Jan 21, 2025; Los Angeles, California, USA; UCLA Bruins guard Dylan Andrews (2) goes to the basket during the first half against the Wisconsin Badgers at Pauley Pavilion presented by Wescom. Mandatory Credit: Kiyoshi Mio-Imagn Images Kiyoshi Mio-Imagn Images

Has UCLA's Andrews Found His Groove Again?

Originally posted on UCLA Bruins on SI
By Dominic Minchella | Last updated Jan 23, 2025 2:30 PM ET

The UCLA Bruins have put together back-to-back wins for the first time since December. The Bruins' performance levels as a whole have come back to life, and junior guard Dylan Andrews, in particular, might have gotten his mojo back.

Andrews struggled over multiple games for UCLA this season after starting off his season on the right foot. After his 21-point performance against the Prairie View A&M Panthers back in mid-December, his production hit the coldest streak of his collegiate career.

Over the six games following his 21-point performance, it seemed like playing Andrews was more of a hinderance than a help for Coach Mick Cronin. Averaging 20 minutes of play over his cold spell, Andrews' production took a massive step back as he averaged just over 2 points for UCLA over that stretch.

Luckily, for both UCLA and Andrews, his past two games have seemed to bring him back to life. Posting double-digit points scored for the first time in the new year against the Iowa Hawkeyes, Andrews carried that momentum into the Bruins' recent victory over the Wisconsin Badgers.

Posting 9 points, seven assists and two steals in 34 minutes against Wisconsin, Andrews has seemed to put the pieces to his puzzle back together. Surely not the same numbers he was averaging earlier in the 2024-25 season, it is a bright spot to take note of given how underwhelming his play had been for multiple games in a row.

It poses the question though for the Bruins and specifically Coach Cronin: should Andrews continue to get the amount of playing time he has this season?

In his sophomore season, Andrews set a new career high in average points per game with the Bruins, with 12.9 points per game in 32 starts. Thus far into this season's campaign, Andrews has seen a massive drop. Averaging under ten points per game this season in what was looking to be a step forward season, Andrews has not lived up to the expectations.

Going forward, the Bruins will hope that Andrews can keep the newfound resurgence going, as they will need every member of the squad to contribute if they want a chance at the Big Ten Championship.

This article first appeared on UCLA Bruins on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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