Villanova doesn’t have to wait long to get its first huge test of the 2021-22 season. After dispatching Mount St. Mary’s 91-51 in the season opener, the Wildcats travel across the country to take on No. 2 UCLA at the historic Pauley Pavilion on Friday night.

“There’s so many good things about their team,” Jay Wright said. “I think their basketball IQ as a team is impressive. I think everybody on the floor has got a great feel for making the right play and also defensively knowing their scouting reports. IQ, attention to detail, it seems like they can go 10 deep.”

The Bruins beat Cal St. Bakersfield 95-58 to open their season. It was an impressive performance for the Bruins, who shot 50% from the field and 48.1% from 3. They earned 26 trips to the free throw line, converting 20, and outrebounded the Roadrunners 44-35. UCLA also piled up eight blocks. The Bruins held the Roadrunners to 37.5% shooting overall. Five Bruins scored in double figures and ten scored.

Looking for any signs of weakness, Cal Bakersfield hit 41.2% from 3 and managed to swipe eight steals from UCLA. Besides that, the Bruins dominated as the score suggested they did.

With the limited data available this early in the season we have to take analytics with a grain of salt, but it’s still worth a look. At the very least it provides some interesting comparisons.

KenPom ranks UCLA 7th overall (8th offensively, 10th defensively), one spot ahead of Villanova. Haslametrics puts the Bruins 14th overall (9th offensively, 26th defensively), while ‘Nova ranks 9th. Evan Miyakawa has UCLA 11th overall. Interestingly, while the other two analytics sites like UCLA’s offense slightly better than its defense, Miyakawa has the Bruins ranked 19th offensively and 7th defensively. Villanova is currently ranked No. 2 by Miyakawa, 2nd offensively and 8th defensively.

Johnny Juzang and Jules Bernard led the way for UCLA in the season-opening win, scoring 19 points each. Jaime Jaquez Jr. chipped in 14 points, while Tyger Campbell and Jaylen Clark rounded out the double figure scorers with 10 points each. Clark made his contributions off the bench. Peyton Watson (7), David Singleton (7), Kenneth Nwuba (4), Jake Kyman (3) and Myles Johnson (2) were the other scorers for the Bruins.

Wright had high praise for Campbell when asked about the guard. “He is a really dynamic point guard,” Wright said. “He is as important to that team as anybody. He’s the motor that makes those guys go.”

UCLA lost starter Cody Riley to an injury that was later diagnosed as a MCL sprain that will keep him out of the Villanova game. It’s a significant loss for the Bruins, as the 6-9 senior averaged 10 points and 5.4 rebounds last season.

The Bruins did a great job of team rebounding, as 11 different players pulled down at least one rebound and no player had more than seven even as the team pulled down 44 caroms and was a +9 on the glass. It’s an area to watch on Friday night as ‘Nova has questions in the frontcourt.

UCLA was effective scoring the ball from all three levels against Bakersfield. Haslametrics tracks shooting from near-proximity, the mid-range and 3-point range in addition to overall FG% and after one game the Bruins rank 21st in near-proximity percentage, 19th in mid-range percentage and 4th in 3-point percentage.

“I think they’ve got seven, eight guys that are legitimate go-to guys offensively,” Wright said. “Juzang happens to be one of the best in the college game right now, but you can take any of the other starters and those guys are legitimate go-to guys on any team in the country. They got guys coming off the bench that really are good enough to be go-to guys. I think their individual offensive power is really impressive.”

It's easy to understand the hype around UCLA this season. The Bruins return 91.8% of their scoring from last year’s Final Four run. Included in those returnees are four of the Pac-12’s leading scorers from last season (Juzang, Jaquez Jr., Campbell and Bernard), one of the conference’s leading returning rebounders (Jaquez Jr.), the conference’s leading returning assist man (Campbell) and the conference’s second-best returning 3-point shooter (Singleton). In addition, they add elite freshman Watson (No. 12 prospect in 2021 class).

Defensively, UCLA defended all three levels reasonably well in the season opener, although the Bruins will hope to improve on the 3-point defense a bit. They did an excellent job defending without fouling (just eight free throws for Bakersfield) and are off to a strong start limiting second chance opportunities and the conversion of those opportunities.

This should be a fascinating matchup. These are two talented, experienced teams deserving of their lofty rankings. Both teams shoot the ball well, take care of the ball reasonably well and defend without fouling. On paper, there’s not a whole lot separating the teams and no real glaring advantages (UCLA’s rebounding is probably the closest thing to a clear advantage). It should make for a fun game and an excellent test for both teams. One team will earn a huge early season win and resume boost while the other will get the consolation prize of some experience that should come in handy as the season progresses.

Tip is set for 11:30 p.m. on ESPN2.