UCLA
UC Irvine (exhibition)
No. 12 Men's Basketball to Host UC Irvine in Exhibition Game
October 25, 2025 | Men's Basketball
LOS ANGELES โ The Bruins will host UC Irvine this Tuesday evening in an exhibition game inside Pauley Pavilion presented by Wescom Financial. Game time is set for 7 p.m. (PT). Fans can watch this Tuesday's game through Big Ten Plus (B1G+). The game on Tuesday will mark UCLA's second and final preseason contest โ previously, UCLA won at San Diego State (67-60) on Friday, Oct. 17.
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GAME INFORMATION
Venue: Pauley Pavilion presented by Wescom
Capacity: 13,800
Tuesday's Tipoff Time: 7:01 p.m. (PT)
Broadcast: B1G+ (more about Big Ten Plus)
Broadcast Talent: Nick Koop (play-by-play), Gio Camera (analyst)
Radio (UCLA Audio Network): AM 790 (KABC)
Radio Talent: Josh Lewin (play-by-play), Tracy Murray (analyst)
Live Stats: ucla.statbroadcast.com (link here)
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UCLA'S TICKET INFORMATION (HOME GAMES)
Single-game tickets for UCLA's home games are on sale. Fans can secure tickets to the upcoming exhibition game (Oct. 28), UCLA's season opener (Nov. 3) and all home contests this November and December. Including this exhibition game UCLA will play 19 games inside Pauley Pavilion this season.
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Complete ticket information about UCLA men's basketball is available here. Direct links to single-game ticket purchases can be viewed here. 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 for the Bruins' 2024-25 season.
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UCLA ON B1G+
This Tuesday's home exhibition game will air on B1G+, the Big Ten Network's subscription streaming platform, which offers access to nearly 2,500 events annually. The Bruins will be streamed on B1G+ at least twice this season (including Tuesday night's contest(. B1G+ subscriptions can be purchased directly atย www.bigtenplus.com. Fans can subscribe to B1G+ with an annual pass ($89.99 per year) or a monthly pass ($12.99). B1G+ subscriptions can also be purchased via in-app purchase in B1G+ apps.
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ABOUT THE BRUINS IN 2025-26
โ The Bruins return four of their primary contributors from last season's team. In addition, UCLA has welcomed back two redshirt players and has brought in five transfers. Three of UCLA's top four scorers from last year's squad have returned in seniors Tyler Bilodeau (13.5 ppg) and Skyy Clark (8.5 ppg) and junior Eric Dailey Jr. (11.4 ppg).
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โ UCLA's five incoming transfer students include Xavier Booker (from Michigan State), Jamar Brown (from UMKC), Donovan Dent (from New Mexico), Steven Jamerson II (from San Diego) and Anthony Peoples Jr. (from North Carolina Central). Last season, Dent secured honorable mention All-America acclaim at New Mexico (averaged 20.4 ppg, 6.4 apg).
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โ Tyler Bilodeau and Skyy Clark served as UCLA's student-athlete representatives at Big Ten Media Day in Chicago, along with head coach Mick Cronin, on Thursday, Oct. 9. Bilodeau led the Bruins in 3-point percentage last season, knocking down 40.0 percent of his long-range attempts (38/95). Clark was second in 3-point percentage last year, making 48 of 121 attempts (39.7 percent). Clark shot 43.3 percent (29-for-67) from 3-point range in the team's final 15 games.
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โ Senior Donovan Dent totaled 224 assists while at New Mexico last season, averaging 6.4 assists per game (which ranked second in the Mountain West Conference and No. 13 in the nation). Senior Skyy Clark registered 91 assists in 34 games for the Bruins last season, averaging 2.7 assists per game. He posted a team-leading 2.4 assist-turnover ratio as a junior.
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โ Last season, UCLA went 12-5 over the final 17 games after a four-game losing streak in early-to-mid January. Following losses at Maryland and Rutgers on Jan. 10 and Jan. 13, UCLA won seven consecutive games (five of those at home). The Bruins produced a 15-2 record at home and went 8-9 in 17 games played on the road or at neutral-site venues.
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โ For the fourth consecutive season (last season), UCLA led its conference in scoring defense. The Bruins averaged 65.2 points allowed per game in 34 contests, which ranked No. 22 in the nation. UCLA led all Big Ten teams in scoring defense, finishing the year just ahead of Michigan State (67.1 ppg) and Maryland (67.2 ppg) in the scoring defense category.
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โ UCLA closed last year's campaign at No. 7 in the country in turnover margin (4.6) and No. 16 in turnovers forced per game (15.1). UCLA committed 154 fewer turnovers than their opponents during the 2024-25 season. The Bruins had fewer turnovers than the opposition in 28 of 34 games, going 20-8 in those 28 contests.
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โ Coach Cronin secured career victory No. 500 in the Bruins' 69-61 win over Ohio State in Pauley Pavilion presented by Wescom Financial on Sunday, Feb. 23. Cronin helped UCLA to three more wins in 2024-25, pushing his career win total up to 503. He currently leads all coaches nationwide, age 55 and younger, in total NCAA Division I victories (503).
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โ Through games played from 2010-11 through 2024-25, Coach Cronin is tied for the fifth-most victories of any NCAA Division I coach (373 wins in a 15-year span). He's tied on that list with Michigan State's Tom Izzo (373 wins) and trails Mark Few of Gonzaga (451), Bill Self of Kansas (426), John Calipari of Arkansas (397) and Randy Bennett of Saint Mary's (379).
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SCOUTING THE OPPOSITION
The Bruins will face UC Irvine this Tuesday in Pauley Pavilion, marking UCLA's second of two preseason exhibition contests. While this game does not count in the official statistics, UCLA has compiled an all-time record of 9-2 against UC Irvine. The Bruins last faced UC Irvine early in the 2017-18 season (Nov. 26, 2017), as UCLA registered an 87-63 win inside Pauley Pavilion. Russell Turner enters his 16th year as UC Irvine's head coach, having guided the Anteaters to a 32-7 mark last season. UC Irvine advanced to the NIT championship contest, losing to Chattanooga in overtime 85-84, at Hinkle Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, Ind. UC Irvine was selected as the preseason favorite this year in the Big West Conference.
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TRIAL RUN IN SAN DIEGO
Donovan Dent scored 18 points and Skyy Clark added 13 points as the Bruins earned a 67-60 win in an exhibition game at San Diego State on Friday, Oct. 17. UCLA never trailed in its contest at SDSU that night, leading 17-0 early in the game before the host Aztecs cut the Bruins' margin down to just three points, at 52-49 with 7:36 to play. UCLA bumped its cushion back up to nine points, at 60-51, with under five minutes remaining in regulation. From that point in the second half, UCLA's lead was never in doubt. The Bruins twice led by as many as 11 points in the game's final 3:30. UCLA limited San Diego State to 21.7 percent shoot from 3-point distance (5-for-23) and attempted 10 more free throws than SDSU.
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โ UCLA had three players who scored in double figures โ Donovan Dent with 18 points, Skyy Clark with 13, and Trent Perry with 10. As a team, the Bruins shot 40.8 percent (20-for-49), made 7 of 17 attempts from 3-point distance and nailed 20 of 23 free throw attempts. Dent was a perfect 10-for-10 at the free throw stripe that night at Viejas Arena.
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PRESEASON RANKINGS
For the second consecutive year, UCLA will open the basketball season ranked among the top 25 teams in the AP and Coaches' Polls. The Bruins are tabbed No. 12 in the preseason AP poll, as announced in mid-October. The Bruins are one of six programs in the Big Ten Conference to have been ranked among the AP's top 25 teams. Also in the top 25 poll from the Big Ten are No. 7 Michigan, No. 17 Illinois, No. 22 Michigan State and No. 24 Wisconsin. Conference foes Indiana, Iowa, Ohio State, Oregon, USC and Washington have received votes in the preseason poll.
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20-WIN SEASON
With 23 victories in 2024-25, the Bruins reached the 20-win plateau for the 47th time in 59 years (that span includes 1966-67 through 2024-25). Coach Cronin has guided UCLA to at least 20 victories in four of the past five season. In six seasons at UCLA, Coach Cronin has averaged 23.0 wins per season, including a 31-6 overall record in 2022-23. Nine of the Big Ten Conference's 18 teams finished the 2024-25 season with at least 20 victories. Michigan State won the Big Ten's regular-season title, posting an overall record of 30-7 and a league record of 17-3.
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POSTSEASON ACTION
Since the NCAA Tournament expanded to include at least 64 teams in 1985, the Bruins have played 52 games during the opening week/weekend (first and second round contests). UCLA has gone 41-11 in those 52 contests, advancing to the Sweet 16 in 17 tournaments. The Bruins have posted a record of 23-6 in the first round (this does not include any First Four contests). The Bruins lost in the First Four in 2018 and won a First Four matchup in 2021. UCLA advanced to the NCAA Tournament's Sweet 16 in 2023 with wins over (15-seed) UNC Asheville and (7-seed) Northwestern.
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TOP DEFENDERS
The Bruins' program has produced some of the nation's most talented defensive players over the past several seasons. Last year, then-senior Kobe Johnson was honored as one of five players on the Big Ten All-Defensive Team, closing the yar at No. 6 in the league in steals per game (1.6 spg, 55 steals in 34 games). Two seasons ago (2023-24), then-sophomore Adem Bona was honored as the Pac-12 Conference's Defensive Player of the Year. Bona led UCLA's team that season in blocks (58 blocks, 1.8 bpg) and was second in steals (37 steals, 1.1 spg). Three seasons ago (2022-23), then-junior Jaylen Clark was honored as the Naismith Men's Defensive Player of the Year and the NABC Defensive Player of the Year.
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SKYY'S THE LIMIT
UCLA's Skyy Clark closed his junior season with a team-leading 2.4 assist-turnover ratio, through all 34 games (91 assists, 38 turnovers). He joined the Bruins' program in the summer of 2024 after having averaged a team-leading 13.2 points per game as a sophomore at Louisville in 2023-24. Clark finished with UCLA's third-highest assist total (91) and scored at least 10 points in 13 games during his junior season. He shot 45.8 percent from the field and 39.7 percent from beyond the 3-point arc. In a pair of NCAA Tournament games, he averaged 16.0 points and shot 10-for-19 from the field.
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NATIONAL NUMBERS
UCLA concluded the season ranked No. 22 in the nation in scoring defense, surrendering an average of 65.2 points per game (first in the Big Ten. In addition, the Bruins ranked No. 7 in turnover margin (+4.6) and No. 16 in turnovers forced per game (15.1). UCLA ranked No. 37 in the nation in scoring margin (8.9 ppg). Glancing at shooting percentages, the opposition shot 42.7 percent overall and 32.8 percent from 3-point range. UCLA ranked No. 103 in field goal percentage defense and No. 126 in 3-point field goal percentage defense. The final national metrics via KenPom.com had UCLA listed at No. 14 in the nation in defensive efficiency and No. 37 in offensive efficiency.
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LOOKING AHEAD IN 2025-26
The Bruins 31-game regular-season schedule will open on Monday, Nov. 3, as UCLA hosts Eastern Washington. Game time is set for 7:30 p.m. PT inside Pauley Pavilion. In all, UCLA's 31-game regular-season schedule will include 18 home games, 10 road contests and three neutral-site games (in November and December). The Bruins' first game away from Pauley Pavilion takes place against No. 13 Arizona at the nearby Intuit Dome in Inglewood, Calif., on Friday, Nov. 14. The other two neutral-site contests are to take place at Chase Center in San Francisco (vs. California) and at Climate Pledge Arena in Seattle (vs. Gonzaga). UCLA's first road game will take place in Big Ten play at Washington on Wednesday, Dec. 3.
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โ UCLA's first 14 games will take place in the Pacific time zone, including destinations such as San Francisco and Seattle. The Bruins will not head to the Midwest or East until a two-game road trip in Big Ten play immediately after the New Year โ at Iowa (Jan. 3) and Wisconsin (Jan. 6).
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NOTES ON PAULEY PAVILION
The Bruins went 15-2 in Pauley Pavilion last season, UCLA's 59th campaign playing in the longtime basketball venue. The first game in Pauley took place on Dec. 3, 1965, as No. 1 UCLA defeated Ohio State, 92-66. UCLA spent 47 seasons in Pauley Pavilion before the venue was closed for an 18-month renovation (closed in March of 2011). UCLA hosted 18 home games in 2011-12 at the Los Angeles Sports Arena (14 games) near downtown L.A. and at the Honda Center in Anaheim (four games). UCLA returned home in Nov. 2012. This marked the 13th year in the arena's updated configuration.
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In 2023-24, CSUN snapped UCLA's 29-home-game winning streak with a 76-72 win over the Bruins (Dec. 19, 2023). Prior to that game, UCLA hadn't lost at home since an overtime setback (84-81) to Oregon on Jan. 13, 2022. UCLA's 29-game home streak had been the longest active streak in the country. Since taking over as UCLA's head coach prior to the 2019-20 season, Mick Cronin has guided the Bruins to a 79-15 record in 93 home games (84.0% win percentage).
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UCLA'S NCAA TOURNAMENT HISTORY
The Bruins' program made its 53rd appearance at the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament last March. UCLA has won 11 NCAA championships โ most recently in 1995 โ and has advanced to 19 Final Fours, most recently in 2021. The Bruins have totaled 23 appearances at the Elite Eight (Regional Finals) and 38 trips to the Sweet 16 (Regional Semifinals). UCLA has compiled an all-time tournament record of 116-46. The Bruins have posted a 56-29 record and have secured 17 trips to the tournament's Sweet 16 since the field expanded to include 64 teams in 1985.
OF NOTE: UCLA's six contests in the 1980 NCAA Tournament and one game in the 1999 NCAA Tournament were later vacated by NCAA action. Those contests and NCAA Tournament appearances are not recognized by the NCAA. The numbers listed above do include those contests and tournament appearances.
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MISCELLANEOUS NOTES ON UCLA
โ UCLA was among eight programs from the 18-team Big Ten to advance to last season's NCAA Tournament (along with No. 2-seed Michigan State, No. 3-seed Wisconsin, No. 4-seed Purdue, No. 4-seed Maryland, No. 5-seed Michigan, No. 5-seed Oregon and No. 6-seed Illinois. The Bruins entered the tournament last March as the No. 7 seed in the Midwest Region.
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โ The Bruins' 15-man roster this season includes eight student-athletes who are from the Southern California region. All 15 student-athletes are from the United States. Looking at the eight local players, five are from Los Angeles County and three are from Riverside County (Donovan Dent, Eric Freeny and Anthony Peoples Jr. all went to Corona Centennial HS).
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โ UCLA has two student-athletes who were on the roster in 2022-23 (Evan Manjikian, Jack Seidler) and three players who were on the roster in 2023-24 (Manjikian, Seidler and Brandon Williams). Four of UCLA's most prominent contributors, in Tyler Bilodeau, Skyy Clark, Eric Dailey Jr. and Trent Perry, are back from last year's team.
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โ Last season, UCLA's assist-turnover ratio (1.55-to-1) ranked No. 20 in the nation and second in the Big Ten. The Bruins concluded the year with an assist-turnover ratio of 1.55, but posted a ratio of 1.81 in the team's final 15 games.
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โ UCLA recorded a season-high 15 steals in a win over Southern Utah (Nov. 26, 2024). Since steals were officially tracked (starting in 1978-79), the Bruins' single-game record stands at 21 steals against Northern Arizona on Dec. 18, 1997.
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โ Since the start of the 2020-21 season, the Bruins have gone 69-30 in conference play (logging a 69.7 win percentage). UCLA went 10-10 in Pac-12 play in 2023-24 after having won the league title (18-2 record) during the 2022-23 season.
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MINUTES DISTRIBUTION
No players on UCLA's roster in 2024-25 averaged more than 30 minutes per game. Senior Kobe Johnson led the team in minutes played, averaging 29.0 minutes per game. Since UCLA began recording minutes in 1978-79, the Bruins have always had at least one player average 30.0 or more minutes per game, by the end of the year. In 2019-20, then-freshman guard Tyger Campbell finished the year as the Bruins' leader in minutes per game (30.0 mpg).
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