Last December, UCLA hosted Gonzaga at the Intuit Dome, the first official NCAA game in the Clippers’ new stadium. The Bruins snuck by with a 65-61 win over the Bulldogs, who ended the year ranked No. 23 in the AP poll.
The teams are set to face again for the second game of the two-year series, this time in Seattle. UCLA will play in the Climate Pledge Arena for the first time in 25 years Saturday, Dec. 13.
Per a statement by UCLA Athletics:
“Tickets for the event will go on sale on Friday, Sept. 19, with a one-day presale scheduled for Thursday, Sept. 18. Details regarding tickets and presale access can be found by visiting www.climatepledgearena.com. Broadcast information and a game time will be announced at a later date.”
The Bruins last played at the arena when they faced Washington in January 2000 and the facility was still named KeyArena. It closed in 2018 for renovation before reopening with its current name in 2021.
Big Ten program UCLA and West Coast Conference’s Gonzaga have played just 10 contests, but five have occurred in the last five seasons.
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The Bulldogs maintain a 7-3 advantage over the Bruins, though they did lose in Inglewood. The teams have faced twice in the NCAA Tournament, with Gonzaga advancing in both 2021 and 2023. Gonzaga also won two neutral site contests in Las Vegas (Nov. 2021) and Honolulu (Nov. 2023).
Despite Gonzaga’s history of beating UCLA, the Bruins are expected to have a good season, and were ranked No. 10 in last week’s CBS Sports Too-Early Top 25 Rankings After the Transfer Portal. The Bulldogs were ranked No. 18.