Rutgers Crushed by UCLA in Sixth Straight Loss

Scarlet Knights' defense struggles in blowout defeat at Pauley Pavilion

Feb. 3, 2026 at 11:07pm

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Rutgers Basketball suffered its sixth consecutive loss on Tuesday night, falling 98-66 to UCLA in a lopsided defeat at Pauley Pavilion. The Scarlet Knights' defense struggled mightily, allowing the Bruins to shoot 60% from the field in the second half and pull away for a comfortable victory. Freshman guard Kaden Powers led Rutgers with a career-high 18 points, but it wasn't enough to overcome UCLA's dominant frontcourt performance.

Why it matters

Rutgers' road woes continue to be a major issue, as the team has now lost all seven of its away games this season by an average margin of over 20 points. The Scarlet Knights' inability to start games strongly on the road has been a recurring problem, and they'll need to find a solution if they hope to turn their season around.

The details

UCLA had four players score in double figures, led by a career-high 24 points from forward Xavier Booker. Forwards Tyler Bilodeau (19 points, 7 rebounds) and Eric Dailey Jr. (17 points) also had big games for the Bruins, who finished with 25 assists on 35 made field goals. Rutgers struggled offensively in the second half, shooting just 8-for-25 from the floor after a promising start.

  • Rutgers fell to 9-14 overall and 2-10 in Big Ten play with the loss.
  • The Scarlet Knights have now lost six straight games.

The players

Kaden Powers

A freshman guard for Rutgers who set a career-high with 18 points in the loss.

Xavier Booker

A UCLA forward who led all scorers with a career-high 24 points on 10-of-11 shooting.

Tyler Bilodeau

A UCLA forward who scored 19 points and grabbed 7 rebounds in the win.

Eric Dailey Jr.

A UCLA forward who contributed 17 points to the Bruins' offensive outburst.

Donovan Dent

The UCLA point guard dished out 11 assists to go with his 13 points.

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What they’re saying

“We must find a way to start games better on the road. The slow starts have really hurt us all season.”

— Steve Pikiell, Rutgers Head Coach

What’s next

Rutgers will look to end its six-game losing streak when it returns home to host No. 9 Nebraska on Saturday, February 7th.

The takeaway

Rutgers' inability to defend at a high level on the road has been a major factor in its struggles this season. The Scarlet Knights will need to shore up their defense and find a way to start games stronger away from home if they hope to turn things around and earn some key conference wins down the stretch.