BIG BREAKING: UCLA Injury Update: Star Player Might Return For the NCAA Tournament Opener

By | Bullscore 13 Mar, 2023

On Selection Sunday, NCAA appointed selection committee announces the tournament bracket and seeds for the upcoming NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament. UCLA and Mick Cronin, who lost the Pac-12 Championship title a few days ago, made it into the NCAA Tournament and is one of the top seeds in the country. Despite being qualified for the tournament the team is in a tough spot with two-star players being sidelined, all thanks to injuries.

UCLA starters Adem Bona and Jaylen Clark are out from the team due to injuries. While Clark is ruled out of the entire season, UCLA hoping to see Bona back on the court on their opening game of March Madness against UNC Asheville in the first-round matchup. According to Ben Bolch of The Los Angeles Times, Mick Cronin appeared to hint at the comeback of Adem Bona in the team.

Mick Cronin said Adem Bona was feeling a lot better today, sounds like a good trajectory.
— Ben Bolch (@latbbolch) March 12, 2023

Adem Bona is a freshman player, who’s been a real standout for the Bruins. Unfortunately, Bona got hurt during a game against Oregon when he went after a loose ball and had to sit out for UCLA’s conference championship loss to Arizona. This leaves the team with just Kenneth Nwuba and Mac Etienne on the defensive end, which is a big blow.

Adem Bona is out tonight for UCLA with a sore left shoulder. He’s expected to return next week.
— Ben Bolch (@latbbolch) March 12, 2023

Before his injury, Bona was having an amazing season. He played in 32 games and started in 31 of them. He averaged 7.8 points per game, 5.4 rebounds, and 1.7 blocked shots – not bad for a freshman! Plus, he had some impressive shooting percentages, making 66.9 percent of his field goal attempts and 58.8 percent of his free throws. It’s no surprise that he was voted Pac-12 Freshman of the Year and also made it onto the All-Defensive and All-Freshman teams.

Looking back, UCLA has been a force to be reckoned with under their coach, Mick Cronin. Just last season, they made it to the Sweet Sixteen in March Madness, and two years ago, they were in the Final Four. With Bona’s talent and the team’s impressive track record, it’ll be exciting to see how far they’ll go this year despite their current setback.