How to Watch Purdue vs. UCLA in the Semifinal Round of the Big Ten Tournament

CHICAGO — There's an unlikely matchup in the semifinal round of the Big Ten Tournament. After four days of basketball, No. 7 seed Purdue will take on No. 6 seed UCLA for a trip to the Championship Game on Sunday.

Not many people would have projected this matchup in the semifinal round, but it speaks to the depth of the Big Ten this season. It should be a fun way to close out Saturday in Chicago, as the Purdue-UCLA game will follow the clash between No. 1 Michigan and No. 5 Wisconsin.

Here's everything you need to know for Saturday's game between the Boilers and the Bruins.

#7 Purdue (25-8, 13-7) vs. #6 UCLA (23-10, 13-7)

UCLA Bruins guard Donovan Dent (2) drives past Purdue Boilermakers forward Trey Kaufman-Renn (4). | Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

What: Big Ten Tournament Game 16 (semifinal round)
Date: Saturday, March 14
Tipoff time: Approximately 3:30 p.m. ET (25 minutes after Game 15)
Location: United Center in Chicago (20,917 capacity)
TV: CBS
App: CBS Sports
Radio: Purdue Global Radio Network — WAZY 96.5 FM (Lafayette); WKJG 100.9 FM (Fort Wayne); WNDE 1260 AM (Indianapolis); WGBF 1280 (Evansville); View all listings: CLICK HERE
Radio announcers: Rob Blackman (play-by-play), Bobby Riddell (analyst), Wes Scott (producer).
Live stats: StatBroadcast.com
All-time series: UCLA leads the series vs. Purdue 11-4

Team stats

Purdue Boilermakers center Daniel Jacobsen (12) rebounds in front of UCLA Bruins forward Tyler Bilodeau (34). | Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

Stats (per game)	#7 Purdue	#6 UCLA
Scoring	82.2	77.8
Points allowed	70.2	70.9
FG%	50%	46.9
3FG%	38.4%	37.9
Rebounds	35.5	32.7
Assists	19.8	16.2
Steals	5.6	6.3
Blocks	2.7	3.0
Turnovers	9.0	9.0

Quick storylines

Braden Smith has been masterful running Purdue's offense

Purdue Boilermakers guard Braden Smith (3) brings the ball up court against Northwestern Wildcats guard Jayden Reid (4). | Kamil Krzaczynski-Imagn Images

This should come as no surprise, but Braden Smith has been outstanding leading Purdue's offense through the first two games. He's dished out 26 assists with just five turnovers, setting a Big Ten Tournament record with 16 assists vs. Northwestern. He's only scored 10 total points, but that's all Purdue has needed from its star point guard.

Smith has been playing within the offense and allowing his teammates to dominate the game. Against Northwestern on Thursday, Oscar Cluff and Trey Kaufman-Renn had big nights, both scoring 19. On Friday, Fletcher Loyer dropped 19 and C.J. Cox scored 12 in a win over Nebraska.

All season, Smith has been the maestro for Purdue's offense. He's taken it to a new level this week in Chicago and is inching even closer to the NCAA assist record.

Donovan Dent's hot start and Tyler Bilodeau's injury

UCLA Bruins guard Donovan Dent (2) drives to the basket. | Kamil Krzaczynski-Imagn Images

Not many players in the Big Ten are playing as well as Donovan Dent right now. The UCLA guard recorded the first triple-double in Big Ten Tournament history on Thursday night against Rutgers, ending the contest with 12 points, 12 assists and 10 rebounds. He followed that up with a 23-point, 12-assist outing against Michigan State.

Dent has gotten quite a bit of help from Trent Perry, who has scored 34 points through the first two games of the conference tournament, too.

But UCLA will likely be without one of its top players, with Tyler Bilodeau sustaining an injury against Michigan State on Friday. Bruins coach Mick Cronin said it would "take a miracle" for Bilodeau to play in the game. He's averaging 18.1 points and 5.8 rebounds per game.

What happened in the first meeting?

UCLA Bruins forward Tyler Bilodeau (34) walks off the court after defeating the Purdue Boilermakers. | Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

UCLA handed Purdue its first Big Ten loss of the season, defeating the Boilermakers 69-67 at Pauley Pavilion. It was a thrilling game, won by a late three-pointer from Tyler Bilodeau. C.J. Cox had a chance to win it for the Boilermakers at the end, but his triple was off the mark.

Purdue led the game by as many as 12 points in the first half and also won the rebounding battle 30-24. But the Boilers only shot 45% from the floor and made just 7-of-27 attempts from the floor. Braden Smith had two late turnovers and Oscar Cluff didn't have a huge impact in the game.

For UCLA, Donovan Dent had a monster game, scoring 23 points and dishing out 13 assists for the Bruins. Tyler Bilodeau ad 14 and Eric Dailey Jr. and Trent Perry combined for 23 points in the win.

How they got here

The Purdue Boilermakers bench celebrates a three-point basket. | David Banks-Imagn Images

Purdue's path to the quarterfinals

Finished with a 13-7 Big Ten record, earned No. 7 seed
Earned a double-bye for the Big Ten Tournament
Defeated #15 Northwestern 81-68
Defeated #2 Nebraska 74-58

UCLA's path to the quarterfinals

Finished with a 13-7 Big Ten record, earned No. 6 seed
Earned a double-bye for the Big Ten Tournament
Defeated #14 Rutgers 72-59
Defeated #3 Michigan State 88-84

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