UCLA Bruins Insider Podcast: Men's & Women's Basketball Breakdowns

Our latest episode of the UCLA Bruins Insider Podcast looks ahead to a pair of basketball matchups within Big Ten play for both the men's and women's hoops teams. Both teams will tip off on Sunday afternoon.

Dec 3, 2024; Los Angeles, California, USA; UCLA Bruins guard Sebastian Mack (12) dribbles the ball against Washington Huskies guard Zoom Diallo (9) in the second half at Pauley Pavilion presented by Wescom. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images / Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

The UCLA men's and women's basketball teams will both be competing this Sunday afternoon. The men's side took down Washington (6-2) on Tuesday at home and will hit the road as the women's team will open conference play on the road against the Huskies.

In this episode of the UCLA Bruins Insider Podcast, UCLA Bruins On SI beat writer Tom Cavanaugh previews both of Sunday's games. Both teams are on the road for the first time in conference play.

You can watch the episode below:

The Bruins men's basketball team started on the right foot in conference play with a strong 69-58 win over the Huskies earlier this week. It will face a much tougher team this weekend as the No.12 Oregon Ducks will be hosting the Bruins. Both teams are 1-0 in Big Ten play.

The Ducks took down the Bruins' bitter rival, USC, on Wednesday night by eight points. They have been led all year by their 7-0, 220-pound senior center Nate Bittle who leads the team in points (13.6), rebounds (9), and blocks (2) per game. He is their best player on both sides of the ball.

Along with Bittle comes more veteran experience with senior guards TJ Bamba and Keeshawn Barthelemy. Both guys are averaging double-digits in scoring and have been pivotal pieces that the Bruins must limit. Barthemeley also leads the Ducks in steals per game with two.

The women's team will be opening conference play as they will hit the road for the second-straight game after traveling to Hawai'i to beat the Rainbow Warriors by 21 points. They will now play the Huskies in Seattle for their first road conference game in the Big Ten in program history.

The Huskies are 7-2, holding an embarrassing double-digit loss to the Montana Grizzlies, but took No. 7 LSU down to the wire in a 68-67 loss at a neutral site in the Bahamas. This team has scorers and size and has shown its ability to take the nation's best teams to the brink.

Junior guard Elle Ladine has been the best player for the Huskies this season, averaging 14.8 points per game and 6.1 rebounds per game. She is the team's leading scorer and has recorded 10 or more points in eight of the team's nine contests this year.

Ladine is joined by sophomore guard Sayvia Sellers who has the hot hand from downtown as she is currently shooting 48.5% from three-point range. She is also averaging 14.8 points per game with a 58.3% field goal percentage. The Bruins must find a way to limit her from finding open shots.

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