University of California, Los Angeles, Athletics
UCLA
Rider
Men's Basketball to Open Season Against Rider on Monday
November 02, 2024 | Men's Basketball
LOS ANGELES โ UCLA will host Rider University on Monday evening in Pauley Pavilion presented by Wescom. The Bruins' season-opening game this Monday night will be nationally televised on FS1, with UCLA's radio broadcast available in the greater Los Angeles region on AM 1150. Game time is set for 7:30 p.m. (PT).
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GAME INFORMATION
Venue: Pauley Pavilion
Capacity: 13,800
Tipoff Time: 7:35 p.m. (PT)
Television: FS1
TV Talent: Trent Rush (play-by-play), Darren Collison (analyst)
Radio (UCLA Audio Network): AM 1150
Radio Talent: Josh Lewin (play-by-play), Tracy Murray (analyst)
SIRIUS XM: Ch. 138 or Ch. 195 and on the SXM App
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UCLA'S TICKET INFORMATION
Single-game tickets for all of the Bruins' home non-conference games, plus the conference match-up against Washington (Dec. 3, 2024), are now on sale. Season ticket packages for UCLA's upcoming men's basketball season are now available. Fans can call (310) 206-5991 or email tickets@athletics.ucla.edu for more information.ย In addition, be sure to check out all of the game themes and upcoming promotions as UCLA men's basketball gets ready to open the 2024-25 season.
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CATCHING UP ON THE BRUINS
โ UCLA opens its 106th basketball season this fall, the sixth year with head coach Mick Cronin at the helm.
โ Monday's game will mark the first-ever basketball contest between Rider University and UCLA.
โ Six primary contributors from last season's UCLA team have returned for the Bruins this season.
โ The Bruins have added nine incoming players this season โ six transfer students and three freshmen.
โ UCLA has eight players who averaged at least 10.0 points per game last season for their college programs.
โ As head coach, Mick Cronin has led UCLA to a 115-53 record over the previous five seasons.
โ UCLA has moved into the Big Ten Conference, along with former Pac-12 programs USC, Oregon and Washington.
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WHO'S BACK?
The six returning contributors from last season's UCLA squad include senior Lazar Stefanovic, junior Dylan Andrews and sophomores Sebastian Mack, Aday Mara, Brandon Williams and Devin Williams. Andrews concluded the 2023-24 season as the Bruins' leader in scoring (12.9 ppg) and assists (119), while Stefanovic finished the year as the team's leading rebounder (202 rebounds, 6.1 rpg). Mack led the Bruins in free throws made (125) and free throw attempts (172), ending his freshman campaign ranking No. 5 in the Pac-12 Conference in free throw attempts.
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WELCOME TO WESTWOOD
Two of the six incoming UCLA transfers competed in the Pac-12 last season โ senior Kobe Johnson (USC) and junior Tyler Bilodeau (Oregon State). The other four transfers include senior guard Dominick Harris (from LMU), juniors Skyy Clark (from Louisville) and William Kyle III (from South Dakota State), and sophomore Eric Dailey Jr. (from Oklahoma State). Bilodeau (32 games), Dailey Jr. (32), Johnson (31), and Kyle III (35) each played in at least 30 games for their respective college programs last season. Clark appeared in 29 games at Louisville, while Harris saw action in 24 games with Loyola Marymount.
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FRESHMEN ARRIVAL
UCLA's three incoming freshmen include Eric Freeny (Corona, Calif.), Christian Horry (La Cañada, Calif.) and Trent Perry (West Covina, Calif.). Perry teamed with Horry at Harvard-Westlake School, while Freeny excelled over the past four seasons at Centennial High School (Corona, Calif.). Perry averaged 18.6 points and 6.1 rebounds last season at Harvard-Westlake, leading the Wolverines to the 2024 CIF Southern Section Open Division crown. In addition, Perry secured McDonald's All-America honors as a senior. Freeny averaged 19.0 points per game last season, shooting 52 percent from the field.
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SEASON OPENER
The Bruins will open their regular-season schedule against Rider University on Monday, Nov. 4. Last season, Rider went 15-17 overall and compiled a 12-8 record in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC). Under sixth-year UCLA head coach Mick Cronin, the Bruins have gone 4-1 in the past five seasons in season-opening games. Last year, the Bruins opened their season with a 75-44 win over Saint Francis in Pauley Pavilion. UCLA's only season-opening loss in that stretch took place during the pandemic-affected 2020-21 season (the Bruins lost at San Diego State, 73-58, with no fans in the arena).
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MORE ON COACH CRONIN
Mick Cronin has entered his sixth season as the Bruins' head coach (The Michael Price Family UCLA Men's Head Basketball Coach). Now entering his 22nd season as a college head coach, Coach Cronin has guided UCLA's program to a 115-53 overall record of the past five years. He led the Bruins to a 68-29 record in the Pac-12 Conference over the last five years. UCLA's 31 wins in 2022-23 were the most by any Bruins' team since UCLA logged a 31-5 overall record in 2016-17. This season, Coach Cronin will be leading the Bruins in their first year playing in the Big Ten Conference.
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PRESEASON PROJECTIONS
The Bruins have been ranked No. 22 in the preseason Associated Press (AP) and USA Today Coaches polls. Last season, UCLA opened the year were No. 25 in the preseason USA Today Coaches poll. In the fall of 2022, UCLA ranked No. 8 in the preseason AP poll. The annual Lindy's Magazine's "top 40" rankings have pegged the Bruins in the No. 19 slot. In addition, Lindy's Magazine has slotted UCLA at No. 3 in the 18-team Big Ten Conference (behind Indiana and Purdue, respectively).
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VETERAN PRESENCE
Now a junior on UCLA's roster, Dylan Andrews ranked No. 5 in the Pac-12 last season in assists per game (3.7) and No. 6 in assist-turnover ratio (1.92). He totaled 119 assists and 62 turnovers in 23 games, scoring double figures in 20 games. Andrews was particularly impressive down the stretch for UCLA, as a sophomore (2023-24). He averaged 17.1 points per game and shot 43.9 percent overall, and 40.8 percent from 3-point distance (29-of-71) in the Bruins' final 14 games. Andrews scored a career-high 31 points against Oregon State in the Pac-12 Tournament (March 13, 2024).
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LAST WEEK'S EXHIBITION GAME
UCLA cruised past Cal State Los Angeles, 100-64, in the Bruins' only exhibition contest of the preseason on Wednesday night in Pauley Pavilion presented by Wescom (Oct. 30). Tyler Bilodeau, a junior forward who transferred to UCLA from Oregon State, scored a team-leading 24 points and connected on 9 of 11 shot attempts. Bilodeau finished with six rebounds and was 6-for-8 at the free throw stripe. The Bruins had four players who scored in double figures (including Bilodeau). Skyy Clark registered 17 points, Eric Dailey Jr. scored 11 points and Sebastian Mack tallied 10 points. In addition, Kobe Johnson had a team-leading 11 assists and recorded six rebounds and five steals.
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ROSTER BREAKDOWN
UCLA's 2024-25 roster includes three seniors (Dominick Harris has one additional year of eligibility), four juniors, seven sophomores and three freshmen. In addition to Harris, that list of seniors also includes Kobe Johnson and Lazar Stefanovic. The four juniors include Dylan Andrews, Tyler Bilodeau, Skyy Clark and William Kyle III. Aside from Clark (42 career games), the remaining six juniors and seniors have played in at least 62 collegiate contests. Leading the way in that category are Stefanovic (96 career games) and Johnson (91 games, all at USC, prior to transferring to UCLA). Three of those veteran players have averaged at least 10.0 points per game in their career (Bilodeau, Clark and Kyle III).
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THE BRUINS' SCHEDULE
UCLA's 31-game regular-season schedule includes 17 home games, 10 road games and four neutral site contests (in November and December). The Bruins will play 20 games in Big Ten play, with 11 non-conference contests lining the schedule in November and December. Glancing at the preseason AP rankings, UCLA will play five games against teams ranked in the top 25 poll (and eight games versus teams who have also received votes). A three-weekend stretch in December will include neutral site games against No. 10 Arizona (in Phoenix, Dec. 14), versus No. 9 North Carolina (at Madison Square Garden in New York, Dec. 21) and against No. 6 Gonzaga at Intuit Dome in Los Angeles (Dec. 21).
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BIG TEN CONFERENCE
The Bruins' 20-game Big Ten schedule will include 10 home games and 10 road games. Two of the 20 contests will be palyed in early December, with UCLA hosting its first-ever Big Ten game against Washington on Tuesday, Dec. 3, before playing at Oregon on Sunday, Dec. 8. When the remaining 18 Big Ten games pick up in early January, UCLA will play three of those first four on the road โ Jan. 4 at Nebraska, home on Jan. 7 against Michigan, and on the road at Maryland (Jan. 10) and Rutgers (Jan. 13). Looking at the back half of the Bruins' conference schedule, UCLA is set to play six of their final 10 Big Ten games at home, including a season finale in Pauley Pavilion against crosstown rival USC (Saturday, March 8).
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