons on the court at UCLA.
HIGH-LEVEL FRESHMEN
Freshman guard Amari Bailey (9.5 ppg, 3.3 rpg) and freshman forward Adem Bona (8.4 ppg, 5.1 rpg) have played significant roles for the Bruins this season. Bailey has twice totaled 19 points in a game (most recently, at Stanford on Dec. 1). Both players have already been honored twice as the Pac-12 Freshman of the Week. Most recently, Bona earned that award after UCLA's 60-58 win over USC last Thursday and after a two-game swing through the state of Washington. Bona has averaged 13.7 points, 6.7 rebounds and 2.0 blocks over the Bruins' past three games (shooting 75.0 percent in that 3-game span).
THREE-POINT STREAK
UCLA has made at least one 3-pointer in its last 770 games. That 3-point streak began after the Bruins went 0-for-14 from 3-point territory in a 78-63 loss at No. 2-ranked Stanford on Feb. 3, 2000 (Maples Pavilion). UCLA has made at least three 3-pointers in 313 of 322 games since the start of the 2013-14 season. The Bruins made a school single-game-record 19 three-pointers, on 31 attempts, in a 104-89 win at Colorado on Jan. 12, 2017. UCLA's previous 3-point record was set earlier that season, as the Bruins made 18 of 30 attempts in the regular-season opener against Pacific (Nov. 11, 2016).
HISTORY & TRADITION
The 2022-23 school year marks the 104th season in which UCLA has fielded a men's basketball team (first season was 1919-20). In addition, this is the 57th season in which the Bruins have called Pauley Pavilion their home. The arena opened at the start of the 1965-66 season, and UCLA spent the next 46 seasons playing home games in Pauley Pavilion. The arena was closed for an 18-month renovation during the 2011-12 school year, re-opening in Nov. 2012. In all, the Bruins have won a nation-leading 11 NCAA Championships and have advanced to the NCAA Final Four 19 times.
HOME GAMES, PAC-12 CONTESTS
– The Bruins went 14-1 at home last season, winning their final eight games in Pauley Pavilion. UCLA will enter this Saturday's game against Colorado having won their last 18 home contests. Last season, the Bruins' only loss at home was an 84-81 overtime setback against Oregon (on Thursday, Jan. 13). Since taking over as UCLA's head coach (fall of 2019), Mick Cronin has led the Bruins to a 48-6 record in all games played in Pauley Pavilion.
– With the COVID-19 pandemic prompting teams to close their arenas to fans, none of UCLA's home games in 2020-21 were played in front of a crowd. Likewise, three of UCLA's games in January of 2022 were played before no fans (arena was limited to players' family members only). Including a seven-game home win streak to close the 2019-20 home schedule, UCLA has won its last 29 home contests with fans in Pauley Pavilion presented by Wescom.
– Since the start of the 2020-21 season, UCLA has compiled a 34-11 mark in the Pac-12 (13-6 in 2020-21, and 15-5 last season). The Bruins have won 27 of their last 29 home games in Pac-12 action (the Bruins lost to USC in March of 2021 and to Oregon in overtime last season on Jan. 13, 2022). The Bruins won their final seven home Pac-12 games in 2019-20, during Coach Cronin's first season as UCLA's head coach.
– UCLA has gone 10-0 in home contests this season (during the regular season). The Bruins have seven home Pac-12 games remaining on the schedule, including Saturday's showdown against Colorado at 5 p.m. (PT). This season, the Bruins will not play Oregon State in Pauley Pavilion (and won't travel to play at California). UCLA opened its Pac-12 schedule in early December with wins at Stanford (80-66) and at home versus Oregon (65-56).
THE BRUINS WHEN ...
Since the start of the 2017-18 season, the Bruins have gone 92-17 when leading at halftime (through 181 games). During that span, UCLA has gone 26-41 when trailing at halftime (3-2 when tied at the break). UCLA's largest halftime deficit overcome in that stretch has been 16 points – UCLA trailed at home against Oregon, 44-28, on Feb. 23, 2019, and outscored the Ducks in the second half (62-39) to win, 90-83. When the Bruins have built a 10-point lead (or larger) at any point in the game, UCLA has gone 96-12. When trailing by 10 or more points in a game, UCLA has gone 18-42.
LIMITING THE TURNOVERS
Through games played on Thursday, Jan. 12, the Bruins ranked No. 5 (nationally) in fewest turnovers per game (9.7). UCLA has committed nine or fewer turnovers in 11 of 17 games this season. Last year, UCLA concluded the season ranked No. 2 in fewest turnovers per game (8.9), while Wisconsin ranked No. 1 in that category (8.7). UCLA committed just one turnover in the 75-68 win over USC last season (March 5, 2022), the fewest turnovers by a Pac-12 team in one game (on record). UCLA has consistently recorded assist and turnover stats since the start of the 1973-74 season.
– UCLA senior Tyger Campbell ranked No. 26 in the nation, and No. 1 in the Pac-12, in assist-turnover ratio (2.79) through games played on Thursday, Jan. 12. Last season, Campbell concluded the year ranking No. 1 in the Pac-12 and No. 6 in the nation in assist-turnover ratio (3.2).
– The Bruins have committed fewer turnovers than the opposition in all 17 games. Through games played on Thursday, Jan. 12, UCLA ranked No. 4 in the nation in turnover margin (+6.9), well ahead of the second-best turnover margin in the Pac-12 (Arizona State, at +1.65 per game in 17 total contests).
WELCOME TO WESTWOOD
UCLA has added six freshmen to the roster with guards Dylan Andrews, Amari Bailey, Abramo Canka and Jack Seidler and forwards Adem Bona and Evan Manjikian. Bailey (6-foot-5 guard) and Bona (6-foot-10 forward) were both honored as McDonald's All-America selections in the spring of 2022. Bailey was recently listed as a preseason honorable mention All-Pac-12 Conference selection (along with junior Jaylen Clark). Andrews (6-foot-2 guard) spent his first three years of high school at nearby Windward School (Los Angeles) before excelling as a senior at Compass Prep in Arizona. Bona averaged 15.5 points and 10.5 rebounds per game last season as a senior at Prolific Prep (Napa, Calif.).
– Including redshirt freshmen Mac Etienne (6-foot-10, forward) and Will McClendon (6-foot-3, guard), the Bruins have eight total freshmen on this season's roster (six true freshmen, two redshirt freshmen).
