Jan 24, 2026; Los Angeles, California, USA; UCLA Bruins forward Xavier Booker (1) shoots over Northwestern Wildcats forward Nick Martinelli (2), forward Tre Singleton (8) and past forward Tyler Kropp (1) in the first half at Pauley Pavilion presented by Wescom Financial. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

Bruins' Xavier Booker Continues Building Newfound Role

Originally posted on UCLA Bruins on SI | By Nathan Berry | Last updated Jan 28, 2026 7:06 AM ET

After the injury of star Skyy Clark, the Bruins were having a hard time finding a worthwhile replacement and bench players found themselves being rotated all the time.

Most would at least have ten minutes on the court to prove themselves as a capable replacement for Clark, but that was not the case for one guy: Xavier Booker.

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Yet Booker is the player that has surpassed many expectations and begun to carve out a substantial role in the Bruins starting five.

His impact has been incredible on the team and it has come through many things, namely his defense and rebounding capabilities.

How Xavier Booker Has Carved A Role: Defense.

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In the Bruins game against Ohio State where they suffered a rough loss, they found themselves letting the Buckeyes score 84 points on the night, completely erasing their offense.

In that game Booker had only two minutes on the court, and he had no time to show just how good he could be for the Bruins on defense.

However, in the two games afterward against the formerly #4 ranked Purdue and Northwestern, he was given almost a full hour of playing time combined.

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In those two games the Bruins let up substantially less points, allowing 67 against the Boilermakers and 64 against the Wildcats.

In fact, he has been one of the biggest pieces in the Bruins finding a new identity through their defensive prowess, which has mainly come through his ability to rebound.

How Xavier Booker Has Carved A Role: Rebounds

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Rebounding has often been an issue for UCLA this year, and it is not the specialty of UCLA's star players like Tyler Bilodeau, Donovan Dent, or Trent Perry.

All of those players can have great games with rebounding, but they also have very low lows that cause their team to lose.

However, Booker has come in and been consistent in the two games that he has had substantial time in, having 12 rebounds total across the two games, or six on average.

Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

It's not the flashiest number, but it is better than the typical four that many of the Bruins players see most of the games that they play, which is huge in convincing fans that UCLA can be dominant.

With more rebounds he has been able to get the scoring back to UCLA and keep the ball out of his opponents hands, which is exactly what the Bruins need in a prominent starter like the newly developing Booker.

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