Two former heavyweight conference rivals will have a reunion Friday night when No. 5 Arizona faces No 15 UCLA in the Hall of Fame Series at Inglewood, Calif.
The two programs typically were among the best in the West when they played in the now-depleted Pac-12. UCLA moved to the Big Ten following the 2023-24 season, and Arizona fled to the Big 12.
The teams met last season in Phoenix in the first contest of a three-game series, with the Bruins overcoming a 13-point, second-half deficit to notch a 57-54 victory on Dec. 14.
UCLA coach Mick Cronin is looking forward to testing his 3-0 squad against Arizona (3-0). He said beating the Wildcats always is challenging.
“You want to beat Arizona, you better be better than them,” Cronin said. “That’s No. 1. No. 2, you’d better be able to do some hard things because they bring the fight. That’s why it’s great to play them. They always bring the fight.”
Arizona is looking for some payback as coach Tommy Lloyd still feels the pain of losing last season’s encounter. Lloyd knows UCLA got the slower pace it prefers in the Phoenix matchup. Countering Cronin’s tactics isn’t easy, in his eyes.
“Tough, solid, well-schooled in the fundamentals, have a plan and a conviction to stick with their plan,” Lloyd said of the Bruins. “And whenever you play somebody that has those attributes, I don’t care what they’re running, it’s going to be a tough game. He’s comfortable playing slower, I’m comfortable playing faster.
“It’s always going to be a clash, but we’ve got to probably be comfortable playing in some slower games … and UCLA has got to be comfortable figuring out a way to win some games playing faster.”
Friday’s contest will be at the Intuit Dome, which is in its second season as a basketball facility.
The Wildcats are coming off an 84-49 rout of Northern Arizona on Tuesday.
Freshman Dwayne Aristode broke out with 18 points on 6-of-9 shooting from 3-point range to fuel the victory. He’s the fifth Arizona freshman to make six threes in a game — joining Mike Bibby, Salim Stoudamire, Jerryd Bayless and Bennedict Mathurin.
Aristode attempted just two treys, making one, over Arizona’s first two games.
“He’s a really good shooter,” Lloyd said of Aristode. “He just needed a few games to get comfortable. I don’t know what it’s going to be like on Friday, but (Monday), he was great. I think that’s a big step forward for him. He’s a really good player.”
Freshman sensation Koa Peat had just 10 points on 3-of-10 shooting from the field. He leads the Wildcats in scoring at 19.3 points per game.
UCLA star point guard Donovan Dent sat out Monday’s 83-62 victory over West Georgia as a precaution due to a muscle strain. Cronin said Dent “likely” will play against Arizona.
Dent, a high-profile transfer from New Mexico, averaged team-best figures of 16.5 points and 6.5 assists over the first two games. Sophomore Trent Perry made his first collegiate start in place of Dent and posted 17 points and nine assists on Monday.
“At the end of the day, my dad always told me just create an impact when you’re coming off the bench or starting,” Perry said. “I had no other mindset. My mindset didn’t change.”
Tyler Bilodeau led UCLA with 21 points against West Georgia. He’s second on the squad with a 16.3 scoring average. Bilodeau scored a game-high 17 points in last season’s win over the Wildcats.
The UCLA-Arizona game will be the nightcap of a doubleheader. Illinois State will play Southern California in the opening game.
