University of California, Los Angeles, Athletics
UCLA
New Mexico
No. 22 UCLA to Face New Mexico in Las Vegas on Friday
November 06, 2024 | Men's Basketball
LOS ANGELES – No. 22-ranked UCLA will return to action against New Mexico on Friday evening in a neutral-site matchup, played at Lee's Family Forum in Henderson, Nev. Game time is set for 8 p.m. (PT). UCLA's game against New Mexico will be nationally televised on CBS Sports Network, with Dave Ryan and Dan Dickau calling the action. The Bruins' audio broadcast will be available this Friday night at uclabruins.com.
GAME INFORMATION
Venue: Lee's Family Forum (Henderson, Nev.)
Capacity: 5,567
Tipoff Time: 8:05 p.m. (PT)
Television: CBS Sports Network
TV Talent: Dave Ryan (play-by-play), Dan Dickau (analyst)
Radio (UCLA Audio Network): uclabruins.com
Radio Talent: Nick Koop (play-by-play), Tracy Murray (analyst)
SIRIUS XM: TBD
UCLA'S TICKET INFORMATION
Tickets for the game on Friday in Henderson, Nev., are available for purchase online. Single-game tickets for all of the Bruins' home non-conference games, plus the conference matchup against Washington (Dec. 3, 2024), are now on sale. In addition, season ticket packages for UCLA's men's basketball season are available. Fans can call (310) 206-5991 or email tickets@athletics.ucla.edu for more information. In addition, be sure to check out all of the game themes and upcoming promotions as UCLA men's basketball gets ready to tip-off the 2024-25 season.
CATCHING UP ON THE BRUINS
– This marks the 106th basketball season at UCLA and the sixth year with head coach Mick Cronin at the helm.
– Friday night's game will mark the fifth meeting between the Bruins and New Mexico (2-2 all-time record).
– UCLA opened its season with an 85-50 win over Rider University on Monday, Nov. 4.
– The Bruins have added nine incoming players this season – six transfer students and three freshmen.
– UCLA has eight players who averaged at least 10.0 points per game last season for their college programs.
– As head coach, Mick Cronin has led UCLA to a 116-53 record, now in his sixth season with the Bruins.
– UCLA has moved into the Big Ten Conference, along with former Pac-12 programs USC, Oregon and Washington.
BRUINS VERSUS LOBOS
UCLA's showdown against New Mexico this Friday will mark the first meeting on the hardwood between these two programs since the Bruins registered a 69-58 win over the Lobos (Dec. 6, 1997), in a game played in Anaheim as part of the annual John R. Wooden Classic. J.R. Henderson totaled 24 points, seven rebounds and eight assists in that win. UCLA and New Mexico have gone 2-2 against each other in five prior basketball meetings. Prior to that game in 1997, the two schools had not faced off since a game in Albuquerque on Nov. 23, 1987 (New Mexico won on its home court, 77-66).
UCLA'S SEASON-OPENING WIN
The Bruins defeated Rider by an 85-50 margin on Monday night, racing ahead of the visiting Broncs by a 41-23 margin at halftime. UCLA scored more points than in any game last season, logging the highest single-game point total sine an 86-53 NCAA Tournament win over No. 15-seed UNC Asheville in Sacramento on March 16, 2023. Four Bruins scored in double figures on Monday against Rider, with Tyler Bilodeau totaling a team-leading 18 points. In addition, Dylan Andrews totaled 14 points and six assists, while Kobe Johnson and Sebastian Mack each tallied 12 points.
BRUINS' UPCOMING HOME GAMES
UCLA will return home to face Boston University next Monday evening (Nov. 11, at 7 p.m. PT). Get your tickets here. Following this Friday's game against New Mexico (in Henderson, Nev.), the Bruins will play six consecutive games at home. In addition to next week's game against Boston University, UCLA hosts Lehigh on Friday, Nov. 15 (7 p.m. PT).
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.
WELCOME TO WESTWOOD
Two of the six incoming UCLA transfers competed in the Pac-12 last season – 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.
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.
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).
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).
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).
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 116-53 overall record in five-plus seasons. 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.
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 (43 career games), the remaining six juniors and seniors have played in at least 63 collegiate contests. Leading the way in that category are Stefanovic (97 career games) and Johnson (92 games, including the first 91 while at USC). Three of those veteran players have averaged at least 10.0 points per game in their career (Bilodeau, Clark and Kyle III).
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).
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 played 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 – 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).
MULTIPLE SCORING THREATS
The Bruins' 2024-25 roster has nine players who have each scored at least 20 points in one collegiate game. Skyy Clark totaled 36 points in Louisville's final game last season (ACC Tournament, against eventual Final Four competitor N.C. State). Dylan Andrews registered a career-high 31 points in the Bruins' win against Oregon State at the Pac-12 Tournament last season (March 13, 2024). Dominick Harris totaled a career-high 31 points last season for LMU in a non-conference win against Central Arkansas. The six other players on that list include Sebastian Mack (27 points), Lazar Stefanovic (26 points), Tyler Bilodeau (26 points), William Kyle III (26 points), Kobe Johnson (21 points) and Eric Dailey Jr. (20 points).
DIALING IT FROM DISTANCE
UCLA has six players who have made at least 40 career 3-pointers, not including a pair of sophomores who attempted multiple 3-pointers last season (Sebastian Mack with UCLA at 28-for-99, and Eric Dailey Jr. from Oklahoma State at 19-for-57). Senior Dominick Harris, who played at LMU last season, ranked third in the nation and first in the West Coast Conference in 3-point shooting percentage (44.8%, 65-for-145). Senior Lazar Stefanovic has made a team-leading 148 career 3-pointers (35.9%, 148-for-412). In addition to Harris (65 threes) and Stefanovic (148 threes), that list of six players also includes Kobe Johnson (76), Skyy Clark (63), Dylan Andrews (62) and Tyler Bilodeau (42).
TOP DEFENDER
Standing at 6-foot-6, guard Kobe Johnson has totaled 158 steals in 92 games (58 starts) in just over three seasons. Johnson has twice registered a career-high six steals during his collegiate career, in games against Arizona (March 9, 2024) and Auburn (Dec. 18, 2022). No player from UCLA has recorded six or more steals in one game since Jaylen Clark registered a career-high seven steals against Sacramento State on Nov. 7, 2022. Johnson, from Milwaukee, Wis., has earned Pac-12 All-Defensive Team honors the past two seasons, while at USC. Over the previous two seasons (64 games, 57 starts), Johnson averaged 10.0 points, 4.8 rebounds, 2.9 assists and 2.2 steals per contest while at USC.
