LAS VEGAS – No. 17 UCLA (4-0) will face No. 11 Michigan State (3-1) on Thursday evening in a nationally-televised contest at Orleans Arena in the Continental Tire Las Vegas Invitational. Game time is 7 p.m. (PT). The Bruins' game will be televised by FS1 and will be available on the radio in the Los Angeles area on AM 570 (KLAC).
GAME INFORMATION
Venue: Orleans Arena
Game Time: 7 p.m. (PT)
Television: FS1
TV Talent: Tim Brando (play-by-play), Bill Raftery (analyst), Andy Katz (sideline)
Radio (UCLA Sports Network): AM 570
Radio Talent: Josh Lewin (play-by-play), Tracy Murray (analyst)
SIRIUS/XM Radio Channels: Ch. 138 / Ch. 197
SIRIUS App Channel: Ch. 959
THURSDAY NIGHT'S GAME
The Bruins will enter Thursday's showdown against No. 11 Michigan State having won their first four games. UCLA has four players who have averaged at least 10.0 points per game. Sophomore Kris Wilkes has averaged a team-leading 17.5 points per game, while freshman Moses Brown has registered 17.3 points and a team-leading 12.0 rebounds per game. Brown, who had eight blocks in a win over Saint Francis U on Friday, Nov. 16, has averaged 3.3 blocks per game. UCLA will face either No. 6 North Carolina or Texas on Friday afternoon at Orleans Arena, at either 1:00 or 3:30 p.m. (PT).
THE LAST TIME OUT
Jaylen Hands scored 19 points and Jalen Hill tallied a season-high 20 rebounds to pace UCLA past Presbyterian, 80-65, in Pauley Pavilion presented by Wescom on Monday, Nov. 19. UCLA led 41-19 at halftime before Presbyterian reduced the Bruins' advantage to just three points (61-58) with 7:40 to play in the second half. Hill became the first Bruin to grab at least 20 rebounds in a game since Kevin Love had 21 rebounds at Oregon State on Jan. 26, 2008.
HISTORIC DOUBLE-DOUBLES
Moses Brown became UCLA's first freshman to record double-doubles in each of his first three games. Brown, a 7-foot-1 center from Queens, N.Y., had a season-high 23 points, 14 rebounds and eight blocks in the win against Saint Francis U on Friday, Nov. 19. He became UCLA's first player with at least 20 points and five blocks in a game since Jerome Moiso had 22 points and five blocks in the Bruins' 83-77 win at home against Arizona State on Jan. 22, 2000.
THAT'S ELITE
Moses Brown became UCLA's first player to record at least 19 points and 17 rebounds in his collegiate debut since Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (then Lew Alcindor) registered a then-school-record 56 points and totaled 21 rebounds in UCLA's 105-90 win over USC on Dec. 3, 1966. Abdul-Jabbar made 23 of 32 shots from the field in that game.
RECORD TERRITORY
Moses Brown had eight blocks against Saint Francis U (Nov. 19). Since UCLA began officially recording blocks in 1978-79, only three other players have recorded at least eight blocks. Jelani McCoy set the school record with 11 blocks in his seventh game of his freshman season (vs. Maryland, Nov. 9, 1995).
GO-TO GUY OFF THE BENCH
Sophomore Chris Smith had 15 points, four rebounds and three assists in the Bruins' 95-58 victory last Friday against Saint Francis U, equaling his career high in points (set last year against South Carolina State, Nov. 17, 2017). Through four games during his sophomore season, Smith has averaged 12.0 points, 6.0 rebounds and 2.0 assists. The 6-foot-9 guard averaged 3.9 points and 1.9 rebounds per game last season, when he appeared in all 33 games off the bench.
KEY NOTES ABOUT UCLA
The Bruins have returned five of eight rotation players from last season's team, a squad that went 21-12 overall en route to the NCAA Tournament's "First Four" in Dayton, Ohio. Redshirt juniors Prince Ali and Alex Olesinski, along with sophomores Kris Wilkes and Chris Smith, played in all 33 games last season. Sophomore Jaylen Hands played in 31 of 33 games. This year's team brings in eight freshmen – six true freshmen and a pair of redshirt freshmen (Jalen Hill and Cody Riley).
Steve Alford has started his sixth season as The Michael Price Family UCLA Men's Head Basketball Coach. Hired as the Bruins' head coach in March 2013, he has guided the program to an overall record of 121-57. UCLA has made four trips to the NCAA Tournament, including three Sweet 16 appearances (2014, 2015, 2017) under Coach Alford. In addition, the Bruins have produced 11 NBA Draft selections during Coach Alford's five years as UCLA's head coach.
FROM LONG DISTANCE
In each of the past two seasons, UCLA has shot the No. 1 percentage from 3-point territory of any Pac-12 team. With Lonzo Ball and Bryce Alford in 2016-17, the Bruins shot 40.6 percent from 3-point range. In 2017-18, after losing Ball and Alford (along with Isaac Hamilton and TJ Leaf), the Bruins shot 38.1 percent from 3-point distance, a mark that still ranked No. 1 in the conference. As a junior, Aaron Holiday led the Bruins last season by shooting 42.9 percent from 3-point territory.
IN THE RECORD BOOKS
UCLA established its program record for most attempted 3-pointers (872) and made 3-pointers (354) in 2016-17. Last season, the Bruins came close. UCLA made its second-most 3-pointers in program history (310) and recorded its second-highest total of 3-point attempts (813).
THE STREAK CONTINUES
UCLA has made at least one three-pointer in its last 626 games. That streak began after the Bruins went 0-for-14 from three-point range in a 78-63 loss at No. 2 Stanford on Feb. 3, 2000. The Bruins have made at least three 3-pointers in 173 of 178 games under sixth-year head coach Steve Alford.
LOOKING AT THE TOURNAMENT FIELD
The Bruins return to Las Vegas for the 2018 Continental Tire Las Vegas Invitational exactly five years after having previously played in the tournament. UCLA won back-to-back games in Las Vegas on Nov. 28-29, 2013, averaging 100.0 points in victories against Nevada (W, 105-84) and Northwestern (W, 95-79). As a freshman, Zach LaVine averaged 19.5 points, having shot 77.8 percent from the field (14-of-18) and 72.7 percent from beyond the three-point arc (8-for-11). As a sophomore, Jordan Adams averaged 19.5 points in each game and was a perfect 14-for-14 from the free throw line.
VERSUS MICHIGAN STATE
The Spartans enter this week's tournament wtih a 3-1 overall record, currently ranked No. 11 in the Associated Press (AP) and USA Today Coaches polls. UCLA has compiled a 6-2 all-time record against Michigan State. These two teams last met in the 2011 NCAA Tournament (Tampa, Fla.), as the Bruins secured a 78-76 victory in the first round. Michigan State was UCLA's opponent on the day that the Bruins' program dedicated its Pauley Pavilion court in honor of Nell and John Wooden (Dec. 20, 2003). UCLA won that game, 64-58.
VERSUS NORTH CAROLINA
The Tar Heels enter Thursday's game against Texas with a 5-0 record (currently ranked No. 6 in the USA Today Coaches poll and No. 7 in the AP poll). UCLA has gone 3-8 in the all-time series against North Carolina. These two schools last faced each other in Brooklyn as part of the CBS Sports Classic on Dec. 19, 2015 (North Carolina defeated UCLA, 89-76). UCLA has faced North Carolina twice in head coach Steve Alford's previous five seasons in Westwood. North Carolina also secured a 75-65 victory at the Battle 4 Atlantis (Bahamas) on Nov. 27, 2014.
VERSUS TEXAS
The Longhorns have gone 4-0 as they enter Thursday's contest against North Carolina. UCLA has gone 3-3 against Texas, with the two schools having last faced off at NRG Stadium (then known as Reliant Stadium) in Houston on Dec. 8, 2012. UCLA outlasted Texas in that non-conference showdown, 65-63. The season prior, UCLA had hosted Texas at the Los Angeles Sports Arena (Pauley Pavilion was undergoing an 18-month renovation). Texas won that game, 69-59. The two schools also played a home-and-home series in 2006-07 and 2007-08.
VIVA LAS VEGAS
Under the direction of sixth-year head coach Steve Alford, UCLA has gone 9-4 in Las Vegas during the past five seasons. The Pac-12 Tournament has been played in Las Vegas since March 2013. Over the previous five seasons, UCLA has gone 6-4 at the Pac-12 Tournament and 3-0 in various neutral-site games played in Las Vegas. In Nov. 2013, UCLA secured wins over Nevada and Northwestern at the Continental Tire Las Vegas Invitational. In Dec. 2016, the Bruins defeated Ohio State, 86-73, at the CBS Sports Classic, which was played at T-Mobile Arena.
LOOKING DOWN THE ROAD
After this week's tournament in Las Vegas, the Bruins will return to Los Angeles for a four-game homestand against Hawai'i (Nov. 28), Loyola Marymount (Dec. 2), Notre Dame (Dec. 8) and Belmont (Dec. 15). The Bruins have only faced Hawai'i once before (UCLA won, 84-64, on Dec. 9, 2000). UCLA last faced LMU at the Los Angeles Sports Arena in a season-opening game. The visiting Lions won that matchup, 69-58, on Nov. 11, 2011. UCLA and Notre Dame are resuming a classic non-conference series that began in Dec. 1952. The Bruins have gone 28-20 in 48 previous meetings against Notre Dame.
GAME INFORMATION
Venue: Orleans Arena
Game Time: 7 p.m. (PT)
Television: FS1
TV Talent: Tim Brando (play-by-play), Bill Raftery (analyst), Andy Katz (sideline)
Radio (UCLA Sports Network): AM 570
Radio Talent: Josh Lewin (play-by-play), Tracy Murray (analyst)
SIRIUS/XM Radio Channels: Ch. 138 / Ch. 197
SIRIUS App Channel: Ch. 959
THURSDAY NIGHT'S GAME
The Bruins will enter Thursday's showdown against No. 11 Michigan State having won their first four games. UCLA has four players who have averaged at least 10.0 points per game. Sophomore Kris Wilkes has averaged a team-leading 17.5 points per game, while freshman Moses Brown has registered 17.3 points and a team-leading 12.0 rebounds per game. Brown, who had eight blocks in a win over Saint Francis U on Friday, Nov. 16, has averaged 3.3 blocks per game. UCLA will face either No. 6 North Carolina or Texas on Friday afternoon at Orleans Arena, at either 1:00 or 3:30 p.m. (PT).
THE LAST TIME OUT
Jaylen Hands scored 19 points and Jalen Hill tallied a season-high 20 rebounds to pace UCLA past Presbyterian, 80-65, in Pauley Pavilion presented by Wescom on Monday, Nov. 19. UCLA led 41-19 at halftime before Presbyterian reduced the Bruins' advantage to just three points (61-58) with 7:40 to play in the second half. Hill became the first Bruin to grab at least 20 rebounds in a game since Kevin Love had 21 rebounds at Oregon State on Jan. 26, 2008.
HISTORIC DOUBLE-DOUBLES
Moses Brown became UCLA's first freshman to record double-doubles in each of his first three games. Brown, a 7-foot-1 center from Queens, N.Y., had a season-high 23 points, 14 rebounds and eight blocks in the win against Saint Francis U on Friday, Nov. 19. He became UCLA's first player with at least 20 points and five blocks in a game since Jerome Moiso had 22 points and five blocks in the Bruins' 83-77 win at home against Arizona State on Jan. 22, 2000.
THAT'S ELITE
Moses Brown became UCLA's first player to record at least 19 points and 17 rebounds in his collegiate debut since Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (then Lew Alcindor) registered a then-school-record 56 points and totaled 21 rebounds in UCLA's 105-90 win over USC on Dec. 3, 1966. Abdul-Jabbar made 23 of 32 shots from the field in that game.
RECORD TERRITORY
Moses Brown had eight blocks against Saint Francis U (Nov. 19). Since UCLA began officially recording blocks in 1978-79, only three other players have recorded at least eight blocks. Jelani McCoy set the school record with 11 blocks in his seventh game of his freshman season (vs. Maryland, Nov. 9, 1995).
GO-TO GUY OFF THE BENCH
Sophomore Chris Smith had 15 points, four rebounds and three assists in the Bruins' 95-58 victory last Friday against Saint Francis U, equaling his career high in points (set last year against South Carolina State, Nov. 17, 2017). Through four games during his sophomore season, Smith has averaged 12.0 points, 6.0 rebounds and 2.0 assists. The 6-foot-9 guard averaged 3.9 points and 1.9 rebounds per game last season, when he appeared in all 33 games off the bench.
KEY NOTES ABOUT UCLA
The Bruins have returned five of eight rotation players from last season's team, a squad that went 21-12 overall en route to the NCAA Tournament's "First Four" in Dayton, Ohio. Redshirt juniors Prince Ali and Alex Olesinski, along with sophomores Kris Wilkes and Chris Smith, played in all 33 games last season. Sophomore Jaylen Hands played in 31 of 33 games. This year's team brings in eight freshmen – six true freshmen and a pair of redshirt freshmen (Jalen Hill and Cody Riley).
Steve Alford has started his sixth season as The Michael Price Family UCLA Men's Head Basketball Coach. Hired as the Bruins' head coach in March 2013, he has guided the program to an overall record of 121-57. UCLA has made four trips to the NCAA Tournament, including three Sweet 16 appearances (2014, 2015, 2017) under Coach Alford. In addition, the Bruins have produced 11 NBA Draft selections during Coach Alford's five years as UCLA's head coach.
FROM LONG DISTANCE
In each of the past two seasons, UCLA has shot the No. 1 percentage from 3-point territory of any Pac-12 team. With Lonzo Ball and Bryce Alford in 2016-17, the Bruins shot 40.6 percent from 3-point range. In 2017-18, after losing Ball and Alford (along with Isaac Hamilton and TJ Leaf), the Bruins shot 38.1 percent from 3-point distance, a mark that still ranked No. 1 in the conference. As a junior, Aaron Holiday led the Bruins last season by shooting 42.9 percent from 3-point territory.
IN THE RECORD BOOKS
UCLA established its program record for most attempted 3-pointers (872) and made 3-pointers (354) in 2016-17. Last season, the Bruins came close. UCLA made its second-most 3-pointers in program history (310) and recorded its second-highest total of 3-point attempts (813).
THE STREAK CONTINUES
UCLA has made at least one three-pointer in its last 626 games. That streak began after the Bruins went 0-for-14 from three-point range in a 78-63 loss at No. 2 Stanford on Feb. 3, 2000. The Bruins have made at least three 3-pointers in 173 of 178 games under sixth-year head coach Steve Alford.
LOOKING AT THE TOURNAMENT FIELD
The Bruins return to Las Vegas for the 2018 Continental Tire Las Vegas Invitational exactly five years after having previously played in the tournament. UCLA won back-to-back games in Las Vegas on Nov. 28-29, 2013, averaging 100.0 points in victories against Nevada (W, 105-84) and Northwestern (W, 95-79). As a freshman, Zach LaVine averaged 19.5 points, having shot 77.8 percent from the field (14-of-18) and 72.7 percent from beyond the three-point arc (8-for-11). As a sophomore, Jordan Adams averaged 19.5 points in each game and was a perfect 14-for-14 from the free throw line.
VERSUS MICHIGAN STATE
The Spartans enter this week's tournament wtih a 3-1 overall record, currently ranked No. 11 in the Associated Press (AP) and USA Today Coaches polls. UCLA has compiled a 6-2 all-time record against Michigan State. These two teams last met in the 2011 NCAA Tournament (Tampa, Fla.), as the Bruins secured a 78-76 victory in the first round. Michigan State was UCLA's opponent on the day that the Bruins' program dedicated its Pauley Pavilion court in honor of Nell and John Wooden (Dec. 20, 2003). UCLA won that game, 64-58.
VERSUS NORTH CAROLINA
The Tar Heels enter Thursday's game against Texas with a 5-0 record (currently ranked No. 6 in the USA Today Coaches poll and No. 7 in the AP poll). UCLA has gone 3-8 in the all-time series against North Carolina. These two schools last faced each other in Brooklyn as part of the CBS Sports Classic on Dec. 19, 2015 (North Carolina defeated UCLA, 89-76). UCLA has faced North Carolina twice in head coach Steve Alford's previous five seasons in Westwood. North Carolina also secured a 75-65 victory at the Battle 4 Atlantis (Bahamas) on Nov. 27, 2014.
VERSUS TEXAS
The Longhorns have gone 4-0 as they enter Thursday's contest against North Carolina. UCLA has gone 3-3 against Texas, with the two schools having last faced off at NRG Stadium (then known as Reliant Stadium) in Houston on Dec. 8, 2012. UCLA outlasted Texas in that non-conference showdown, 65-63. The season prior, UCLA had hosted Texas at the Los Angeles Sports Arena (Pauley Pavilion was undergoing an 18-month renovation). Texas won that game, 69-59. The two schools also played a home-and-home series in 2006-07 and 2007-08.
VIVA LAS VEGAS
Under the direction of sixth-year head coach Steve Alford, UCLA has gone 9-4 in Las Vegas during the past five seasons. The Pac-12 Tournament has been played in Las Vegas since March 2013. Over the previous five seasons, UCLA has gone 6-4 at the Pac-12 Tournament and 3-0 in various neutral-site games played in Las Vegas. In Nov. 2013, UCLA secured wins over Nevada and Northwestern at the Continental Tire Las Vegas Invitational. In Dec. 2016, the Bruins defeated Ohio State, 86-73, at the CBS Sports Classic, which was played at T-Mobile Arena.
LOOKING DOWN THE ROAD
After this week's tournament in Las Vegas, the Bruins will return to Los Angeles for a four-game homestand against Hawai'i (Nov. 28), Loyola Marymount (Dec. 2), Notre Dame (Dec. 8) and Belmont (Dec. 15). The Bruins have only faced Hawai'i once before (UCLA won, 84-64, on Dec. 9, 2000). UCLA last faced LMU at the Los Angeles Sports Arena in a season-opening game. The visiting Lions won that matchup, 69-58, on Nov. 11, 2011. UCLA and Notre Dame are resuming a classic non-conference series that began in Dec. 1952. The Bruins have gone 28-20 in 48 previous meetings against Notre Dame.
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