Grading 5 UCLA Starters After Loss to Ohio State

The Bruin had a rough game against Ohio State, still we saw a lot of improvement compared to their last matchup against Penn State.

This was simply not UCLA's game, while there were times of great individual perfomances it was not enough to get over the edge. Looking ahead the Bruins next matchup will come against No. 5 Purdue; a game where the Bruins on this list will need to improve massively.

One of Donovan Dent's better games of the season. However, it was not enough to help the Bruins to a win here. What was most surprising from this matchup was his three-point shooting. He took four shots, which is the most he has taken all season, along with his two makes, which matched his total number of threes made this season.

He earns a B+ because, while his scoring improved it was simply not enough to warrent a higher grade. Overall, not a bad performances especially with his seven assists to two turnovers. We just need to see more scoring as the season enters it's last stretch.

After his 30-point performance, it seems like Trent Perry has come back down to earth. The scoring that made him so invaluable was not present in this one. However, it was expected to see shots start to miss. But this does not excuse his inefficiencies.

He earns C+, because outside of scoring he was able to make a impact facilitating and rebounding. For those reason we can't give him a lower grade. Moving forward, we could see Perry's role start to diminish once Skyy Clark comes back. While he had a case, this game proved how volatile he can be.

This really could have been a great game for Eric Dailey Jr if he had not fouled out early in the second half. He played just 18 minutes, but his production was what kept UCLA in the game in the first half. We will never know how good a game Dailey Jr would have had.

Daily Jr. played a great game, and this B rating could have been much higher if he had played the rest of the game. His grade feels pretty good, but moving forward, he cannot get into foul trouble, especially with how impactful a player he is.

Great game from Tyler Bilodeau. However, his scoring is a little inflated as his points came very sporadically. There were large stretches of time where Bilodeau would go quiet, especially at the start of the second half, where he didn't find points until the 11:35 mark of the half.

A++ grades don’t come often, but Tyler Bilodeau earned every bit of it. Despite some inconsistency with his scoring efficiency, he still accounted for 40% of UCLA’s points. Add in nine rebounds, and his overall impact is impossible to overlook. Without him, the Bruins simply didn’t have many answers offensively.

Jan 17, 2026; Columbus, Ohio, USA; UCLA Bruins head coach Mick Cronin reacts to a play during the second half against the Ohio State Buckeyes at Value City Arena. Mandatory Credit: Joseph Maiorana-Imagn Images | Joseph Maiorana-Imagn Images

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