Bailey Honored as Pac-12 Freshman of the Week
February 27, 2023 | Men's Basketball
SAN FRANCISCO – UCLA guard Amari Bailey has earned Pac-12 Freshman of the Week accolades for the fourth time this season, as announced on Monday by the Pac-12 Conference office.
Bailey, a 6-foot-5 guard from Chicago, Ill., averaged 9.0 points and 2.0 rebounds in the Bruins' two road wins last week. He had a breakaway dunk and then two free throws in the final minute of UCLA's win on Sunday at Colorado, helping the Bruins secure a four-point victory. UCLA won games at Utah and Colorado to clinch the Pac-12 Conference regular-season title in outright fashion.
Bailey finished the two-game road trip having shot 41.2 percent from the field (7-for-17). He also registered two assists and one steal.
This marks the fourth week this season in which Bailey has been named the league's Freshman of the Week honoree. No other Pac-12 player has been selected as the conference's Freshman of the Week four times (Jordan Pope of Oregon State, three times). Bailey had been selected as the Freshman of the Week on back-to-back weeks earlier in the season (Nov. 28 and Dec. 5) and on Monday, Feb. 13. He is one of three UCLA freshmen, along with Adem Bona and Dylan Andrews, to have earned the league's weekly freshman honor this season.
The Pac-12 Conference has distributed a weekly freshman award since the start of the 2019-20 basketball season.
With just two games left in the regular season, Bailey has averaged 10.1 points, 3.2 rebounds and 2.0 assists per game in 22 contests (21 starts). The Bruins' freshman guard ha shot 49.0 percent from the field and 36.8 percent from 3-point distance.
No. 4-ranked UCLA (25-4, 16-2 Pac-12) will host Arizona State (20-9, 11-7 Pac-12) this Thursday night in Pauley Pavilion presented by Wescom. Game time is 6 p.m. (PT). The Bruins will close the regular-season schedule against Arizona (24-5, 13-5 Pac-12) on Saturday at 7 p.m. (PT).
