The former Pac-12 rivals, UCLA and UC Berkeley, clashed on Tuesday night at Chase Center as the Bruins lost on the road with a final score of 72-80.
Prior to today’s game, No.18 UCLA won twelve of their last thirteen conference games against UC Berkeley before the Pac-12 was disbanded in 2024, and entered the game with a record of 5-1 on the season following a win against Presbyterian last Friday.
The Bruins lineup could not hold up in the loss to the Golden Bears, especially after missing forward Tyler Bilodeau, who leads the team in points per game. The transfer from Oregon State suffered a left knee sprain during practice prior to Friday’s game against Presbyterian, and the timetable for his return is unknown, but estimated to be within a few weeks.
The first half of the game started off with a six-point surge by the Bruins, leading to a hot start on offense. However, the Bears then responded with a six-point surge of their own, and carrying this momentum for a large portion of the first half. After UCLA’s hot offensive start, they started to miss many three-pointers and field goals, causing Cal to take the lead at the 12:50 mark by making four 3-point shots in a row. Cal’s offense was able to catch up to the Bruins, gaining an eight-point lead on the Bruins despite being down 6-0 to start the game.
Despite Cal’s momentum to start the game, the Bruins responded and began capitalizing on the scoring opportunities they had missed earlier, gaining back a 5- point lead by halftime, making the score 41-36.
Throughout the first half, it became clear that UCLA struggled without Bilodeau. Despite UCLA having more total offensive and defensive rebounds, the game splits for the first half saw Cal lead in important offensive metrics: field goal percentage, three point percentage and free throw percentage. Trent Perry was the standout of the first half, recording 12 points.
The 2nd half can only be described as a collapse. The Bears would end up scoring a whopping 44 points against the Bruins, who struggled on both ends of the floor. To make injury matters worse, star point guard Donovan Dent, who had seven assists in the game, appeared to have a leg-related injury, as he was seen holding his calf in pain after doing the splits on the court.
This marks UCLA basketball’s first loss to Cal since the 2023-2024 season, making it Cal’s 3rd win against UCLA in the past fifteen games that they have played each other.
Following this loss, the Bruins turn their attention to Washington, as they head to Seattle for an 8 p.m. matchup on Wednesday.
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Featured Image via Jan Kim Lim/UCLA Athletics
