Bruins Sophomore Guard Talks Consistency, Washington Huskies
The UCLA Bruins (6-1) will welcome the Washington Huskies (6-1) to Pauley Pavilion on Tuesday night in both of their first-ever Big Ten matchups as newfound members of the conference. Sophomore guard Eric Dailey Jr. is eager for the opportunity and spoke on a few keys for the game.
The Bruins are heading into somewhat of a gauntlet stretch of their schedule as they will face three top-25-ranked teams in their next six games. They kick off Big Ten play with the Huskies, then must play another conference game with No. 12 Oregon before No. 20 North Carolina and No. 7 Gonzaga.
"This is what we've been waiting for," Dailey said. "Play [the] best teams in the country and play in the Big Ten finally and our team is definitely ready. We've been preparing well, so it's going to be a good stretch of games."
There will be a strong emphasis on paint presence for Dailey and the other big men on the roster. Although Dailey is listed as a guard, his 6-8, 230-pound frame requires him to be physical in the paint alongside junior forwards Tyler Bilodeau and Williams Kyle III.
Bilodeau has been the team's leader scorer, while Kyle has not received as many minutes but has made a positive impact when he sees the floor. Dailey spoke on Kyle's growth this season since transferring from South Dakota State this past offseason, where he spent the past two years.
"Will's definitely getting better day by day," Dailey said. "I mean, obviously coming from where he was at, into this type of conference and this type of system, he's definitely showing that he can play at this level. With us, me and Tyler, it just makes things easier for us having another big guy out there, and it can't go wrong with having a big lineup at all, especially in the Big Ten where we play other big lineups as well. Whatever coach needs, he's going to put it together, and we're just going to execute it."
Dailey is second on the team in points (12.3) and rebounds (5.4) per game. He has been one of the more consistent players on the roster with five straight games of double-digit scoring. His impact is necessary in his first season with the Bruins after transferring from Oklahoma State.
There is a heightened sense of consistency in both production on the floor and the habits that are carried out on a daily basis. Dailey spoke about his upbringing and why he is one of the more mentally strong players on the team at such a young age.
"I think just coming from a basketball home, I was taught consistency, discipline, stay to routines and it's just a mindset really," Dailey said. "Just wanting to go out there and get better every day and just improve on the little things you have to work on. I think you just go out there with that mindset, you can just stay consistent. You might not do the same thing every day, you might not score the same amount of points, get the same amount of rebounds, but if you have an idea of what you want to do, you can get somewhere around there. So they say shoot for the moon, if you fail, you amongst the stars, so that's how I put it."
Dailey and the Bruins will look to start their Big Ten history with a win to extend their winning streak to six games and record a 7-0 record at home this season. Their toughest games are ahead of them and playing their best ball will be paramount to surprising much of the nation with some key victories.
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