Bruins Seek to Extend Win Streak Against Penn State This Weekend

The UCLA Bruins (17-6, 8-4) are being considered one of the hottest teams in the nation at this point of the season after winning six-straight games, including three Top 25 opponents. They will seek to keep their winning ways going as they host the Penn State Nittany Lions (13-10, 3-9) this weekend.

One thing about the Big Ten specifically, no opponent can be taken lightly. We have seen an incredible amount of parody in the conference so far, and the Nittany Lions are seeking to play spoiler in the first of two games of their West Coast road trip.

Despite a severely under-par season with just three conference wins to this point, Penn State has a couple of game-changing players that can hurt the Bruins if they are not careful. Despite UCLA's recent success, it must take every advantage of a team that has lost eight of its last nine games.

Even with the second-worst conference record, Penn State is a strong offensive team that averages 81.4 points per game, good for fifth-best in the Big Ten. They have shot the ball at a 48.1% clip from the field but have not been good from 3-point range (33.8%).

Nittany Lions senior guard Ace Baldwin Jr. has been the best player for their team all season long. He leads in average points (14.0), assists (7.7) and steals (2.0) while also being named to the Naismith National Defensive Player of the Year Watchlist.

One thing that will benefit the Bruins is Baldwin's poor field goal percentage of 37.1%. He has put up over 200 shots this year and only made 83. He has only hit his point average once in his last four games, and UCLA's defense will play a big role in his ability to get up and take healthy shots.

The Bruin big men will have their hands full as they prepare for Nittany Lions' 7-0 junior center Yanic Konan Niederhauser. The team leader in rebounds (6.2) and blocks (2.1) per game, Niederhauser is averaging 12.8 points and coming off a strong 21-point performance in a loss to Ohio State.

There are three other Penn State players who are averaging 10 or more points per game and have the ability to impact any game at a high level. If the Bruins play their brand of basketball and execute defensively, much like they did against No. 9 Michigan State, they will be just fine.

Penn State may be struggling this season, but they have shown an ability to take down the nation's best teams. They defeated the No. 8 Purdue Boilermakers back in early December and took down a good Rutgers team at the end of January.

On the other end, the Bruins have beaten several very talented teams this year. They must treat this team like a Top 10 opponent and impose their will on both ends of the floor for all 40 minutes. UCLA will seek to improve to 13-1 at home this season and earn its seventh-straight win.

Ensure you follow on X (Twitter) @UCLAInsideronSI and @tcav30 and never miss another breaking news story again.

Please let us know your thoughts when you like our Facebook page WHEN YOU CLICK RIGHT HERE.