Gonzaga vs. UCLA key matchup: Graham Ike, Tyler Bilodeau headline battle of frontcourts

All eyes will be on Graham Ike and Tyler Bilodeau this Saturday when the Gonzaga Bulldogs and UCLA Bruins square off in yet another top-25 battle between the two West Coast powerhouses.

It’s hard to understate just how important each 6-foot-9 forward has been to their respective team’s successes this season as they prepare to clash at the Intuit Dome, the new home of the Los Angeles Clippers located in Inglewood, California.

Through 12 games, Ike leads the Zags (9-3) in scoring at 15.5 points per game, while Bilodeau similarly does for the Bruins at 15.1 points. Both also knock down over 50% of their field goal attempts, though they get the job done in different ways.

The 6-foot-9, 230-pound Bilodeau isn’t afraid to put his back to the basket and get physical around the rim — he’s 54-for-100 on attempts inside the arc and leads the Bruins in rebounds at 5.3 per game. He can also stretch the floor or take his defender off the dribble when he has the ball outside the arc. Bilodeau is 16-for-37 (43.2%) from 3-point range this season.

Ike, on the other hand, has made four 3-pointers on just 10 attempts from long range. The 6-foot-9, 250-pound redshirt senior isn’t shy when he gets an open look from long range, but clearly, he’s more comfortable when he’s operating from the low block.

Ike, coming off his third 20-point game in his last four contests, has also been adept at applying foul pressure in addition to his efficiency inside the arc. According to KenPom, Ike has drawn 8.6 fouls per 40 minutes of action, which ranks as the fourth-highest foul rate in the country. More importantly, he’s converting on most of those fouls — Ike is 52-for-69, (75.4%) at the charity stripe.

Bilodeau, who had 26 points in UCLA's last game, a 76-74 loss to North Carolina, hasn’t been put in foul trouble very often in his college basketball career. He hasn’t fouled out of a game since Nov. 10, 2023, when he was with Oregon State. Now with the Bruins, Bilodeau has finished with three or more fouls on just three separate occasions.

Bilodeau, who was born in Billings, Montana, starred at Kamiakin High School in Kennewick, Washington, where he was named the 2021-22 Gatorade Boys Basketball Player of the Year in the state of Washington, becoming the second player from his high school to receive that honor. Bilodeau averaged 22.7 points, 10.3 rebounds, 2.2 assists and 1.3 blocks per game as a senior to lead Kamiakin to a 22-5 record and a fourth-place finish in the Washington Class 4A state tournament in 2022.

At Oregon State, Bilodeau more than doubled his scoring average from his freshman to sophomore season, going from 7.0 points to 14.3 points per game. He played 64 games for the Beavers and made 45 starts.

It’s not a guarantee that Ike and Bilodeau will guard each other very often on Saturday, as the Zags and Bruins each boast size in their respective frontcourts to defend one another.

For Gonzaga, redshirt sophomore Braden Huff has stepped up off the bench to the tune of 12.7 points per game, second on the team only to Ike. Huff had 25 points last week to lead the way in the 102-72 win over Bucknell.

Ben Gregg has come on as of late, particularly on the offensive end of the floor. He's putting 13.5 points over his last six contests. UCLA has 7-foot-3 sophomore Aday Mara, 6-foot-8 Oklahoma State transfer Eric Dailey Jr. and 6-foot-9 junior William Kyle to put on the floor as well.

Even so, if the next installment of the Gonzaga-UCLA rivalry is to deliver another thrilling finish, it’ll likely come down to the battle between Ike and Bilodeau.

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