Ace Bailey Stats Tonight - How did the Rutgers star fare vs UCLA? (Jan. 13)
Rutgers Scarlett Knights swingman Ace Bailey had another outstanding output during his team's 76-68 Big Ten victory over the UCLA Bruins on Monday. The triumph is the Steve Pikiell-coached squad's second victory of the 2025 conference play in six games played, where they have since moved to above .500 with their 9-8 overall record.
Bailey played for 38 minutes in the hotly-contested fixture, dropping a game-high 20 points to go along with 10 rebounds, two assists, three blocks and a steal. He shot an efficient 53.8% from the field and was perfect from the free throw line on all five of his attempts.
To open the matchup, Ace Bailey was aggressive in finding his groove on offense. After a couple of miscues, he'd find the bottom of the net for his first make at the 17:22 mark. Making his presence known on defense and securing the basketball, Bailey would find himself on the charity stripe to sink both of his attempts as UCLA was still in the lead, 7-4.
Despite not finding any attempts to score, the freshman standout was helping in other areas such as being a pest on the Bruins offense while being in the right places for the Rutgers playbook. It was a neck-in-neck affair throughout as UCLA managed to maintain its edge throughout the half.
With that, first-year guard Dylan Harper would find a cutting Bailey in the final seconds of the first frame for an athletic two-handed alley-oop dunk that would trim the Bruins' advantage to 33-30.
Coming into the second half, Bailey would finally find his footing with converting shots as he would make his team's first jumper in the first possession. Continuing with his tremendous on-ball defense, the 18-year-old would nail another jump shot as the Rutgers edge increased to five, 46-41.
As the period progressed, Bailey would get points off of free throws and jumpers that would help the Scarlett Knights stay afloat of their lead. With under two minutes remaining, he would score his lone three of the game and eventually end the game with a couple more baskets. This second-half explosion by Bailey propelled Rutgers to a 75-68 triumph as the final buzzer sounded.
Here are Ace Bailey's final stats for Monday's win over UCLA:
Ace Bailey's fifth double-double of the year ends Rutgers' three-game losing streak
Heading into the conference matchup, the Scarlett Knights suffered tough defeats to the Indiana Hoosiers, Wisconsin Badgers and Purdue Boilermakers. This is why Bailey's performance on Monday was one of the driving forces for the Rutgers program to return to the winning column.
The 6-foot-10 spitfire scorer's final stat line on the night is his fifth double-double of the campaign, showcasing he can contribute in a multitude of ways. On the year, Bailey is averaging 18.9 markers, 7.6 caroms, 1.1 swipes and 1.2 swats a game in what could be a one-and-done stint for him.
Baileya and Co. take on the Nebraska Cornhuskers on the road next at Pinnacle Bank Arena on Thursday.