UCLA upsets No. 9 Michigan State for sixth straight win: What the Bruins have to do to make NCAA Tournament
Home sweet home, indeed.
The unranked UCLA Bruins won their sixth straight game Tuesday night, pulling out a 63-61 win over No. 9 Michigan State at Pauley Pavilion, an environment they desperately missed most of January.
The game-winning shot from @UCLAMBB's Eric Dailey was 😱#B1GMBBall pic.twitter.com/pTYfIq4Pqb
— Big Ten Men's Basketball (@B1GMBBall) February 5, 2025
One month ago, one of the best basketball programs in the history of college hoops started to spiral. On Jan. 4, UCLA lost the first of four consecutive games, all on the road. The Bruins fell to non-basketball powers like Nebraska and Rutgers, as well as Maryland and Michigan, all while fifth-year coach Mick Cronin grumbled about Big Ten travel and the absurdity of spending nearly 10 days straight back east.
Advertisement
Then the Bruins came back West, and things got better. A lot better.
Tuesday night the Bruins didn't just deny Michigan State coach Tom Izzo a chance to tie the Big Ten all-time wins record but reminded everyone in college basketball, particularly the selection committee, that they can do damage when they're locked in.
It's UCLA's third consecutive win against a ranked team, too, after picking up victories over No. 18 Wisconsin on Jan. 21 and No. 16 Oregon Jan. 30 — a game in which it held the Ducks to a season-low in scoring.
Against Michigan State, UCLA did a little bit of everything, including show a lot of guts.
After building a double-digit lead, the Bruins let MSU come all the way back, tying the game 54-54 with 7:09 to play. It was back and forth from there, until a costly Michigan State turnover with 23 seconds to go and the game tied 61-61 gave UCLA the ball, and a shot to win.
The Bruins did exactly that on a tough leaner from Eric Dailey Jr. that the sophomore forward managed to bank in over the outstretched arms of two Spartan defenders. The make put UCLA in front 63-61 with seven seconds left. Michigan State got a decent look, but Jaden Akins' 3 was short.
Perhaps the best news for the Bruins: They've still got four home games to go. Win those and pull off a surprise on the road — UCLA has games this month at No. 23 Illinois and No. 7 Purdue — and the Bruins will inch up the seed line. Steal both of those ranked road contests and end the regular season on a 14-game win streak, and Selection Sunday could be very sweet.
It's taken time for UCLA — and the rest of the Big Ten — to adjust to season-long cross-country travel. Now that they've settled, Dailey Jr. told the Peacock broadcast team UCLA's message to the Big Ten is clear: 'We belong, and we're contenders in this conference.'
If they can play on the West Coast in March, they'll be contending for a deep postseason run, too.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
USA Today
an hour ago
- USA Today
MSU target, 4-star RB Damon Ferguson commits to Pitt
MSU target, 4-star RB Damon Ferguson commits to Pitt Michigan State football is still in search for a running back prospect in the 2026 class, with another top target now off the board. Four-star running back Damon Ferguson announced his commitment to Pitt on Monday morning. Ferguson posted on his social media X account to announce his commitment to the Panthers, which comes after taking an official visit there this past weekend. Ferguson is a four-star running back prospect with a recruiting rating of 89.33 in 247Sports' composite system. He ranks as the No. 26 running back and No. 381 overall prospect in 247Sports' composite rankings for the 2026 class. Michigan State is one of a few schools that were prioritizing Ferguson's recruitment before his commitment to the Pitt Panthers. He was set to take an official visit to Michigan State next week, and Indiana, Minnesota and Virginia were also heavily involved in his recruitment with official visits either planned or already occurring. Michigan State has now struck out on a pair of four star running back prospects in Ferguson and Kory Amachree of nearby Haslett, Mich. The Spartans will need to look elsewhere as their running backs board is starting to look thin in the 2026 class. Contact/Follow us @The SpartansWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Michigan State news, notes and opinion. You can also follow Robert Bondy on X @RobertBondy5.
USA Today
3 hours ago
- USA Today
Former USC guard Desmond Claude commits to Washington
Former USC guard Desmond Claude commits to Washington Back in April, USC men's basketball star guard Desmond Claude made headlines when he surprisingly entered the transfer portal. On Sunday, Claude found a new home: He is headed to the Pacific Northwest to join Big Ten foe Washington. Claude is not the first Trojan transfer to depart for the Huskies this offseason. In May, Washington hired away USC assistant coach Quincy Pondexter. Shortly following that move, another high-profile Trojan transfer, Wesley Yates III, also announced his commitment to the Huskies. Here is what Huskies Wire had to say about the addition of Claude: 'As the Huskies scoured the country for a seasoned, high-impact wing to round out the rotation, the 6-foot-6 senior, who was named an All-Big Ten honorable mention for the 2024-25 season, is the perfect fit. Although he shot just 30.7 percent from long range last season, which has been one of Sprinkle's biggest points of emphasis throughout the offseason, Claude led the Trojans with an average of 15.8 points and 4.2 assists per game, adding 3.5 rebounds per contest while bringing several much-needed aspects to the roster.' With Claude and Yates both departing Southern California for Seattle, next season's matchups between USC and Washington should certainly be interesting. The Trojans and Huskies are slated to face off twice next season—once at Galen Center, and once in the Pacific Northwest.
Boston Globe
3 hours ago
- Boston Globe
Could Patrice Bergeron or Zdeno Chara join Marco Sturm behind the Bruins' bench? Dream on.
Much of Sturm's success will be tied directly to July 1, the day GM Don Sweeney will pick through the NHL's annual free-agent swap meet and, ideally, hand his new coach at least a couple of bona fide point producers. A body or two with the kind of pop Sturm delivered in his playing days — eight seasons of 20-plus goals — would be just what the franchise rehab doctor ordered. Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday. Enter Email Sign Up A No. 1 center would be the gift of gifts for the new coach. What's a swap meet without a pipe dream? Advertisement Key to Sturm's success, and a point Sweeney did not address on Thursday in Advertisement The 2024-25 Bruins couldn't score enough and couldn't defend at crucial times. Other than that bit of Tesla spontaneously combusting in the driveway, you know, great ride, was it not? What an intriguing thought to have Sturm aided back there by both Patrice Bergeron and Zdeno Chara. Like Sturm, neither of those future Hall-of-Famers ever has coached at the NHL level, but so what? All three were good pals during Sturm's five years here. All three helped create and curate the culture of discipline and professionalism and competitiveness that defined the team until it began to erode, in chunks, following the summer '23 retirements of Bergeron and Krejci. Best to think, for now, of Bergeron and Chara in coaching roles as two more pipe dreams. Bergeron in his latter playing years repeatedly evinced very little interest (read: zero) in coaching upon retirement, particularly any time soon after calling it quits. 'For now, it's the same answer: I don't think it's in the cards,' said Bergeron on Friday in an interview with the Globe. 'Never say never. Time will tell. Right now I don't see it as something I would like to pursue. I guess I'm getting started coaching two of my sons. We'll see exactly. Never say never.' All that said, who wouldn't want Bergy in the mix? Even if his job description was just 'assistant coach, special services, solely in charge of the power-play bumper.' Chara, in the late stages of his playing career here, was a tiny bit more open to something in the coaching sphere. He has been around the team more in recent months at Sweeney's behest. It has been an unofficial role, one that both have yet to define. Advertisement In my conversation with Chara last week, just days after he was 'We're still determining the specifics of the role right now. I'm some sort of advisor, mentor and … we still have to determine which part of that need is the most important," he said. 'I enjoy the part of leadership and helping guys to be better leaders and better players, and that also depends on the new coach. You need to have that conversation, like, where am I going to be needed the most?' Overall, Big Z added, he wants to help the franchise grow, inspire players, and 'just be part of it.' 'Because, to be honest, my heart is always going to be with the Bruins,' he said. 'I spent the majority of my career with the Bruins and I really care about them. When I came here in '06, and when I left in [ Advertisement 'So I am attached. I am emotionally attached and living here, so I am physically here, too. I care. I care. I want to help. I want to be part of this turnaround and make it work again … but anything I do is for a new coach and Donny to sign off on it.' Kevin Paul Dupont can be reached at
