LOS ANGELES — Tyler Bilodeau and Trent Perry combined for 28 first-half points and finished with 18 points apiece, leading UCLA to a 71-64 victory over Northwestern on Saturday night.
UCLA used a 10-0 surge to take a 41-27 lead late in the first half and led 41-31 at the break. The Bruins had their largest lead, 58-42, with 12:50 to play. Later in the second half, Northwestern’s 7-0 spurt cut its deficit to 62-56. Jamar Brown answered with a 3-pointer, and the Bruins then sealed it from the free-throw line.
Nick Martinelli scored 20 points and grabbed eight rebounds to lead Northwestern (9-11, 1-8 Big Ten). Tre Singleton had 12 points and six rebounds. The Wildcats have lost six of their last seven games.
Bilodeau didn’t miss a shot in the first half, going 6-for-6 from the floor with four 3-pointers. He made a layup early in the second half before finally missing on a 3-pointer with 6:43 to play. He finished 7-of-11 shooting from the floor, including 4 of 8 from long range. Perry scored 12 first-half points and and was 6 of 12 overall.
Donovan Dent, who scored 23 points and had 13 assists in the Bruins’ 69-67 win over No. 4 Purdue on Wednesday, added 13 points and five assists against the Wildcats.
Eric Dailey Jr. chipped in with 11 points and eight rebounds for UCLA (14-6, 6-3), which has won four of its last five games.
UCLA improved to 7-1 in the series.
Up next
Northwestern: vs. Penn State on Thursday.
UCLA: at Oregon on Wednesday.
