UCLA Basketball: Bryce Alford is Leading By Example and Shooting Lights Out
Bryce Alford Is Shooting Lights Out
With Ball handling the rock, Alford has adapted his game to the 2-spot. Not only can he move freely about the court, he is able to do it at the speed the Bruins are playing at. This has helped him to create many open shots and it has been nothing short of fantastic. Not only is he able to shoot from anywhere on the court, he is doing it better than last year.
| Per Game Stats | Field Goal % | 3-Point FG% | Points per Game |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2015-16 | .385 | .367 | 16.1 |
| 2016-17 | .470 | .454 | 16.1 |
At this point in the season, he is averaging the same amount of points with a better rate of success. This is directly attributed to being a lot more selective in his shot.
Bryce Alford is a shooter, plain and simple. He worked on improving it over the summer, and it is paying off, especially his long range shooting. The thing about Bryce being more accurate this season, is the fact that he is doing most of it from beyond the arc.
This year, Alford has taken less overall field goals, but more shots from 3-point land.
| Totals | FG Made | FG Attempted | 3-Pt FG Made | 3-pt FG Attempted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015-16 | 157 | 408 | 73 | 199 |
| 2016-17 | 143 | 304 | 94 | 207 |
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Two-thirds of Alford’s shots have been from downtown and has made almost half of them. The word “savage” comes to mind.
Alford is also one of the best in the Pac-12 stat-wise. He leads the conference in 3-point field goal percentage (.454) and is tied for first for most 3-pointers made per game (3.2). Earlier in the season, Alford helped UCLA make a record 19 3-pointers in a game which was fueled by a record-setting 9 of his own as he put up 37 points. “Savage”.
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Currently, the Bruins are on a 7-game win streak and just came out as the #3 team in the AP Poll. They lead the NCAA in scoring (91.6 ppg) and field goal percentage (52.9%) which has led to a 26-3, 13-3 record and will not only return to the NCAA Tournament, but is being considered as a 3-seed.
This has to do with the total team effort the Bruins are putting out. Ball might be the player that is getting the majority of the attention, but with out Alford, among several others, the Bruins would not have the success they are currently experiencing.
Bryce has seen the good and the bad and so far this is the best his has been a part of. With what he has gone through in his time at UCLA, it is apparent that he wants to do nothing more than win some hardware in Westwood as well as leave a legacy of his own.
Not only did he recently break the UCLA single-season record for made three-pointers (93), he also passed Ed O’Bannon (1,815) for 6th on UCLA’s all-time leading scorers list behind Don MacLean (2,608), Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (2,325), Jason Kapono (2,095), Reggie Miller 2,095) and Toby Bailey 1,846).
He can still add to the record!
— UCLA Men’s Basketball (@UCLAMBB) February 26, 2017
Congrats to @balford20 on setting UCLA's new single-season record for made 3-pointers (94).#GoBruins pic.twitter.com/Btc6dyRqns
That is some fantastic company if we ever saw.
So with two regular season games left, Alford looks to continue to be an example for this UCLA Basketball team. The Bruins are rolling and there is no sign of slowing down. Though no matter what happens with the team, Bryce Alford has proven to be a vital part of the return of UCLA Basketball.