There was a lot of hype coming into the season around UCLA basketball after a fairly disappointing 2024-25 campaign, but the Bruins are already going through some adversity. During Tuesday's game against Cal, star point guard Donovan Dent went down with an apparent lower leg injury and left the game in the final minutes.
Dent seemed to re-aggravate the injury, which had been bothering him throughout the evening, when he slipped while driving to the rim with about two minutes left. Dent stayed down on the floor and limped to the bench, forced to watch the end an 80-72 Cal upset on the sidelines.
This is the second loss of the season for UCLA, which also lost to Arizona on a neutral floor earlier in November. The Bruins are now 5-2 on the season.
Dent has been struggling mightily for the most part so far this season, and that was never on display more than it was on Tuesday night. He finished the day with just three points on 1-for-8 shooting, missing both of his 3-pointers, with four rebounds and seven assists. The former New Mexico star also turned the ball over six times, as he was clearly affected by that calf injury.
The senior guard made a name for himself during his time at New Mexico, capping off his Lobos career by winning the Mountain West Player of the Year award in 2024-25 after leading his team to the NCAA Tournament. He instantly became one of the hottest names on the market when he entered the transfer portal in the spring.
Dent was expected to lead a very good UCLA team this season, one that started the year ranked No. 12 in the AP poll. Things haven't quite come together yet, and now this injury further complicates things for the Bruins.
Mick Cronin's squad doesn't have much time to waste, as it has a pair of conference games against Washington and Oregon coming up at the beginning of December on the West Coast. Then, UCLA gets a week off before a massive showdown against a red-hot Gonzaga team in Seattle on Dec. 13.
