UCLA strengthens NCAA tournament resume with rout of No. 9 Nebraska

UCLA picked up another big win on Tuesday night. They were able to knock off No. 9 Nebraska at home by a final score of 72-52. Which gets them to the 20-win mark on the season and quite possibly punching their ticket to the NCAA tournament. The Bruins have been a complete 360 team when it comes to being on the road and being at home. The win over Nebraska gives them their third top 10 win of the season at Pauley Pavilion. With the other two coming against No. 4 Purdue and No. 10 Illinois.

Now UCLA will head across town to play their rivals in USC. Looking to finish the season at 21-10 and put up a good showing in the Big Ten tournament. Before they learn their fate in March Madness. It is quite possible that UCLA could be a first-round exit or they can make a run. You just never know what you’re going to get on a nightly basis with this team. They could play really good or they could falter.

The Bruins quite possibly played their best game of the year as they were completely suffocating on defense. They held a very good Nebraska offense to only 52 points. Which included only 38.8% from the field and 5-24 from 3-point range. If they could play defense like that every night, they could be a very good team. Trent Perry on offense bounced back from a scoreless game against Minnesota to lead all scorers with 20.

A big positive for the Bruins as well is Eric Dailey Jr. continued to play good offense. He is someone that can score the basketball very well but needs to find that consistency. We have seen him do it and will need him to continue with the games becoming do-or-die mode next week. UCLA as a team will need to close out this season with a win against USC. Find that consistency in the Big Ten tournament and then push towards March Madness. Nobody knows what team will show up, but hopefully the one capable of upsets does.