of the guard,” UCLA coach Mick Cronin said.

These aren’t the Oumar Ballo, Pelle Larson, grind-it-out Wildcats who traded regular-season Pac-12 titles with the Bruins and edged them for the 2023 Pac-12 Tournament championship. These Wildcats aren’t as dominant on the glass, or as imposing with their pace. That said, according to Cronin, they’re still trying to play with a familiar style. Similar sets, similar tendencies, just different personnel.

And those players are still trying to learn one another while navigating one of the nation’s toughest early-season schedules.

“They’re 4-4, but metrically, they’re in the Top 25,” Cronin said. “So it tells you they’re a Top 25 team.

Viewing them as such is important for the Bruins, who have had five days to come down from the high of celebrating Andrews’ game-winning, bank-shot 3-pointer against No. 12 Oregon on Sunday in Eugene.

What was ultimately a 73-71 victory was almost a disaster for the Bruins as Andrews forced an entry pass to Tyler Bilodeau that was deflected, intercepted and turned into a Jackson Shelstad 3-pointer that put the Ducks ahead by one with 10 seconds left. Then on the ensuing possession, Andrews stumbled and missed Bilodeau, who was sealing a shorter Shelstad, before recovering and saving the possession with the winning shot.

“We struggle throwing the ball to Tyler Bilodeau, right now,” Cronin said after the Oregon game.

Today, the 6-foot-9 Bilodeau, who excels at shooting mid-range jumpers over smaller defenders, will have an advantage against a Wildcats team whose tallest starter is 6-8. It’s a team effort to put him in those positions, though, as the Bruins’ guards need to throw smoother entry passes.

Bilodeau averaged a team high 15.5 ppg over the first six games, but he has had down scoring nights in two of the last three. With the Bruins embarking on a stretch run that includes Arizona, North Carolina, and No. 8 Gonzaga, it’s vital they get Bilodeau going again as those three teams consist of talented guards who won’t turn the ball over as much as previous opponents and will force the Bruins to score in the half court, where Bilodeau flourishes.