Donovan Dent made his mark on Thursday as he led UCLA to a convincing win over Rutgers, 72-59, at United Center in the third round of the Big Ten Tournament.
Dent had his imprint all over the game, finishing with a triple-double of 12 points, 10 rebounds, and 12 assists. He only had one minute of rest, helping the sixth-seeded Bruins advance to the quarterfinals.
In the process, the 22-year-old guard made history by recording the first-ever triple-double in the Big Ten Tournament, according to ESPN Insights.
He also became only the fifth player in UCLA history with a triple-double, joining Bill Walton, Toby Bailey, Jelani McCoy, and Kyle Anderson, all of whom became NBA players.
The first triple-double in Big Ten tournament history belongs to Donovan Dent 🔥
He's only the fifth player in UCLA history with a triple-double, and the first since 2013 😤 pic.twitter.com/OQJBiedOAq
— ESPN Insights (@ESPNInsights) March 13, 2026
Dent was coming off a huge performance in their win over USC in their final game of the regular season. The senior guard exploded for 25 points on 11-of-17 shooting and dished out seven assists.
The Bruins, meanwhile, only had 10 turnovers against the 14th-seeded Scarlet Knights, responding to coach Mick Cronin's challenge before the tournament.
“I stay relentless with it, and I always have. I just don't think you can ever achieve being a great team if you turn the ball over. You can never win on the road. It puts too much pressure on your defense. Imagine some of the defensive struggles we've had if we turned it over, right?” said Cronin, as quoted by 247 Sports' Connor Morrissette.
Tyler Bilodeau led the scoring for UCLA with 21 points, while Trent Perry and Eric Dailey Jr. combined for 22 points and 10 rebounds.
They will battle third-seeded Michigan State on Friday.
