The UCLA men’s basketball team ended the regular season with a bang. The Bruins swept the USC Trojans with a 89-68 win at Galen Center, Los Angeles on Saturday.
The Bruins ended the regular season with a 13-7 Big Ten Conference record. UCLA’s offense and defense were on point as they demolished the Trojans and locked up an NCAA Tournament bid. There’s no way UCLA will miss the field after this win. The victory over Nebraska had UCLA as a 10 seed. The extra win over USC means that even if UCLA loses its opening game in the Big Ten Tournament, the Bruins aren’t going to fall out of the bracket. They’re in. Now their sights turn to the postseason.
Here are five takeaways from UCLA’s win in its rivalry game.
Dent’s on fire
Redshirt senior guard Donovan Dent was the game’s leading scorer with 25 points on 11-of-15 field goals. On top of that, he led the game with seven assists and tacked on a steal and no turnovers to enhance his dominant performance. UCLA needed Dent to rise to superstar status, and his conclusion to the regular season delivered it.
Dangerous everywhere
The Bruins were able to score anywhere on the court and it culminated in nearly 45 points in both halves. UCLA ended the night shooting 58 percent from the field and 53 percent beyond the arc. The explosiveness UCLA had throughout the game didn’t give the Chad Baker-Mazara-less Trojans any chance at keeping up.
Bilodeau remains strong
Senior forward Tyler Bilodeau’s scoring production was much needed after his eight-point game against Nebraska. He put up 16 points in his 29 minutes and was the offensive spark UCLA needed in the first half. Bilodeau made 70 percent of his field goals and both of his three-point attempts while also tying the team with the most rebounds with eight.
Dailey Domination
Junior guard Eric Dailey Jr. heated up in the second half of the game and was the Bruins’ second best scorer with 19-points. He made 50 percent of his 3-pointers and 7-of-13 field goal attempts. Dailey was tied with Bilodeau for the most rebounds on the team. He also led the Bruins with two steals.
UCLA will continue to need Dailey to help in the NCAA Tournament. He showed he could be an explosive option for the Bruins if needed.
Struggles in some places (but not many)
Senior guard Skyy Clark has struggled to maintain consistency on the offensive side of the ball. It continued with his only two-points coming from the free-throw line. He missed all five of his field goal attempts with two of them coming from the three-point line.
Sophomore guard Trent Perry also struggled on offense with only 2-of-6 field goals. He ended the game with eight points. UCLA will need both Perry and Clark in the NCAA Tournament and they have both shown they have the ability to be impactful.
This article originally appeared on UCLA Wire: 5 takeaways from UCLA men sweeping USC Trojans to lock up NCAA bid
Reporting by Ryan Lorenz, UCLA Wire / UCLA Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
