Thrilling Victory: Men’s Basketball Triumphs Over UCLA with a 75-68 Win on Monday Night

PISCATAWAY — Rutgers concluded its three-game losing streak by defeating UCLA 75-68 on Monday night.

After an initial 7-0 advantage for the Bruins, the five-star Ace Bailey connected on a challenging shot to put Rutgers on the scoreboard. Freshman Dylan Grant, making his first career start, narrowed it to a two-point deficit with a three-pointer shortly after the first media timeout.

Leaders Zach Martini and Jeremiah Williams contributed four and five points respectively from the bench, with eight different Scarlet Knights scoring in the first half. Five-star Dylan Harper wrapped up the half with a lob to his teammate, Bailey, trimming UCLA’s lead to 33-30 by the break.

Harper and Bailey continued strong with an immediate 8-0 surge, marking Rutgers’ first lead of the matchup. The duo combined for 38 of Rutgers’ 75 points (51 percent), with Bailey achieving his fifth career double-double—20 points, 10 rebounds, and three blocks.

Rutgers dominated the boards, winning the rebounding contest 37-29 and converting 10 second-chance points from 11 offensive rebounds.

Following a UCLA response, graduate student Tyson Acuff, also making his starting debut, nailed a three-pointer from the corner just before the shot clock expired, allowing the Scarlet Knights to regain control and they maintained that advantage thereafter.

Williams was the standout of the second unit with 11 points on 71 percent shooting, including critical baskets in the closing moments. RU’s bench collectively added 25 points.

Freshman Lathan Sommerville made his impact known in his second career start with six points and nine rebounds, hitting crucial free throws in the final moments to secure the win—RU was 21-for-31 at the free throw line, while UCLA was 12-for-15.

It has been 43 years since these institutions last faced each other (1981), and this was UCLA’s first visit to Piscataway.

Rutgers advances to 9-8 (2-4 in conference play), while UCLA is now 11-6 (2-4) and faces a four-game losing streak.

The Scarlet Knights return to action on Thursday, Jan. 16, heading to Lincoln, Nebraska, to take on the 12-4 (2-3) Cornhuskers at 9 PM. Rutgers will not return to Jersey Mike’s Arena until Saturday, Feb. 1, when they host Michigan.

Postgame Highlights

• Ace Bailey topped the team with 20 points and 10 rebounds. This was his team-leading fifth double-double for the season, marking his seventh game with 20+ points, fifth with 10+ rebounds, sixth time leading in scoring, and tenth time leading in rebounding.

  • Bailey was only the third Division I player this season to achieve a game with at least 20 points, 10 rebounds, three blocks, two assists, and a steal.

• Dylan Harper scored 18 points. This was the first occasion since the December 30 game against Columbia that Harper registered at least 14 points after doing so in each of the initial 13 matches.
• Lathan Sommerville achieved nine rebounds, equalling his career-high, marking his most rebounds in a match against a Big Ten opponent.
• Dylan Grant logged a career-high 23 minutes. He has accumulated 54 minutes over the last three games after only 20 minutes in the initial 14 contests.
• Rutgers deployed its eighth distinct starting lineup this season, featuring Dylan Harper, Tyson Acuff, Dylan Grant, Ace Bailey, and Lathan Sommerville.

  • This was the debut start for Dylan Grant and the first start at Rutgers for Tyson Acuff.
  • Rutgers had four freshmen in the starting roster, who combined for 114 minutes of play.
  • Rutgers has had 11 different players start at least one game this season. Every player who participated for at least three minutes this season has achieved at least one starting opportunity.

• Rutgers managed to limit UCLA’s leading scorer, Tyler Bilodeau, to six points, his second-lowest scoring performance of the season.

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Postgame Remarks

Head Coach Steve Pikiell 



Opening statement:

“Grateful for our supporters; they were fantastic and provided us a significant advantage. Proud of our team. It’s been a challenging phase. It’s wonderful to have Dylan (Harper) back and healthy. Jeremiah (Williams) performed outstanding today, and Ace (Bailey) contributed a double-double with three blocked shots. UCLA is a formidable opponent. They’ve been ranked throughout the season. Clearly, we were in sync, displayed excellent energy, and outperformed a very strong rebounding team. They are responsible for the most turnovers of nearly anyone in the nation.”

so we managed that. I hold a great deal of admiration for UCLA. It has been a challenging few weeks, but these players just kept battling, are performing exceptionally well in practice and continue to push through.”

 

On resilience and gameplay:

“We merely linked up. We’ve demonstrated glimpses of it. In this league, you better be engaged for forty (minutes), and I believe we were engaged for forty. We made our free throws in the final moments. We displayed really positive signs of improvement. It’s a youthful squad. Jeremiah (Williams) stepped in off the bench, Martini (Zach) provided tremendous minutes, Emmanuel (Ogbole) was remarkable. Every individual contributed to our victory today, and it was gratifying to witness.”

 

On free throws in the second half compared to the first:

“We have players quite capable. This could be an outstanding free-throw shooting team. We missed a few, but you have to push through those challenges. They (UCLA) are a highly physical team. They are very aggressive. I admire their defensive play. They make contact on every possession. Therefore, free throws were crucial tonight because they are going to foul, especially late when we’re ahead, so I’m satisfied with our players at the free throw line.”

 

On Dylan Harper:

“He was the top scorer in the Big Ten until he fell ill. He offers us a different dimension. He can rebound, too. He can adjust defensively since he possesses great size. He is a tough player to defend against. His best days are ahead. We need him to return to full health.”

 

On Dylan Grant, Tyson Acuff, and Lathan Somerville in the starting lineup:

“They have been excellent in practice. They’ve earned that chance. They provided solid minutes for us. Dylan Grant is progressing. He’s blocking shots, he’s lengthy, and he’s composed. We need everyone to continue improving. Tyson (Acuff) has probably been our most consistent performer in practice, so he deserved that. Jeremiah (Williams) came off the bench and provided great minutes and incredible energy. I’m not particularly concerned about who starts. I just want to ensure that everyone is prepared to play, and that’s what I was most proud of. Those two (Dylan Grant & Tyson Acuff) have put in a lot of effort and are quite productive.”

 

On Rutgers offense:

“I believe they’re (UCLA) the fifth-best defensive team in the nation, so we went up against a strong defensive squad. We didn’t turn the ball over, which was a significant factor. They cause a lot of turnovers. We made some crucial plays at the basket. We simply performed better. We were more unified all around. When you have Ace scoring twenty points, grabbing ten rebounds, and blocking three shots, it enhances your stats”

 

On being unified for forty minutes:

“They have to sort it out. We’re at the midway point. We practiced effectively for two days. They were happy. I appreciate it when Jeremiah (Williams) is smiling and not acting as a referee. He’s incredible. I was delighted to observe that and the way they communicated on the bench and during timeouts was just exceptional. We are maturing and were able to reap the rewards today for doing all the essential things to become a solid basketball team.”

 

On UCLA trimming the lead to one & the response:

“We have been in situations like this before. We discussed finishing strong at the other end as well. We secured rebounds and made some plays. That’s the type of team that keeps pushing forward. It was wonderful down the stretch to successfully hit our free throws, secure those crucial stops and limit them to 68 points. Sixty-five is our benchmark, and we kept them right at that figure.”

 

Dylan on when he felt like he was back:

“I wasn’t certain of the exact moment. I think it was just how my teammates and coach relied on me. It made me feel like, yes, maybe I was sick for a while, but I’m going to return with the same goal of securing a victory.”

 

Jeremiah on having Dylan back:

“As coach mentioned, he was the leading scorer in the Big Ten before his illness and likely the best guard in the Big Ten as well. When he’s back and healthy… I mean, he’s Dylan Harper.”

 

On Zack Martini playing 13 minutes on both ends:

“I thought he was excellent. He had two outstanding practices leading up to this. He was able to space the floor. He contributed in several ways, and he was focused. Honestly, he provided us significant minutes, but I felt Emmanuel gave us magnificent minutes. He was a force around the hoop and caught some challenging passes for a player of his size. Running the floor against tough opponents, our entire bench was exceptional. They brought us energy, they were cohesive, they provided us defense. JMike hit crucial free throws at the end. I’m proud of the team; there are challenges they managed to overcome. Everyone desires everything, but it’s one of those things you need to earn.”

 

On how well the team performed against UCLA:

“They just carried this great energy about them. Everyone embraced their roles and understood how we needed them to perform. We really emphasized their leading scorer and not allowing him to find easy opportunities. Always aiming to tire out the leading scorer, we succeeded in that. We need everyone; every individual is crucial and must contribute to our success.”

 

On altering the starting lineup:

“I don’t get overly focused on starting lineups. I know others do; Jeremiah played significant minutes tonight and made a huge impact in the game, and our bench did as well. We’ll just keep pushing forward, Dylan Grant provides us with length and some crucial defensive support. He’s agile and contributes in many ways. Acuff has been quite effective in games. The good part about having eleven players available is they understand they are just a day away from being in the starting lineup. I trust all of them. They just need to be prepared. I’m more thrilled about the other players, and they were ready. There was no sulking; whatever I can do to win is indicative of the team’s development.”

Gallery: (1-13-2025) Rutgers MBB vs. UCLA