The UCLA men’s basketball team was defeated by Wisconsin, 80-72, in a Big Ten matchup at the Kohl Center on Tuesday. The Bruins now hold a 10-5 overall record and are 2-2 in conference play.
UCLA trailed Wisconsin by 14 points at halftime but managed to narrow the deficit to single digits eight times during the second half. Despite these efforts, the Bruins were unable to overtake the Badgers.
Eric Dailey Jr. led UCLA with 18 points and eight rebounds, making nine of his seventeen field goal attempts. Tyler Bilodeau contributed 16 points and nine rebounds, Trent Perry scored 15 points, and Donovan Dent finished with 13 points along with seven assists and four rebounds.
Nick Boyd was Wisconsin’s top scorer with 20 points, eight rebounds, and five assists. Three other players from Wisconsin also scored in double figures.
Dailey Jr. helped reduce Wisconsin’s lead multiple times early in the second half. His pull-up jumper brought UCLA within nine points at 58-49, and another mid-range shot narrowed it further to seven at 60-53 with just over nine minutes remaining.
During the second half, UCLA limited Wisconsin to shooting only 37 percent from the field and two-for-fourteen from three-point range but could not close the gap completely.
The Bruins started strong after halftime with a six-point run that cut Wisconsin’s lead to nine at 45-36 before Wisconsin responded to regain a fifteen-point advantage four minutes into the half.
Wisconsin led by fourteen at halftime after shooting fifty-three percent from the field and converting eight of sixteen three-pointers in the opening period. In contrast, UCLA missed all ten of its first-half three-point attempts.
Jamar Brown scored for UCLA during a brief run that closed their first-half deficit to fifteen after Donovan Dent made two baskets at the rim and forced a turnover on defense.
Wisconsin began quickly by making three out of five shots from behind the arc as part of an early ten-point run that gave them a thirteen-to-four lead six minutes into play.
UCLA will return home for their next game against Maryland on Saturday at Pauley Pavilion presented by Wescom Financial. Tipoff is scheduled for five o’clock Pacific Time with coverage on FOX.
