BYU Basketball: Three Things to Know About UCLA
On Thursday night, UCLA took down Michigan State in overtime during the 'First Four' round of the NCAA Tournament. Now, the Bruins will face #6 seed BYU in the Round of 64 on Saturday night. BYU and UCLA tip off at 7:40 PM MDT or 9:40 EST on CBS. Here are three things to know about UCLA.
Limped to the Finish Line
UCLA was projected to be a single-digit seed before they lost four consecutive games to Colorado, Oregon, USC, and finally Oregon State in the PAC-12 tournament. On Selection Sunday, the Bruins were firmly on the bubble.
Against Michigan State, a career night from Jaime Jaquez JR. led the Bruins over the Spartans.
Johnny Juzang Injury
UCLA's leading scorer Johnny Juzang left the game against Michigan State with a right ankle sprain. He needed to be helped off the court with a few minutes remaining. Juzang averages 14.0 points, 4.1 rebounds, and 1.8 assists for the Bruins. According to Jon Rothstein, he will play against BYU:
Scouting Report
The Bruins' defense allows an effective field goal percentage of 50.8% - that mark ranks #201 in the country. BYU shoots an effective field goal percentage of 55.0% which ranks #21 in the country. The Cougars should be able to get open looks against the Bruins on Saturday night.
UCLA likes to crash the glass on misses and create multiple scoring opportunities, they rank #77 in offensive rebound percentage. BYU has exceled this season on the defensive glass - the Cougars rank #22 in offensive rebound percentage allowed.
Finally, the Bruins like to slow the game down and control the tempo. They rank #334 in adjusted tempo out of 357 D1 college basketball teams. BYU ranks #200 in adjusted tempo. Expect a lot of half-court sets on Saturday night.
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