UCLA
Utah
No. 4 UCLA Prepares to Play at Utah on Thursday Night
February 20, 2023 | Men's Basketball
LOS ANGELES โ The No. 4-ranked Bruins (23-4, 14-2 Pac-12) return to the road this week, playing at Utah on Thursday evening in a Pac-12 showdown. Utah (17-11, 10-7) has won five of its last nine games and has gone 12-3 at home this season. The Bruins recorded a 68-49 win over Utah earlier this season when the two programs faced off in Pauley Pavilion presented by Wescom (Thursday, Jan. 12). Game time this Thursday is set for 8 p.m. PT (9 p.m. MT in Salt Lake City, Utah).
ย
GAME INFORMATION
Venue: Jon M. Huntsman Center (Salt Lake City, Utah)
Capacity: 15,000
Tipoff Time: 8:01 p.m. (PT) / 9:01 p.m. (MT)
Television: FS1
TV Talent: Tim Neverett (play-by-play), Bill Herenda (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. 135 or Ch. 197, Ch. 959
ย
ABOUT THE BRUINS
โ UCLA has won at least 20 games for the third consecutive season and for the eighth time in the last 12 seasons.
โข The Bruins have gone 14-2 in Pac-12 play and are 1.5 games ahead of Arizona (13-4) in the conference standings.
โข UCLA's 14-2 start through 16 Pac-12 games marks the program's best conference start since the 2007-08 season.
โข Jaime Jaquez Jr. has averaged 20.4 points, 11.4 rebounds and 2.4 assists in UCLA's last five games.
โข The Bruins have averaged 71.8 points and limited the opposition to 53.8 points in the team's last five games.
โข Sporting a 23-4 record, UCLA has recorded its best start through 27 games since the 2016-17 season (was 24-3).
โข UCLA has won 23 consecutive home games, marking the nation's longest active home winning streak.
โข UCLA has limited the opposition to fewer than 70 points in 24 of 27 total contests this season.
โข UCLA ranks No. 7, nationally, and No. 1 in the Pac-12 in fewest points allowed per game (59.4).
โข The Bruins have committed fewer turnovers than their opponent in 26 of 27 games this season.
โข UCLA has gone 15-0 in home contests this season and has posted an 8-4 record in road and neutral site games.
ย
THE LAST TIME OUT
โข Jaime Jaquez Jr. totaled 20 points, eight rebounds and two assists as the Bruins cruised past California, 78-43.
โข UCLA limited California to just 11 made field goals on Saturday, the Bruins' lowest single-game total since 1970.
โข The Bruins led California, 38-15, at halftime โ the fewest points allowed in a half by UCLA since 2011.
โข UCLA has won its last 11 contests against California (the Bruins haven't lost to California since Feb. 25, 2016).
ย
AGAINST THE RUNNIN' UTES
โข UCLA has recorded an all-time record of 16-10 against Utah and has won the last six matchups.
โข Tyger Campbell scored a team-leading 17 points and had seven assists in UCLA's 68-49 win against Utah on Jan. 12.
โข The Bruins have won their last three games at Utah, including a 63-58 win at the Huntsman Center last season.
โข UCLA has gone 12-6 versus Utah since the Runnin' Utes joined the Pac-12, prior to the 2011-12 season.
ย
ALL-AMERICA CANDIDATE
โ Senior Jaime Jaquez Jr. (16.8 ppg, 8.1 rpg) is one of five Pac-12 players to rank among the league's top 10 leaders in both scoring and rebounding ... Jaquez Jr. has scored at least 10 points in 24 of the UCLA's 27 games.
โ Jaquez Jr. has scored at least 10 points or totaled 10 rebounds in a game in 26 of 27 contests ... he has tallied six double-doubles this season ... he has averaged 16.7 points and 8.1 rebounds in 12 road and neutral site games.
โ Jaquez Jr. ranks No. 19 on UCLA's career scoring list and No. 17 in total rebounds ... he has become the 10th UCLA player in the school's history to rank among the top 20 leaders in both scoring and rebounding.
ย
RUNNING THE POINT
Led by point guard Tyger Campbell (12.2 ppg, 4.8 apg), the Bruins have registered an assist-turnover ratio of 1.43-to-1, which ranked No. 20 in the nation through Sunday, Feb. 19. Campbell's assist-turnover ratio (2.6) ranks No. 35 in the nation and No. 3 in the Pac-12. The Bruins have committed fewer turnovers than their opponent in 26 of 27 games this season. Through Sunday contests, UCLA ranked No. 1 in the nation in turnover margin (+6.1 per game), the best turnover margin among any Pac-12 program (Arizona State was second in the Pac-12 with +2.5 turnovers per game).
ย
PROGRAM'S BEST STARTS
UCLA's 23-4 start through 27 games stands as one of the program's best starts to a college basketball season over the past 40 years. The Bruins opened their 2016-17 campaign with 24 wins in 27 games and concluded the regular-season schedule with a 28-3 record (heading into the Pac-12 Tournament). The Bruins also went 24-3 to open the 2006-07 and 2007-08 seasons, a pair of campaigns that ended with trips to the NCAA Final Four. UCLA's 14-game winning streak earlier this season marked the Bruins' longest such streak since winning 14 in a row near the end of the 2007-08 season.
ย
20-WIN PLATEAU
UCLA has won at least 20 games in 54 seasons, having notched win No. 20 at Oregon State on Thursday, Feb. 9. The Bruins' program has won at least 20 contests in 46 of the past 57 seasons (1967 through 2023). UCLA won at least 20 games in 17 consecutive seasons from 1966-67 through 1982-83. The Bruins have registered at least 20 victories in each of the last three seasons (22 in 2020-21, 27 last season and 20 this season). UCLA has not won 20 games in three consecutive seasons since the 2012-13, 2013-14 and 2014-15 campaigns.
ย
โ Coach Cronin has been named as one of 15 head coaches to the late season watch list for the Naismith Men's College Coach of the Year Award. In his 20th year as a head coach, Cronin has guided his teams to at least 20 victories in 14 seasons (includes at least 20 wins in 12 of the past 13 seasons).
ย
GLANCING AT THE METRICS
UCLA has been ranked No. 3 in the Pomeroy College Basketball Ratings (KenPom.com), trailing (1) Houston and (2) Tennessee. Through Sunday's games (Feb. 19), the Bruins had the No. 23-ranked adjusted offensive efficiency rating and the No. 2-ranked adjusted defensive efficiency ranking. Ranked No. 4 in this week's AP poll and No. 3 in the USA Today Sports Coaches poll, UCLA has been ranked in each of the last 35 AP polls (since the start of the 2021-22 season).
ย
ELITE COMPANY
Senior Jaime Jaquez Jr. has been named as one of 20 players in the nation to the John R. Wooden Award late season watch list. He ranks No.ย 4 in the conference in scoring (16.8 ppg) and rebounding (8.1 rpg). On the Bruins' all-time lists, he ranks No. 19 in scoring and No. 17 in total rebounds. He's one of just 10 UCLA players to rank among the school's top 20 scoring and rebounding lists. Jaquez Jr. has totaled six double-doubles this season (and 15 in his UCLA career).
ย
JAQUEZ JR. AND DAVID GREENWOOD
Since the NCAA (and UCLA) began to record the "block" and "steal" statistic at the start of the 1978-79 season, the only UCLA players to tally at least 20 points, 10 rebounds, three blocks and three steals in one game have been Jaime Jaquez Jr. and David Greenwood. Jaquez Jr. had 23 points, 13 rebounds, five blocks and four steals in a home victory against Colorado on Saturday, Jan. 14. Greenwood is UCLA's only other player on record, to have come close to that. He registered 22 points, 18 rebounds, four blocks and three steals in UCLA's 85-83 home win versus Arizona State on Feb. 15, 1979.
ย
TOP POINT GUARD
Senior Tyger Campbell has been listed as one of 10 players to the midseason watch list for the Bob Cousy Point Guard of the Year Award. Campbell (12.2 ppg, 2.3 rpg, 4.8 apg) was one of the award's five finalists last season. The 5-foot-11 guard from Cedar Rapids, Iowa, ranks No. 2 in the Pac-12 in assist-turnover ratio (2.6) and No. 4 in assists per game (4.8). 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 statistic has been regularly tracked at UCLA since the start of the 1973-74 season.
ย
OFFENSIVE REBOUNDS
Not only do the Bruins rank No. 1 among all Pac-12 schools in offensive rebounds per game (11.9), but UCLA also leads the conference in having taken far more shots than shot attempts against (net difference of 219 more attempts). No other Pac-12 program has taken at least 100 more shots than they have attempted. Through Sunday, Feb. 19, the Bruins ranked No. 42, nationally, in offensive rebounds per game (11.9 o-rpg). The Bruins have taken more shot attempts than their opponent in each of the past three seasons (2019-20, 2020-21 and 2021-22, all under Coach Cronin).
ย
ROAD WARRIORS
The Bruins have gone 8-4 in 12 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. Against Maryland, UCLA led 39-11 with 3:30 remaining before halftime. Last season, the Bruins had substantial road victories with a 67-56 win at Marquette in Dec. 2021 (UCLA led at halftime, 35-21) and at Oregon State in March 2022 (UCLA won, 94-55). Playing at Stanford earlier this season (Dec. 1, 2022), UCLA raced to a 17-0 lead and won the game, 80-66.
ย
โ Last season, UCLA went 13-7 in road/neutral site games. Since the start of the Bruins' 2021-22 season, UCLA has compiled a 21-11 record in 32 games played away from home.
ย
JAYLEN THE SPARK PLUG
Junior Jaylen Clark has registered career-high averages across the board during his junior season โ 13.3 ppg, 6.4 rpg and a Pac-12-best 69 steals (averaging 2.65 steals per game). The 6-foot-5 guard from Riverside, Calif., was named as one of 15 players to the Naismith Men's Defensive Player of the Year watch list late January. Clark scored a season-high 24 points in a win against Denver (Dec. 10, 2022). He totaled 15 points and five rebounds in a 60-58 win against USC (Jan. 5, 2023). Clark sank the go-ahead 3-pointer with 15 seconds left in that win versus the Trojans.
ย
PRECISION FROM 3-POINT RANGE
Fifth-year senior guard David Singleton has averaged career highs this season in scoring (9.8 ppg) and rebounding (3.0 rpg). He currently ranks No. 2 in the Pac-12 in 3-point shooting percentage (43.8%, connecting on 56 of 128 attempts). His career 3-point percentage (43.8%) ranks No. 4 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 34 attempts from 3-point distance in each of his five seasons on the court at UCLA.
ย
THREE-POINT STREAK
UCLA has made at least one 3-pointer in its last 780 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 323 of 332 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).
ย
POSTSEASON SUCCESS
UCLA has compiled a 7-2 NCAA Tournament record over the past two seasons. The Bruins went 5-1 in the 2021 NCAA Tournament, advancing from the First Four to the Final Four. There was no NCAA Tournament in March of 2020 (COVID-19). UCLA is one of six teams to have advanced to the Sweet 16 or farther in 2021 and 2022 (other five schools are Arkansas, Gonzaga, Houston, Michigan and Villanova). No school advanced to the Final Four in both 2021 and 2022. Only Arkansas and Houston moved on to the Elite Eight in 2021 and 2022. Gonzaga, Houston and Michigan are the only programs to have advanced to the Sweet 16 or farther in 2019, 2021 and 2022.
ย
AFTER 125 GAMES
Bruins' head coach Mick Cronin has tied the school record for most victories through his first 125 contests as UCLA's head basketball coach. Cronin, along with Jim Harrick and Caddy Works, has gone 91-34 through 125 games, now in his fourth year as UCLA's head coach.
ย
