Feb 21, 2026; Los Angeles, California, USA; UCLA guard Donovan Dent (2) celebrates scoring the winning basket in overtime against the Illinois Fighting Illini at Pauley Pavilion presented by Wescom Financial. Mandatory Credit: Robert Hanashiro-Imagn Images Robert Hanashiro-Imagn Images

How UCLA Can Upset Nebraska

Originally posted on UCLA Bruins on SI | By Justin Backer | Last updated Mar 3, 2026 6:02 AM ET

The UCLA Bruins will be up to the task once again this week, facing off with #9 Nebraska at home in what could be the biggest game of the season for the Bruins.

The Bruins are coming off of an embarrassing road loss to the lowly Minnesota Golden Gophers. After inspiring victories over then-#10 Illinois, and USC, the Bruins came out flat, resulting in another painful loss in an important stretch of the season.

In a way, the loss feels like a missed opportunity for some breathing room, as their next matchup will be even tougher in Nebraska. Aside from their wins over Illinois, and Purdue, the Bruins have struggled against ranked teams this season. Most notably, they suffered back-to-back blowout losses to both Michigan, and Michigan State just prior to the Illinois victory.

Defeating Nebraska won’t be easy but there are ways that an upset can happen. Here’s a look at two major keys that have to happen for UCLA to knock off the Cornhuskers.

Donovan Dent improves his shooting

Robert Hanashiro-Imagn Images

Dent has had an incredible week passing the ball, dishing out 38 assists to just 1 turnover over his past three games, but his shooting has been inconsistent.

Dent shot just 5-15 from the floor in the win over Illinois, before exploding for 30 points on 10-16 shooting, and 5-6 from three-point range in the win over USC. He then followed that up with one of his worst scoring outputs of the season against Minnesota, scoring just 3 points on 1-6 shooting in the loss.

If the Bruins are to defeat Nebraska, they’ll need to be more like the version of himself that he was against USC, and find some more consistency shooting the ball.

Bruins need to lock in defensively

Just as inconsistent, has been the Bruins’ defensive effort this season. UCLA did a fine job defensively against Illinois, and did more than enough to stifle USC’s offense in both of those victories.

Robert Hanashiro-Imagn Images

However, against Minnesota, the Bruins were torched, especially from beyond the arc. Minnesota shot 58 percent from the floor as a team, and hit 12 of their 23 threes (52 percent).

Slowing down Nebraska’s offense won’t be easy by any means, but something will have to give if the Bruins are to pull off the upset.

UCLA could be facing its biggest game of the season, one that could have implications on their NCAA Tournament hopes. In what has been a weird season, there isn’t a better time to put together a solid, team performance as the season nears a close.

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

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