Feb 8, 2025; Los Angeles, California, USA; UCLA Bruins guard Eric Dailey Jr. (3) shoots over Penn State Nittany Lions forward Kachi Nzeh (15) in the second half at Pauley Pavilion presented by Wescom. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

Reason to be Concerned About UCLA's Dailey?

Originally posted on UCLA Bruins on SI
By Dominic Minchella | Last updated Feb 21, 2025 1:51 PM ET

The UCLA Bruins lost a tough one to the Minnesota Golden Gophers on Tuesday, dropping the program to three games back in the standings. It was one of the Bruins' worst losses of the season, as they blew a 17-point lead against a much inferior opponent.

A concerning trend has haunted UCLA's second leading point scorer, Eric Dailey Jr. Dailey ranks second on the roster behind Tyler Bilodeau in scoring, dropping 11.3 on average. His average has increasingly dropped, given the lack of production Dailey has given the Bruins with the ball in his hands.

For five straight games, Dailey has been unable to notch a double-digit scoring performance for UCLA. The last came against the Oregon Ducks when he turned in one of his best outings of the season, dropping 21 points in 23 minutes of play.

Dailey's time on the court has not decreased, even though his shot accuracy has over this difficult stretch. Averaging 20.8 minutes on the court, Dailey has averaged 6.8 points over this five-game stretch. One area, however, that has made Dailey an asset on the court has been his defense.

UCLA coach Mick Cronin is highly known for the defense-first mentality brought to his players, but it seems like Dailey has taken that too literally when looking at his offensive numbers of late. In his past five games, though, Dailey has totaled 14 rebounds and six steals.

While the defense that Dailey has shown should not be overlooked, he is more known for being an offensive weapon behind Bilodeau. Dailey has been the leading scorer for UCLA in seven different games this season. But where did the offense go?

It cannot be attributed to the facial injury Dailey suffered earlier this season, given he was more productive when he had the face mask covering his nose. It could all be inside Dailey's head, as UCLA fans have seen what he is capable of this past season.

One upside for Dailey: he is averaging more points per game this season than he did in his freshman campaign with the Oklahoma State Cowboys. If Dailey wishes to still be a reliable part of this program going forward, he has to find a way to get back to becoming a meaningful contributor in the scoring column.

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

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