The UCLA men’s basketball team defended Pauley Pavilion against the West Georgia Wolves without star point guard Donovan Dent on Monday.
The Bruins were able to win another competitive battle at home, but this time without their leading scorer and best player. The Wolves had given the Nebraska Cornhuskers a run for their money last week, but much like in this game, it unraveled for them in the second half. How’d it happen this time? Here are five storylines that can be taken from this game.
Dent-less? No problem
The Bruins were without the their transfer point guard, but they didn’t struggle putting up points against the Wolves. In fact, they put up the most points of their season. In large part due to the efforts of senior forward Tyler Bilodeau and sophomore guard Trent Perry, who had 21-points and 17-points respectively. Perry has been coming off the bench previously, but in this game he clocked the most minutes of anyone in the game with 37 minutes.
Stop the 3-point barrage
The Bruins could not stop the Wolves from scoring beyond the arc if their lives depended on it. UCLA had created a respectable 35-25 lead with two minutes left before halftime, but West Georgia was able to bounce back with multiple three-pointers to narrow the Bruins lead to five points, 37-32. The Wolves cooled off in the second half, which allowed the Bruins to pull ahead. Still, allowing West Georgia to 52 percent of their three-pointers is a sign of disaster in future outings.
Owning the paint
The Bruins dominated the Wolves in the paint with a difference of 32-points scored to 8-points. The athleticism and physicality advantage of UCLA’s team was obvious as they maneuvered their way to the rim, seemingly at will. On top of that, the rebounds were heavily in favor of UCLA. West Georgia could only muscle 22 rebounds away from the Bruins, compared to UCLA’s 36 rebounds.
Bench help
With Dent out, it was vital UCLA received support from their bench. Senior guard Jamar Brown led the bench with 10-points and five defensive rebounds to help out. Brown’s utilization, as well as others, allowed the Bruins bench to not only support the Bruins starters, but outscore the opposing bench. UCLA’s bench scored 19-points compared to the Wolves’ 15-points. This was the first time the Bruins bench was able to do so this season.
Don’t give up
The Bruins consistently allowed the Wolves to have opportunities to get back into the game. The most obvious being with their poor defense around the perimeter in the first half, but the effort was not fully there. UCLA continued to look disjointed and although they were able to win by over 20-points this game, things might look different on Friday when they take on one of the top collegiate teams in the country in the Arizona Wildcats.
This article originally appeared on UCLA Wire: UCLA basketball, without Donovan Dent, handles West Georgia by 21, prepares for Arizona
Reporting by Ryan Lorenz, UCLA Wire / UCLA Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
