No. 4/3 UCLA to Host Alabama State on Wednesday Night

LOS ANGELES – No. 4-ranked UCLA (8-1) will host Alabama State (1-9) in Pauley Pavilion presented by Wescom on Wednesday night. This will mark the first-ever meeting on the court between UCLA and Alabama State. UCLA will close its non-conference schedule within the next week, playing against North Carolina on Saturday in Las Vegas in the CBS Sports Classic and facing Cal Poly (in Pauley Pavilion) on Wednesday, Dec. 22. The Bruins will open Pac-12 play at home against No. 8-ranked Arizona on Thursday, Dec. 30.
 
GAME INFORMATION
Venue: Pauley Pavilion presented by Wescom
Tipoff Time: 8:05 p.m. (PT)
Television: Pac-12 Network
TV Talent: J.B. Long (play-by-play), Ros Gold-Onwude (analyst)
Radio Broadcast (UCLA Sports Network): AM 1150
Radio Talent: Josh Lewin (play-by-play), Tracy Murray (analyst)
SIRIUS/XM Radio Channels: Ch. 84/Ch. 84
SIRIUS Internet Channel: Ch. 84
 
FAN ATTENDANCE, COVID-19 POLICIES
Face coverings will be required for all individuals aged 2 or older, regardless of COVID-19 vaccination status, at all time unless actively eating or drinking (more information here). In accordance with updated health guidance from the California Department of Public Health (CDPH), regarding COVID-19, UCLA Athletic indoor events will require fans (age 2 and older) in attendance to show proof of their fully-vaccinated status or provide a pre-entry negative COVID-19 test result from within 72 hours of the start of the event. Additionally, and effective November 1, 2021, all fans over the age of 18 will be required to present an ID along with their proof of vaccination or negative test result. This policy will be in effect for all UCLA men's and women's basketball, men's and women's volleyball and gymnastics home events. Verification will occur at the venue entry points.
 
ABOUT THE BRUINS
- UCLA's team has gone 8-1 and are ranked No. 4 in the AP poll (No. 3 in the Coaches' Poll) this week.
- The Bruins have shot 45.3% from the field, through nine games, the third-best overall shooting percentage in the Pac-12.
- Guard Johnny Juzang has averaged a team-best 16.6 points per game (he's averaging 4.9 rebounds per contest).
- Guard/forward Jaime Jaquez Jr. has averaged 14.8 points and 6.6 rebounds in the team's first nine games.
- The Bruins rank No. 1 in the Pac-12 in 3-point shooting percentage (39.0%) and No. 2 in assist-turnover ratio (1.60).
- Head coach Mick Cronin has gone 49-23 at UCLA (currently in his third season as UCLA's head coach).
- UCLA went 22-10 last season, including a 13-6 mark in Pac-12 play (finishing in fourth place in the league).
- Eleven of UCLA's 15 players were either born-and-raised in Southern California or attended high school in the area.
- For the second consecutive season, the Bruins were selected No. 1 in the preseason Pac-12 Conference media poll.
- The Bruins went 5-1 in the 2021 NCAA Tournament, earning the program's 19th all-time appearance in the Final Four.
 
FIRST NINE GAMES
UCLA has compiled an 8-1 overall record, the program's best start through nine games since the 2016-17 season, when the Bruins began the year with 13 consecutive wins (all in non-conference action). Within the previous 10 seasons (back to 2011-12), UCLA has won at least eight of its first nine contests in two seasons (2016-17, was 9-0; 2013-14, was 8-1). The Bruins have been tabbed No. 4 in this week's AP top-25 poll and No. 3 in the Coaches' Poll, UCLA's highest such in-season top-25 rankings since the 2016-17 campaign (UCLA ended that season with a 31-5 overall record).
 
AWAY FROM HOME
The Bruins have registered two non-conference road wins (73-51 at UNLV, and 67-56 at Marquette), improving their record to 3-1 in road and neutral site games. This marks the first season since 2004-05 in which the Bruins have played at least two non-conference road games (that year, UCLA played at Michigan State in December and at Notre Dame in late February). Now in his third season as UCLA's head coach, Mick Cronin has guided the Bruins to a 20-18 record in games played away from home (road games, neutral sites) and to a 29-5 record in home games.
 
THE LATEST
UCLA recorded its third consecutive win with a 67-56 victory at Marquette last Saturday (in Milwaukee, at Fiserv Forum). Jaime Jaquez Jr. logged his fifth career double-double (his second this season) with a 24-point, 12-rebound effort against the Golden Eagles. Jaquez Jr. scored 14 of his team-high 24 points in the first half and made each of his first three attempts from 3-point range (he shot 7-for-16 in the game and was 3-for-5 from 3-point distance). Tyger Campbell and Johnny Juzang each finished with 12 points. Juzang had a team-leading three steals and Campbell finished with eight assists.
 
ASSIST-TURNOVER STATS
Through games played on Sunday, Dec. 12, UCLA ranked No. 11 in the nation and second in the Pac-12 in assist-turnover ratio (1.6, with 144 assists and 90 turnovers). Tyger Campbell has totaled 38 assists and nine turnovers in nine contests. Jules Bernard has registered 21 assists and eight turnovers, while Jaime Jaquez Jr. has totaled 22 assists and 14 turnovers. Campbell's assist-turnover ratio of 4.2-to-1 ranked No. 7, nationally, through games played Sunday, Dec. 12. Campbell has averaged 12.6 points, 4.2 assists and 2.8 rebounds in nine games, shooting 45.2% from the field.
 
THREE-POINT PERCENTAGE
Through games played on Sunday, Dec. 12, the Bruins ranked No. 1 among all Pac-12 teams (and No. 20, nationally) in best 3-point shooting percentage (39.0%, 76-for-195). Last season, UCLA ranked No. 3 in the Pac-12 in that category, having shot 37.2% from 3-point range in 32 contests. Tyger Campbell leads the team in 3-point percentage (47.5%, 19-for-40), and David Singleton has shot 45.8% from 3-point range (11-for-24). UCLA has four players (Singleton, Campbell, Jules Bernard and Johnny Juzang) who have each made at least 11 shots from 3-point distance this season.
 
BACK IN PAULEY
The Bruins went 11-1 in Pauley Pavilion presented by Wescom last season, with no fans in the arena due to season-long COVID-19 protocols. Dating back to UCLA's 69-64 win over Arizona on Saturday, Feb. 29, 2020, the Bruins had gone 613 days since playing in Pauley Pavilion in front of fans (prior to a home exhibition game against Chico State on Nov. 4, 2021). Since the start of the 2019-20 season, UCLA has compiled a 29-5 record in Pauley Pavilion.
 
PAC-12 PLAY, AT HOME: UCLA has won 16 of its last 17 home games in Pac-12 play. Last season, UCLA went 8-1 at home in Pac-12 action (the lone loss came against USC, 64-63, on Saturday, March 6). The Bruins won their final seven home Pac-12 contests in 2019-20, Coach Cronin's first season in Westwood.
 
DOUBLE-FIGURE SCORING
Four of UCLA's veteran players – Johnny Juzang (16.6 ppg), Jaime Jaquez Jr. (14.8 ppg), Jules Bernard (13.0 ppg) and Tyger Campbell (12.6 ppg) – have all averaged at least 10 points per game, through nine contests. Juzang has scored in double figures in all nine games, netting a season-high 25 points against Villanova (Nov. 12) and Long Beach State (Nov. 15) in back-to-back outings. Jaquez Jr. registered a season-high 24 points (and grabbed 12 rebounds) in the Bruins' 67-56 win at Marquette (Dec. 11). Jaquez Jr. ranks second on the team in rebounding (6.6 rpg) and leads UCLA with 11 steals.
 
SHOT MAKERS: The Bruins made 40 of 78 shots against Long Beach State on Monday, Nov. 15, the team's most made field goals in one game since connecting on 40 of 74 attempts in the season opener against Purdue Fort Wayne on Nov. 6, 2018. Johnny Juzang led the Bruins in that category, sinking 11 of 21 shots versus Long Beach State.
 
KEY FACILITATOR
Tyger Campbell, a redshirt junior guard, has averaged 12.6 points and a team-leading 4.2 assists in nine games. He has made 19 of 40 attempts from 3-point range (47.5%) and 18 of 21 free throw attempts (85.7%). Campbell was honored as a first-team All-Pac-12 selection last year. He has become the first UCLA player since Darren Collison (2006-09) to serve as the team's primary point guard for three straight seasons. From 2011-12 through 2018-19, UCLA had seven different players who served as the team's "starting" point guard. Campbell played (and started) all 63 games the past two seasons.
 
HERE'S JOHNNY
Listed as a preseason All-America selection by nearly every national media outlet, Johnny Juzang has averaged a team-best 16.6 points per game this season. He averaged a team-leading 16.0 points in 27 contests last season. He was one of five players to earn All-NCAA Tournament Team acclaim in 2021, having averaged 22.8 points in six NCAA Tournament contests. He shot 50.9 percent in the NCAA Tournament (54-for-106). Juzang secured second-team All-Pac-12 honors last season and finished the year ranked No. 3 among all Pac-12 players in free throw percentage (87.7%, 56-for-65).
 
HOME COOKIN': Johnny Juzang scored 19 points in the Bruins' season opener (Nov. 9, vs. CSU Bakersfield). He added a team-high 25 points against Villanova, and registered 25 points against Long Beach State (Nov. 15). Each of those single-game point totals were higher than any other game in Pauley Pavilion for Juzang, last season. His previous single-game high (scoring) in Pauley Pavilion was 17 points versus Washington State on Jan. 14, 2021.
 
GO-TO PLAYER
Selected a second-team All-Pac-12 player in 2020-21, Jaime Jaquez Jr. (along with Tyger Campbell & Johnny Juzang) was picked as a "first-team" preseason All-Pac-12 selection in Oct. 2021. Jaquez Jr., a 6-foot-7 guard/forward, has averaged 14.8 points and 6.6 rebounds through nine contests. Last season, he averaged 12.3 points and a team-best 6.1 rebounds per game. He was one of five players to earn Pac-12 All-Defensive Team honors and led the Bruins with 39 steals and 22 blocks (tied, with Cody Riley). Last season, Jaquez Jr. scored in double figures in 21 of UCLA's 32 games.
 
VETERAN PRESENCE
Senior guard Jules Bernard has averaged 13.0 points and 4.3 rebounds in the Bruins' first nine games. Bernard totaled a team-leading 18 points at UNLV on Saturday, Nov. 27. He scored 22 points and logged a career-high seven assists in UCLA's 100-79 win over Long Beach State (Nov. 15). Bernard sank the game-tying basket with 25 seconds to play in the second half against No. 4 Villanova (Nov. 12, helping tie the game at 67-67). He has played in a team-leading 104 career contests, including all 32 games (28 starts) last season. He has registered career averages of 8.3 points and 3.7 rebounds per game.
 
30-POINT CLUB
Last season, Johnny Juzang scored a career-high 32 points in a 64-61 win at Washington (Feb. 13). Juzang's 32-point effort at Washington marked the most points in a game by any UCLA player since Kris Wilkes had 34 points as a sophomore against Arizona (Jan. 26, 2019, in Pauley Pavilion). Aaron Holiday is UCLA's most recent player to have scored 30 points (or more) in multiple games in one season (2017-18, with four games of 30+ points).
 
50 PERCENT: Johnny Juzang (32 points, Feb. 13, 2021, at Washington) became UCLA's first player to have accounted for at least half his team's points in a game since Reggie Miller on Dec. 19, 1986. Miller had 38 of 73 points (52.1%) in an 81-73 loss at Washington State. Juzang tallied half the Bruins' points (32 of 64) in last season's win at Washington.
 
CLOSING TIME
Under third-year head coach Mick Cronin, the Bruins have gone 21-7 in games decided by five points or fewer (includes all overtime games, regardless of score margin). In 2019-20, the Bruins went 7-3 in those contests. In 2020-21, UCLA had a 12-4 record. Through Coach Cronin's final three seasons at Cincinnati (2016-17 through 2018-19), his teams went 18-7 in those situations. From 2016-17 through the 2020-21 season, Coach Cronin's teams went 39-14 in such contests.
 
70 POINTS OR FEWER
Over the past two seasons (2020-21 and 2021-22), UCLA has gone 21-3 when limiting the opposition to 70 or fewer points (15-3 last season, 6-0 record in such situations this year). In 2019-20, the Bruins logged an 18-1 record in such situations. Through his final three seasons as Cincinnati's head coach (2016-17 through 2018-19), Coach Cronin's teams posted a 79-10 record when holding the opposition to 70 or fewer points. Since the start of the 2016-17 season, his teams have gone 115-14 when limiting the opponent to 70 or fewer points (through 179 games).
 
65 POINTS, OR FEWER: Through three seasons as UCLA's head coach (2019-20 through 2021-22), Coach Cronin has guided the Bruins to a 34-2 record when UCLA has held its opposition to 65 points or fewer. UCLA has gone 4-0 this season (allowing 65 or fewer points), went 14-1 last season, and was 16-1 in 2019-20.