It hasn’t been the season Donovan Dent had expected. The Riverside native returned to Los Angeles with the UCLA Bruins and was set to be the focal point of a successful UCLA offense. Dent has still been the focal point; there’s just been less success than expected.
For the season, Dent has put up 13.6 points and 7.5 assists. Dent’s scoring is down significantly from his junior season with New Mexico, where he posted 20.4 points per game. The efficiency has also taken a hit for Dent, who’s shooting 42% from the field and 24% from three this year after shooting 49% and 41% from deep last year.
It’s not what the Bruins had wanted but the jump to the Big Ten was always going to be tricky. One area where Dent hasn’t regressed is with his ball control. Dent’s assist total has gone up with UCLA while his turnovers have gone down, from 3.1 last year to 1.9 this year.
As college basketball insider Jon Rothstein pointed out on Twitter last week, Dent has 53 assists over UCLA’s last five games while turning the ball over twice. Regardless of Dent’s shooting splits, his ability to create offense without giving away possessions is a superpower.
With games ratcheting up in intensity, having Dent be able to possess the ball is a huge benefit for the Bruins. It wouldn’t be a surprise if the experienced point guard is the difference in a game this March for the Bruins.
UCLA has surrounded Dent with shooters, and he’s even proven capable of knocking down big shots with the Bruins, hitting five threes against USC and the game-winner against Illinois.
This article originally appeared on UCLA Wire: Donovan Dent’s ball handling could be a difference-maker this March
Reporting by Dylan McNeill, UCLA Wire / UCLA Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
