UCLA Bruins vs West Georgia Wolves Game Preview

The UCLA Bruins (2-0, 0-0 Big Ten) may be undefeated through two games this season, but neither of the results left them walking away feeling good about how they got the wins.

The Bruins' season-opening win against Eastern Washington left a bad taste in head coach Mick Cronin's mouth. UCLA turned in a better effort against Pepperdine on Friday, but it still narrowly escaped the Waves, 74-63.

Up next is UCLA's final Monday matchup against the West Georgia Wolves, a final "tune-up" game before the Bruins take on Arizona in the Intuit Dome on Friday.

The Scouting Report: West Georgia

The Wolves opened the season against another Big Ten opponent, Nebraska, and bounced back with a huge win over Huntingdon College, 120-83. Here were the notable performers:

Josh Smith: 26 pts, 5 reb, 5 ast, 8-12 FG, 4-6 3PT
Shelton Williams-Dryden: 19 pts, 9 reb, 9-12 FG
Chas Lewless: 12 pts, 7 reb, 6 ast

ucl — Nov 3, 2025; Lincoln, Nebraska, USA; West Georgia Wolves head coach Dave Moore reacts to a play against the Nebraska Cornhuskers during the second half at Pinnacle Bank Arena. Mandatory Credit: Dylan Widger-Imagn Images | Dylan Widger-Imagn Images

The Bruins and Wolves will be matching up for the first time on Monday. West Georgia is part of the ASUN Conference. Wolves coach Dave Moore has a connection to Cronin and UCLA. When Moore was an assistant coach at St. Bonaventure, he knocked the Bruins out of the 2018 NCAA Tournament.

Moore and Cronin are both from the Cincinnati area, and Moore's brother played for Cronin's father in high school.

How To Watch

What: UCLA Bruins vs. West Georgia Wolves
When: Monday, Nov. 10
Time: 7:00 p.m. (PT)
Where: Pauley Pavilion (Westwood, California)
TV: B1G+
Radio: AM 790 (KABC)
Radio Announcers: Josh Lewin (play-by-play), Tracy Murray (analyst)

UCLA Impact Players

1. Donovan Dent, PG

ucl — Nov 7, 2025; Los Angeles, California, USA; UCLA Bruins guard Donovan Dent (2) shoots the ball during the second half against the Pepperdine Waves at Pauley Pavilion presented by Wescom Financial. Mandatory Credit: Kiyoshi Mio-Imagn Images | Kiyoshi Mio-Imagn Images

Dent's performance against Pepperdine didn't reach the heights it did during his 21-point, nine-assist outing to open the season, but he was still plenty impactful.

Dent finished with 12 points, four assists and two turnovers on 3-of-8 shooting. He didn't score his first field goal until the second half.

The moral of the story is that UCLA's offense will only look as good as Dent does. He is the orchestrator. Even though he didn't rack up the high assist mark or flash with elusive scoring, but he was still impactful.

2. Eric Dailey Jr., SF

ucl — Nov 7, 2025; Los Angeles, California, USA; UCLA Bruins forward Eric Dailey Jr. (3) is greeted by forward Tyler Bilodeau (34) and guard Trent Perry (0) during the first half against the Pepperdine Waves at Pauley Pavilion presented by Wescom Financial. Mandatory Credit: Kiyoshi Mio-Imagn Images | Kiyoshi Mio-Imagn Images

Dailey took the floor for the first time this season against Pepperdine after recovering from a knee injury. He was the catalyst to the Bruins' energy int he first half of the win.

The star forward finished with 10 points, four rebounds and two assists on 3-of-4 from the field and 2-of-3 from deep. He looked just as good as you could expect someone would having not played basketball for a long stretch of the offseason.

That being said, he's still ramping up and it's only up from here. Look for Dailey to continue getting integrated with Dent and the rest of UCLA starting Monday against West Georgia.

3. Xavier Booker, C

ucl — Nov 7, 2025; Los Angeles, California, USA; UCLA Bruins center Xavier Booker (1) looks to shoot the ball against Pepperdine Waves forward Danilo Dozic (35) during the second half at Pauley Pavilion presented by Wescom Financial. Mandatory Credit: Kiyoshi Mio-Imagn Images | Kiyoshi Mio-Imagn Images

Booker was the star of UCLA's win over the Waves, and his early second half effort is what kept the game from playing out like the Bruins' season opener.

The transfer center finished with 15 points, five rebounds and five blocks, all of which came in the second half, and made five of his eight field goals and split two 3-point attempts.

This was the ideal Booker game, and outings like this will raise UCLA's floor all season.

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