How Bruins Responded to Cronin’s Challenge, Including Unsung Hero

UCLA sophomore guard Trent Perry stole the show with a breakout game in the Bruins' 71-60 win over the Penn State Nittany Lions on Wednesday night, scoring a career-high 30 points.

It was the breakout game UCLA has been waiting for from the Harvard-Westlake High School product, but the Bruins may not have been in that position without one of his teammates.

"Eric Freeny came in and hit two massive shots for us," head coach Mick Cronin acknowledged postgame. "He gave us 23 minutes of great defense, some rebounding, and he was just really, really important to this win. I mean really important. And those shots to me were huge."

Freeny Finds a Role

While it wasn't an explosive offensive performance from Freeny, he was efficient when he was on the floor, hitting two of his three shots -- both three-pointers as UCLA spent the first half just fighting to stay in the game. His six points, three rebounds, and one assist in 23 minutes of play won't stand out in the box score, but it's by far his best performance of his young career, and impressing his head coach should go a long way as the Bruins search for contributors amid some tough injuries that have made it challenging to conduct practices.

UCLA unsung her — Jan 14, 2026; University Park, Pennsylvania, USA; Penn State Nittany Lions guard Melih Tunca (9) dribbles the ball around the outside of UCLA Bruins guard Eric Freeny (8) during the second half at Bryce Jordan Center. Mandatory Credit: Matthew O'Haren-Imagn Images | Matthew O'Haren-Imagn Images

Freeny redshirted as a freshman last season. However, he was a highly-rated and accomplished high school player as a top-70 recruit nationally in the Class of 2024. He's only appeared in 11 games this season, and Wednesday was the second time he has played more than 20 minutes.

For now, his role is to do the small things. He's averaging just over a point and a rebound per game, but if he keeps seeing the floor this much, his complete game should come out eventually. After all, UCLA needs contributions from everyone to compete in the Big Ten.

Bruins Respond to Coach's Challenge

Cronin was vocally upset at his team's rebounding effort over the weekend against Maryland, despite a pretty lopsided and decisive win. The Bruins were outrebounded by 19 against the Terrapins and allowed 20 offensive boards that helped Maryland keep the game closer than it should've been.

It appears the team got the message, responding by outrebounding Penn State and only allowing five offensive rebounds to the Nittany Lions. Freeny was just a small part of that, but it was an overall step in the right direction. Now, the challenge is to continue doing so against the more physical teams of the Big Ten Conference.