UCLA heads towards the Big Ten tournament after dominating their rival USC

UCLA finished off their regular season with a road win against their rivals in USC. They coasted to an 89-68 win and now look towards the Big Ten tournament. The team has a little bit of momentum as they’re 4-1 in their last five games. Which includes two upsets over top 10 opponents in Illinois and Nebraska. Their only flaw was their road loss to Minnesota. They will look to continue their improved play in the tournament and then wait on their fate in the NCAA tournament. With their two top 10 wins to add to their quad 1 tier wins, they removed themselves from bubble talk.

UCLA played well on both ends of the floor as they were able to shoot 58% on offense which included 53% from 3-point range. They also held USC to only 43% shooting, which shows their improved play on defense after their collapses versus Michigan and Michigan State. The Bruins defense also held USC to 7-24 from 3-point range and forcing them into tough looks for the majority of the game. While also winning the points in the paint battle 34-22 which has been hard to come by this season with lack of size.

Donovan Dent had a great game leading the Bruins to the win. He shot 11-15 from the floor for 25 points and also had seven assists. The most impressive part is he had zero turnovers again. Which is incredible because over the last five games, he’s had 53 assists compared to only two turnovers. He has struggled with consistency this season but seems to be turning a corner at the right time. Legends are made when March comes, it is either now or never for him.

Eric Dailey Jr. also continued his great play with 19 points on the night. Besides his one-point effort against USC in the first matchup he has had point totals of 20, 18, 14 and 19 in the other four matchups. UCLA is a better team when he is able to get to his spots. The best part of the night is they got really good product production from the bench. As Eric Freeny was 4-6 for 10 points. The bench has been a huge question this year and they’re looking to find someone who can consistently score. UCLA now rolls into the Big Ten tournament as the No. 6 seed.