Good, Bad and Ugly of UCLA’s Triumph Over Boilermakers

On this edition of the Good, the bad, and the ugly, we will discuss everything that went right, and what wrong in UCLA win vs Purdue.

For starters UCLA played excellent against Purdue. It truly felt like UCLA's most complete game this season, playing hard from tip to buzzer, at a very high level. Moving forward UCLA will need to build on this outing, as they still have ways to go until they are taken seriously again.

The Good | Guard Play

Jan 20, 2026; Los Angeles, California, USA; UCLA Bruins guard Eric Dailey Jr. (3) and and guard Donovan Dent (2) celebrate after defeating the Purdue Boilermakers at Pauley Pavilion presented by Wescom Financial. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images | Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

Without Donovan Dent's 23-point, 13-assist performance against the Boilermakers, it can be assumed that UCLA would not have had enough to pull off the upset against Purdue. His scoring impact was simply unmatched as Purdue could not stop him at any point in this one.

Looking down the lineup, Trent Perry played a very solid game, shooting 3-5 from three on 11 points on the night. While not as explosive as he was vs Penn State, he still played a huge role. With Skyy Clark returning, UCLA could host one of the most explosive offenses in the nation.

The Bad | Bench Performances

Dec 19, 2025; Los Angeles, California, USA; UCLA Bruins guard Brandon Williams (5) and guard Eric Freeny (8) defend Cal Poly Mustangs forward Troy Plumtree (13) during the second half at Pauley Pavilion presented by Wescom Financial. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images | Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

With Perry in the starting lineup UCLA really does not have anyone coming off the bench who can make an impact anymore. Against Purdue the Bruins bench which consists of Eric Freeny, Brandon Williams, Steven Jamerson, and Jamar Brown combined for 0 points and 20 minutes of play.

This lack of depth could be scary for UCLA down the stretch. While we have had notable performance from this group in the past, Mick Cronin still does not trust his bench to win him games. Which, to be fair, is a reasonable sentiment; UCLA's bench needs to be more impactful.

The Ugly | Rebounding

Jan 20, 2026; Los Angeles, California, USA; UCLA Bruins guard Eric Dailey Jr. (3), Purdue Boilermakers forward Trey Kaufman-Renn (4) and center Daniel Jacobsen (12) reach for a rebound in the second half at Pauley Pavilion presented by Wescom Financial. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images | Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

UCLA rebounding has not improved much over the season, in turn they now rank 335th in the nation in that stat category, averaging just 31.8 rebounds per game, not good. While it was not that big of an issue against Purdue it was not the solution either.

The Bruins kept it close, only getting out rebounded 24-to-30. However, defensively UCLA must improve. UCLA had 20 defensive rebounds to the Boilermakers 13 offensive, which created 16 second chance points, that kept Purdue in the game.

Jan 20, 2026; Los Angeles, California, USA; UCLA Bruins forward Tyler Bilodeau (34) walks off the court defeating the Purdue Boilermakers at Pauley Pavilion presented by Wescom Financial. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images | Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

UCLA knows what they need to work on, but for now they should celebrate this win and get right back to work. While Purdue is ranked highly, they are not even the highest ranked team on UCLA schedule. If the Bruins can fix these issues they have a good shot at taking down No. 3 Michigan.

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