The Cougars will try to win in Pauley Pavilion for the first time since 2009, while the Bruins will attempt to extend their home winning streak.
The Bruins have put their back-to-back losses behind them, but they need to come away with another win Saturday in order to hold onto first place in the Pac-12.
WHO: UCLA vs. Washington State
DATE: Saturday, Feb. 4
TIME: 4:06 p.m. PT
LOCATION: Pauley Pavilion, Los Angeles, CA
TV: Pac-12 Networks – J.B. Long (play-by-play), Don MacLean (analyst)
STREAMING: fuboTV (Start your free trial)
RADIO: AM 1150, Sirius Ch. 136 or 197, SXM App 959 – Josh Lewin (play-by-play), Tracy Murray (analyst)
SPREAD: UCLA -11.5 (-118), Washington State +11.5 (-110)*
MONEY LINE: UCLA -901, Washington State, +500*
OVER/UNDER: O 129.5 (-110), U 129.5 (-118)*
UCLA came in at No. 9 in the most recent AP Poll and No. 9 in the USA Today Coaches Poll, and is currently No. 5 in the NET Rankings, No. 5 in the KenPom, No. 5 in the T-Rank and No. 4 in the BPI. Washington State did not appear in either the AP Poll or Coaches Poll, and is currently No. 73 in the NET, No. 59 in the KenPom, No. 56 in the T-Rank and No. 70 in the BPI.
The Bruins were the heavy favorite to win the Pac-12 this season, earning the No. 1 spot in the preseason media poll with 26 first-place votes. The Cougars, on the other hand, came in at No. 8. According to the T-Rank WinMatrix, UCLA has a 85.5% chance of winning a share of the conference title, while Washington State has a 0.0% chance.
UCLA is led by coach Mick Cronin, who is in his fourth season with the program. Cronin boasts a 86-34 record since arriving in Westwood and a 451-205 record as a head coach overall, including his stints at Murray State and Cincinnati.
The Bruins are currently 18-4, including a 9-2 record in Pac-12 play. Following a winless weekend in Las Vegas in November, UCLA rattled off 14 wins in a row, including victories over USC, Arizona State, Washington State, Utah, then-No. 20 Maryland and then-No. 13 Kentucky. The streak came to an end in Tucson when then-No. 11 Arizona pulled away for a 58-52 win, then the Trojans got revenge with a 77-64 win at the Galen Center last week. The Bruins recovered with a win over Washington on Thursday, but they were outplayed in the second half for the third straight game.
UCLA is averaging 74.6 points per game while allowing 60.6 points per game, which rank No. 118 and No. 11 in the country, respectively. The Bruins have the No. 26 adjusted offense and No. 3 adjusted defense in the KenPom. Their 16.8 turnovers forced per game and their 10.5 turnovers per game both rank inside the top 25 in the country.
Guard/forward Jaime Jaquez Jr. leads UCLA with 16.0 points and 7.4 rebounds per game. Guard Jaylen Clark is averaging 13.1 points, 6.9 rebounds and 2.7 steals per game, while point guard Tyger Campbell is averaging 13.6 points and 4.7 assists per game. Freshmen Amari Bailey, Dylan Andrews and Adem Bona, meanwhile, have each emerged as secondary options alongside veteran sharpshooter David Singleton, and Bailey finally returned to action last Thursday after missing the previous seven games with a foot injury.
Washington State is led by coach Kyle Smith, who is in his fourth season with the Cougars. Hopkins has a 226-180 career record including his previous stints at San Francisco and Columbia, and although his teams haven’t finished below .500 since 2015-2016, he has never gone to the NCAA tournament as a head coach.
A losses to Boise State, Prairie View, UNLV, Hawaii and Utah State lowlighted a shaky nonconference slate for Washington State, but they did manage to dig themselves out of the rut with wins over USC and Arizona in early January. The Cougars have lost four of their last five, though, dropping them to 10-14 overall and 5-8 in Pac-12 play.
Washington State is averaging 68.0 points per game while allowing 65.4 points per game, which rank No. 275 and No. 64 in the country, respectively. The Cougars have the No. 68 adjusted offense and No. 58 adjusted defense in the KenPom.
Guard TJ Bamba leads the Cougars with 14.2 points per game, but he has failed to reach double figures in five of his last six appearances. Forward Mouhamed Gueye – coming off a 31-point, 12-rebound outing against USC – is averaging 14.0 points and 8.4 rebounds per game, while wings Justin Powell, Jabe Mullins and DJ Rodman have established themselves as terciary scoring options.
UCLA is 112-19 against Washington State all-time, including a 4-2 record since Cronin took over. The Bruins have won their last 11 home games versus the Cougars dating back to 2010.
*Odds via SI Sportsbook
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